For Brendan's birthday we decided to go camping at Roman Nose State Park. It has been years since our family camped - mainly because I did not enjoy nursing all night in a sleeping bag! So, we packed up and set off after a yummy bbq birthday lunch.
There was no one in the area when we arrived and set up. Cam, Cait and Lily loved running around and exploring the little area. It was warm as we set up, above 80 degrees. I kept telling myself to enjoy the warmth because we all new there was a cool front coming in with rain.
We ended the day with a beautiful sunset, a yummy chili dinner and s'mores cooked over the fire pit.
Snuggled in our sleeping bags, the thunder rolled into the valley around 1:00 a.m. JC and I listened to it as it got closer and closer and the rain came through. It is lovely how the kids can sleep through all that noise.
Then we began to feel the rain drops. I tried to sleep as the rain drops fell and I listened to the very close thunder echo through the valley. It was amazing to hear and it would have been wonderful if the rain didn't pick up.
JC and Bren got up to see if they could retie the rain fly or figure out why so much rain was coming in. I had given my sleeping bag to the girls to insure they would stay warm so I was in an all-cloth bag. By 4:00 a.m. it was still raining, I was soaked through and I was not getting back to sleep. I told JC it was time for plan B.
We loaded up the wet kids into the truck that was already packed with everything we didn't want to get wet (prior to going to bed). We were a little uneasy about leaving all our camp gear but there wasn't much else we could do at 4:00 a.m., in the rain. We drove up to the resort and found that all of the rooms were full, as were the cabins.
They told us where to find a motel in town and we drove 6 miles or so out to find one. The poor elderly gentleman we woke up for a room was very kind to give us a room. We piled into the room, striped off our wet clothes and snuggled up for a few hours of sleep. JC and I sandwiched the girls and the boys took the other bed. I didn't think we would get much sleep but I think we all got a solid 4-5 hours!
We spent several hours and lots of quarters drying all our gear. The woman running the laundromat was so kind and told us she would keep an eye on our stuff so we could walk down the street and check out the Cheese Festival. It wasn't very exciting - and still pretty cold - so we went back and found all our laundry dry and folded.
Back at camp, we prepared chili and sat by the fire. Bren's friend, his friend's dad and brother showed up around dark and the guys helped them set up their tent.
And lots of wood. The boys filled the back of the truck with firewood from the trails They all enjoyed riding in the back of the truck back to the camp site.
There is a reason we say, "Always an Adventure". It is amazing how perspective can make the difference in things like this. It would have been easy for any of us to have a rotten attitude for all the inconveniences. But when we approach life with the mindset that it is an adventure, we make it through and we can laugh on the other side.
***Happy birthday, Bren Bug! I hope you enjoyed your camping adventure!***
1 comment:
Great series of pictures. Sorry the tent leaked. I guess that problem can be fixed. Thanks for sharing. You must have been VERY tired when it was all over.
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