We're going camping... yay?

Tomorrow morning I am leaving for an overnight camping trip. We've had a pretty busy summer, and school starts up again in 1.5 or 2.5 weeks, depending on where Carlie goes, which is still up in the air. So this will be our last outing for the summer. I wish it were something a little less camping-ish than camping. But whatever. There will be beer and oysters and s'mores, so I can't complain too much.

We went camping a couple of weeks ago and I didn't say much about it because it was pretty uneventful, wherein uneventful = I wasn't crying and gnashing my teeth to get home, but when it was time to go home I was pretty happy to get on with it.

So Carlie and I happily hopped in the car while Tim locked up the trailer. We are in the car, motor running, ready to pull forward through the gate to the street, waiting for Tim, and yay, we give a little cheer when Tim finally gets in the car and, BOO-YAH WE ARE GOING HOME, where there is soap and towels and the internet, you know, civilization.

We're sitting in the RUNNING car, about to PULL FORWARD TO THE STREET, when a huge ass 18-wheeler comes barreling up that very small two-lane rustic road. He passes our property, brakes, and backs up. And then the dumb ass cracker mo fo pulls into OUR DRIVEWAY which is made of LOOSE ASS GRAVEL with his GIANT 18 WHEELER and blocks my car in on our OWN PROPERTY.

What? The?

He gets out of his truck, asks if we are address WHATEVER and we are not, so he gets in his truck and backs out to the road, unblocking our path, and then we merrily cruised home.

Yeah, right.

He gets out of his truck, asks if we are address WHATEVER and we are not, so he gets in his truck and ATTEMPTS to back out to the road, but only succeeds in DIGGING GIANT RUTS into the LOOSE ASS GRAVEL DRIVEWAY until he is finally and irrevocably STUCK in our driveway BLOCKING US IN as we are trying to go home.

(Insert 45 FUCKING MINUTES of wheel spinning, truck cargo removing to lighten load, shovel digging around the wheels and "huh, go figure, this has never happened to me before" in lieu of an apology.)

Eventually (45 FUCKING MINUTES LATER) the truck was able to exit our driveway, at which time we (where in *we* is *Tim*, as if you didn't know that) were then able to spend another 15 minutes raking gravel and recreating the now destroyed driveway to the best of Tim's ability while I sit in the car honking the horn saying SCREW THE DRIVEWAY, LET'S GO HOME.

So, yeah. We're going camping. Again. Pray for me.

Camp Out Over

Feels so good to be home in my bed, after having had a shower for the first time since FRIDAY! Uck!

Camp out was a success, but I have been sick as a dog since Friday. Started with a tickle in my throat, evolved to right now feeling like I am underwater, ears full of fluid, throat on fire, ulcers in my mouth and no ability to breathe through my nose. But I still had a pretty good time and it felt good to be out in the sun (when there was sun, which was most of the time, but not all of the time).

Final camping stats: we ended up with 34 people for dinner on Saturday night. It was insane. Four of them were day visitors, so we had 30 campers for the night and for Sunday breakfast, which again was insane. Saturday activities included an expedition to the beach for some to ride horses while others kayaked on the river. Sunday activities included more kayaking, plus Tim took out the "big" boat (not really big, but bigger than a kayak!) and took a two or three different groups out for fishing. Some of us just laid around and enjoyed the sun and a few folks even went for a run. Busy, busy, busy!

Uneventful drive home with the two year old nephew thankfully sleeping the entire way. Now it's time for sudaphed, nyquil, whatever I can find, and some sleep.

Almost forgot one of the highlights of the trip: my brother in law, who has no kids and likes to make sure he always maintains favorite uncle status with all of the kiddies, made smores with a little twist for the kiddos... using rice crispy treats in place of graham crackers. May as well have sprayed the kids' hands with glue and dipped them in sugar for the mess! But OMG were they good. I mean goooooooood : )

and crab too!

oysters

From the bay to the grill!

harvest

The great harvest of one blueberry. Quality over quantity!

garden

Tim fenced in a garden area to grow some baby trees without the elk devoiring them.

campout stats

We are currently at 10 adults, 4 teens and 8 kids, with 2 families not here yet!

hypoallergenic hayride

Because there is no hay!

Feature presentation

Harry and the Hendersons

Snuggle

Time for the cousins to snuggle up for a campout movie.

Wipe Out

Oops

We are not five miles from home yet and Jack dumped a yogurt on himself and the car so he had to borrow a dainty little cap sleeve number.

