My New Happy Place..

My husband & I love camping and spending as much time outside as we can. Before we had children, we spent many summer nights tent camping in Arizona. After we had Kiddo, we were slightly afraid of what our outdoor adventures would evolve into. We waited to try until Kiddo was 18 months, and were ecstatic that she loved it as much as us. Then we had Baby and tried camping a few times in our new-to-us camping trailer when she was still small.. amazing trips! Last year.. not so good. Taking a crawling baby camping ranks pretty high on my personal torture scale. Tears, tantrums, and complete frustration - not fun and a little traumatic.

We were hopeful and excited now that Baby is walking, running, and listens, that we could return to our summer camping escapes. In a word - fabulous..

My husband had been told that Willard Bay was a great place for families & to fish. We booked a site for 3 nights and crossed our fingers. After spending the week prepping the trailer, shopping for groceries, and packing, we set off on our way. My heart sank a little when we pulled up to the site. It wasn't in the forest, it was hot, and it was crowded with people and boats. It wasn't what I had imagined for our trip.

After we set up camp, we decided to explore the bay and maybe test the water out. That evening will rank high on my places to think about when in need of a moment of serenity. We found a quiet area off the main shore. Kiddo was in heaven bouncing her beach ball and Baby giggled up a storm splashing in the water.

For once I didn't worry about what times the girls went to sleep. We stayed up late eating gooey smores and making wishes on stars. Kiddo entertained us with silly ghost stories and snuggled up to hear about our antics when we were her age. The girls slept through the night and didn't play musical beds. Heaven!

To say my family melts my heart in a million ways just doesn't do it justice. I loved watching my girls search for seashells, spending time hearing their voices instead of the television, and givng them the wide open spaces they had been craving. We spent everyday in our bathing suits soaking the rays and relaxing. We even took the girls out on a paddle boat one afternoon - funny to watch us juggle the girls on our laps as we paddled about the bay.

I am sadly aware that are just a number of summers to enjoy while the children are young. I am confident that Kiddo will remember this one for quite some time. It's true we caught more bug bites & seashells than fish (we didn't catch a single one!), but the memories we are making are truly priceless. Camping with kiddos, even in a trailer, is not the easiest thing in the world, but it is worth its weight in gold..