There are two kinds of people… those who like to camp and those who don’t.  Doug and I would fall into the latter category.  We just don’t see what’s so awesome about sleeping in a tent.  (Or in Doug’s case, puking in a tent…)  We haven’t been camping for at least 3 or 4 years, but when some friends invited us out for a camping adventure over the weekend, we thought it over.  Then we decided we could make it over for a nice campfire meal, but that we wouldn’t spend the night… we’d have to gradually build up to that kind of commitment!

So Friday after work, we packed up some necessities (S’mores ingredients) and headed out to the state park.  It took us a while to find them, but there they were… tent up, campire blazing, food setting out on the picnic table.  So far, not bad at all!  We roasted some hotdogs and moonpies over the coals and enjoyed a delicious meal with our friends.  Then it was time for some S’mores!  The campsite was located in a nicely shaded and wooded area of the forest.  All of a sudden, we heard some raindrops softly landing on the leaves… then the noise grew increasingly louder… suddenly the heavens opened and unleashed its fury on our fun.  Chaos!  Children screaming, parents covering up the food and racing for the tents.  There’s only one thing I despise more than camping, and that is WET camping.  Double uugghh.

So the men braved the elements and stayed outside to make sure the campsite stayed secure while the women and children huddled inside the big tent.  Thankfully, Doug had the forsight moments before the deluge to help Amanda put the rain tarp on top of the tent, “Just in case it sprinkles.”  Whew!  So we stayed in the tent for about 20 minutes waiting for the rain to subside.  The dads kept us amused with a not-so-well choreographed shadow puppet performance.  Molly thought that was pretty funny stuff!

Once the rain died down, we peeked back outside and got things in order again.  Amazingly, the fire was still going strong and the men survived it all.  Kent set up his homemade “ladder golf” game and we played a few rounds before we headed back to our comfy beds, indoor plumbing, and air conditioning.  I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: “Why would I go camping when I have a perfectly good house?” 

~ Erin