Hasty Decisions.

I'm a planner.  If we do anything, I like to have the time to prepare.  Lists are made & piles are organized.  And when the day arrives, we're ready to Move-Out.  But this week, I'm grateful for hasty decisions.  During Wednesday's dinner, I floated the idea about camping.  We've been dreaming of a family camping trip since I was pregnant with Cooper.  For the past 10 years, we camp with a large group of friends.  It's strictly a No-Kids event.  Nothing lurid happens, but it's nice to get a break from Parenting & kids would change the entire vibe of the weekend.  Not mention, I'd be a nervous wreck with the kids in our canoe.  And where would the cooler fit?  Back to Wednesday night...

Mark jumped on board & began checking the weather reports.  It looked clear.  Since we're skilled campers, everything was packed & organized.  It took very little effort for us to prepare.  Let's camp in the summer!  The boys were told & the site was reserved.  When I clicked the "Purchase" button, some regret began to bubble up.  Wasn't the A/C going to be fixed on Friday?  Aren't we sick of the heat already?  How are we going to escape it outdoors?  I don't have time to get everything ready!  What are we going to do with a toddler on camp site?  What the hell is wrong with us?  This hasty decision could only have been made in a state of delirium brought on by living with no A/C in house with only two functioning windows.  But it was made & the camp stuff was slowly being brought upstairs.  I asked every question I could that might pass this doubt onto Mark.  "Each site has electricity.  What if we're next to a camper that runs its air the entire night?"  "What are we going to do with Becket?"  "What if he runs into the woods & he never comes home?"  "What if the Beach is only a gravel pit surrounding a puddle of mud?"  "What if it floods?"  "What are we going to do from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. at night with the boys?"  "What if..."  He knows me & just let the questions pass.

{Notice the different pile sizes?  I think he just noticed it too.}

My biggest worry was concerning Becket.  I knew Cooper would find a way to entertain himself for the weekend.   But a toddler?  I almost brought some blocks, but we ran out of room in the trunk.  I begged him to bring Guys to play with, but he didn't want any.  What was this kid going to do all weekend?  What could I bring that would satisfy him all weekend?  Clearly,  I haven't learned my lesson with this one.  The only thing I ever need to bring is Cooper.  He's his shadow.  Cooper tells a story.  Becket repeats it.  Cooper says, "Baby-Head."  Becket calls you, "Baby-Head.  Tree-Head. Toilet-Head" & laughs about it.  Keep Cooper happy & Becks is happy by default.  At this stage of our Parenting lives, this is the key to happiness.
 

When we got to the campsite, all of my other doubts were chased away by the beauty of it all.  Our site was lush & tucked into a canopy of natural shade.  I realized that we were going to spend the weekend alone & I was excited for this moment.  It wasn't that we'd get a break from technology, but we were going to get a break from everything.  Whatever happened it was going to be our responsibility to deal with it.  And there's a simplicity in knowing that your only option is to just Deal.  At home if I'm out of an ingredient, it requires a anger-filled trip to the store.  Don't you hate when you forget the key ingredient?  At the campsite, you just deal with the fact that we have no ketchup & there's no point in pouting about it.  No one asked to watch Batman or anything else.  But we were asked to play dozens of Uno matches.  We learned that Cooper is competitive & that we can never play Monopoly with him.  One of us will be forced to leave the family for good.  Mark & I aren't nice Monopoly players.   The boys giggled at night because they got to sleep next to each other.  We didn't take guide books or try to squeeze in nature lessons.  We just let the weekend unfold.  The boys spent their mornings at the site building with dominoes, organizing the Army Men into troops & playing with stickers.  Never once was I asked, "What can I do?"  The only complaint we got was that the fire hurt Cooper's eyes.

 {Via changed my Camping-Life!}

I take that back.  Cooper took the majority of the Army Men & Becket wasn't happy about it.  Camping or not, that kind of argument will never end.

-Erika

p.s. Here's a few more...

{He was very concerned that Becks was going to walk into "traffic"}

{I decided to give "Eat. Pray. Love" one more chance. I'm glad I did}

{Toy Story Dominoes were a hit, but are too easy. And I'm pretty sure Mark & I don't play correctly.}

{He was so happy that he found some shells on his own.}