The Dillard House after CAMPING! in North Carolina, day 4

we packed up early at the campsite and got over to The Dillard House in Dillard, GA, for breakfast. i've only been once, when i was about 13, when all my brothers were whitewater rafting, so i was excited to go again. Joel had also gone before with his family growing up.

they serve "family style" so lots of food started coming to the table, lots of variety and very country :)

chowin' down

they refill the serving platters if you run out and even let you take all the leftovers home. i think we filled 4-5 takeout boxes with food to split up between the cars to last us through lunch!

running around before we have to pile into our cars.

Joel and me

our lil' family

CAMPING! in NC: the morning we left, day 4

after rolling up the tents and packing them away damp spots remain where the tents were.

the square where Jonathan and Julie's tent was is in this photo.

Mom and Dad's is in the back and ours is closer.

almost ready to pull out

you can see the damp spots and tent placement better here.

Mom and Dad's on the left. Joel and mine on the right.

where Jonathan and Julie's tent was.

hey Mom!

the campground road and path to the bathroom

Jonathan stopped to get a panoramic view.

CAMPING! in NC and stream play, day 3

later at the campground, we went back to the stream, a more sunny section, while Julie got dinner prep underway.

Elizabeth & Joel

the guys made a big fire and we roasted hot dogs, ate baked beans, mac & cheese, and then had s'mores again for dessert!

you can kind of make out our tents. Mom and Dad's is on the left, at the back of our campsite, and ours is on the right of the photo. the picnic table is there on the left with the lantern behind.

Jonathan and Julie's tent is on left of this photo (only looks like a stripe where the tent's door is illuminated) and our dining canopy is near the middle, covering our prep picnic table, with the second picnic table on the far right with the lantern behind. of course, there's a Gators camp chair in the foreground :)

CAMPING! in NC and another hike, day 3

we got a slow start this morning. it was pretty chilly by the time we woke up (it had gotten down to 40 degrees overnight) but we'd still slept well with all that activity yesterday. Mom prepared a great breakfast for us of make-your-own omelets in ziploc bags.

after we loaded up, we headed to Albert Mountain to hike up to an observation tower. once out of the cars the kids were super excited and kept speeding ahead. we made it to the top then climbed up the observation tower. here's a link for our family photo in the green mountains:

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC3gM-EICAmIifGYf8p1YrEjPUm7fi5BU-O1HUTfYQAL4KDBmxu5LFHtJqmGZzn5bRA40-ejqywrgxyTpti-q5zwKyic6-nLPcwnyu5ruA7g5axsa5_bWf-5KtBZRzXbgo1KTj1RQfG30/s1600-h/DSC00379%5B2%5D.jpg

from Albert Mountain we drove to Mooney Falls where we picnicked beside the falls.

when Joel was done eating, he started exploring the rocks in the falls and made it almost to the other side of the creek. Jonathan and Zach soon followed.