My Kind of Camping

This weekend the kids and I went camping with my family (parents, siblings, grandparents, uncles, aunts and cousins). We had a great time!! The only thing that would have made it better is if Jer would have been able to come with us, but he is in the middle of hay and couldn't leave his dad high and dry right now.

Anyway... for me to say a camping trip is a wonderful experience is very unusual. I really hate camping!! I hate being dirty. I hate preparing food without a kitchen. I hate not showering. I hate not having bathrooms. I hate sleeping outdoors. I do love being with family. I do enjoy going on nature walks and short hikes. I love playing games. I love sing alongs around a campfire. But, all of the other things I don't like about camping have always out-weighed the things I do enjoy. That's why the place we camped at, Heber Valley Camp, was perfect for me!!

There were working restrooms, including showers. We slept in clean, bug-free, cabins. The pavilion had nice gas camp chefs and sinks and counter tops. There was gravel and bark spread around so it wasn't muddy. And the scenery was gorgeous!!!

Heber Valley Camp was the brain-child of President Hinckley and all of the camps are named after righteous women. It includes a lake where you can do paddle boats and canoes (we didn't do that this time) and three challenge courses (we did do that). The staff consists of couple missionaries. I have to say, EVERYONE, thought this would be the best mission ever! We did have to do a thorough cleaning of our campsite which added probably 1-2 hours to packing up. But I think it was SO worth it!! I enjoyed camping for the first time since we stayed in cabins at Yellowstone about 15 years ago.

The first day, while we were getting dinner ready, the kids and my siblings and cousins played catch. Steve found a left-handed toddler mitt at my mom's house and this was Will's first time to use it.

Here is Katie with my cousin Samantha. Katie and Sammy both just finished kindergarten and had fun together!

I brought tractors and trucks for Ash and Will and they spent HOURS driving around the campsite, filling their trucks with rocks and dumping them. As long as those boys have dirt and trucks they are happy!

It was a bit chilly for June, so we spent quite a bit of time around the fire. Well, not Will, ever since he was burned on my mom's gas fireplace, he is scared of fire. One of my favorite Heslop-family camping traditions is listening to David (and others) singing around the fire.

The next morning, Steve, my mom, aunt Joan, and uncle David took all the little campers (my kids, my cousins' kids, and my little cousins) on a hike. They saw deer, ducks, geese, and beavers up close and personal. I think that might be the first time my kids saw a beaver in the wild.

After the hike and breakfast everyone went to the challenge course. My aunt Vinda had reserved one that as appropriate for all ages. Everyone participated in a variety of challenges and the sister missionaries shared gospel applications like faith and commitment after each activity. One the way home, my kids were discussing one of the challenges and they came up with a couple of different applications. I was impressed at the impact those challenges and discussions had on them.

Ashton and Will had such great times that they feel asleep almost instantly. Ashton kept bobbing his head forward and it looked very miserable. So my mom, who was sitting next to him, took a bungee cord off a foam pad and used it hold is held up. He slept bungeed to the seat for about an hour.

A couple of funny things Ashton said:

On the way up, the road was steep and windy (but well-paved!!) for about 5 miles. Ashton said, "Uh-oh! I think this is Thunder Mountain!" (He was pretty scared on that ride at Disneyland.) Then he added, "I do not want to come down! It really will be Thunder Mountain!" (We went down in second and it wasn't a problem.)

Last week, I took the kids to Night at the Museum 2 where they make a big deal about a night guard having a flashlight. The hero of the show is the night guard. Anyway, the first day/night we were there, Ashton kept insisting on having the flashlight with him at all times. Steve tried to take it away when it was for time for bed. But Ashton wanted to take it with him. When we asked him why he needed it, he looked at us very seriously and said loudly, "I want to be the night guard!!"

The next morning he woke up and said, "Steve, Grandma snores like a back hoe driving. She woke me up." Steve, my dad, and I were laughing so hard.

So now we are home and I am remembering the one last thing I don't like about camping, the laundry and clean up that follows. Thankfully, today is the Sabbath so I can put off cleaning it up until tomorrow. What a great weekend!