The fate of our future was riding on the events of last weekend.
It's no secret that Rob and I are outdoor enthusiasts. We decided it was about time to put Taylor to the test. We had to see if she REALLY was OUR DAUGHTER.
dun. dun. dun...
With careful planning, we loaded up the Jeep with all the necessary gear (and perhaps some unnecessary gear) and headed to Huntsville State Park. Under normal circumstance, the park is beautiful - at just an hour or so north of Houston it is a great weekend getaway for those of us that seek refuge OUTSIDE the city. This weekend, however, was a different story.
We left our house at 4:30pm on Friday... and after THREE hours on I-45 we finally made it to the park. After a while, I eventually crawled into the back of the Jeep with Taylor to feed her dinner through the bumper to bumper traffic. Just when the traffic cleared, we thought it would be smooth sailing to the park... but then the rain started. Big, earth-shaking thunder and bright lightning met us about 30 minutes outside the park and stayed with us through the night.
It's a good thing that lightning was with us. Under the hardly effective covering of his rain jacket, Rob, along with Geoff, set up the tents in the pouring rain. Come to find out that lightning helped him see what he was doing in the midst of the downpour. Thank you, Lord, for the lightning! Taylor and I roughed it in the car with Alissa and Bella (one of Taylor's BFFs).
Taylor and I made our way to the tent where we hunkered down and got the inside all set up... pack-n-play for Taylor and air mattress for Mama and Daddy. Rob brought me dinner in bed - chili made by the Castro's!! And I caught up on some awesome reading! He joined us eventually after other friends arrived at camp and he helped get them set up too. I LOVE sleeping in a storm - and to our surprise, Taylor does too. What a blessing!
In the morning we all awoke to a muddy, wet, and fairly desolate camp ground - perfect in my mind! We ate yummy breakfast burrito's made by Ricky and Jen! This bacon was so NOT on our diet... but it was soooo good!
Our time was occupied by lots of rainy-friendly activities...
Some of us played in the tent...
Some of us made a mud man - complete with a neck tie and dreadlocks.
Some of us played spades... what a group - Alissa and I both have nine month olds, and Randa and Jen are both pregnant! Troopers - the whole bunch!
Some of us napped...
(Side note - is it okay that she fell asleep like that? I didn't want to move her...)
This is classic Rob - changing T's diaper on the hood of the Jeep.
Geoff and Bella
Taylor sporting her new REI pants... they're a little big, but we didn't want her to grow out of them in one season, so we bought big, rolled up the legs (they're supposed to roll up to be capri-length, but they're more like baggy pants on her now), and tied up the waist with a belt (one of daddy's old shoe strings). She thought she was pretty cute. Can you blame her?!
After a dinner of lasagna and dessert of cobbler in the dutch ovens we headed home. We had planned to stay Saturday night too, but everything was pretty soggy and even though the rain stopped (finally) we all felt like we received what we went out there for.
We think it's official - she's DEFINITELY OUR DAUGHTER!
Taylor seemed to enjoy almost every minute of the trip, and with smiles on our faces we drove home noticing a rainbow on the drive. We thanked God for His faithfulness and for revealing Himself in unusual ways to us throughout the short trip. Life's always an adventure with God.
We can't wait for our annual Colorado camping trip next month!
We'll be sure to keep you posted on our next adventure!
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