Camping 08

It has been two months since I last posted on this blog, but I honestly haven't written anything but schoolwork during this time. While I am usually overflowing with questions and exciting news, nothing has gotten to the place where I just wanted to write about it.

I have taken two trips recently, both worth writing about, but time is what runs away from me. Almost three weeks ago, I packed up my stuff and drove home to surprise my dad for his 5oth birthday. It was sort of a spontaneous leap from reality for a few days, and I can't remember smiling and laughing that much in months. The first night I spent in SC I stayed with Lacie so my dad wouldn't be clued into the fact that there was more to my coming home than meets the eye. The two of us had a great time together as always, and she took a bunch of goofy pictures of us, which I can only look back on and shake my head.

We surprised my dad ten times over. First me. Then my sister. Then a surprise trip(blind-fold and all). He couldn't believe it. I think it was just the break he needed as well. We ended up in the Great Smoky Mountains of Tennessee. Let me just tell you, it was beautiful.

This past weekend was my fall break, and I decided to take a girls trip to go camping in Georgia with five of my friends. We stayed at High Falls State Park an hour from Atlanta. I have never really been camping before so this was quite the experience for me. I loved it. We built our own fires. We cooked our own food. We hiked. We nearly froze to death. And we almost got eaten by bears the first night because we failed to take our trash to the trash dump. True story.

All in all it was an unforgettable experience. The weather during the day was perfect for us to hike around in the woods and by the waterfalls. We met some fun people too. We weren't exactly looking our best for this trip, but it was a bonding experience nonetheless.