After over a week of sickness we were all feeling a bit cooped up so we really needed to get out and get away even just for a bit. Hailey’s fever finally broke Thursday so we decided to go thru with our original plans for a camping trip this weekend. We booked the reservation a month ago and had several extended family members that were going. I had previously volunteered to cook breakfasts for the group for the two days but had done nothing to prep for it the entire week. So, between late Thursday afternoon and early Friday morning, I whipped together crust less quiches, French toast casseroles, a few loaves of banana, cranberry-walnut and chocolate chip quick breads and packed enough eggs to scramble one morning. We keep all of our camping stuff ready to go in a few camping boxes so all I had to do was throw them into the truck, add our pillows, a few extra blankets and the ice chests and we were ready to go by Friday afternoon.
I had hoped the girls would nap on the way to the lake but, no such luck. The lake is a small canyon lake about 1 ½ miles away from our home. We got 30 min’s away when I realized I forgot Haileys antibiotic so we had to turn around. The girls were asleep, but woke up as soon as I pulled back up into the drive. After that there was no hope of a longer nap.
The lake is one I went to often with my parents when I was a kid. Since it’s so close to home it’s an easy get away, plus it’s about 15 degrees cooler. On the drive Friday, I thought I had taken a wrong road and was concerned that I had my directions wrong. That was until I turned one corner and was instantly an 8 year old little girl riding on the top bunk of my parents cab-over-camper. I had an instant déjà vu experience and it’s ironic because the little spot that was so vivid in my memory is really not even close to the lake nor is it a significant spot in the road but I assume it was close enough to the lake that my brothers and I would either wake up or just take notice and start watching for the lake itself. We use to compete to see who could glimpse water first.
We got in around 3pm, my mom-in-law was already set up with her camper so she helped me put up the tent, cot’s and air matterss. (I said I liked camping, doesn’t mean I like roughing it!) We then headed over to the beach for a swim. The water was crisp but not cold. The beach area was the exact same as when I was a kid, I bet the buoys are the same. As we were coming back from the beach the clouds started rolling in. It was a magnificent site to behold. I wish I had remembered my camera. The clouds were a beautiful deep blue fading to a cream tipped with bronze. They were rolling in looking like a gigantic wave from the south. It was almost like one of those end of the world paintings where the four horseman of the apocalypse ride in on a wave of clouds from heaven. Poetic huh?
Needless to say, we hunkered down in the camper and enjoyed the storm. The rest of my in-laws drove in around 7pm. We were all pretty exhausted so we called it an early night. Once the storm let up a bit I ventured out to the tent only to discover that the raging storm had soaked our blankets. So, back into the camper for a snuggled night of sleep. Thankfully, the camper was large enough to accommodate our extra bodies, with a little creativity. All in all, we had 9 people comfortably sleeping by 10pm. By 11pm, Hailey was up coughing and crying. She was non-stop off and on until 2am. I felt so bad for her and for everyone else being sleep deprived in our tent. If possible I think I would have packed her up and gone home but to quiet my lingering cough I had taken a swig of Niquil so driving was out of the question. Looking back, I think Hailey was more over tired than anything else. Skipping her nap, swimming and running around camp until we went to bed at 10 was just too much for her.
Saturday we swam, napped in the AC’d trailer (Yea!) and socialized with various members of Brad’s extended family that were camping around us. Hailey made fast friends with several little girls in a camp across the way from us. Makenna was found several times wondering away into strangers campsites asking for treats. She eventually suckered me into a root beer and was unfortunately rewarded with a bee sting on her lip. Poor girl! Thankfully she did not have an allergic reaction as both Anthony and I are allergic to bee’s. She screamed, cried and cuddled with me for an hour while I held ice to her lip and watched her closely. We were not graced with a visit from her alter-ego Commando Girl, just sweet, drive-her-momma-crazy, fun-loving Kenna.
Anthony and Brad had a Boy Scouts meeting they had to attend Saturday afternoon so they didn’t get to join us at camp until Saturday evening. The rain made a second showing Saturday night but not nearly as fierce. It settled down just as Brad was pulling in so we got to light up the camp fire, roast marshmallows and sit under the stars. I had secured the tent a bit better so everything was dry in the tent. Anthony didn’t want to set up his little pup-tent so he had thrown the futon mattress into the back of dad’s truck and slept snuggled in there. The rain drizzled on and off all night and Hailey slept sound all night. It was a magical night’s sleep. Waking up at 6 was easy after such a good night.
A good breakfast of French toast casserole and eggs, a last swim and quick pack up and we were on the road home by noon.
A bit soggy, a few whiney moments, one tough night sleep and one blissfull one all equils an overall great trip. Much better than our first attempt at camping. I think we might actually be getting the handle on this. Maybe by next year we will actually be able to camp with out stress. (Yea right! What in my life is ever done with out some amount of stress!)
Back to reality tomorrow. I have to get the tornado-stricken house under control. Brad commented that although he completely understands why it happened, it amazed him how quickly our house goes to hell in a hand bag if I’m out of commission. I’m hoping to get Anthony’s room complete, start if not finish my new crafting cabinet and help my mom prep for her purge-all yard sale. More on that one later.
No comments:
Post a Comment