Camping with Keyan and Becky

Keyan and Becky came from Florida! We drove 3 hours to the coast, walked around Fort Ross (an old Russian fort with cannons and stockades), then set up camp in Gualala, a little town on the coast (2 hrs north of SF). We fit 10 people in our big tent. Rachel and Mara were "twins" and wanted to dress the same, eat in a tree together, and sleep in our small tent together. Isaac slept in the hammock. Isaac and Sam (age 4) got along great and Sam was most often found on Isaac's shoulders. Elyse (age 1) was adorable but didn't like to go to any of her "strange cousins." Ben (age 6) and Joshie loved dodging waves at the beach, looking for crabs in the tidepools, and playing hide and seek on our hikes. Lyrad's dutch oven meals were the highlight: chicken and potatoes, peach cobbler, beef and potatoes. Ben and Joshie couldn't get enough s'mores. We camped for 2 nights (joined by Grampa Ernie on the 2nd night!), hiked, swam, ate, then stopped in Sonoma on the way home so Becky could get some fancy cheese (i.e. Mediterranean, pesto, garlic, etc.). We fed ducks and ate pizza in a park in Sonoma, then arrived home happy but tired with a dirty car and dirty children and hoping our hot water heater would hold out for 13 people to shower! (It did.) We loved having the Florida Rileys visit us! Lots of tears on Mara and Rachel's part when it was time for them to go, but great memories for all of us.