So we went camping, part 3

Not long after the group picture we all packed up and headed our separate ways. Most people headed home but a bunch of us decided to take advantage of some of the local hiking trails.

On our hike we ran across the lovely remnants of an old fireplace and root cellar. It was built by Irish immigrants around 150 years ago when the moved to American to escape the second potato famine.  They lived here for decades, raising sheep along the hills and growing a subsistence farm with their children. 

I'm not sure why, but this site felt really special to me--maybe because I can imagine how beautiful it must have been to wake up in this forest every day (and how cold and forbidding it must have been in the winter), but also because many of my ancestors are Irish immigrants, and I think I felt a kinship with this family. 

It was really refreshing to be outside for a prolonged period of time.  We thought Nikolai might get tired of it, but if anything it whet his appetite for more!

Towards the end of the hike we found a little bridge, where the tots threw rocks and we played pooh sticks. 

Impromptu family picture! And we're all looking at the camera! Miracle!

Do you know that I love my boys? Do you know that I love them outside? They are great!

Guys, this was such a relaxing trip.  It took some work to pack and prepare but the rest of the trip was surprisingly easy.  It went so well, in fact, that we've decided to do it again very soon! Hooray for the great outdoors!