A Fun For All Family Weekend at Lake Eufaula

For our annual camping trip, we went to Lake Eufaula this year. It’s located in southeastern Oklahoma and is the largest lake in the state. Since we had such a great time at a Yogi Bear’s Jellystone Resort in Texas last summer with some old friends, we thought we would try one in Oklahoma.

The campground has RV spots and fully outfitted cabins (except for linens). The cabins were clean and simple with a picnic table, grill, and a fire pit outside. We had a little front porch with a view of the lake. Since the campground is not very big it is easy to walk to and from all the amenities. We played mini-golf, slid down a huge water slide, played bumper boats, and swam in the pool. Although my favorite by far was the Wibit, an inflatable playground on the lake. It felt like we were on Ninja Warrior!

I’ll add a note on sunscreen here since it was many years until we found one that worked well for us. My aunt Susie told us about Bullfrog sunscreen years ago and we have been fans ever since. It protects better than any other kind we’ve tried especially for days where we are in the direct sun for many hours. Of course, you need to reapply throughout the day but it thoroughly protects our skin from burns. For my face, I use Neutrogena. I like it for everyday use and it seems to work pretty well but if I am going to be out all day I apply Bullfrog to my face.

Setting up camp is always so exciting and I find that I am so full of energy, but by the last day I am dragging and wondering why we packed so much stuff. I’m also dreading the piles of laundry I’ll have once we arrive home, but it’s still worth it. To lighten the load we have our kids help with chores. After every meal, someone has Kitchen Patrol (KP) duty which is a little more exciting than doing the dishes at home since there is no dishwasher.

Since we were there for the weekend we took some time to explore some other areas. My mom suggested we check out Boy Howdy– we were not disappointed. It was kind of like a dollar store/fishing store/flower shop. We had a great time looking around at the goods for sale. We stopped for a snow cone at a local place that had the best-shaved ice machine. It was a Southern Snow machine from New Orleans. The ice really was like snow, so soft and light.

Although it took a little persuading, the boys agreed to take a little drive to a place called Carlton Landing. It’s a seaside-like community on the shores of Lake Eufaula. This place was breathtaking. A beautiful entrance followed by super sweet little welcome signs that said something like “glad you are here, you will leave with sunkissed cheeks” then we approached a gorgeous outlook.

Once we pulled into the town I was transplanted to another place. So many gorgeous modern homes surrounded by nature. They have a school, a playground, community pool, they grow their own vegetables, and even have bocce ball courts set up for whoever wants to start a game (we saw some teenagers playing).

Grant, our oldest, said he would love to live in one of the houses. We continued to talk about if he thought he would be happier if he lived in one of those homes. He said maybe for a little while then it would start to feel normal. I totally agree. Don’t worry folks we will not be moving to Carlton Landing, but it was super fun to check out and see all the interesting homes. By the way, they have vacation rentals if you are looking for a posh lake retreat.

Another fun thing we do on our annual family vacation is buy all kinds of junk food for the weekend. Brent’s aunt Donna and uncle Russ did this with their kids when they were growing up and we thought it was such a great idea. We let the kids (ourselves too) pick out snacks that are usually not allowed. Some of our favorites are zebra cakes, Cheetos, and root beer. Also, it would not be camping without s’mores.

The trip was fun, exhausting, and sweet. Besides some slide burns on my bum from the Wibit and a grease fire started by our cabin neighbors, it was a great vacation and one that will be remembered for a long time to come.

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