Take a Hike with the Claytons

Take a Hike with the Claytons

Saturday, December 22, 2018

Lake Jackson RV Park/Formerly Florala State Park Florala, AL















Our first Christmas camping trip was one for the books... or not! We should have taken it as a sign on our way down when the kids were all excited to get kids meals and McDonald’s, so we stop, try and go in but the lobby was closed. Sooooo when you can’t go in, are pulling a camper and have upset kids, you do this...



We have been wanting to take a Christmas trip for a few years now and decided to travel south to avoid cold temps. Donald “researched” best Chrismas festivals in the south and up came “Candyland” in Andalusia. Though they have this festival, campgrounds are limited which brought us to Florala 30 miles south. 



Unfortunately the weather didn’t cooperate and made the trip a little cold and a lot wet. 3 different weather systems came through and kept us on our toes with high winds, cold and lots of rain. To make matters worse the heavy rains made way into the camper causing Donald to spend some time on the roof at midnight while Kelly was trying to figure out how to dry her side of the bed. Luckily the kids had no clue all this had happened! 



The following morning we saw enough break in the weather to allow us to venture out for a nice walk and scooter ride around the Lake Jackson. After much play in puddles and some ending in more rain, our soaked selves were ready to stay in the rest of the day. 









After some games and devices (let’s be honest here), we decided to head into Crestview to see Mary Poppins. We all loved the movie, popcorn and candy and were hopeful the next day would be better, especially for Kelly’s birthday! 

*Sidenote- we would have bailed on this trip most likely but we were determined to go to Candyland and this just wasn’t the night to go with the weather the way it was! 






The cold and high winds were off to a great start the next morning but on a positive note Donald did an excellent job on the roof with the tarp and we were at least dry indoors! The weather did get better mid-afternoon and we made our way to “The Big R” restaurant for some birthday lunch home-cookin and then to... CANDYLAND! 




Candyland was full of tiny little houses that different companies sponsored, decorated and each at kids activities in. There was also a sled ride that was actually so fast and a little scary! Kelly and Cora were the only ones that wanted to keep going! The kids loved the “Arctic Maze” and the numerous train rides. We ended with some kernel corn and got chocolate and we had a blast and were all in good spirits. 







The trip couldn’t be complete without a tacky Christmas camping pic! “Scarla” is our new blow up that the girls were given as a gift (thanks Brooke) as a discard from a dirty Santa game. Caroline immediately named her Scarla, sang to her for fifteen minutes, and hugged her so hard that they both went tumbling. She is now our camper Christmas decoration (and we are thankful she won’t be in front of the house!)







Sunday, November 11, 2018

Maxwell-Gunter Military Campground with Cory, Gina and Amelia at Lake Martin

It’s late October and quite possibly no better time of year to go camping!  This trip was extra special because we had Cory, Gina, and Amelia with us. They recently joined the camping world and also recently moved from Del Rio, Texas to Montgomery, so the time was just right to have a joint camping trip.  Fortunately for us, Cory has military access to this awesome campground right on Lake Martin. He was able to book us some sites this summer and we headed down for a fun weekend.

Donald was flying back in town from a work trip and didn’t land in Bham until around 4:30.  Kelly and the kids drove on down to the campground to hang out before the camper arrived. I showed up about 7:30 and set up in no time.  From there, it was hang out by the fire and get ready for bed. The next morning came and it was pretty cold. We were able to stay bundled while we cooked around the campfire.  This campfire was pretty special because the coals were still warm from the night before and we were able to keep the fire going without having to light a new match. That’s good stuff right there.  We had bacon, eggs, cinnamon rolls, and the normal donuts for breakfast … it was a perfect start.




Each campsite pretty much had its own little fishing pier on the water, so we hung out down there for a bit, and also did some fishing.  After multiple trips to the playground and lunch, Cory organized us in an awesome scavenger hunt game! We partnered up randomly and then went out to see who could find everything.  It was a lot of fun with a lot of good memories!

Side note: somewhere about now Carter wanted to go back to the playground and throw the football.  Cora has become obsessed with carrying around a wiffle ball bat and ball, so Carter also decided to hit a few.  We were all playing when he smacked one out toward the wall. It went down the hill and Kelly went to chase it. When she got there all she could scream was “Oh no! Oh no! Oh no!”  When I made it over the ball was floating slowly, and right out of her reach, out toward the middle of Lake Martin. Carter comes over and starts getting upset, so I urgently direct him to give his bat to Kelly so she can reel the ball in.  He throws it down to her and … you guessed it … the bat bounced out in the water and starting floating away too. Well, I was semi-content to let it go but then Carter ran off in tears. I remembered what it was like to lose something you really care about, and the thought of watching that thing sloooooooowwwwwwwwwllllllllyyyyyyy drift away was too much.  So………I went for it. I just jumped right out there in the freezing water and brought it back in. The water wasn’t so bad but my shoes were done for the weekend.

