b&bh.: camping @the creeper!

I MADE IT!
I successfully survived my very first camping experience, and I really enjoyed it, too! Our Virginia Creeper family weekend was a total blast. The scenery was gorgeous & the leaves were incredibly bright & vibrant. It was the perfect introduction to fall!
We arrived to the campground on Friday evening. We got our tent set up, our air mattress blown up, and our things unpacked & organized just before night fell. Then, we all enjoyed mom's scrumptious chili, along with stories & s'mores around the campfire. The kids- David, Nicole & Sam, all joined us just in time for grub! The evening was chilly and windy- the temperature was in the high 30s-low 40s. It was a great evening, filled with lots of laughter & (attempts of) scary story telling! I managed to sleep pretty well that evening, besides waking up around 3a.m. with a full bladder and extreme chills. But, after repositioning/covering myself and convincing myself that I could wait till morning to use the restroom, i nuzzled up to Ben and dozed off.
Saturday morning came. As I awoke, I was quickly reminded that I still had to use the restroom... I gathered my toiletries and walked briskly off to the restrooms/showers. The showers were very warm, which was a wonderful surprise, however they were also very full of spiders -daddy longlegs spiders! (I HATE SPIDERS!) So, needless to say, that shower wasn't exactly relaxing, and it probably won the record of the fastest shower I have ever taken. I arrived back to our campsite to the inviting & alluring scent of freshly brewed coffee, cooked sausage and bacon, scrambled eggs, and biscuits and gravy. Breakfast was delicious around the fire with all the family. Soon after breakfast was over, we all packed up, loaded the cars with bikes, and set out for our 17 mile bicycle ride through The Virginia Creeper trails. What a fun experience!!
The trails were crazy crowded, probably because of the beautiful fall weather. But the ride was incredible & the views were breathtaking. We stopped about halfway at a little ice cream & snack shop on the trail to catch our breath and carb-up on some yummy snacks. We had three babies on the bike trip & they all did awesome! Next year we all hope to ride the entire (34 miles) trail.
We spent one more night camping, and for me it was the better night. Ben & I somehow managed to snag an electric blanket from mom & dad's camper, so this night our tent was super cozy & warm!

Here's some favorite snapshots from the trip!