Campout Time

This past weekend was our ward campout. The setting was coincidentally our favorite camping site: Berry Springs Park. It's a huge pecan orchard that was given to the city for a park in 2002. The trees are over 100 years old, so the property is beautifully shaded and very scenic. Nathan was working late doing presentations at NI, so I packed the children and took them to the campsite alone.

We decided to make it into a mock emergency evacuation drill. We try to practice this every 6 months or so. We set the timer and had everyone go do their assigned duties. The children all lugged their 72-hour kits into the van, then Sarah ran to collect the first aid box and medicines while Matthew collected sleeping bags. Daniel gathered pillows from each bed and Sarah moved onto the journals and scriptures while Matthew leashed Bella. I loaded the tent, water, and family 72-hour buckets. It went tolerably well and we were loaded and set to go in 12 minutes! Daniel did end up wandering aimlessly through the house, forgetting to collect the pillows. When I did remind him of his only duty, he frantically brought me the decorative throw pillows from the couch....I see we have room for some improvement. :)

 Daniel really loved playing in the tent. I remember how magical and exotic tents were when I was a child.

Nathan loves climbing trees, so he convinced a lot of children to join him off the ground. I could hear the kids giggles floating across the clearing to where I was sitting. I think they really loved it.

 Sarah made it to the first branch, then was frightened and asked to be put on the earth again. Later that afternoon, Sarah whispered something in Nathan's ear and asked him to come see a surprise she had for him. She took him to a tree and proceeded to scale up the tree all by herself. She was so pleased with her accomplishment! Nathan was so pleased that she conquered her fear.

Here is Matthew perched in his tree.

It like an overnight party for the children. They loved playing with all their friends, romping through the meadow and orchard on a grand adventure they imagined.
Daniel discovered a surprising love for football (the American kind). The teenagers and some adults were playing football and Daniel was determined to play with them. He lined up with them and skirmished alongside them. We were surprised that he didn't get any broken toes.

He was so funny to watch as he doggedly chased the ball around. I think someone gave him a spare ball to play with as a way of occupying him. He carried it around for hours.

It was such a great weekend to spend together!It was such an adventure to go camping. Now that I'm the mom, it's not so much an adventure. It's a LOT of work. I read a quote somewhere a long time ago that said parents don't do activities like this because they think it fun. It's not fun for the adults. Why go through all this effort? Because it creates meaningful memories for our children that will stick with them forever and help unify our family.