Camptastic!

We just returned from a five day adventure in the wilderness. Okay, it was a camping trip in a state park well within an arm's reach of civilization. However, it was our first attempt at camping with the kids and we were a bit concerned. We had a blast! Yes, there were moments of insanity, lack of patience, tantrums, and ill mannered children, but they were far outnumbered by the moments of awe and wonder, tenderness, joy, and humor.

We tented it while our dear friends and their five children resided in their camper. The kids loved the concept of the tent. It was a little hard to settle them down at bedtime even after running them all day and leaving them up from nap, but Steve did a fantastic job of it every night (I claim NO credit there). It was STICKY and hot while we camped, but the tent cooled off at night and was entirely bearable. We did weather two pretty nasty thunderstorms. The first night, both kids slept through the storm, but Colby woke up during the windstorm that followed the thunderstorm. He wasn't scared, but laid on his bed calmly and told Steve that he wanted to "watch the wind". The second night he slept through the massive thunderstorm, but Kailin woke up and told us she was scared. We had her climb in with us and she snuggled in much the way she used to when she first came home and fell asleep immediately.

I think the highlights of the trip were riding the Wisconsin Ducks, riding a mini steam locomotive, and playing in a creek - Colby was allllll boy for that adventure - sitting right down in the water the first time I turned loose of his hand. The only true "lowlight" was that Colby apparently got himself into some wild parsnip and now has some nasty looking blisters on his lower legs. Thankfully he doesn't seem terribly bothered by them, and I'm hoping that they heal fast. It has postponed our swim lessons, but it's no huge deal.

We are headed up north to my family's cabin this weekend and I can't wait to watch my kids laugh and explore some more. We haven't taken many family vacations together, but now that we've started I'm kind of hooked!