We are Camping Nu, Nu, Nu!!!!!

We know it has been awhile since our last blog update, but things have been kind of crazy for the past few weeks. On Sept. 13th we went to our favorite Chinese restaurant to celebrate Josh's Gotcha Day. Josh's true Gotcha Day was Sept. 17th, 2006. It seems like just yesterday we were meeting Josh for the first time.

On Sept 18th the three of us left for the first camping trip in our new camper. We had planned to go to the Cumberland Gap area in Kentucky, but due to bad weather we made a last minute change to Chain O' Lakes State Park. We really like this park and there were several things we wanted to do in the area. The only bad thing was that the mosquitoes were awful. Josh's face paid the price because you can't put mosquito repellent on your face. Plus, he fell while playing on the playgrounds and gave himself a nice bruise on his left cheek. That's our boy!

Josh really likes to sing. So he created a camping song one morning at breakfast. The song became the theme of our trip. The song went like this: We are camp-ing Nu, Nu, Nu (repeat).

Here's our campsite complete with Josh's underwear hanging out to dry.

Just a short drive up the road, to Albion, IN, from the campgrounds was Black Pine Animal Sanctuary. It was a rescue for exotic animals. Their facility was very nice and it was sad to hear the stories of the animals. After our visit we've decided that we can't go to the circus. The camel at the sanctuary was there because it was to dark to match with the costume the camel had to wear. We couldn't believe that.

Of course we had smores, but Josh liked to eat marshmallows right out of the bag best.

We also went to the Fort Wayne Zoo. It was terrific. I had read that it was great for young kids and it was very true. The animal enclosures were very nice and allowed up close encounters with the animals. There was a train, sky lift, raft ride, carousel, and pony rides. All of which Josh loved. We will definitely be going back. At the end of the day we let Josh play in the splash zone. He so loves water and was soaked from head to toe.

Josh playing the drums in the African Journey sections.

Josh riding Gail the pony.

Everyone loves to feed the goats, but these goats were crazy. There were a few minutes before feeding time so we let Josh brush the goats. The only problem was that they were attacking our pants, coats, and camera bag. Once we did have our cup of food the goats were jumping ON us so much that Josh went outside the pen to feed them.

Chain O' Lakes SP has seven lakes that are connected by creeks which are perfect for canoes or our kayaks. We love to kayak and so does Josh. He plays in the water, tries to paddle, sits and enjoys the ride, goes from mom's kayak to dad's kayak and vice a versa, and he even peed into the lake from the kayak. (That took some skill on dad's part to assist in that process.) It won't be long before we will need to get a tandem kayak for him. Josh really liked all the bridges we passed under. We had to "honk" as we went under each one.

As Josh rides along in the kayak he collects things. Usually it's lily pads, but this time he collected leaves in the water. What a collection!

Mom and Josh heading back in.

Josh loves his big wheel and he is juuuuust big enough to push the pedals. Sometimes dad has to give him a helping hand with a trusty stick though. He especially liked to ride his big wheel through the puddles.

After four days at Chain O' Lakes we packed up and went to Mounds State Park. We were hoping that the rain would stop, but it poured that night. We all had a great time on the playgrounds and walked some of the trails to the Indian mounds at the park.

Josh can't wait to help dad with putting logs on the fire. We had just roasted our last marshmallow before the heavens let loose on us. It was then a mad dash to get the bikes under the awning before our seats were soaked through.

While camping we tried out everything on our new camper to make sure everything was just right. We have been having a problem with one door latch since we brought our camper home, so it currently is in the shop getting that taken care of. Of course, when Matt took it in, the door worked fine. Murphy's law at its' finest.

Today we went to the Children's Museum . Josh likes the trains and the dinosaurs best of all. We don't know what we are doing tomorrow, but it could be anything.

M, J and J

Josh trying to hitch up and go!