We got back to the campsite and starting setting up for dinner.  Everything went great and tasted great. We also had some s’mores before putting the kids down for bed.  Cory stayed up to watch the Texas game while Kelly and I took our portable fire pit down to the pier and hung out on the water.  It was pretty great.

The final morning moved quickly.  We had to get back for Carter’s baseball game so we started packing early.  The kids played a little more and we all hung out a little longer as well. All in all, it was an awesome trip and we can’t wait to go camping with Cory, Gina, and Amelia again!





Monday, September 3, 2018

Stone Mountain, Georgia


It’s Labor Day weekend and we have a full three days off to go camping!  We have historically taken great trips over this long weekend and this year was no different.  The actual camping part of the trip was less than normal because we were busy climbing all over the mountain, but it was fun nonetheless.

It is pretty much routine now for us to leave in the morning if at all possible.  It just works so much better for us to pack in the evening and then leave early in the morning.  However, for this trip we purchased a vacation package that gave us three nights of camping and two days worth of park passes for all of the attractions they have.  Since we got three full nights we decided to get our money’s worth and head on over after work on Friday. Unfortunately for our happiness, we were all tired and moody, and everyone else seemed to be on the road at the same time.  It took us forever to get there because of traffic and when we did finally make it we were into the 10:00 hour (eastern). Setup went fine even if it was dark.

All of that evening pain paid off the next morning.  The crew slept really well, giving us a nice slow start to the day.  We decided not to waste much time at the campground and instead headed over to the main area to catch the shuttle to Stone Mountain. 


As soon as we got there Carter took off for the Geyser Tower and climbed all over the place, as well as got soaking wet.

We then went into their dinosaur exhibit and looked around a good bit. 

The kids were still drying off from the Geyser so we headed on over to the Skylift and rode up to the top of the mountain. The kids really enjoyed the ride up and then seemed to have a good time on top of the rock. 


Once we came down we went into the Dinotorium, which is essentially four floors of a McWane/Let’s Play combo. The kids played and played until they found the 4th floor slide! They then rode down over and over again until they were worn out... and mom and dad were a little bruised up from the slides!

We caught the shuttle back around 2:00, had lunch, and then set up for the Auburn vs. Washington game. These kids LOVE the shuttle!
Look at those sisters holding hands!  Lots of time waiting for and riding the shuttle, then Carter drove us home one night!

Cora took a nap while Kelly took Carter and Caroline for a dip in the campground swimming pool. They made it back, Auburn finally won, and we went on with our evening.  Before heading back to the park we explored the playground. While doing so, a random kid came up and invited (rather, begged) us to come to he and his grandparents’ camper for s’mores. We were at first hesitant but then joined in the fun. They were a super nice family.

That night we rode back over to the park and caught the Laser Show and Fireworks!  It was pretty awesome and the kids really enjoyed it (except Caroline who can't stand fireworks and made us miss the amazing ending!). It was definitely a sight to see and there were thousands of people out there with us.  One pretty cool event happened as Cora was sitting in my lap. A surprise firework or two went off and she was completely unsuspecting. She jumped out of my lap, turned around real quick, and gave Kelly and me a look like something big was going on.  It was likely the first surprise/scared sound event she has ever had. Pretty cool.


We once again got back to the camper pretty late.  For the most part we all made it through the night (Carter fell out of the bed, Kelly picked him up, and he still tells us he doesn’t remember it at all).  The morning came, Cora climbed in our bed, begged to watch Peppa Pig, and got her wish as the rest of us slept in a little while. We then loaded everyone up and booked it to the pavillion for the campground worship service.  It was good to attend the service and meet a few new people.

For the rest of the day we decided to explore the other parts of the park. We were able to see a cool 4D Dino movie, watch a ventriloquist and his talking dog, visit a few shops, ride the scenic railway, get ripped off for lunch, and then finish up with some mini golf.  It was hot and tiring but it was a fun day (if you can't tell by Donald's reaction!).



We thought Carter would be scared but he basically ran up the wall!


We landed back at the camper around 6:00-6:30 and essentially relaxed for a while. The kids got to bed and we all slept hard for the night … except Carter who was not feeling well and seemed to be awake all evening.
A fun game of Nukem!  A morning swim and some playground time.  

The last day was a lot of nothing around the campsite.  Eventually Kelly took the girls to the pool while Carter and I finished up the loading process. We picked them up around noon and had an easy ride home.  It was a great trip with a lot of good memories!

Monday, June 4, 2018

Meaher State Park


Hottest camping trip ever!  It was scorching the whole time we were there and our campsite did not have much tree coverage.  We kept looking for water to jump into but unfortunately the waters around this campsite likely have gators as well.  What do you do? I guess you just have fun anyway!


