camping caspers part two

so i have this blog here. a lifestyle blog, if you will, with a focus on my journey though motherhood. i like to refer to this as "mommying." because being a mama is totally a verb. it has to be seeing that i am exhausted 90 percent of the time. it's also highly likely i burn more calories minding two little boys than from my weekly spin class. i mean i sure hope so. and since i devote most of my free time documenting all of THIS... well, i must know what I'm doing right? right. let's just say i'm doin' alright. my kids are alive and happy. super happy. that i know. 

what i don't know is how to camp. i don't even know if i like camping. i can't keep a fire going or set up a tent. instructions to said activity give me anxiety. the constant dirt under your fingernails and lack of running water is unsettling. and don't even get me started on the bugs.

but i do love roasting hot dogs over a warm fire, gazing up at the star-filled night sky.

so you could say i'm in it for the hot dogs. and the stars.

all that to say, when my friend invited us to camp out for a few days i had to say yes. because hot dogs. and stars. i could wing the rest.  

on a late friday afternoon, our car-filled to the brim with supplies and food for two days, we headed the hour drive south to caspers wilderness park. we camped there last fall, so i had some idea what i was in for. but like i said, my skills in the great outdoors department are nill, so i knew i would have to defer to josh for a lot of things, leaving me to toddler-sit while he made sure we were housed and fed. "mommying" would be in full effect.

being that it was middle of july, it was HOT. the heat dictated the course of the day. we decided to hike first thing in the morning before it got too warm. but by 9 it was scorching. the kids were not happy. max + knox refused to walk and i nearly lost it on that desert trail. our next stop was the playground then back the campsite for lunch. as i bit into my pb&j i dared to look at my watch. it was barely 1PM.

only 1PM! i freaked out. what were we going to do until the sun went down? i frantically tried to shoo the flies away along with my mounting worry.

thankfully, caspers has a nature center with AC. AC! can i get an AMEN. it felt as refreshing as a desert oasis. and there was running water. i nearly pitched a tent. in all honestly, the center could have been totally lame and none of us would have cared. but it was pretty great. the exhibits were mostly hands-on and geared toward little kids so they were happy. did we ever have to leave?

yup. eventually we left and made a playground detour before settling in for the night. but we will never forget you nature center from the heavens! i am sending you a big fat thank you letter very soon! 

i know this photo is kind of random. but here's the story. i dropped my phone while taking a picture. the lens was still open and from the ground this was the image staring back at me. 

knox was definitely big on the campfire chair situation. i am tempted to get him one of  these kid-sized chairs from rei. 

finally. what i came for. with hella mustard. 

please ignore our clustercuss of a picnic table. next time i am bringing tablecloth. gingham. blue gingham! no red. 

speaking of red, max can't get enough of the color red. and not like they're twins or anything, but we do have color identifiers for the boys. because one of them (Max!) always likes to know what is his. and i get it. so max is red and blue, knox is yellow and EVERYTHING else. somehow, it just works. ironically, max hates red street lights and prefers green lights sabers, which makes total sense. 

by sunday i was wiped. it was time to go home. we packed up our outdoor abode and bid farewell to our campsite, making way for the next group of suckers, er... outdoor enthusiasts. before hitting the road we made our final go at the playground. josh could tell i was tired and let me hang back while he lorded over the littles. it was nice.

and then i got to thinking. why do i always have to think?! but the thoughts came, like they always do. i began to feel even more skeptical about this whole camping deal. this was HARD. i did not handle more than a few moments very well. i did not keep my cool. it was too hot for that.

so why was i here? then i remembered that hot dog, with all that mustard. and the stars. they were real pretty. and the kids. they sure do look happy.

xoxo, sony