Wednesday, October 29, 2014

Camping at Lake Blackshear

Justin, Wyatt, and I loaded up our pop-up camper and headed to Georgia Veterans State Park in Cordele this past week. We had a camp spot right on Lake Blackshear and it was wonderful!
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When we picked the dates to camp, we were just looking for a time when we both could be off for a few days. We didn’t realize there was going to be so much to do at the park that weekend. Lucky us!
We got all set up on Thursday. Justin and I spent some time watching the squirrels in action. Those sneaky things were all over our picnic table and Wyatt’s toys!
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Later that evening, Justin was taking Wyatt to the deer woods for the first time so we spent some time practicing in our “deer blind” (our camper) being quiet and watching the squirrels.
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Wyatt got some chocolate eyeballs and was so silly!
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Here are the boys all decked out in their camo for Wyatt’s first hunting trip. They are so much like each other!
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While Justin and Wyatt were gone, I propped my feet up and read this book about agritourism in Georgia. It was so neat to see my friends and label the farms and stops I wanted to see in the future.
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On Friday, I rented a bicycle from the park rangers to ride along with Wyatt. My seat kept tilting up so that wasn’t comfortable at all! We opted to walk around the lake shore, checking out the marina and even playing in the water. I can’t believe it was warm enough in late October to wade in the water, but that’s South Georgia for you!
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Friday night, my in-laws, Desiree and Sheldon, stopped by the camp ground and ate with us. Justin cooked a pot roast with carrots and potatoes in his Dutch oven. I am so proud of him!
After supper, we went up to the park’s visitor center to ride the hay ride. We didn’t know this was happening until the week before. We paid $3 for the ride.
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We were surprised when the hay ride took us into the woods to a clearing full of pumpkins. Included in your ticket was a small pumpkin! What a happy surprise! We decorated the pumpkins with foam face cut outs. They are all so much fun to see!
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On Saturday, Suzi, David, Liam, Pax, and Sami joined us for lunch. It was fun having all of the boys there. Pax was so content to sit with us in the shade until nap time and Sami took Wyatt and Liam to the playground and for an impromptu photo shoot in the leaves.
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After they left, we gave Wyatt the shortest nap in the history of naps. I don’t think he was asleep for more than 20 minutes before it was time to get him up again. We had free tickets to ride the Sam Shortline train pulled by Thomas the Train for A Day Out With Thomas. Wyatt had a good time. The ride was only about 15 minutes or so across the lake and back. There were some kids there that were almost jumping out of their skin to see Thomas. I suppose if it was Lightning McQueen, Wyatt would be the same way.
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After Thomas, we headed back to the camp site. Amanda, Michael, Jake, Ben, and Rivers were all there. We had a hearty dinner of chicken perlo, again compliments of Justin’s mean Dutch oven skills. It was delicious!
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We all loaded up on the hay ride again, picking out even more pumpkins. This time, the kids were able to paint their designs.
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After pumpkin decorating, we rounded out the weekend with s’mores over the fire pit.
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We had a really great time. I’m glad we can spend time as a family and it doesn’t have to be at a theme park or some other incredibly costly resort. Justin and I have a goal to visit as many state parks as we can over the next few years. I think it’s a fun and lofty goal that will let us get to see more of the state!

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