Camp LeConte

By far, one of my FAVORITE things that we have done was our Camp LeConte experience. 

The situation included monsoons, thunderstorms, more rain, a million hours in every day and 3 kids/3 adults in a very small outdoor space. And...it was seriously so much fun; I am already trying to plan our next trip. 

It is called "glamping" because you have an option of a safari tent which is basically just a slightly larger tent on a stand with beds and an electrical outlet. So, you know, not really a tent at all. 

Honestly, how cute is this whole set up?? 

Also, once we planned it, we knew we had to bring Reese with us because these 2 are the best of friends. 

The boys & I slept in the bed on the right and we had a very snuggly few nights, excluding the moments when Max peed all over the bed on the first night. We were able to find out firsthand why the little store includes a tiny laundry facility. 

Noni was ALL over this idea the second that we heard about it. I mean, there are so many reasons that I love her, but her DESIRE to create experiences and memories is one of the best. She might be the reason that we didn't go crazy during the thunderstorms. 

I mean, just thank goodness that we brought Bop along because he definitely provided all of the meals. 

This kid only wants to be outside/catching stuff ALL.DAY.LONG. 

This kid just wants to eat sugar in his Mama's lap ALL.DAY.LONG.

There was a little playground on the campground. 

And, they even had a pool! Now, let me be clear-the weather was about 65 degrees at certain points so there is no way the water was warm, but they did not seem to mind.  We would wait for the clear moments between the storms and run down there until it started raining again. 

This might be just before Max burned his hand...every party has a pooper and his name is usually Max. 

Also, my poor mom had to deal with my hysterical demands to google burn treatments while I was cuddling this screaming baby "inside," trying to find Monkey. I seriously have PTSD from the Chick-Fil-A playground stitches situation and expect the worst in every injury situation. 

Spoiler alert: he was fine. 

I mean, of course we had to bring this girl with us!

The campground was just so, so cute. 

Have I mentioned that it was raining during the majority of the trip? Seriously, one of their favorite activities was building dams with the water trails. 

Because of the rain, we played a little indoor mini golf. 

And, the kids all rode go-karts. Kids can drive at 4 but our little Pieces is not quite tall enough to reach the pedals, even with all of the extra seat pillows. The poor manager felt so bad because he had assured us that all 4 year olds are able to drive, so he let me drive her around a few laps. 

Meanwhile, this kid was THRILLED about being able to drive. He took it very seriously and actually did a really good job!

While we wanted to do more, we opted to do a short trail  in the mountains, which turned out to be a good call because it literally started pouring as soon as we made it back to our car. 

Reese did not want to climb on this limb because she was scared that she was "too little," so I, of course, made her do it and then she was so proud when she made it.

So, so grateful for these parents of mine. 

We made it to Cataract Falls, which is apparently the prettiest after a long rainfall, so that was definitely a silver lining!

Also, "Cataract." I know.

It was like some kind of sick joke. 

Everything was soaking wet and we didn't think anything would ever dry. But, how much do I love our hiking boots lined up together like this??

POURING. 

Also, the tent we were originally supposed to stay in had been blown away by a storm about a week earlier, so that was encouraging to think about as we listened to the rain pound our canvas home. 

Like all trips with small children, we were parenting with a change of scenery. I have been planning for this trip for awhile and had a ton of random stuff hoarded away, which turned out to come in handy during our tent bonding time. 

My mom did such a good job planning meals-we even had Mexican one night!

We had the best time & I cannot wait to go back!

Some videos:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FZ6mZVoueT0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2iTD8W5_Sc