We went camping (last week-end)! Yeah, you heard that right. There was a tent, unpaved roads, and lots of dirt!
The kids loved it. S has asked that we spend his birthday camping, and I didn’t get eaten by a bear. So it was a win for everyone!
We did the camping trip with 9 other families, and in all seriousness, it was a good time. I actually can’t imagine camping without a large crew of friends because I think it made everything better: the kids always had something to do, we shared cooking/child oversight responsibilities and the company was just great.
We did a whole bunch of hiking, and S2 didn’t ask to be carried once! So now I know this kid would totally do a 1mi walk. There will probably be whining, but it can be done. Eeeexcellent!
There were photos (too many, trust me!).
There were card games.
There were s’mores.
There were night-time snuggles to keep warm. Oh man, that first night was frigid! I woke up too many times to count because I was just cold.
Did I mention there was dirt? Oh so much dirt! A shower has almost never felt so good, and I swear I gave my moisturizer a hug when I got home.
I’d also not spent any time in my life more paranoid about a bear’s sense of smell. We couldn’t leave anything scented in the car. Down the air fresheners, and I each time I would wake-up on my first night, the first question my sub-conscious would ask, was if there was a bear breathing heavily outside of our tent. Also, on our second morning, my bladder was ready to burst come 5am, so I braved getting out and hiking to the rest-rooms. It was dusk, thankfully, so I could see fairly well, but it was quiet, and I didn’t want to spook, or be spooked by a black bear.
However, our camp did get attacked by a gang of squirrels. I didn’t know squirrels could open backpacks. Neither did S, but apparently they can! And they can eat through plastic bags… to get to jerky! Yeah, apparently not only are squirrels wily, they are also carnivorous?
Before we headed home we stopped by the Mercer Caverns, and it was so worth it! I’d never been to a cavern before, and it was really cool! Actually, literally cool: while it was in the 90s outside, it was a cool 55 in the caverns. Our guide was funny, the kids asked good questions. Totally worth getting home later in the day.
