Hi-Ho, Hi-Ho, it's off to the Yurt we go.....

I had been wanting to take the girls camping for as long as I can remember, and Mike finally agreed to be a good sport about the whole thing, so we made a nice compromise- we rented a yurt up in Winter Park so that Mike could have an actual bed to sleep on while at the same time giving the family the experience of camping in the wilderness.  The bonus was that our neighbors and dear friends, the Kensoras, would be meeting us up there and joining us!

Our yurt: The Porcupine

The girls deciding on who got the top bunks.

Our roomy accomodations.

Collecting firewood.

Some of us were more enthusiastic about the chore than others.

The girls' first real campfire.  We had roasted marshmellows in our backyard many times, but this was the first time it was the real deal.  We relaxed and enjoyed the fire for hours. The campfires were the highlight of our trip. 

Jessie sleeping with Haley (her imaginary BFF that she brought on the trip with us.  Those two stayed up late and had to be told to settle down and go to sleep more than once!)

The kids were the only ones who weren't frozen yurtsicles by morning.  Even with two electric heaters, our yurt never made it above 54 degrees at any given time!

Jasmine and Rian loved having sleepovers in our yurt.  Hayden stayed with Sarah over at the Kensora's.  After stuffing themselves with more s'mores and roasted marshmellows than one could count, the girls had fun staying up late and whispering to each other until they finally fell asleep. Luckily, I was the only one needing to make middle of the night bathroom runs!

Sunrise. What a peaceful and serene setting.

Our friend Mr. Fox

We also saw elk and one large moose fairly close to our campground, but unfortunately I was too shocked to grab my camera fast enough to click a picture! 

Rian and Jazzy

The yurt girls- don't they look like camping pros already?

Hayden and Sarah toasted bagels over the morning fire.  Hayden was so in her element all weekend.  Could this have anything to do with the fact that she was born in Boulder- the granola capital of the U.S.?

Tim giving a wagon ride.

Rian couldn't have been any happier.  She loved spending every minute of the weekend with her best friend.

We checked out the old Rowley Homestead which is on the property and was built in 1909.  Now that was roughing it!

Hayden and Sarah

Little Roo.

After visiting the homestead, we took a nice brisk hike to the waterfall.  Well, we never actually made it to the waterfall, as the hike ended up being about four times longer than we had originally thought, but it was fun and the kids loved being out in the fresh air.

We saw several beaver dams along the way, many of them works in progress, as you can tell by the shapes of these tree stumps. 

Jessie walked most of the way, but couldn't resist an offer for a ride on daddy's shoulders.

Sunset at our yurt.

Tim did a great job with the Jiffy Pop.  None of the kids had ever seen such a thing before!

Our yurt neighbors and real-life neighbors!  We are so lucky to have them so close by!

Even though we were chilly a good deal of the time, the kids had so much fun and it was great letting them run around and be nature girls for the weekend.  It was such a luxury to let them play outside and not make them be on such a short leash.  Everyone needs some good old nature time!  (Mike even did much better than I thought.  He was a good sport and pretended to be enjoying himself for the kids' sake.  It was only after they were asleep that the whining and complaining began.......