I know it's a pretty daring thing to do when you have a 4 month old, as we were told by Kiralie's pediatrician. But we just couldn't resist the opportunity we had to go camping with our ward (Mountainview ward). We've wanted to go camping this summer but couldn't find the right time to do it. So when the opportunity came, we just had to jump in.
The drive up to the camping ground took about an hour and a half but Kiralie slept through the whole thing. We kindda joked about the fact that, she rides in the car just like her mother. lol. When am riding in the car and the wind outside feels good, its nap time! We got there safely after getting lost for about 15 minutes. Thank goodness for a lady who realized we were lost. We probably would have been lost longer if it wasn't for her divine intervention. We followed her directions and realized that, if we weren't too absorbed in our conversation, we would have seen the sign the ward had placed by the road. Anyways, we found the place and were very relieved.
When we were ready to find a place to put up our tent, there was the war of where to put it. Was it going to be close by the river in the middle of the trees (Tim) or right there by the eating area where the ground was leveled for us (Takyiwah). You probably know the answer to this. I won. Cos I wasn't going to sleep so close to the river for the bears to come knocking at my door when they come fishing. lol. At least by the eating area, I could call for help and it would be right there since most people put up their tents nearby.
Then it came to where to place the door of the tent. I had to give in to Tim cos I won in the previous war. And when it came to how to put up the tent, it was very interesting cos we both had different ideas. But am sure Tim agrees as much as he will deny that, my idea was the best.
And where was the baby while all this was going on? She was chilling in her car seat with missy by the camp fire.
We tried to make the tent as homey as possible for the baby. So we set up her pack and play and loaded as many blankets as we could. Even though everything was green, she had her pink blankets to make it feel like home. lol
We went to get something to eat after the tent was up and all our belongings were in it. It was cold up there and all I had packed for myself was shorts and short sleeve shirts and a pair of sweats to sleep in. How was I supposed to know that I had to pack some warmer clothes when I was only told that it got cold at night? lol It was only 6pm and I was freezing. Thank goodness for Tim who packed 2 sweaters so I borrowed one.
The funny thing is, I packed a lot of warm clothes for the baby; snow suits, mittens, etc. But forgot to do the same for myself.
There was a lot of fun games for all to enjoy that evening. And the little kids got to go snape (snipe) hunting, as they called it.
Kiralie enjoyed the camp fire and so did missy. And the stars were so beautiful in the sky. It was very peaceful and relaxing not to have the computer and cell phones and TV and all that crap. It's amazing how much fun you can have with so little.
Amazingly, Kiralie had no problem going to sleep and slept pretty well through the night. Considering that was her first night not sleeping at home in her bed. Yay for her. She did very great.
Saturday morning was great for me. It was the first time in forever that Tim slept in. And the baby wasn't awake either so I had some time to enjoy a cup of hot chocolate and just relax by the fire. It felt like having a special treat at a spa.
When Tim finally got up, we had some breakfast and got baby ready for the day when she eventually woke up too.
So the plan was to hike to Wall Lake that morning and be back for lunch. I had everything we needed for the trip. Or so I thought. When we got to the trail head with the rest of the group I was so pumped. It had been a while since I did something like that and I needed that fix badly.
Just as we were about to get the baby into her sling, we realized she had suffered a blow out (anyone that has baby knows exactly what am talking about), ruining the cute outfit that she had on. Well, we got her in the trunk of the car (it's a wagon) to change her diaper. I knew I had a change of clothes in the diaper bag so we were going to do this as quickly as possible and join the rest of the group. Guess, what? I didn't have the change of clothes that I thought I had. I left it out of the bag when I was putting her bottles in.
So we had to go back to camp and get new clothes for her, while the rest started without us. Bummer! It was all my mistake. She is just a baby doing what babies do. I should have been prepared.
It wasn't such a bad idea to turn back cos we realized there were a dozen things that we really had to do and get before going on that hike. So we took our time this time and got everything that we needed and even grabbed some snacks for the hike. It wasn't so bad after all.
We hiked to the trail head instead of driving. It was fun cos we got to see the Washington Lake while we were at it. We also had the company of a friend in the ward (Nancy Ayre) and her daughter (London). It was a short hike (about a mile and a quarter) but it kicked my butt as I was totally out of shape.
The view out there was great and it was fun to watch the young men and women, jump of the wall into the Lake. Even some adults got into the fun. But if you know me, you will know that, that is definitely out of my league cos I can't swim. And so I wasn't risking it. And Tim had an excuse too. So we plan to do it together sometime when I am competent enough to do so.
We had a good time there. Missy had fun taking off on her own little adventures and baby didn't seem to mind the sun at all. She didn't cry or fuss. We were truly blessed on this trip.
On our hike back, we came across some horses on the trail, and Missy didn't know how to act. At first she stood her ground and wouldn't let the horses (big dogs) pass. Finally we got her to move out of their way, but she sure growled and barked and gave them a hard time. It was so funny.
Also on our way back, we passed by the little river that run down the little hill by our camp site. It was beautiful. And I understood why Tim wanted us to set up our tent close to it.
A lunch, game of cards and a nap later, it was dinner time. After dinner, it was time to head back.
By that time, everyone including missy was tired and ready to come home to a good shower and warm bed.
The trip back was very peaceful and short cos I slept through the whole thing and so did missy and Kiralie. We are thankful to our daddy Tim, who stayed awake to get us all home safely.
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| Her bed away from home |
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| she was ready to go back to camp |
We are grateful to our Father in Heaven for a safe and fun trip. And we a grateful that, we can spend such family times together to build memories. It wasn't an expensive vacation or retreat, but we did it together and had a lot of fun while at it. We are definitely going to do this again. If baby loves it, we surely can.
