pawtuckaway

friday after work and school we loaded our camping stuff in the car to journey to new hampshire to commune with nature (pawtuckaway state park to be exact, about 1.5 hours away).  we arrived after the sun had set, so we put our tent up in the dark and worked on cooking our dinner over the fire.  our friends got there before us, so they already had the fire going strong.  we roasted hot dogs and s'mores and also enjoyed dutch oven brownies and popcorn cooked over the fire.  after our bellies were full, we chatted around the fire (and tried to scare the resident raccoon away) until the embers went out.

the next morning we woke up to this:

we were camping right on the lake!  what a gorgeous view to wake up to.

 we started a morning fire (okay... eric started it) and broke out the camping stoves to prepare our feast of a breakfast.  camping with friends is the best, especially when you share meals.  we had an abundance of pancakes, eggs, hash-browns, sausage, and hot chocolate to enjoy for our morning meal. yum!

do you like our "good morning" faces?

 

after we were stuffed, we tore down our camp to take off and play for the day. our first stop was the beach area.

 

then we rented some canoes to paddle around the lake.  we explored little islands and coves, chased the loons around, and enjoyed the leaves which were beginning to change colors.  and the weather was perfect!  i love these fall days.  fall just may be my favorite season. 

after we got our canoeing fill in, we turned in our boats and ate our left over food on the beach for a most nutritious lunch - consisting of chips and chocolate. our planning ahead skills can only be so good.  we chatted beach-side for a good while and then headed home.  as we were driving out i said to jeremy, "i love everything about this place."  it really was quite delightful and refreshing to get away from the city and camp beneath the brilliant stars.