Family Camping 2015

Ah, family camping. 

I'm a fan of repetition in design as well as in life. 

Repetition in life is called tradition. 

Our location is the same (outside Olympia, Washington on some timber land that my brother's company owns) and many of the people are the same from year to year. This group was started by my brother and sister-in-law and some of their friends and usually includes my cousin Rob (the best storyteller and all-around creative genius) and his family along with an extended collection of my brother's friends. Some stay out there all three nights and some come just for the day. This year Rob organized an art show for the kids to draw pictures of Shakey the Bear - a family camping legend who brings treats to well-behaved campers. 

This year also marked the first that the adults were officially and completely outnumbered by the kids. There were so many babies! Simon was in heaven - he loves babies. 

Each family is responsible for one meal. I had Sunday breakfast this year and ended up doing a dry cereal bar that included purchasing a whole bunch of fun kids cereals (and bringing way too much home too). 

This was also the hottest Family Camping adventure to date. We spent a lot of time in the water to stay cool which not a single person complained about. This year one family brought some kayaks and another brought a big inflatable floating thing and I brought a couple water chairs. Water time was definitely a highlight this year. 

It's one of my favorite places to take photos. Being outside all day long is an awesome opportunity to capture light at just the right moments. I shot most of these photos with my DSLR and a few with my iPhone 6+.

Looking at this photo of Anna and Lucy and friend Hannah made me go back in my archives to find this one of them just a couple of years ago: 

And then there's this one from this year: 

Which totally made me look for this one from 2011: 

Right before our very eyes. 

My cousin Rob, my brother John, and my longtime friend Paolo. 

Simon and Auntie Liz and baby Olive. 

Sweet Jane. 

Story time. The stuff legends are made of - these kids will remember this stuff forever. 

The morning hike up into the woods. 

Some of our crazy crew. 

Shake leaves these awesome notes around from time to time and the kids follow the clues to find goodies such as drawing materials, glow necklaces, and other treats. 

The suit is from JCrew. My sister had it first and I loved it on her so I got one for myself. 

Paolo and Anna out in the kayak. 

Baby Olive. 

The kids art show. 

Freeman. He is rad. 

See past Family Camping posts here: 20112012, 2014.

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28 thoughts

  1. mtercha says…
    08/10/2015

    Beautiful photos. It looks like such a fun, awesome time. Cool. Michelle t

    Reply 0 Replies
  2. hgauvin says…
    08/10/2015

    Anna is 2012? Adorable! Great pictures - looks like so much fun!

    Reply 0 Replies
  3. Daragc says…
    08/10/2015

    I love to hear about your family and their adventures. Thanks for sharing!

    Reply 0 Replies
  4. flashysoupcan says…
    08/10/2015

    This made me miss my family something fierce. Thank you for sharing, looks like you had a lovely time.

    Reply 0 Replies
  5. angymuse says…
    08/10/2015

    so awesome. Simon is getting tall!!

    Reply 0 Replies
  6. Lize says…
    08/10/2015

    Ahh, wonderful photo's of good times. I like the crazy crew one the most. Also interesting to see quite a few blonde hair brown eyed girlies. Thanks for sharing. These photo's makes me want to persue more opportunities like this with my own family.

    Reply 0 Replies
  7. desilei says…
    08/10/2015

    What an amazing tradition! I loved all of your pictures, but for some reason, the ones of Simon on his own, really touched me the most. So beautiful. Thanks for sharing. --Desiree

    Reply 0 Replies
  8. maiaohe says…
    08/10/2015

    Loved the art work completed by the children and the bear tradition. You were so lucky to have a campfire where you were. The Washington State Parks have a burn ban on and camping just isn't camping without a campfire.

    Reply 1 Reply
    1. AliEdwards says…
      08/10/2015

      The fire we had was a small propane fire pit - no "actual" campfire this year like we've had in years past.

  9. AmberCA says…
    08/10/2015

    Wow, totally love looking at these family memories! My family has a summer camping tradition too. Every July we all meet up in Pismo Beach, CA to enjoy each other and the beach. It's my absolute favorite part of the year. Thank you for sharing!

    Reply 0 Replies
  10. aleciaangell says…
    08/10/2015

    I might actually learn to like camping if I could hang out with a bunch of FABULOUS people like this!!

    Reply 0 Replies
  11. marygrace says…
    08/10/2015

    <3

    Reply 0 Replies
  12. JensHappyPlace says…
    08/10/2015

    Just beautiful! Do you have a separate scrapbook for these camping adventures or do you just add it to your Project Life? You have so many amazing photos that I could definitely see an album on its own! Thanks for your inspiration as always, Ali. :)

    Reply 1 Reply
    1. AliEdwards says…
      08/10/2015

      I don't have anything separate. They either go into Project Life or I make a layout.

  13. mia954 says…
    08/10/2015

    I've enjoyed watching your kids (and you...I'm about your mom's age) grow up, as I've followed your story since 2 Peas...loved the age comparison photos you shared of Anna and Simon...love your family camping tradition too....such wonderful memories-making times!

    Reply 0 Replies
  14. kre8tivekate says…
    08/10/2015

    2 things:
    1. This was exactly like the vacations my family took when I was a kid.
    2. I used to cross my legs exactly the way Anna is doing in the picture of the storytelling. Sadly, I am not as skinny as I used to be, and cannot do that now...
    Fabulous pictures, and a lot of pages to come!

    Reply 0 Replies
  15. Lynette150 says…
    08/10/2015

    Lovely photos. Thank you so much for letting us see glimpses of your family trip.

    Reply 0 Replies
  16. Ekaterine says…
    08/10/2015

    it is so beautiful it almost hurts!

    Reply 0 Replies
  17. jchurch2 says…
    08/10/2015

    Boy, you really appreciate the passage of time when you see photos of kids.....Simon and Anna are so grown up! What a great family experience. So glad you shared with us.

    Reply 0 Replies
  18. cagoodm says…
    08/11/2015

    Your opening sentences made me think "repeat" would be an awesome story kit theme!

    Reply 0 Replies
  19. AmberHousley says…
    08/14/2015

    love this. makes me want to pack up right now for a camping trip but it's still a little warm here in TN. :)
    question - what lens did you use on your DSLR for most of these?

    Reply 1 Reply
    1. AliEdwards says…
      08/26/2015

      Hey - I use a 24-70.

  20. Binxcat1 says…
    08/18/2015

    Perfection.

    Reply 0 Replies
  21. bcbc says…
    08/18/2015

    The fun, to the sublime.
    Awesome photos.

    Reply 0 Replies
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    02/20/2017

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    Reply 0 Replies

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