Adventures in Camping

I survived camping. It was touch and go at times whether I'd survive but overall it was fun. The kids had a blast and C had a fantastic birthday weekend, so all is good. So, what happened? Let's find out!

Friday we arrived at the campsite and were greeted with this view.

Yes, our campsite overlooked the beach. I was a bit worried because the campsites were really close together but the waves created enough white noise to drown out the sound of the people around us. The kids were thrilled that there was a family next to us with kids around the same age. They were also thrilled that there was a playground across the street from our campsite. It kept the kids busy while we were busy putting up the tent.

We finished setting the tent up and realized we were all starving. So C got a fire started in this cute fire pit and we heated up some hot dogs over the fire. We only sacrificed one hot dog to the flames.

When we went to bed that night, I knew it was going to be cold. What none of us realized was how cold it was going to be. All of our sleeping bags are rated for summer and it felt like winter that night. I slept for maybe 2 hours at the most because I woke up shivering. S woke up very early (like around 4:30) and climbed into my sleeping bag with me because she was cold. We kept each other warm and were both able to sleep for a while. It was crazy how cold it got that night.

Saturday it was maybe 6:00 when I stumbled to the washrooms. I spooked some crows along the way and they took off flying. I was half asleep when a bird buzzed by me at head level, maybe 6 feet away from me. I figured it was a crow until I saw a large white tail flying away from me. I looked up into the tree and saw a very large bird sitting there.

It was pretty amazing to see a bald eagle just chilling in the tree outside the washrooms. She (or maybe he?) spent the morning sitting up there, just people watching. Even the park employees were fascinated by it because they said the bald eagles usually hang out by the entrance to the park rather than near the camp sites. I guess it just wanted to give us an up-close view of the wildlife.

While we were eating breakfast the fishing boats started coming around checking their lobster traps. It was fun to watch them. I hope they got a good catch!

For breakfast, C baked some biscuits in the new dutch oven we got. They actually turned out pretty good. While we cleaned up, the kids spent the morning playing with the kids from the campsite next to ours. Around lunchtime we decided to head into town to see what we could find to eat. We ended up at Avonlea which has a bunch of restaurants. The kids ended up with grilled cheeses and C and I had turkey clubs with chunks of roasted turkey on them. They were good! Afterwards the kids decided that we needed ice cream and I agreed. They were a bit chilly while eating so S and J sat in the sun to eat their ice cream. It was very cute!

After having ice cream the kids realized the ponies from the pony rides were back from their lunch. They begged us to let them ride the ponies, so we agreed.

After that we headed back to the campsite. C took S on a walk on the beach while J hung out in the tent and read his book. I sat out in the sun, knitting and watching an osprey hunt in the ocean, which was really neat. I also watched a family park their pop-up camper two sites down from us. As they were getting it set up, I thought I recognized the mom and son. When C and S got back from their walk, the boy came running over to S. Turns out that I did recognize them - the boy was in S's class this year. Both children were thrilled to see each over. They spent the rest of the day entertaining each other. S didn't go to bed until after 10:00 because she was in the boy's camper (with all the other kids) watching a movie.

Playing on the beach with a school buddy

While the kids were busy playing, C got the wood prepped for the evening fire. He was having fun splitting wood and getting to play with his hatchet.

We cooked some burgers on the lid of the dutch oven for supper and they turned out good. We finished up the meal with some delicious s'mores. I didn't get any pictures of them because they didn't stay around long enough. As soon as one was made someone was eating it!

At bedtime we made sure that everyone was bundled up a bit more than on Friday night, although it wasn't as cold. Everyone slept much better Saturday night, including me! I was wearing three layers of shirts, two of pants, socks, a hat, and C doubled up the blanket before putting it over me. I was toasty warm and got a decent night's sleep.

Sunday morning we had a simple breakfast of cereal and then the kids went off to play while C and I broke camp. We got the tent folded without too many problems and reloaded the cars (we brought two rather than try to stuff everything and everyone into mine). The kids had fun playing on the beach while we were working. Everyone was pretty tired when we got home but we all had a good weekend. 

That evening, no one wanted to cook so we headed out for an early supper. While we were eating, S's front tooth FINALLY came out. It was very loose earlier in the day but she refused to let anyone near it. She was blowing bubbles in her milk when it fell out. I am so glad that darn tooth is out. Now she can go back to eating normally instead of just on one side of her mouth. The Tooth Fairy was so tired last night that she forgot to come until this morning. Thankfully S was tired too and was still asleep when the Tooth Fairy showed up. That was a close one!

It was a busy, fun-filled weekend. We have another hopefully fun-filled weekend coming up when we return to Cape Breton in search of moose! But that's a few days away so I have some time to get ready. Now I think it's time for a nap - I'm still not recovered from my lack of sleep Friday night!