We had one scare when Oliver was commanded to stay with Elsa (he had wanted to go into the woods to hunt for fire wood with the older kids), and separately Elsa was commanded to stay near camp. Oliver convinced Elsa that they should go to the woods together, and off they went, undetected by the adults. Maybe 10 minutes later we realized they were gone, and more than 20 minutes later the kids were found. It was a bit on the disconcerting side.
The kids also went prowling around for wildlife. They reported that there was a black widow in the bathroom. I didn't believe it and rolled my eyes scoffing. After all, I had seen all the really massive spiders on the last trip-nothing to write home about. So they decided to catch the very much alive and rather large black widow on a stick and brought it to camp proudly- they meaning, Jonathan, Pierce, Caroline, Oliver and Charles. For some reason Adelaide and Elsa were not around at that moment. Yes, they had my undivided attention as the huge spider leisurely strolled back and forth across the very short stick, which Jonathan held with equal nonchalance. I took things in charge, put stick and spider on the ground, and stomped until the big spider was a small dirty mass- hardly recognizable as a spider much less black widow. I think let them know that for future reference, leave poisonous spiders alone!
The kids had a blast and the adults found it nice to have 4 pair of eyes watching out for the little ones. Vivian enjoyed exploring, and because of the way the camp sites were laid out, steered clear of the road for the most part.
The nights were cold, so on night two we tried out the heater- it was wonderful! And the noise of the fan kept the kids sleeping a lot longer. I decided that was well worth missing out on the forest noises.
I cooked in my dutch ovens over the fire- Chicken, veggies and biscuits on night one, and a pot of trailside beans to go with hotdogs on night two. Night one I didn't start cooking until about 6pm, when I should have really begun at 4. Our friends next door had decided on freeze dried lasagna which required boiling water and that was it. Their family was eating LONG before our family. Oliver said,"Man, I want to move in with the Loechls because then I'd be eating already." The Loechls had even finished off their dessert of Raspberry Crumble before we sat down to eat. But when you make the tribe wait so long to eat, they eat without complaint. We polished off an entire chicken (cut into 8 pieces) and 8 extra drumsticks, besides a pile of sauteed vegetables and biscuits. Of course we had pancakes and bacon for breakfast both mornings. It is our camping tradition now.
Although on Friday and Saturday nights I did scrub the children's feet, hands and faces, I didn't give them baths because it really was quite cold - 48 degrees. Tonight I put them in the tub (the three younger ones), and noticed the Johnson bottle read- "gentle mild soap". I scrubbed away at very dirty little bodies and figured I should keep Lava Soap on hand for these occasions.
Charles pants were so dirty after two hours this morning, it was remarkable. I couldn't figure out how the child could have so much dirt on his clothing. I just sat and watched him for awhile, and then noticed that he would kick off his Crocs, run around in the dirt for a little while, then rub his feet off on his pant legs, and put his Crocs back on. When I stain treated the pants tonight, literally there may have been a few square inches of cloth that didn't need to be treated.
We were all sad to come home. Jon and I just about have this camping thing down to a science. A few minor changes, and I think things will be perfectly streamlined. We are all a little sad that our next trip isn't until December, but we'll be camping for two whole weeks. Hurrah!
