The Camping Trip That Wasn't

Two weekends ago we went camping as a family for the first time! Troy has a little internet group of Saab buddies and they do this annual camp-out. Last year just the boys went, but this year I decided it was my turn to go. I have dreadfully missed camping since moving to Ohio. When we lived in Utah (plus had no kids) we went a lot, but since moving here I haven’t been at all! I love camping: the cool breezes, the sounds of the leaves rustling, afternoon naps in a shaded tent, yummy food and s’mores, hiking on a mountain trail, etc.

Well, camping in Ohio is definitely not the same as camping in the mountains in Utah!! First of all, there are no cool breezes! It was very hot and humid and we were so lucky to have a shaded spot. And there are no mountain trails. It was just not the same as going up in the mountains. I’ve got to find me a mountain!

Anyway, on to the camping story. We thought it was a good omen that we saw so many Saabs on the way including this really cool Saab parts van. This was, after all, a Saab weekend (we didn’t take a picture of our Silver Saab there because it wasn’t. If you want to know why ask Troy to tell his Saab story, ha ha). However, as you will soon see, that just wasn’t meant to be.

Friday afternoon was fun, dry, and hot! We had "fun" walking the ½ mile each way (okay a little exaggerated) to unload our things from the car and take them to our campsite. That’s right, at this particular group site, there is no parking by the camp-site. Thank you Troy for your hard work!

We drove into town to get a dinner of fried chicken, had fun hanging out with all the Saab guys and their kids, and enjoyed a campfire and s’mores (unfortunately I must have forgotten I had a camera because I took absolutely no pictures of this first day!).

The next day dawned warm and bright. We thought it was going to be another beautiful day. Troy cooked a yummy breakfast of Eggo waffles with strawberries and cream, eggs, and bacon. I think everyone at camp had some of our breakfast (I like to plan good food while camping; something I’ve inherited from my parents).

Cooking for the Camp

Enjoying yummy waffles

We had fun playing that morning. I finally let Ellie out of the stroller (the day before she had been confined to the pack ‘n play) and she had fun playing in the leaves and dirt. We also had fun playing with Sam, the son of one of Troy’s Saab buddies, Scott. As Sam puts it, he’s handicapped, but he is so stubborn and wants to do everything himself. He pushed Brian around in the stroller for the longest time, just wanting to play with Brian. We then went to the playground (another ½ mile walk) and Sam had fun pushing Ellie in the swing. He loved playing with Brian and they both climbed to the top of the tall swirly slide and slid down.

Mommy finally let me get dirty!

Playing with Sam on the swings

Before lunch we decided to go see the lake. One thing I noticed about this national forest was how green it was! It was such a pretty drive! We had fun at the lake dipping our toes in and throwing rocks in. Troy skipped quite a few, but Brian just wanted to make big splashes!

One thing you don't see in Utah when you're camping - green grass!

The beautiful lake

Cooling off in the lake

Getting Brian to pause throwing rocks to pose for a picture

One the way back from the lake the rain began. We hoped it wasn’t going to last long, but it just wouldn’t quit! We ended up having lunch in the tent (very hard with two kids). That afternoon we waited it out during naptime (which was very hot and humid in the tent), but it kept raining.

Playing in my new friend Peter's tent

Restricted to the tent due to rain

Rain is no fun!

Thus we made the executive decision that we did not want to camp and sleep in the rain that night. It was so wet and muddy. Not fun. So, Troy started packing up while I tried to do what I could to help plus entertain and feed the kids. There was a brief pause in the showers that allowed us to cook our dinner, but that was all we got!

Eating dinner in the rain - More please!

But, it doesn't end there! We were done camping, but we weren't ready to drive the three hours home. We still wanted to vacation! So, we decided to find a motel and stay overnight. After an hour's drive we found La Quinta with a great pool. We went to Walmart, bought swimsuits, and had a blast swimming in the pool. Even the hottub was great and we had it all to ourselves. The kids loved the water!

A nice cool, dry, comfortable motel room

So, although we ended up not camping the entire weekend, it was fun in the end. It was great being away from home with just our family, hanging out and playing. We definitely need to take more vacations!