Going "camping"

Lately, Oliver has been very interested in going camping. So it wasn’t all-too-surprising the other day when Oliver announced after dinner, “I’m going camping!” And he proceeded to pack his backpack with all sorts of things that he would need for his trip: binoculars, a race medal, a stuffed dinosaur, a comb, a stuffed frog, a Black & Decker flash light, a pair of crab sunglasses, a necktie.















We decided to go “camping” at the playground, so we all got our bikes ready to ride. Biking to a shady playground seems almost like the perfect way to spend the two hours between dinner time and bedtime, right?















Well, it didn't quite go that way! First, Buttercup fought wearing her bike helmet (as usual). Then Oliver fell off of his bike and skinned his palms. Then my bicycle chain started clicking every time I pedaled faster. By the time we got to the end of our neighborhood (a little longer than 1/4 mile), Buttercup was whimpering, Oliver was in tears, and the chain had totally fallen off of my bike. Not to mention that we were all sweating buckets because it was hot and the bike ride was taking much longer than we had anticipated. Oops!

So Dennis and Oliver rode ahead to the playground while I put the chain back on my bike, then I coasted down the sidewalk to the playground. Things could have been a lot better, but they also could have been a lot worse. And that's just what happens sometimes! Gotta go with the flow. In the end, everyone had a great time, and I'm glad we got to do this as a family!