Saturday, August 13, 2005
Camping
We did it! No one went to the hospital, and only one bandaid required. Parents didn't kill children, children didn't...I can't think of anything there.
Within an hour of arrival all four children were playing together in the woods. Good, we thought. Time to set up and then chill before cooking. We checked on them (by turning our heads, which sometimes seemed like too much work) and noticed what appeared to be a scene out of Lord of the Flies. There was a standoff with three other kids, and everyone's body language and stick posture was looking to become confrontational. We could tell there were words and warnings being issued. I entered crowd control mode. Into the woods I went to diffuse the situation. I didn't bring any rubber bullets, so I had to use the tough mom voice. It came surprisingly easy. You would think I have practise at it.
The next day we went to the beach.
Don't let the picture fool you. See that boat? Twice we had to go fetch it because it had been let go of. Well, we're women, so we didn't exactly fetch it. The first time it strayed Maryann went to get it and ended up in sinking mud and lakeweed, so turned back. We didn't panic. A $25 boat isn't worth that much yuck! We agreed to let it float around the lake a while and see where it ended up. Some nice kayakers spotted it quickly, rounded it up, and returned it to us. But the children wanted to use it more, so with a "conversation" on how to avoid losing it we let them. Lessons come the hard way. Once again astray, I ran to get it and was told "Get one of the older boys to swim for it". So, I held his beachball while he retrieved it. Hey, this woman only camping thing was working out to our advantage. We still didn't have to get wet!
We adopted Zach, from the next campsite. A four year old sweetie, he would have been a perfect addition to my family. But, he already had parents...darn.
The second day Gary came to stay overnight, which meant comedic relief.
Since there was then a man in the camp we played games together...board games...where was your mind? Yatzee Nazi (Maryann) won 100% of the Yatzee games, and Jenn actually gambled on poker. Isn't it a sin or something? Would it still be called gambling if we used communal index cards instead of money? Whether it be yes or no, I'm going to milk it anyways. I didn't achieve my goal for the night of getting Jenn to cuss. I'll try harder next year.
Within an hour of arrival all four children were playing together in the woods. Good, we thought. Time to set up and then chill before cooking. We checked on them (by turning our heads, which sometimes seemed like too much work) and noticed what appeared to be a scene out of Lord of the Flies. There was a standoff with three other kids, and everyone's body language and stick posture was looking to become confrontational. We could tell there were words and warnings being issued. I entered crowd control mode. Into the woods I went to diffuse the situation. I didn't bring any rubber bullets, so I had to use the tough mom voice. It came surprisingly easy. You would think I have practise at it.
The next day we went to the beach.
Don't let the picture fool you. See that boat? Twice we had to go fetch it because it had been let go of. Well, we're women, so we didn't exactly fetch it. The first time it strayed Maryann went to get it and ended up in sinking mud and lakeweed, so turned back. We didn't panic. A $25 boat isn't worth that much yuck! We agreed to let it float around the lake a while and see where it ended up. Some nice kayakers spotted it quickly, rounded it up, and returned it to us. But the children wanted to use it more, so with a "conversation" on how to avoid losing it we let them. Lessons come the hard way. Once again astray, I ran to get it and was told "Get one of the older boys to swim for it". So, I held his beachball while he retrieved it. Hey, this woman only camping thing was working out to our advantage. We still didn't have to get wet!
We adopted Zach, from the next campsite. A four year old sweetie, he would have been a perfect addition to my family. But, he already had parents...darn.
The second day Gary came to stay overnight, which meant comedic relief.
Since there was then a man in the camp we played games together...board games...where was your mind? Yatzee Nazi (Maryann) won 100% of the Yatzee games, and Jenn actually gambled on poker. Isn't it a sin or something? Would it still be called gambling if we used communal index cards instead of money? Whether it be yes or no, I'm going to milk it anyways. I didn't achieve my goal for the night of getting Jenn to cuss. I'll try harder next year.
// posted by Annette @ 10:48 a.m. 