Posts
Ahh, the “reward” system.
Be good or Santa will leave you coal in your stocking.
Be good or the Easter Bunny won’t leave you any candy.
I want a good report or you won’t be able to go to the party.
If we get any notes from school, you’re not going camping.
That last one was the threat of the week.
A couple of years ago Hubby took Cupie camping at Jellystone Park. She has never forgotten and continually asks when they will get to go back. Hubby finally decided to give in and we decided on this past weekend. This time Stinkles was old enough for camping so he was going to take BOTH girls and I’d have a wonderfully, relaxing weekend free of whining (not wining, there would be plenty of that).
I was going to take pictures all around Pleasantville to enter in Kristi Sauer’s Photo Hunt Challenge for the month of August. I love photography and I don’t get a lot of opportunities to just wander about taking pictures (you can see my best stuff over at Picture This).
Bliss was mine!
This summer has been unusually mild. This past weekend was no different. I opened every window in the house and let the 70 degree breezes waft throughout.
Because of the temperature, Hubby decided it would be too chilly to swim at Jellystone.
If there’s no swimming, what am I going to do with them. There’s a train and mini golf, but that doesn’t take up much time. And they’re going to be freezing at night.
He also hadn’t completely though through the bathroom situation. Unlike boys, it’s not so easy for a girl to go potty in the woods. Let alone a three or five year old. They’d get pee all over their panties & nightgowns. What a nightmare.
Hubby convinced the kids it would be more fun to camp at home. He would set the tent up in the office, blow up the air mattress, and put their sleeping bags inside.
Our office is 13 X 14. It contains a futon on one wall, a desk on another, an electric keyboard, and a low file cabinet which holds the cage where our bird, George, lives.
We could move the keyboard. Everything else was either too heavy, awkward, or just had no place to go.
The remaining space measured about 11 X 11 - MAX.
The tent is 11 X 12.
It’s a dome tent so it was flexible, but we had to assemble it in the room.
Those poles are at least 16 feet long.
Some time ago I wrote a post about our friends bringing popcorn to watch the show Hubby & I put on assembling a tent. If only they could see us this time. As a safety precaution, no popcorn would be allowed. They would have been laughing so hard, they might have inhaled the popcorn and choked to death. That would put a damper on the whole camping thing.
Anyway, we’re lucky no one lost an eye with the unwieldy tent poles.
The air mattress was blown up and sleeping bags, pillows, special animals were all placed inside.
We had “camping” food for dinner: Cheeseburgers, corn, baked beans, Doritos. We made S’mores (which they didn’t even like) and Jiffy Pop popcorn (the kind with the foil that you hold over a flame to pop). Then, we enjoyed a luxury generally not available when camping. They got to watch a movie! This was mostly to tire out Stinkles. She has a tendency to goof around and sing and chit-chat when she should be sleeping. We needed her good and tired so she fell asleep quickly.
We tucked the girls into bed, Hubby slept on the couch and I snuggled up in my nice, warm, comfortable bed.
Turns out not only does Stinkles talk non-stop while awake, she also talks in her sleep! Cupie couldn’t sleep in the tent with her so she ended up sleeping in the chair/lounger in the family room.
Some camping trip, huh?
Silver lining:
- I got to sleep in my own bed.
- I still got to go out and take pictures. I did this on Sunday afternoon with Cupie so it was a nice bonding time.
- The camping bug has been quelled for another year.
10 People Laughed Along With Me, Won't You?:
Thanks for visiting over at my place, because now I get to read yours! Good stuff.
But tell me . . . how in the world does a kid NOT like S'mores? Unfathomable!
Take care
Chris
We do this from time to time with the kids too. Our big camping weekend is always in October but they can never wait that long.
When we were kids we used to "camp out" in the living room. We'd gather all the chairs from the house and some clamps ropes or heavy objects, put huge sheets over the area between them and voila easy to assemble tent. Only hazard is if a cat jumps on it.
We had to spend over a year camping with the kids waiting for the house my parents are still building (we are no longer waiting for that one) and living without running water or electricity really is not much fun. At one point we had to stay in a hotel room for a trip and the kids very excitedly told the front staff that they were so excited to be able to have a shower and flush the toilet! LOL
Now that we bought a house with a gorgeous yard I think we'll limit our camping to in the yard. they'd still get to be outdoors and in a real tent - but could run inside whenever they need to. :)
Camping indoors...well..although the kids from time to time camp out in the living room...We've never set up a tent indoors. Not sure I'd let the kids try it...I think they'd ruin the tent or something. LOL.
Our boys do camp out in the back yard frequently...and they love it because they think they are out late at night type of thing.
And at least you got to do some great things...sleep in a bed all to yourself, bond with your daughter while you took your walk about to get pictures and the camping bug is squashed for the time being...great silver linings!
Jenn.
You might like Glamping, it's glamour camping. It's still outside but you sleep in air conditioned tents and get massages! That's my kind of outdoor activity.
how wonder full laughing my hardest all day.
the ole reward system in action, hmm may need revision. gog i laughed so hard at this
HAHAHA!!! Sounds like lots of fun though. And I just LOOOVE getting the bed to myself. Heaven! :)
cute story, camping with little ones is rough!
Camping at home - how fun. That is my kind of trip. No bugs no having to potty outside (like they did in the olden days, thanksfully I was not around in the olden days so why should I punished the way "they" were), being able to take a long hot shower, sleep in my own bed, watch TV, have whatever food I wanted from the "nearby" and "clean" kitchen, much more sanitary than outdoors. I guess you can tell by now my ideal of a good camping trip would be to rent a 24' or larger RV - but hey camping at home works too, I would just not need the tent. - Danny
Oh, how great. You know the important part of camping is the memories and not so much the location. This 'camping adventure' may have more memories than the other kind LOL
Post a Comment