Sunday, November 22, 2009

Camping


We went camping this weekend with our dear friends, the Leonards: Katie, Ed, and their dog Otis. We stuffed puffed up marshmallow shaped sleeping bags, beach toys, and s'more ingredients in our boxy civic trunk and headed out to our beachside camping grounds.
We arrived to Katie and Ed, noses both buried in books, and Otis wagging
his tail to greet us. .
It was a perfect November gray as we walked out to the beach just a few minutes away; a crisp and quiet blur of light sand and sky. The girls plopped themselves into the sand: shoveling, heaping, and sculpting. They skipped naps and survived with only one minor meltdown.
That night we settled in for the perfect camp fire meal: Katie's "bum sacks". Potato pouches filled with veggies and roasted over the fire. For dessert the girls packed s'mores
into their little dirty faces.

Norah crawled into her sleeping bag without resistance and drifted off immediately. Lucas sang lullabies to Avery and she quickly followed suit.As the girls slept, we sat at a small wooden picnic table; friends gathered. We warmed our hands as the fire crackled and smoked. We laughed, we talked, we played games. Ed and Lucas drank beers and talked about the constellations. Katie and I only half listened in, as we caught up on life.

Norah slept peacefully all night. Avery, well, didn't. Needless to say, the next morning Norah, Avery and I were all awake shortly after dawn. We went for a brief walk and when we returned Ed and Otis were returning from their own walk. Ed made french pressed coffee and pumpkin pancakes. Otis flirted with the girls and kissed the dirt from their sugary faces. After a little more sleep, Katie joined us. Then eventually Lucas.

It was our first camping trip as a family. We parted ways with the Leonards; dirty, tired, and already planning our next "bum sack" roast.

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