Camping

 We love camping.  We LOVE camping.  This is a little unfortunate because we live in Iowa.  There is not much good camping around here (we love Iowa anyway).

Utah is a different story.  There is almost unlimited camping potential, all scenic, some rugged, some private.

When we told the kids we got to go camping not once, but twice this summer during our trip to Utah, they were ecstatic.  They counted down the days until we could go.  Now, five months later, they still talk about what fun it was.

And it was fun.

First highlight:  Fishing.

The kids had never been fishing before this trip.  I hoped they'd catch a fish, and I'd hoped the fish would be big enough to gut and eat.  Well, the kids did catch some fish but they were little and I didn't have the heart to slice the creatures up.

Everett was the first to catch a fish (I think).  It happened just after he and I moved our lines out to a different part of the lake.  To say he was thrilled would be an understatement.  After catching that fish, Everett was sure he was a regular expert.

William was next.  He caught a cute little brook trout which he named "Spotty."  He loved that fish and was sad to see it go.  He hoped it would stay near us and was gleaming triumphantly when he saw the fish laying, stunned, in the shallow edge of the lake.  But unfortunately for William, Spotty perked up and swam off after a few minutes.

I don't think William would have let us slice up his fish even if we wanted to.

Ashley caught two fish, both rainbow trout.  (She named them rainbow-y.)  I did not get a picture because we were out in the middle of the lake, but know this:  Ashley was delighted beyond belief.  I can still hear the way her sparkling giggle chimed merrily in my ears.

Another highlight:  The Canoe (which the kids kept calling a Kayak).

Ashley wanted nothing to do with the canoe.  We prodded her and prodded her but she was determined to refuse.  Finally we goaded her into it somehow and she agreed.  The moment we pushed out onto the water, Ashley began to panic.  She does not like deep water.  You can't really tell in the picture above, but Ashley is screaming.  Joel and I kept paddling and talking her through it.  Were we mean?  Maybe.  But after five minutes, Ashley loosened her white-knuckled grip on the side and stopped panicking every time the boat swayed with a person's movement.  Her screams softened and then disappeared.  Eventually she even enjoyed the boat ride.

See?  Fear gone.

We took many trips out on the lake, sometimes with fishing poles, sometimes without.  It was peaceful.  Joel and I took just Everett and William out and tried to convince them to jump into the water.  They refused, horrified at the suggestion.  William asked repeatedly if there were sharks in this water (our answers didn't satisfy him.  He was sure there was some sort of toothy creature lurking below.)  

Joel and I grinned at each other and told the boys we'd pay them each 15 bucks to jump in the lake.  

No takers.

So I jumped in.  After I got in the Canoe, Joel took his turn.

The boys still weren't convinced it was a good idea.  They directed us as close as possible to the shore but still far enough that we'd pay them for the feat.  Then they were willing to give it a try.  Everett was first.  Joel, already in the water, called to him.  

After much encouragement, quite a few count-downs, and plenty of knocking-kneed hesitation from Everett, I finally just threw him in.  His immediate shrieking transformed into euphoria once he hit the water and realized what he had achieved.

Then it was William's turn.  He went a little more willingly but I still had to nudge (throw) him in.

When we got back to shore, we told Ashley how the boys earned their money.  She was appalled.

But Ashley sure enjoyed the boat rides after that!  Occasionally I teased the kids that something would come bite their fingers off if they put them in the water, but the kids didn't believe me.  

Joel and I enjoyed the boat rides, too.  It was peaceful out on the lake, that is for sure.  

Third highlight:  The water

I think the kids had almost as much fun poking and throwing rocks in the water as they did riding on it.

Of course there was the lure of swimming, too, but it was too cold for my liking.  The kids didn't seem to mind, through.

Fourth highlight:  Hiking

We didn't really do much hiking, but what we did was perfect.  We climbed around a bit, found some pretty little meadows, collected sticks. . .you know, the essentials.

There were plenty of adults to help the little kids along.

And plenty of big rocks to play on.

James was Joel's little buddy.  He stuck to him as much as he could help it.  Joel even played cars with him a few times (Lighting McQueen and Mater had to come along, even camping.)

Fifth Highlight:  Night time

The sun setting over the lake was gorgeous.  We had a perfect vantage point, because our campsite backed right up to the lake and gave us an unobstructed view.

Ashley loved nature's performances as well.  At one point during the day she excitedly hurried Grandma Burton down to the lake to see the way the sun sparkled in the water.

The other fun part of night time was glow sticks and games.  The kids played hide and seek with Joel while the rest of us sat by the fire.  They were very sneaky about their hiding places and much braver about hiding in the dark than I thought they'd be.  Unfortunately for them, they forgot to turn off the glow stick part of the flashlights Grandpa Burton gave them.  The kids didn't realize the lights hanging from their necks were the reason Joel could make a beeline for them each time a new round was started.

When we finally told them, they shrieked with laughter at their mistake.  And that is when I offered them new glow stick bracelets.  They carefully turned off their light when they were safely hidden but forgot to hide their wrists from view.  Caught again!

If any of us have the chance to go camping again, we will definitely take it.  Our first real camping experience was a success on all counts, thanks to my dear parents.  My dad is a champ at planning fun trips and he and my mom both spoil us rotten.  My wonderful mother sees to the details and makes sure we have enough goodies to make the trip enjoyable.  We wouldn't have had nearly as much fun without them.