Wednesday, September 11, 2013

Reads and Feeds

Books + Food = Reads and Feeds!
This month it's my turn and I hope you like it. 

I decided to share some of our favorite things to eat at camp along with a few pictures from our trips to camp taken over this summer. Last but certainly not least, I'll tell you a little about some of the books that I read while at camp.

Let's start my post with a walk. :-)




Take a walk with me down a wooded lane. The scenery is anything but plain.




After a visit, I feel a little more sane and I look forward to being there again. :-)








These pictures just can't compare to actually being there. It is calm and serene and very very green.






Some people hike and some people bike, some go for a walk and some just sit and talk.






Some people kayak or use a canoe. Going on a boat is another thing we sometimes do.  







Sometimes we take a break and look out at the lake.







The lake is huge and shaped like a horseshoe and then some.







It is deep and very blue. It holds many fish for the boys to catch too!







When it's really hot, we swim at the beach. When I don't think it's hot, I read while they swim.






Sometimes it can be scary as there are creatures all around.
 


Sometimes it's almost magical especially when you don't hear a sound.





One of my favorite things to do is sit around the camp fire.




You should see the sky there at night. There are so many stars and they are so very bright!


Much of our food is made over the fire.

We like to make smores but I do mine differently than most people.

We use graham crackers (I prefer the Cinnamon kind), and I spread peanut butter on one half of it.

I put some Hershey's chocolate on top of that and then I wait for the boys to roast the marshmallows. When the marshmallows are nice and melty, we add them to the crackers. Squeeze both halves together and eat our messy treat!

Sometimes I forgo the smore and just eat the marshmallows. I like mine burnt.


Another treat we eat at camp is banana boats. These are ooey and gooey too but they are sooo yummy!

We take bananas and I peel one section of them back. I cut a sliver off of the banana (usually at a slant). I then spread peanut butter on the main part of banana, add mini marshmallows, some Hershey's chocolate, and I drizzle some carmel sundae topping over that. I put the other piece of banana back on top and put the peel back together. I wrap it in foil and place it on the fire until every thing is nice and melty. Yummmm! I should say that you can add anything you like or leave anything out that you don't like (except for the banana).

We also make mountain pies. Our favorites are pizza, grilled cheese, ham and cheese, and apple. We've tried some other weird combinations though! lol! 

Now, let me tell you about one of our favorite meals to have at camp. We call them hobo packs because everyone can add whatever they like to their pack and everything is thrown in together to cook. No pots or pans to wash and no mess! I love it!

First of all, you'll need foil. I place a nice long piece down on the table then I add some butter. You want to add enough to keep the contents from sticking. If you make a big pack you need more than when you make a small pack.

I always add white potatoes and sweet potatoes, onion, and carrots to every one's pack because we all like those ingredients. I like to leave the skins on the white potatoes but I take the skin off of the sweet potatoes. If you slice the potatoes they cook faster.

After that, everyone starts to add different things. Lets talk meat first. We used to add stew meat but it takes a little longer to cook. Now we usually use ground beef but you could add chicken, sausage, etc... or omit the meat. My one son likes to cook a hot dog over the fire to add to his after.     

We've added green peppers, fresh mushrooms, green beans, broccoli, cauliflower, sweet peppers and fresh garlic. Anything goes!

We've also tried corn but it always burns so I'd suggest not using corn. :-(

We season it with salt, pepper and what ever other seasonings people want. I usually add some garlic salt to mine instead of the fresh garlic.

If the pack is big, I add some more butter to the top.

Then we roll the foil up to make our pouch. I always add a second piece of foil and I flip the pouch so that the seams go the opposite way.  We place them on the fire and let them cook. When the potatoes are soft, we check them to make sure the meat is done as well and then we eat!

Sometimes we add Cheddar cheese to the top right before we eat them.

In the winter we make these in the oven. They are so good.


Here are before and after pictures for you to see.
 


Before






After

I only wish that I'd used the same pack for the pictures but I almost forgot about the after picture. This is a meatless pack.




Now let's talk books:


Some of the books that I read during my summer at camp were:


 
 


I really like the Legacy series by N.J. Walters. Quinn's Quest is book four. That series is all about werewolves with some vamp action too!

Hungry Like A Wolf was another werewolf book and it is  book number eight in the Others series by Christine Warren.

On Dublin Street was pretty good and so was The Marriage Trap. I didn't read the first book The Marriage Bargain. But I want to.

The Vincent Boys was not bad but I struggled to make myself read it in parts.

Last but not least, is Fight With Me. I am currently reading Play With Me (the third book). These books are from the With Me In Seattle series and I can't get enough of them!

In my experience, you can easily read anything at camp. Until this year, I never noticed the number of people on the beach reading books. Let me just say, there was a whole lot of reading going on!

I have read books with people camping and I meant to include them in this post but I am fighting a major sinus infection and concentrating and thinking are just not happening for me right now. The only one that comes to mind is:



I haven't read this one yet. I want to though!

What would you read at camp?

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10 comments:

  1. i don't think i would have a special kind of reads at camp ^^ just some of my favourite genre and that's all. In a way you did to staying with those you like since the majority of your reads seems to be part of series you started before ^^

    thank you a lot for sharing the pictures, so many gren, tree and water it sounds like paradise ( except for the snake). i understand better why you went so often^^

    now do rest and take care of yourself, we don't want teh infection to get worse so please be careful ( thyme infusion are excellent to help, if you don't like the taste add some honey but just get better!!)

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    1. Those were only a small potion of the books I read while at camp but I take a huge bag full of books each trip. I never come close to reading the whole bag or even half. lol! The problem is I get in moods to read certain books sometimes and I never know what I'll want to read until I'm there so I take a mixture.

      That was the first time we've seen a snake while there. But it was quite scary for me.

      I am on antibiotics for the infection but it is taking it's toll. I will be glad when it goes away.

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    2. stay warm ^^ it looks like all our group has an infection since last week^^. I can imagine i would pick also a large selection just be sure to have something i want to read on hand^^

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    3. Yep all 3 of us seem to be fighting some sort of one. :(

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  2. OMG Where do you live?! The scenery is absolutely amazing! I just read at home, in my messy bedroom. Or on the loud annoying train. Wow! But then, I'd probably die if I saw that snake, haha.
    Laura @ Music Plus Books

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    1. We live and camp in Pennsylvania. :-) I have to admit I do love the scenery especially in the fall when the leaves change.

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  3. I totally love peanut butter on my smores too! :) We used to camp alot when I was younger. All of my older brothers were in boy scouts and my parents were really involved so therefore I got dragged around with them everywhere(not that im complaining, boy scouts was alot more fun than girl scouts). We've made some of that stuff over camp fires too. :) I would totally take my scary horror books but then I'd probably freak myself out. LOL so my normal paranormal stuff.

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    1. Yeah, walking to the bathroom in the middle of the night when it's super dark and most of the other people are sleeping is my least favorite part. It is easy to imagine Big foot or some depraved human waiting and watching in the woods. :/

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