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The Perfect Campsite
The Ups, Downs, Joys and Adventures of Camping with Kids
By Julia Rosien
Nine-year-old boys seem to have a different concept of fun. Nelson has entered the "everything is boring" and "there is nothing to do" stage. What a joy. His sullen face dragged on the ground as he kicked up dust around the campsite looking for "something to do." Nelson's favorite activity happened the day it rained when we drove into town and ate lunch in a restaurant. Consequently, Nelson spent a great deal of time doing the dishes for me.
"You are the meanest mom!" he told me repeatedly. I rolled my eyes and walked away shaking my head. My husband chuckled and told me that I just blew my mother of the year award.
"Shucks, missed again," I retorted as I snapped my fingers.
Camping offers my mischievous 3-year-old a whole new realm of possibilities. Last year he ran – everywhere. We took two sets of grandparents along just so someone always had their eyes on him. I dressed him in red every day so we could see him running through the bushes.
"Simon alert! Down the walk and to the left," yelled my dad as his feet hit the ground running. My husband took the short cut and jumped out of the bushes.
"Arrgh!" roared my husband while scooping up a screaming Simon. The scare of the bush monster didn't work, though, and 0 minutes later Simon found a new route to run.