Camping and Ode to the Smiths

Jason, Jen & Derrick Smith and I in Victoria B.C. in August 2006

With Jason having started his own law practice in May, we decided to take it easy on the vacations this summer, EXCEPT for our annual camping trip with our dear friends, the Derrick and Jennifer Smith family. Before I continue, it's important that I give you a brief history on how it is that we came to know the Smiths...

It was my freshman year at Ricks College and the first day of my group piano class. I walked in, looking for a place to sit and one of the few seats open was next to a cute blonde girl that looked friendly enough and so I hurried and sat down. We had a couple of minutes before class started and so we exchanged the usual questions, ie. "Where you from?", etc. After a short conversation we discovered we were both from the Northwest and we had both been cheerleaders and we obviously both played the piano. Apparently that was all it took. We were immediately kindred spirits. The next two years consisted of us trading a lot of clothes, breaking many hearts (mostly pre-mission boys, because you know, we were helping them build character), ripping up the dance floor at Retrix, campaigning for student body officer, etc., etc.

Jen and I in Spring of 93...

Our years at Ricks came to an end and we went our seperate ways. We kept in touch for awhile, but then I went on my mission and we lost contact. A few months after my mission I moved to Logan and I was looking through an old address book and came across Jen's parents phone #. I thought I would give it a try. I talked to her sweet mom and she told me that Jen was still at BYU, but was no longer Jen Christensen, but Jen Smith. She gave me Jen's # and I immediately called her. We talked forever and decided on a time that we would get together. So one weekend, Jason and I made the drive to Provo ( this was pre engagement for us) and we met up with Jen and her new husband, Derrick. It was like the good ol days and luckily for us, our husbands hit it off well.

Now I can get back to the camping part of this all. After Jason and I had been married for almost a year, we invited the Smiths to come up from Provo and go camping with us for 4th of July. We had so much fun! We camped in Logan Canyon and the next day we went hiking and then to a car show and then found a great place in the football stadium to watch, what I still believe is the best fireworks show ever. We knew at that point that we would be moving to Michigan at the end of the summer and so the future of our friendship was uncertain. I remember talking with Jen during that trip about how great it would be if we could reunite every summer even after we started our families and have a camping trip as fun as this. Little did we know that our great idea would become a reality a few years later. We kept in touch through the years even though grad school and job moves kept us seperated by miles and in 2003 we both found ourselves back in the Northwest. We decided then and there that we had to start up our camping trips again. We started in 2003 and have been going strong every year since then. With 7 kids between us, all approximately the same age and who get along perfectly, we always have an incredible time and look forward to the next year. We have visited Detroit Lake, Pendelton, Cape Lookout and this year we met at Ensign Ranch in Cle Elum, Washington.

Jen, on account of her immaculate literary skills, can give you a much funnier and realistic view of how this years camping trip went, so check out her "Reality Bites" post at: http://www.ginnysee.blogspot.com/

Regardless, of the sickness and the dirt, we loved it and have been begging for more.