heaven on earth

For as long as I can remember, my family has camped at Tony Grove
nearly every summer.
Kent and I missed out on the trip last year because Nicholas was only days away from coming into this world.

But this summer, we came camping at Tony Grove.

It may sound silly, but there's something about this place

that just fills me up with joy.

The smell of the pine trees, the sway of the wildflowers on the hills, the soft lapping of waves on the rocky shore.

I feel so refreshed, so at peace when I'm there.

This is where I've grown up. On Wednesday morning, my mom and I walked around to the other side of the lake,

I pushed Nicholas in the stroller

and he slept.

Mom pointed out a rocky slope down by the water where she sat with me when I was only 6 weeks old. They propped up a cardboard box to shield me from the wind.

Three years ago, Kent and I visited Tony Grove the day that Kent asked my Dad if he could marry me.

And now, we're back, bringing our own little baby boy to play in the dirt and splash in the water and sit by the campfire at night.

So, Tony Grove has been just as much my home as any house I've lived in.

Nicholas learned how to wave hello and to "roll it" in Paddy Cake while we were up there.
We put him in a swing for the first time, and he wow-ed and ahh-ed the whole time.

Kent had fun, too. He was happier and more relaxed than I've seen him in weeks.

I'm sure that being assigned campfire duty had something to do with that.

Oh boy did he have fun.We all had a wonderful time, even though it was cut a bit short as Nicholas came down with a fever so we came home a night early. Sleeping in tents with a sick baby just isn't the best idea for anyone involved. He's completely recovered now, so all is well.

And I'm so glad we were able to go to Tony Grove.