So we went on our final summer adventure this year. We decided that we needed to go camping. The last two attempts have been lets just say not the best experiences but the best memories, with lots of laughter attached. If I haven't told you about our trip to Dead Horse Point ask me. It is a great story. So the kids and we adults were becoming a little bit chicken as far as the camping thing is concerned. So we thought we would try it again and hope that the kids could see how fun it can be. We just went for the weekend so no big deal. Easy Cheesy, Pumpkin Peesy. To start off with our Brand New car (it doesn't matter the year it is new to us) has had some "issues" that the dealer was resolving that has taken 2 weeks to finish. (ok it is not quite finished yet but they keep thanking me for my patients :) ) So we had a "loaner van" which is by the way better then the "loaner Chevy Malibu" that we had the day before our trip. I told them they were going to have to find me a van, there was no way we were fitting all of us and all our gear into that tiny car. (we barely fit it in the van) So we pack everything our brand new tent, sleeping bags, all the food etc. We got a late start cause Troy had to work all day Friday, so when we got there it was dinner time. What we didn't take into consideration was that we had no idea how to set up this Brand New Tent. So instead of one setting up the tent and one cooking dinner we put off dinner so that we had the sunlight to put up the tent. So after our gourmet dinner of roasted hot dogs we unpacked everything in the tent and started setting up for the night. Only to discover that we had forgotten the camp stove. I decided it wasn't worth it to leave that night Troy could go down in the morning. We then also discovered that we had left our Brand New Air Mattress at home. That was a deal breaker and Troy left immediately for home. We were only up Provo Canyon so it wasn't that far of a drive. By the way the fire at Bridal Veil Falls was HUGE!!! So I got the kids ready for bed and cleaned up after dinner and we played Simon says in the tent until Troy got back with my, I mean our air mattress. I discovered while he was gone that I had forgotten our pillows so I rushed to call him only to discover he had taken my phone with him. I slept on Sam's blankets and my sweatshirt. Not really all that comfortable, I have to say. Its ok though we are powering through. So the next morning we have a great breakfast and are ready for the day. We decided to go for a little hike and show the kids the mountains and the trees. We picked a trail that was 2 miles never intending to go the whole way. The girls were dead set on it and with a lot of stops we made it all the way there. Did I mention that we brought the dog? She was Dead tired when we got there. She basically collapsed in the first shady spot she found. So we played in the water, let the kids cool off and started back. Owen cried the entire 2 miles back. And the dog nearly died, but we made it and I was so proud of us. I had taken my TV addicted kids into the wilderness and we all survived. Even the Dog who had to be carried out. This is where the fun begins. We got back and had a nap (sort of we parents fell asleep and the kids played in the tent with us while we slept) We played a game as a family. Then we had a nice dinner. It seemed that things were going smoothly and we had beaten our camping curse. As I was cleaning up dinner I noticed that the sky was getting a little dark for the hour. Yep rain clouds. But it was ok we were headed for bed anyway no big deal. The rain started to really come down and pound the tent. We could see lightning and hear thunder. Once it was REALLY close. While pretending to be ok in the tent I noticed that the rain fly was starting to develop a puddle. This is not good by the way. That spells trouble. Troy attempts to disperse that water and does a pretty good job for a while until the rain fly starts to slide off. Troy tried to fix it but it came off the back of the tent resulting in wet beds for Sam Troy and me. I called it and started to pack everything. I was DONE. We packed that tent up in record time. Getting our "loaner Van" nice and muddy. Everything is now dry and I still think that we are camping cursed but I think that we are probably going to go again next year. I need that long to convince myself that we can do it again. you can see the pictures at the bottom