This trip to Spanish Fort is something we hope is an annual trip for us.  Children of the World (the agency we used to assist in adopting Cora) hosts a picnic the first of June for families who have adopted from India or who are considering it.  Since we want to stay connected to the agency and also help anyone in the process, we’ve committed to making the trip each year. Meaher State Park (pronounced like “mayor”) happened to be directly across the street from the picnic this year, so that was a win for us.  

So, we started pretty early Friday morning (I took a vacation day at work) because we did nothing the night before.  I woke about 6:10 and started the loading process. Even though Kelly and I were not really motivated this time around, it went really smoothly and I managed to keep my “we’re taking too much stuff!” comments to myself.  We ended up getting the kids in the car around 8:20 and we were off. The ride down was fine … the kids could probably have been better, but who’s keeping score when they are packed in the back of the truck like that. The highlight of the ride to Spanish Fort was stopping for lunch, at Shoney’s!  What?! Yes, we exited and were heading to Zaxby’s but happened to see a newly renovated Shoney’s advertising a $5.99 lunch buffet. We jokingly brought it up and Kelly had me run in to scope it out and we decided to go for it and it went really well, especially since all three kids ate for free!


We rolled into Meaher around 2:00 and got everything set up without too much issue.  The kids then convinced us to go to the playground for a bit, but Kelly and I were itching for something a little more fun.  We considered mini-golf but there was nothing close. Fortunately, we happened upon a pretty cool animal exhibit center and then a sweet little splash pad area with a nice playground and ended with some live music.  The animal exhibit was a lot of fun and kept the kids entertained for a while. The best part was when Kelly was holding her camera up an to aquarium that housed a small alligator. He was not a happy little guy and so he snapped at Kelly.  It scared her so much that she jumped and gave out a little yelp. As she was basically running away from the aquarium she tripped over Caroline and ended up splattered against the wall, where she almost knocked off the prize bass that was mounted.  It was a classic moment and I really needed a laugh like that! The kids haven't stopped talking about it and we overheard Carter telling one of his new friends about it!




The kids had a blast at the splash pad and we stayed pretty late, even though no one had figured out dinner yet.  Well, if you know us you know we are always going to make food happen. I saw someone sitting at the splash pad with some pretty good-looking seafood, so I inquired and learned about David’s Catfish.  Yum. We headed that way with our eyes wide and fired up about some catfish! For some reason they decided to put us in the back room all by ourselves. Wise move in their part because our crew is never very tame at restaurants.  Ironically, tonight they were and we feasted on slaw, catfish, chicken fingers, fries, and cheese grits. It was so good. After this, we made our way back to the camper and went to bed. Kelly and I sat outside and soaked up the bay breeze for a bit before retiring.  The night wasn’t too great … Kelly ended up awake several times due to various kid issues, but we did make it.


The next morning started out very hot.  Cora and I went to the grocery store to find donuts and other miscellaneous items.  Eventually, we got everyone ready and headed over to the picnic. When we got there it was very hot and when we left it was even hotter.  In between we had a lot of fun with the Children of the World families. The kids seemed to have a blast meeting new friends, playing yard games, and getting henna tattoos.  It was wonderful meeting new families and of course catching up with Pat and Terri who both had integral parts in bringing Cora home!

  



Once we left the picnic we went back to the camper long enough for Cora to nap and everyone to put on their swim gear. We loaded everyone up, got some Chick-fil-a, and landed at the Fairhope public beach area.  This was just what we all needed. Some water to cool off in and some good just-let-it-all-out fun. Cora was absolutely crazy in the water … I mean floating around and getting plastered by the waves. Carter and Caroline did their normal thing with the waves, and we all managed to just relax for a bit.  We ended the evening by watching a beautiful sunset and walking to the end of the pier. On that walk, we met a nice lady who had just caught a catfish. Kelly and I were ushering the kids away before she cleaned the fish, but they were curious. Caroline was the most interested in seeing what was about to happen and Kelly continuously cautioned her, all the way to “Caroline!  She is about to jab that knife into the fish.” We thought for sure this was scare her away, but nope … she was all about it. Cora and Carter made it back to the scene and we all got a lesson in catfish dissection.




After this long day, the kids would surely fall asleep on the way home, right?  Negative. They seemed to have even more energy. They finally went to bed around 9:00-9:30 and once again the night didn’t go the best for Kelly.  I managed to sleep through most all of it, like always, while Kelly did the work. She’s just too good.

The next morning we basically began loading up around 8:30 and hit the road at 10:00, the earliest we’ve ever departed.  Overall, the trip was great and we seemed to have a really good time. Maybe next time it won’t be so hot...