Yesterday was our crazy day. AJ had a 3-hour birthday party at a friend’s grandmother’s swimming pool followed by a baseball game. Afterwards we were going to sprint into the car and drive 45 minutes to a campground to join the Cub Scouts’ annual spring campout already in progress.
We started having second thoughts early in the day, however, when it became clear that we would be lucky if the temperatures made it into the 60s. By the time AJ’s baseball game began, it was 52 and raining. Not a lot, not a thunderstorm and a definitive washout, but enough to be less than pleasant. I stayed home from the game to finish packing. I got all our gear organized and stacked neatly in the front hall, waiting for the car to arrive back home to unload. But when AJ came home, after 6 hours of being outside in dodgy weather, he decided he wasn’t up for it. And I didn’t blame him at all, although I admit to being a little disappointed, because I love camping.
So we did the next best thing. Mr. Spy wanted to learn how to pitch the tent, so we set it up in the family room. Everyone helped. Then we brought our sleeping bags down and hung the lantern from the ceiling. AJ curled up inside with a book while I went back up to the kitchen to make dinner. AJ asked if he could eat his dinner in the tent, so we all brought our food down there. As it began to get dark, we brought down AJ’s star projector and looked for constellations on the ceiling. We sang a few campfire songs, then used flashlights to make shadow pictures on the walls of the tent. Mr. Spy, who is an excellent storyteller, told a story while I held a flashlight and AJ acted out the story with shadow animals. Afterwards, we made microwaved s’mores and watched cartoons before turning out the lights, reading some more stories and tucking AJ into his sleeping bag for the night. Mr. Spy, who wished to watch the Stanley Cup finals, decided to sleep upstairs, but AJ and I spent the night in the tent, where I could hear his every breath. The stars were extinguished and it was dark as any campout I’ve ever been on. And peaceful, except for the sound of a wild housecat out marauding in the basement.
This morning, we ate granola bars for breakfast and packed away the tent. Next time we’ll try it outside.
Posted by harri3tspy 
