Tuesday, August 13, 2019

A Week of Camping

We spent all of last week camping in Manitoba, at Riding Mountain National Park (Clear Lake) in the Wasagaming Campground.

 
 

The day before we left, we went to the park for our darling niece Remi's 3rd birthday.


We played in the park, and enjoyed hot dogs, sausage, sides, and cake, served up by my brother and Jessie.


After the party, we went home to pack most things into the car (other than propane and coolers), so we could take off right when Christopher was home from work the next day. 

On the day we were leaving I baked chocolate chip cookies and oatmeal bars to take along and share, as our friends were going to be there too! (There were 11 adults including us, and six kids.)

I'm the camper in the family, and would happily rough it, but Christopher leans more toward luxury, so our camping compromise is an oTENTik.


We've stayed in these a couple times before.  They are basically like little cabins, with a few big beds, a table, and a bench.  This one is winterized, so it also had a wood-burning stove.  That's it for inside.

Outside there is a picnic table, BBQ with tools, and a fire pit.


Our pals were about three streets away, as they all stayed in the camper/ trailer area.  We'd consider renting one of those some time, but we really like the oTENTiks, as they are so easy.

The weather was great for the whole week, but it got cooler at night.  We didn't sleep well on this trip unfortunately, and were often up tossing and turning, so we ended up sleeping in each day.  Usually we were making breakfast around 11:00, and sometimes later.

 

A couple of mornings we went out for breakfast to one of the restaurants.


Once we were done eating, and the dishes were done, we'd usually sit and read while waiting for the showers to become available (they were usually being cleaned at this time).


After we both showered it was usually around 2:00.  Then we'd drive into town for ice and to pick up food for supper, and one day we grabbed this pizza for lunch:


We also made sure to stop in at my favourite bookstore/ coffee shop.


After our adventures in town, we'd make lunch if we were hungry:


And then we'd gather up some snacks, bevvies, and our chairs, and head over to our friends' site.  It was so fun to spend time with the kids, and have many snuggles and laughs.  The little ones were definitely a highlight of the trip; they are all so funny, adorable, and absolutely lovable.  We are so grateful to be a part of their lives, and watch them grow up.  Whether they were nuzzled up in uncle's arms falling asleep around the fire, making him laugh with their silliness (and vice versa), singing and dancing with us on the way back from walking for ice cream, or getting their hair brushed or braided by uncle or auntie, they sure put smiles on our faces.  We are truly blessed to have family and friends with the best kids ever!  We really value the time we get with all the babies and children in our lives; it's always the time with them that we later reminisce about.


After playing/ visiting for a couple of hours, we'd head back to our campsite to start on supper.


Once the dishes were done, we'd go back to sit around the fire with everyone, to visit, play, and snack on chips and s'mores.

Overall, it was a happy, successful camping trip.

We were home on Friday afternoon, and after unpacking the car, we headed straight to the backyard to kick back with some more outdoor time.


Did you do any camping this summer?  Do you plan to? 

1 comment:

Lisa from Lisa's Yarns said...

Sounds like a super fun and relaxing week away! Bummer that you didn't sleep well at night but I am glad you could catch up on sleep by sleeping in. I grew up going camping in a camper. We used to go to different campgrounds and then when I was around 7, my parents had a permanent spot at a campground on the lake where we now have a lake home. I have good memories of lots of meals made outdoors and lots and lots of s'mores!

We got camping equipment for our wedding and went for 2 nights the August after we got married. I was pregnant at the time so we knew we would not be camping for quite awhile. I had a blast camping. We camped at a state park by Lake Superior. There was lots of hiking in the area so we logged lots of miles. We are definitely on a LONG PAUSE when it comes to tent camping but I think we'd enjoy a set up like you had when Paul is a bit older!