Baby's First Vacay

Getting to this a bit late, as usual, but I need to post on Paige's first vacation before the next one happens!

Memorial Day weekend is the traditional Family Camp weekend for our church at Camp Albright, between Hersey and Reed City. It was our first "family vacation" and first camping trip! We decided to start out easy, staying in a cabin (roof, walls, cots, electricity). Luckily we brought a little heater with us, as the first night was pretty cold. But the weather was fantastic--lots of sun and not too hot. Paige seemed to love camping! She hung out with the bigger kids, helped Mommy with crafts time, and just enjoyed the fresh air. We cooked all of our meals with a few other families outdoors, and Matt even rigged up a cookstove with 2 empty (and never used, mind you) paint cans, a roll of toilet paper, and a wire hanger...if I were a better blogger, I would have the link to the instructions and a picture for you. We cooked several pounds of bacon and sausage, among other things, until we ran out of denatured alcohol for fuel on Sunday!

(Family Cabin, Parrott-Style)

Unfortunately, the one thing she wasn't a fan of was riding in the bike trailer we have for her. We had her fitted for a little helmet and everything, but once she sits inside, she pushes against the back of the trailer and the helmet slides in her face. We tried just a slow ride around the grounds instead of out on the trail, but she hated that too. So, we converted the trailer to a stroller and pushed her around.

(Ready to ride?)

(Ah, this is much better!)

(Mmm...teething)

We also went on a hayride, played on the playground, and hung out at the campfire. Matt and I took turns kayaking and canoeing...hopefully next year we'll take a canoe as a family down to the ice cream store. What's more, we loved camping together so much that we pulled out Matt's old tent as soon as we got home to make sure it was still waterproof, and we're planning the next trip out, hopefully in July!

Paige is continuing to grow like the proverbial weed...she's right around 20 pounds! She loves to babble and sing, and is oh so close to crawling! She rocks and rocks on all fours, and sometimes gets right up on her hands and toes, but is so upset when she doesn't move forward. I just wish I could do something to help, but I guess I just play the cheerleader right now...and keep the floors clean! I keep telling myself that she may be a late crawler, but could be an early walker. I also remember to be thankful, as we were told back in the NICU that there was a slight chance she may need physical therapy have weak legs due to a small spot on her brain that was deprived of oxygen, according to her MRI (see our old blog posts from September). We praise God for those strong, chubby legs!