Going Solo

Earlier this month, I took the boys camping.  It wasn't our first camping trip.  We've been camping in our ancient hand-me-down tent for the past three summers. 

Boys sleeping in our tent - August 2007

The difference between this trip and earlier trips was the company.  In past summers we shared our camp site with family and friends.  This time it was just the three of us.

I admit, I was a little nervous.  I wondered if it was safe for a single mom to sleep out in the woods with two little boys.  I worried about our old tent.  Could it keep us dry in a summer thunderstorm?  What would I do with the kids if we had a really big storm?  And my biggest concern?  With just me to entertain them, would my boys enjoy this trip or would they hate it?  I desperately wanted them to love camping as much as I did as a child.

I need not have worried.  No one bothered us, except a man from a neighboring site looking for a dry match.  Our tent kept us dry and cozy during an entire night of rain.  We weathered the one severe storm in the camp store, fortified by hand-dipped ice cream and Matt's first game of Uno. And what did the boys think?  By all reports, they loved it.

As it turns out, the most challenging part of the week, was getting all our gear into our compact car!