Color Me Campy

Just checked the 10-day forecast and we should have good weather for our big ass campout. Seeing the smiley faced sun icon makes my heart happy, because camping in the rain? Yeah, sucks it hard.

Anyone want to go camping this weekend? There's always room for one more tent in Dignity Village.

Am I heartless?

I just got back from seeing "Henry Poole is Here." I thought it was kind of dorky. I went with a girlfriend who thought it was really good, which got me to thinking, why do I find anything sentimental or heartwarming to be kind of ridiculous? I have a tender soul, I swear I do, but I can't tell you the last time I got choked up at a movie.

I had a hard time liking Luke Wilson, who is kind of cute, but he always seems to be trying to channel Christian Slater, who annoys me because he is a Jack Nicholson wanna-be, which makes Luke Wilson a Jack Nicholson impersonator once removed. Which I just can't get into. Sorry.

In a fit of uncharacteristic frugality, I brought ziplock bags of popped popcorn to the theatre. How lame am I? I never would have been industrious enough to pop popcorn and bag it up to take to the theatre, but one of the girls who came to the Cheetah movie screening Friday night brought half a dozen bags of popcorn, and it was just sitting there, and I was going to a movie, and it seemed like the thing to do.

Saw a preview for the new Ricky Gervais movie the other day, though, and OMG how much do you love Ricky Gervais? But I am sure the next movie I will probably see will be "High School Musical." Or if I am lucky maybe "Twilight," isn't that out pretty soon?

I picked up "Sixteen Candles" on DVD for a campout movie. We'll be screening outdoor movies, which is way too much fun. The collection for the camping trip so far includes Princess Bride, Ferris Bueller, Harry and the Hendersons, Sixteen Candles and Say Anything. 1987 called and wants her movies back. We also have Enchanted and Penelope to bring us into the 00's.

So many movies, so little time.

Home Again, Home Again, Jiggity Jig

Every one survived the camp out. No loss of life, no poison oak, no bear attacks. It's all good.

Besides the Princess Bride screening, which was so kick ass, the other highlight of the trip would be the camp fire, which was made with dampish wood and had to be jump started with lighter fluid, which then turned it into a TOWERING INFERNO of such intense white hot heat no one could get close enough to roast a freaking marshmallow on it. Notice some of the children actually shielding their faces. Good Times!

And here's a cute picture of the girls. As you can see, they're in the river, but they're not swimming. They're just hiking. In the water. Fine distinction... but I never said no hiking in the water, I just said no swimming. My bad.

Jealous much?

Big screen viewing of the Princess Bride at the camp out. How much do you wish we were your parents when you were 9?

Divalicious

How many tents do three 9yr old girls need? Two, of course. One to sleep in on their queen blow up and one for their "luggage" and changing/vanity area.

The other girl scouts will be arriving shortly so I had to say farewell to my friend The Captain last night and prepare for wholesome family fun for the rest of the weekend.

Went for a 3 mile run when the rain stopped, which was coincidently right when the kids woke up and came into the trailer to forage for breakfast. Will be chronicalling it later in a riveting photo essay! Woot!

Goal for the day

Yesterday I mapped out a 3 mile route to go for a run this morning. I was prepared to deal with BIG hills, washed out portions of the road and running through a short stretch occupied by Deliverance style shanties. What I was not prepared for was it to be raining already. How happy am I to put my mad texting skills to use mobile blogging when there is fuck else to do?

On the good news front, the children's tent does not appear to have been mauled by bears in the night, so I assume they are still in there sleeping. And, yes, bears are a concern. We were informed of a "nearby sighting" as soon as we arrived yesterday. WTF? ( Notice it didn't stop us from parking those giels right out in the tent though.)

Goal for today is to not kill anymore baby birds and not to eat the LARGE bag of M&Ms. Notice how th fact that it is LARGE is more important than the fact it has peanuts. God bless the USA!

Camping Cocktail

NATURE HATES ME

This was supposed to be a picture of three newborn baby birds in a dainty little nest, but when I approached with my camera phone they opened their little bird mouths wider than imaginable, screamed like humans and two of them lept to their deaths at my feet. Traumatized, I decided to go to the grocery store for chocolate and beer, and had to drive 5mph behind a deer who would not get out of the road. Of course when I accepted my 5mph fate and tried to take a pic of the deer ass in front of me, he leapt of the road. If you look closely I think he is flipping me off.