3 Kids and 5 Days

This summer, we said good-bye to some dear friends. It's hard when friends move away, although I know they are following God, that the process that led them from Thunder Bay to Nova Scotia was completely from God, AND, I know that one day, some day, we will see them again.

 It just doesn't make it any easier to say good-bye.

3 kids and 5 days

Our end of summer camping trip. Savouring the cool nights and warm days, shallow water still warm enough to swim, the brightness of stars and the wonder of meteors.

We had a fantastic time. I kept things simple as Troy had a baseball tournament so much of the time it was only the kids and I. 

PB and J sandwhices for lunch. Every.Single.Day and hotdogs roasted on a campfire every night. Topped off with s'mores and pringles potato chips!

A hike, to literally the middle of no where, that was NO.FUN.AT.ALL. and I blame the description on the trail map for *tricking* us into taking it. I wanted to take the kids down a trail that led to a beach, but that hike was close to 3 hours and I really didn't think they would last that long...although they are little hikers and they might have. So instead, I opted for the hike that led to "a clearing by the river, before you enter into the interior of the park".

Yeah, there was no river.

Blazing sun.

Thousands of *very* hungry mosquitoes.

Deer flies. Big BIG deer flies.

Tears.

Spilled snacks.

But NO river. At least, not anywhere close to the clearing. We crossed over two bridges and you could see it winding, but no river near the clearing.

So I did what any Mom would do. I bribed them with a trip into the nearest *town* for their choice of something cold to eat, if they could make it back to the trail head without a total meltdown.

And, aside from a few tears over the blood-thirsty mosquitoes that just would not leave us alone despite numerous applications of bug spray, and some tears over a scrapped knee. They did make it back to the trail head without any major meltdowns.

And I also promised we would be soap and that they could have a shower when we got back to rid themselves of the sticky sweat and nasty bug spray that was all over us!

The kids made friends with kids at the campsite right across the road from ours. They had a great time playing together and it was God's grace...saving my sanity, for them to have kids to play with!

We went to kids programs and stayed up way past bedtime.

We watched meteors fall across the night sky and had constellations pointed out to us.

We saw fireflies and foxes.

I let my kids have chips and chocolate bars for breakfast.

  It was wonderful and perfect.

Solar telescopes for the kids to use!

Now I am ready for them to go back to school. Ready for the routine of life that is *fall*. But there is a week and a half left of summer and I will make the most of it!