Camping in Cuyamaca Rancho State Park, Julian

This long weekend has been so much fun thus far, and it’s only Saturday evening! Let’s rewind:

I knew I wanted to get some exercise in on Thursday before all of the holiday excitement, so Adam and I took Harley for a hike in the morning. I also did some strength training and yoga, then got ready for ”Friendsgiving” at our friends Tiffany and Jeff’s house. I brought these goodies to the party with me…

(recipe here)

Usually on Thanksgiving Adam and I do our own thing since we live so far away from our families. It was really nice to go to our friends’ house for a big celebration.

Once we got there, I was in a total relaxed holiday mode. I pretty much forgot to snap any pictures, except for the shots I got of the adorable table setup. Tiffany did a great job of putting together centerpieces, little menus, and name cards that I thought were perfect for Thanksgiving – not to mention their throwing a great party overall!

Thanksgiving weekend, Adam and I usually do a getaway or do something out of the ordinary. In the past we’ve visited New Orleans, wine country, and did a trip to a B&B in a town nearby. This year, we decided to be low-key and try to go camping again, as our first attempt was a wash. We chose a campsite in Cuyamaca Rancho State Park, which is about an hour from where we live in San Diego. Once we arrived, I left it up to my Marine to set up the tent while I unpacked some of our stuff.

Naturally I brought us some good eats, including Greek pasta salad, fruit, veggies with dip, wine, pretzels and Clif bars:

We thought that Harley would be totally in her element and love camping. This was not the case. She was uptight and freaked out, and I don’t think the fire pit helped ease her concerns. Trying to console her did not help in the least bit. She was not a happy camper, literally!

Weirdly enough, Harley kept trying to make a run for it into the car, so eventually we just let her hang out in there. I though it was funny that as we camped outdoors, our American Dingo dog preferred to be within the safety of my car. Luckily once we got into the tent she relaxed and passed out for the night. She’s a nutty one!

We spent the night playing cards, enjoying the fire pit, drinking wine, listening to the Mariah Carey holiday Pandora channel and gazing at the stars. This morning we hiked around the park and got to check out how other people really get fancy with their camping trips (We literally saw full blown breakfast buffets, not to mention all of the tricked out RVs!) . My favorite photo from the trip is a toss-up between one where it appears that I’m on fire…

…or this goodie:

In my defense, it was super cold out so my primary concerned was being warm – I had 3 sweatshirts on! Plus the fact that we forgot to bring cups, so keeping it classy and drinking wine out of the bottle was our only option. Not pictured: my ridiculous fuzzy winter socks.

While I had a great time while we were up and about, sleeping in a tent is not my favorite thing in the world. Between laying on the hard ground, forgetting to bring pillows (major fail), and waking up to some sort of animal walking around from what felt like 2 feet away from my head, I think I’m more of a sleeping indoors kind of girl. But I’m glad I experienced it, and think it would be a lot of fun to go camping with a group of people sometime.

Coincidentally, the trip happened on Harley’s 2nd birthday — well, her approximate birthday since she was found as a stray puppy. I happened to pick her up this awesome looking cookie/donut at a pet boutique last weekend that she got to enjoy as her birthday treat:

Harley is officially no longer a puppy, but she still surprises me with her crazy antics. No joke, last week she jumped out of the car window while we were driving (for the second time in her life). I thought that the first time she jumped out of my moving vehicle awhile back was a fluke, but now I’m convinced that she just likes to keep me on my toes! 😉

The weekend is still young, so I’m off to figure out plans for the rest of my Saturday. Enjoy your night!