Camping, FTW

This past weekend, we took the boys camping at a nearby campground. Some of you may remember our last attempt at camping 3 years ago. That time, it did not turn out well. This time, however, it was a hit!

Our camping consists of car camping, so we pack our car with everything but the kitchen sink. We had to borrow a 4-person tent from a friend, and I bought an air mattress so Ed and I would be more comfortable. But we already have all of the other supplies we need--sleeping bags, camp chairs, camp table, propane lantern, propane stove, water pot, utensils, charcoal, lighters, matches, kindling, etc., etc. The campsite we chose is on a bay off the Potomac River. You could walk to the water and rent a kayak or canoe. Our plan was to set up camp and then go kayaking for an hour. But when we got there, it was way too windy to kayak. A few brave people were out in the water, but they were going nowhere, And one couple even got tossed into the water by the wind. When the boys heard that, they quickly agreed that we would have to try kayaking another day.

Instead, they played on the two playgrounds and we took a short hike through the woods.

Back at our campsite, Ed got our campfire going and the boys raced back and forth between our campsite and the playground, which was practically right across from our campsite. Score!

Seth quickly met the family at the campsite next to ours. They happened to have a daughter the same age as Seth (Aleena), and the two of them became fast friends. After we ate dinner (hot dogs cooked over the campfire), Aleena's father and brother played Monkey in the Middle with Seth and William for a solid hour while Ed and I sat back and relaxed. Why yes! We'd love for complete strangers to entertain our kids, thank you! Once we started roasting marshmallows for s'mores, Seth declared that Aleena's campfire was much better than ours, and he took the bag of marshmallows and his roasting stick to their campsite. I'm surprised he didn't ask them if he could sleep in their pop-up! (He probably did and I'm just not aware of it. LOL.) BTW--this time around, the boys enjoyed the s'mores quite a bit more than the last time.

When it was finally time to go to sleep, we walked across the path to the bathrooms (no roughing it for us--we like bathrooms with electricity and hot water) to wash up and brush teeth. Once in the tent, we read books and William fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow. It didn't take Seth long to fall asleep, either, and Ed and I hung out by the fire and enjoyed the peace for a little bit longer. William slept like a log the entire night. Seth woke up once with leg pains, but fell back asleep after I rubbed his legs for a little while. Ed, and I, however, did not sleep at all. It got pretty chilly (although the boys did not seem to notice), and I was feeling the full effects of a sinus infection. The air mattress was comfortable enough, but we just couldn't get settled. I think we both finally dozed off just before dawn. So that part of the trip sucked.

It was worth it, however. The boys woke up excited and we made bacon, eggs, and pancakes for breakfast. While the boys played on the playground (with Aleena and her brother and father again), we packed up our campsite (why does it take twice as long to pack than it does to unpack?). We got back to our house around 11:00 a.m. And then I had to turn around and head back to the campsite because William had left his jacket on the playground. D'oh!

I made it back in time for our annual spring block party, where we rented this for the kids on our street:

I'd say it was pretty much a perfect weekend for the kids!