Friday, June 29, 2007

Camping. It's a weird thing.


Last week while we camped at the lovely Holland State Park I got to thinking about the act of Camping.

You see I did not grow up participating in this activity. My father wouldn't step foot in a camper, (he probably wouldn't fit). He wouldn't be able to tell you what a "dough boy" was, or a "hobo pie." We spent our summer vacations at the cottage, by the lake with fully functioning toilets.

You can imagine the mockery I sustained when I told my family that I was going camping.
While I was growing up on Payne Lake, my husband was growing up in a tent on a remote Michigan campground and enjoying it to the fullest.

Dan wanted to recreate that kind of fun for our kids. Thanks to a friend with a fabulous camper we set out for family fun.

Here were a few observations I had about camping:
  • Campsites are pretty close together. No where else would I want to eat, drink, and sleep that close to perfect strangers. But when you are camping it doesn't seem to matter that I was walking around in my PJs for all the world to see-- at 10am.
  • Showering. It doesn't seem as necessary as it does at home. Why bother when the shower water just might be lukewarm and you have to push the button every five seconds to keep up a steady stream.
  • Meals. Food cooked over an open flame just tastes better in a campground that on the grill at home.
  • Exercise. I didn't wake up in the morning thinking that I would climb a sand dune that day. My sons tricked me into it I tell you. I think I may have got more physical activity in that week than I had in a long time. Embarassing, yes.
  • The convenience of an indoor potty does not out weigh the gross-ness of emptying out the "black water" at the end of the week. Black water, Gray water, fresh water, who knew? I was such a camping rookie.
We enjoyed the week. So much.

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

Welcome to the "real" family fun!!
Sounds like you had a great time. Maybe you can introduce your parents and siblings to enjoy real camping.
love, Mom

Anonymous said...

I agree with the shower thing....I didnt grow up camping either....

I cant express too many thoughts for this post because I planned on blogging about our camping adventure, too!

Laurie said...

There is nothing like having an amazing tan, bed head all day every day, and smoke scented clothes ... ahhhhh .... camping.

Sara said...

Welcome to the camping world. I hope to go this month sometime. Your kids are the camping type :) LOL...they love to be outside, getting dirty :)

Triplet Mom said...

I have gone camping long before Chelle, my sister. I could enjoy one week out of the year. However, I would joke that my idea of "roughing it" was in a hotel room. I like showers and toilets in my place of residence! Walking to bathrooms is for the birds!

Old School said...

I'm with the Fig!!!

Anonymous said...

Fig, of course is right, hum let me list a few of the highlights of camping.
1. Long drive to get there
2. How do you park that thing (2 hours later)
3. There is no real woods near by to use for a rest room.
4. Trailers are built for wee-people
5. People everywhere
6. Wheres the power boats?
7. It's 24 degrees and still 1 million bugs
8. Is that sand on the beach or someones ash tray?
9. I think I just stepped on someones old charcoal
10 It always rains on the campgound
11. You sneeze and the people in the next trailer say guzt-heit.
12. Just give me the hersey candy bar forget about smores
13. Hobo pies taste like sand, smoke, and everything burn't
14. Booze and and parties all thru the night
15. Do overflows from major campgrounds go to some sewer area?
16. etc, etc
17. Time spent with you kids - priceless.

Michelle said...

Fig, you redeemed yourself with # 17.

Happy 4th of July!

Anonymous said...

I grew up camping and I remember it being a lot more fun when I was a kid. Now that I am a parent myself and have gone camping with my own kids, it is way to much work. We even bought a pop-up last summer thinking that we would use it, 2 times last summer and this summer we have not even taken it out and popped it up yet. I always camped in a trailer that was at least 20ft long, had hard sides, air conditioning, tv, microwave and a toilet. I would much rather stay at a hotel and let the kids swim in the pool all day, and go out to eat.

MiniMe Mom said...

Have to agree with Kristi. Camping seems like a lot of work.

Old School said...

two words

Shower Hairballs

or is that three?

Sonny Huisman said...

Mike calls camping "cramping". He totally doesn't understand the fasination with pitching a tent 10 ft from complete strangers . . .

I grew up camping too . . . most of the time with Dan and his family . . . but it's lost its fasination with me. Now that Mike's family has a cottage . . . I've turned into a cottage snob.