Camping Recap - Arrowhead

 Recapping our third camping trip of the summer.  This time we went with another family of four, who also have two boys.  We hang out with them in the city but this was our first camping trip together.  Let's get to it!

We were all packed up to go last Sunday.

Full but not filled to the brim, we could see out the back!

Obligatory stop at Webers since we were heading north on Hwy 11.  Q says he likes this "sandwich" (cheeseburger).

Then we went to Kawartha Dairy in Huntsville for ice creams.

We got into Arrowhead Provincial Park mid-afternoon and set to work. See how hot and humid it is from Q's sweaty hair.  And I am also looking tired :)

Q enjoying his pasta.  If you're interested in how we prepare food for camping I am going to do a post about that on Wednesday.

Note the tarp above us.  We had rain several times throughout our trip so it was good to have this up.

Our site was right next to be beach (No. 501 in Roe, for those who know), so I took the opportunity to go out for a paddle board ride before breakfast.  I was the only paddler that I could see, but I did some some fisher people on shore.  We got ready after breakfast for the beach and spent much of the day there. 

The kids got a lot of biking in and Q kept up despite being the youngest.  They got these activity books at the store.

They also got some push pops.

A little bocce ball action.

On Tuesday morning we enjoyed our breakfast under the tarp.  The was what the kids were most excited for - Fruit Loops and Corn Pops. 

Then we set out on a hike around the lake.  The boys all did well.  Our friends had some walkie talkies which was a big hit with Q.

After our hike we went to the beach for part of the afternoon.

I paddled down the East River to the waterfall.  This was proof I made it to the bridge :)

Lots of fun in the water.  It started raining mid-afternoon so we grabbed everything and headed back to our sites. 

Fire starting time after supper.

Making some campfire cones.

That night the boys actually went down to fish and caught a small one.  This was a highlight for Q and he has asked to go fishing every day since.  Looks like we need to make our way to Hyatt's again soon!

They also saw this big turtle!

The forecast for Wednesday was calling for lots of rain so we weren't sure what to do with our day.  First up was pancakes though.

We thought we would start with a bike ride to the lookout and then throughout the East River campground and to the waterfalls.

Thanks for this great photo Colleen (along with some other photos. !!

Then the sun came out and it was the most beautiful beach day, no rain!

Dave took the paddle board out for a spin.

We got a bit of rain overnight so we were packing up a wet tent again.  We were ready to go home so we hit the road around 11:00, got some lunch in Huntsville and made good time home.  Usually we are heading out of Muskoka on a Sunday afternoon so the Thursday traffic was much better.  Thanks for the great camping trip friends!!

Friday Favourites

 

We just returned from our third (!) camping trip of the summer, this time we went Sunday to Thursday instead of over a weekend.  I will post a recap of that next week as I get to organize my photos. Spoiler, fun was had, despite several bouts of rain. 

I didn't post a weekend recap last week but here are some favourite things from last weekend.  E played catcher for a couple of innings at his baseball game.  He liked that position so hopefully it is something he can get into.

I also took the boys with me to Henderson to pick up some beer for camping and we stopped in for a couple of drinks.  First they had some cream soda.

And for our second round, they had juice and lemonade. 

Speaking of drinks, we found a new brand of wine that we like called Bread and Butter from California.  I like the Pinot Noir.

I mentioned The Palm rose last week when my mom was here.  If you're interested in trying it yourself, it is finally in consistent stock in Ontario.  I've been looking for it all summer and for the longest time the only store that had it was in Thunder Bay, so when my mom found that bottle, we thought it was a special rare bottle that had somehow made it down to Southern Ontario, but I just checked and it's everywhere now so enjoy the last weeks of summer with a fresh rose.

We all loved watching the Olympics for the past couple of weeks and I missed commenting on the Canadian Women's Soccer Team! How great were they?!?! Any medal means a lot, but a gold for this team after losing out so many times makes it so much sweeter.  I know it will be a big deal for the sport in this country. 

Rumour has it that Canada will be voting in a federal election this fall.  I love that our election periods are short (this one will be 36 days).  I am pretty sure there won't be much of a shift with this election but it is still worthwhile to get out and vote (and vote early if you have to).  And here is my plug to listen to The Bridge podcast with Peter Mansbridge (with special guests Bruce Anderson, Chantal Hebert, and others) for your election source.  Peter will be doing daily podcasts during the campaign period and he does a good job of covering multiple relevant angles. 

Happy Friday everyone!

Linking up with Andrea and Erika.

Let's Look - Phone, Apps, Etc.

Today on Let's Look we are looking at our Phones and Apps we use.  I get to cheat slightly here because my own link up series covered this topic back in March, so you can check out my favourite phone apps here.

Linking up with Shay and Erika.

Not Just A Mom - Daily Must Haves

Hi there, welcome to our link up party! This month's topic Not Just A Mom is Daily Must Haves.  If you have a blog, please link up with us below.  And please check out the other posts linked below.

Things that I have to have/do everyday:

Coffee!

This is a no brainer for me.  I am one of those people who is literally addicted to caffeine.  On those very rare occasions where I have not had a coffee in the morning (like I can count on one hand the number of times this has happened) I will be met with a pretty bad headache.  I only started drinking coffee on a regular basis after my first son was born but now I love it so much, unapologetically so.

Apple Watch

I got my Apple Watch for Christmas and I wear it all day long.  I like to track my fitness, but even on days that I don't close my rings, I still like to see what I've done.  It has come in handy for more than I thought it would.

Bruush and Floss

I, of course, brush my teeth everyday (twice) and I have gotten into the habit (finally!) of flossing before bed.  I did not misspell brush above, it is instead the toothbrush I got for my birthday.  Dave has one too and they are pretty sleek.  Since I've started flossing on a regular basis, I get praise from my dentist on every visit.  It only took to my late 30s for me to figure this out!

Vitamins

I take Vitamin B12 and D and Iron supplements each day.  My iron has always been low so I need to take the pills and a couple of years ago my doctor recommended B12 as well.  And since we live in a northern climate and I am a sunscreen person, I need the D as well.

Saje Rollers

Now, I guess I don't use them every single day but I do most days.  I have the Immune roller which I use on my throat and chest at the slightly sign of a sniffle or sore throat.  I also have the Peppermint Halo one if I have a headache.  I know that most of their effectiveness is the placebo effect but I do call them my magic potions and I love them.

Hair Elastic

I have to have a hair elastic on my wrist everyday.  Even when I do my hair for the day (I flat iron it), it eventually ends up in a ponytail because I'm hot, cooking, or working out. I like these flat ones with the little tie.

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