24 weeks

I'm 24 weeks old!

She looks innocent enough...

...but moments later is ferociously chewing on her toy.

We slept in a tent

Hanging out on the camping chair

Part of camping includes mountain bike maintenance with Daddy

Goofing around with Lisa and Steve

Happy Birthday to you!

Getting sleepy sitting with Daddy by the campfire

Mommy, Riley, and Seamus enjoyed a Lake Tahoe beach while Daddy went biking

Camping is exhausting!

Happy Campers

This week Riley went on her first camping trip. For several years we have made an annual car camping trip to Lake Tahoe with friends to celebrate Chad's birthday and decided this was a great opportunity for our baby to participate in one of our favorite hobbies. She was fantastic, definitely a camper! She still really loves to look at trees and of course the campsite was full of them, so she happily gazed at her surroundings. She slept great at night in the tent with us and managed to nap contentedly at our campsite, at the beach, wherever she was whenever she was tired. We were lucky to have the help of our friends Lisa and Steve Winchell and Jim Scott (Daddy's biking partner), it takes a village! Riley did even better than we expected so we're ready to fill the remainder of our summer with more camping trips!

Our family traditions are even more special now that we are sharing it with our daughter. Riley and Mommy made Daddy a birthday cake (white almond cake with raspberry filling) that we brought along on the trip. Chad and Jim went biking on a trail called "Mr. Toad's Wild Ride" so he still got to bomb some single track. We're happy to do what we love, and we love it even more now that we have Riley!

Although some things have changed. We bought a topper for Chad's truck. Between camping gear and baby gear, we need extra storage for these trips. Chad isn't thrilled about the new look, but he is a practical father now and knows its necessary!

Since most of you read this on Fridays, don't forget to wish Chad a happy 35th birthday today!