We arrived, and while I was getting the tent ready, our toddler was playing with his trucks in the gravel. Our dinner was a pizza baked in a dutch oven. His friend (of the same age) was there, and they loved running around and playing together. (Curious George came, too. He needed a good cleaning by the end!)
After dinner, I started dessert (to be shared with the other guests) going in the dutch oven, and then we went to the tire park. Much of the equipment, and even the mulch, is made from used tires. We didn't get very long before being called back for the fireside lesson.
It was well past his usual bedtime at this point, and he looked pretty tired, so I took our boy to bed. Maybe I should have tried to get him to stay up a little later, so we could both have the dessert I made. There were 4 dutch ovens full of cakes and cobblers, but, unfortunately, mine was empty before we were done with the bedtime routine. I still got some of another dessert, though.
We'd practiced sleeping in the tent in the basement the prior week, and our toddler was very good. Aside from needing a little light on, he was perfect. So, I left a light on in the tent, but he would not sleep! While I was getting dessert and trying to clean up, I could see his shadow moving around in the tent. He kept zipping open the tent door and playing with the gravel. More than a few times, I had to return and put him back in his bed, but it didn't keep until I finally went to bed with him. Maybe it was the excitement. Or the older kids playing very noisily right around all the tents until well past 10. (Seriously?)
Well, eventually we both got to sleep, and it was soon morning. After a pancake breakfast, we headed back to the tire park to play some more. Our toddler's friend and his dad came, too. There was also a nature center with some outdoor activities. There was a turtle in a cage (I should have gotten a picture), which was fun. There was a sandbox with a bird footprint stamp, but they just preferred to play with the trucks in the sand. They also liked the bamboo tunnel and a rock maze.
Later in the morning, there was an organized hike to the river. It was about a mile and a half round trip, over some rather hilly, rocky, and tree-rooty terrain. I spent at least half the time carrying our boy, but he did surprise me with how well he did on some rough spots. At the river, we took some time to skip stones before returning.
Finally, we had a hot dog lunch and visited the park one more time. Our boy really is getting big and independent. I'm glad he had a good time. Even though he was clearly tired at the end, he wanted to stay and play outside some more. I felt bad, but I needed to get him home for his nap. Hopefully he will have plenty more opportunities to go to special places and play outside this summer.
1 comment:
Sounds like fun! Thanks for being such a great dad, love you!
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