All a matter of perspective...

When we headed out this past Friday for a camping trip with Theo's Cub Scout pack we didn't anticipate a lesson on choosing to find joy in the unexpected. Here's how it started out....

Rain
Hiking gear to site (and, as usual, we over packed)
Setting up 15' x 17' tent in a 15' x 12' spot
Overcast skies for an early dusk which meant setting up the tent with only lantern light
No on-site electricity or water (we are state park campers after all!)

The kids started to melt down when they thought they were going to have to sleep in the tents provided by the scout camp. You know the type. They have been there since before my brothers were scouts. They sit on a wooden base with wide open slats and the only closure is a flap with a couple of ties. And of course, my big mouth had let it out that another family was not going to stay in them because the grandaddy long legs had free reign. I said that thinking our tent was going to fit without any trouble. After all, I had cleared it ahead of time. Oh, me and my big mouth!

So, as their core temp started to rise dangerously high we had a quick chat about making a choice to find the fun in this adventure or choosing to wallow in our disappointment. They rallied and jumped in on the set-up with promises of dinner, s'mores and glow sticks bouncing around in their heads. The rest of the evening passed without any trouble and they got their s'mores and hot chocolate. Only when you are camping do you get to eat that much junk after your normal bed time! Thankfully Jeff was thinking creatively and managed to make the small space work for our monstrosity of a tent. He even spent 30 minutes pumping up our air mattresses with a manual pump. What a guy!

The next day was absolutely gorgeous! Jeff and the kids went out for Tiger Fun Day while I hung out at the campsite and finished setting up. I even snuck off to the empty bath house and all the hot water I could stand. Yes, it is a scout camp. Set up for boy scouts. We women had a bathroom with three stalls and three showers. With 300 scouts I would imagine there had to be at least 150 moms there. You can see the challenge there! But we were choosing to find joy despite the circumstances, right???

When I caught back up with them there was so much to see and tell. Face painting....

BB gun shooting and more.

Leah reached deep down and found her inner boy and had a blast too!
Of course the best part was after dark. The smell of a camp fire takes me back. We grew up camping on our family vacations and some of my fondest memories involve a camp fire. I remember my dad reading A Walk Across America and James Herriot's farm vet series as we laid in our tent, watching the fire through the screen flap. I also remember my dad's non-stop snoring. Oh man. I can truly sympathize with my kids on that one! I once tried to stop the snoring by pinching his nose. FYI- it doesn't work! Sorry Dad! One year we camped on Cumberland Island. That had to be my all time favorite trip. The shower had no roof, you had to hike all your gear and trash in and out, the mosquitoes just about carried us away, and there was no local store to run to in case of an emergency. But, man oh man! It was awesome! I need to see about booking a trip now that the kids are older.

Oh my! I have taken up too much time posting this! I'd better hurry before it lists the post time as tomorrow!

G'nite!