Walking with Team Gina

I'm so sorry for the delay in sharing about our Team Gina walk and wrapping up last weekend.  I never got around to working on the post before we went camping again this weekend.  Yep, you read that right! Camping in Miss Peggy two weekends in a row.  We camped at the same place as before and for good reason.  But I will get to that later.  For now let me back up to last Sunday.

Our last day camping with Miss Peggy on our inaugural camping trip had us all waking waaay before the sun did that day. We had a long drive ahead of us and had to be there to meet the rest of the team at 7:15am. As soon as we got there, we picked up our new Team Gina race day shirts.  Caleb and Madeline had just learned a new hand game from their new friends and were anxious to teach it to their cousins.

 Havi looked  like a 'lil gangsta with my Team Gina cap on.

Once the team had all arrived and registered, I snapped a pre-walk team photo.  Funny thing about this photo is that the local paper snapped a photo of me taking it.

 Since we left my minivan back at home, we were down a stroller.  So my sister came to the rescue and loaned me her carrier for Havi and her umbrella stroller for Madeline.  Deb, you were a lifesaver!

 Team Gina always brings up the rear for the walkers.  We had over 75 people walk as a part of Team Gina!  So naturally our group needs a little extra space. lol

 This photo of Lexi, Gina and Will's daughter (with her brothers alongside her) makes me smile.  During Gina's first walk, she found herself doing the very same thing- pushing a childless stroller.  Just like her mama....

 These cousins just melt my heart.  They were so adorable walking and holding hands.

 We did the short course...and yes, it took us 42 minutes to walk 1 mile.  Try to beat that time!

Madeline was none to pleased with the nutritious post race snack options.  Like her mama, she was wondering where the doughnuts were.

  Lexi enjoyed some watermelon.

  Havi enjoyed flashing her belly.

 I had to grab a quick photo of the POPS nurses.  They all worked with Gina at the same pediatric outpatient surgery center.  All three ladies are named Debbie.  How funny is that?

 After most everyone had refreshed themselves with something to eat or drink, we took another team photo.

  After picking up some goodies from the sponsor tables (like the awesome scarf from Ford that's on Madeline's head), it was time to head home.  We said our good byes, snapped a few photos and were on our way back to the campsite.

 After getting some lunch, it was time to head back to the beach for some sun and surf.  The kids got right to playing in the sand.

It truly was a fantastic first camping trip in Miss Peggy.  It's so awesome to go camping with friends, especially when all your sites are next to each other.  It's just like one big party.  The kids go back and forth between all the campers, ride each others bikes, share boogie boards.  The grown ups share food and conversation.  It's just all around a fantastic time together developing friendships and deepening relationships with our kids.

And as you can see from my introduction, we had such a great time, we couldn't wait to do it again!  We still had to sneak away for two tennis tournaments, which meant no late night dinners or s'mores.  But I will share more about that as soon as I get those photos uploaded.

Day 2 with Miss Peggy

Day 2 of our inaugural camping trip with Miss Peggy found us relaxing in the morning.  

The kids can't wait to head outside and ride their bikes or tricycles first thing.

 We had decided to spend part of the morning fishing.  

The kids had to check out the bait.

 Then it was time to head down to the water.  

These rocks are dangerous and must be navigated slowly.  

As such I opted to leave my Nikon up at the top and just took my phone down to the water to capture the moment.

Unfortunately we didn't catch anything, unless seaweed and rocks count.  

We did see turtles and jellyfish.  So all was not lost.

We headed back to the trailer for lunch.  Caleb and Madeline are enthralled with the hitching and unhitching of trailers and fifth wheels.  So they got a real kick out of watching a 5th wheel hitch up and leave the site during their lunch.

 Caleb then headed off to his tennis tournament.  Since these particular courts don't have a playground, the girls and I opted to stay back at the campsite.  They took naps while I enjoyed some quiet time.  Caleb played very well and again split his matches 2-2.  We are just so proud of him.  By the time they returned, it was time for dinner.  Dinner for 11 kids and 6 grown ups...that's a lot of food.

 A little bit later, our new friend Emily's sister came to visit, along with her husband and two kids.  Some of the people went fishing again while the rest of stayed back to make s'mores and eat some ice cream I made and brought along.

Day 2 was a great day.  I wished we could've stayed up late, chatting with our new friends more.  But we had an early wake up call the following morning for the Race for the Cure walk with Team Gina.  Gosh, do I love sitting outside in the dark under the night sky.  There's just something so peaceful about it.

Her maiden voyage

She made her maiden voyage this weekend.  That would be Miss Peggy I'm talkin' 'bout.  That's the name Patrick and I agreed upon for our sweet new travel trailer.  We thought we'd get input from the kids, but they came up with pretty modern names.  Nope. Not gonna cut it.  So Miss Peggy it is.

 We are so thankful that our driveway is long enough that we can back her and the truck up to the house.  And not only that, but we can pull right out and around our cul-de-sac without having to back up at all.  Sah-weet.

So we took her up the road to a local park located on the beach.  After getting settled between our two friends' campsites, the kids did a little chillin' inside.

 You see that iPad there?  It's only allowed for special night time movies.  Yep.  It's our trailer, so we make the rules. Hee hee.

 Thankfully we have two sets of bunkbeds so there's no arguing over who gets to sleep in the top bunk. lol

The first night went well.  Havi woke up crying.  And since we didn't want her to wake Caleb and Madeline, who were sleeping right near her, we put her with us.  That was cozy.

Next morning, the kids did a craft with our friend Lisa.  Havi was too little to participate in the craft but couldn't be left alone inside the trailer during the activity.  She was not too pleased.

 Then it was time to head over to the beach...as in walk about 50 feet from our trailers and into the soft sand.  Um, hello.  Can't get much betta than that.  Havi insisted on helping me carry something.  I gave her pringles and a blanket.

 Oh, those pringles were something special.  They often fell out, and she popped them right back in.  Sand is a flavor, you know.

 All the kids had fun playing in the sand and boogie boarding.  And the mommies and daddies had a great time relaxing.  It was such a great afternoon.

Then we had to head out to a tennis tournament that night.  I was annoyed that they didn't give them enough courts to play on.  So they could only play doubles.  Nonetheless, Caleb played well and won both doubles matches.

 Madeline and Havi were pretty good sports during the matches.  They had no playground to run around on.  So instead they ran around the bathroom and office.

 Madeline can't resist picking flowers.  And no matter where she ran, Havi was sure to follow.

That wraps up our first night and day camping in Miss Peggy.  I have a bunch more photos to share from the rest of our weekend....more tennis, more beach, s'mores, and a special walk.