This quarantine thing has been hard. We Longmires are such doers and love to be on the go. None of us are homebodies, and we have been pretty stuck at home. Until recently when, like the rest of the world, the gates are slowly opening up and we are reinvesting in lives that we have missed.
This family has been so missed during this time. Sure we have Marco Polo-ed, texted, and skyped, but its just not the same. They were ready to do something fun and so we decided that something was camping!
Thankfully, although literally 90 percent of fun is cancelled, the KOA campgrounds are open! Whoo hoo!!! We headed up to Flagstaff for our first camping trip of the season and it was a blast. All of the playgrounds, jump pads, and public spaces are closed, but the bathrooms weren't, the trails weren't, and we had running water at our campsite. Winning!
It always amazes me when we are able to fit our tent, 4 sleeping bags, three air mattresses, 4 people, dry food, a cooler, camping equipment, our suitcases, and Ellie into our Prius. That backpack on our car really works great.
Rebekah, Steve, Amelia, Jack, and Owen made it up to the campsite before us and when we arrived they were already set up and ready to roll. Rebekah and I had decided to attempt to let the children all sleep in one tent while us grown ups got our own. Minus one night of terror it worked beautifully and the kids had so much fun together!
On Saturday we all woke up bright and early and Steve, Jack, Bob, and Lily headed out to attempt to summit the little mountain right behind the campsite. It was a 5 mile hike that turned into a 6.8 mile one by the time they got back, but they did it!!! Lily was so proud of herself for making it all the way up to the top of the mountain even if later that night she kept on asking why her feet and legs hurt every time she got up. Such an accomplishment!
The 3 other kids and Rebekah and I set off on a little hike ourselves and had so much fun watching Owen navigate the rocks, stones, and sticks. That little guy is bold and knows exactly what he wants to do. He also has a love affair with dirt and came back covered...head to toe. Of course the fact that every big rock or step he came to he would sit on the ground and crawl off of it contributed to the overall dirt look. Rebekah and I were laughing so hard thinking about how many calories we would burn if we ascended or descended the mountain like Owen. The kid's got a future in personal training!
We found trees and rocks to climb and had a grand ole time toodling around the mountain. We got back just in time to have snacks and sit and read our books.
When the hikers got back they were exhausted and we let the kids just play all afternoon while we adults chatted and enjoyed the cool air and company. It was lovely. Ellie absolutely had the time of her life with the kids and chasing squirrels. Dog's have to be on a leash at all times. I was a little worried how Ellie would do tied up all the time, but little did I need to worry because all of the kids kept her off her post and running around camp on the hunt for squirrels. The kids, especially Jack, would walk her around and once she spotted a squirrel they would let her to and she would chase it to a tree, then they would run up and get her. We only lost her once and I had to step in to find her. She had a blast and came home thoroughly whooped!
We ate smores every night and stayed up way past our bedtimes, but the memories made cannot be beat. Evie even got to take her "Flat Teacher" up to the mountains. REmote learning has its ups and downs, but I love this little project we have been assigned.
I am so grateful for this little reprieve from the heat and from the endlessness of being home. Even with everything being closed we still managed to have a blast camping. We came home funned out, exhausted, and a wee bit dirt covered, but cannot wait to go again!
