What a wonderful way to celebrate the Summer Solstice(aka First Day of Summer)* and Father's Day!! We had a wild and crazy time of it which included laughing to the point of nearly being sick numerous times, including when Mark jumped overboard to rescue his favorite lure! The depth finder said the water was 2-feet deep. He hopped out, never felt the bottom and came up sputtering! Amy had just put her feet over the front of the boat and we saw the ripples in the sandy bottom. Apparently there was a huge abrupt drop-off just a few feet out. At least he got cooled off.
It was a terrific 30 hours!! Everything worked, we didn't forget anything, our meals were simple and delicious, and everyone got to go in the boat at least twice. Nobody got hurt, well not anything major. I jammed a toe at the swimming area and Sarah scraped her foot on a rock but the pain was soon forgotten. Other than still feeling like I'm on the boat and being exhausted from lack of sleep(it was 93 freaking degrees at 10pm!!!) we are recovered. Mark even unloaded the gear and started laundry within an hour of being home.
We almost didn't go. Friday I had to go buy some camping groceries and when I got in the Jeep the a/c wasn't working. At all. Neither was the radio. Or the power locks and windows. We were sure we'd put the Jeep in the shop Saturday morning. Thankfully, something clicked in it and everything worked Saturday morning so we hurriedly loaded all the gear and headed out. I'm oh so glad we did, and so are these folks...
Luck was on our side and we managed to get the same exact campsite as we had last year. It is important that we settle near the bathrooms. The girls walk to them alone(together) and I would rather be within earshot. This site is one of the bigger and flatter sites they have. Some of the others we checked out on our loop walks were configured in such a way that the tents were in a weird location or the concrete table pad was a foot step-off all the way around. Everyone can't wait to go again, though we'll likely find a different state park.
Creature comforts in the form of air mattresses, lots of ice, junk foods, craft supplies and electronic devices(ipods and cell phones) kept us sane in the heat. I had big plans to locate driftwood and lake stones for an art project but remembered too late that those things weren't easily found at Lake Bob Sandlin but at Atlanta State Park so I had to crochet instead. I made two babushkas(kerchiefs) making up the pattern as I went. The yarn is I Love This Cotton from Hobby Lobby and its true, I LOVE it!
Dinner Saturday night was super easy. I had boiled a box of elbow noodles(the kind with extra fiber-yum), grilled 9 bone/skinless chicken breasts on Friday afternoon, chopped them, and put it all in the fridge. When we got ready to eat, I warmed up some bottled alfredo sauce on the camp stove with a can of drained diced tomatoes, spices and some of the chicken. I added the noodles and about 1/2 cup parmesan cheese and we had a feast!! Mark mistakenly grabbed a container of greens leftover from our Wednesday night's meal when he filled the coolers so we had salad as a bonus! I brought two packages of sandwich buns so I split them and toasted over the flame. Camp cooking is SO fun if you prepare well. Because the menfolk wanted to fish early Sunday morning I didn't bring breakfast stuff. Instead we had chocolate covered donuts, Doritos, and Zone bars.
We had glow stick bracelets for our Solstice Celebration. The kids hung them from cracks in the bark on the trees all around our campsite, even made a face. I thought they were pretty creative. We left them up all night.
*Now, before anyone has a freak out about the Solstice. Every person in the world experiences the the Solstices even if they don't know it. We all experience the lengthening days of Spring and the short days of Winter and the shortest and longest days of the year because that is the science of our world which I happen to believe was put into place by our Creator. Celebrating is not the same as Worship and reveling in the summer is not the same as revering my Lord God. Not that I have to defend myself but I'd rather not go through another round of rumors about my religious beliefs.
4 comments:
We love camping too - - - but we have a pop up and it has air conditioning, which is super nice on 98 degree nights. ;-)
LOL - - - I LOVE your solstice disclaimer!!! I, being a science teacher, knew exactly what it was and didn't think a thing of it - - - but I DO remember the whoopla you had to go through with your first blog, so I completely understand the disclaimer.
Hey! Try taking a wire brush to the battery cables for your funky glitch on the car. Sometimes mine shuts all down like that and we just have to disconnect and reconnect the battery. Learned it from someone else that had the same thing happen. Who knows. Now we clean the cables a little to ensure a good connection.
I'm envious of the camping.
How did Domo do on the trip? My daughter has several of those!
Hi Molly,
Your tent looks so cozy and comfy.
We're going on our first camping trip this Sunday through Thursday.
We are camping at a State camp ground. I've made dozens of lists and have been packing for weeks.
I know I've gone over board but just in case... I've packed everything but the kitchen sink:)
Oh please don't be in the 90's, here in Michigan with the humidity it's a killer:(
Caleb and 7 of his friends are camping on 2 sites at the other end of the campground. I didn't want them too close to me, but I still will be able to keep an eye on them some what. I'm praying that they behave themselves!
I had to laugh at the glow in the dark tubes. I bought some at Michael's and put them in Noah's "I'm board bag" for our camping trip. I love them hanging in the trees! That's great!!!
Happy Solstice to you! We always celebrate the seasonal changes:)
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