happy campers

I'm not what you call "outdoorsy". I prefer the comforts of being inside...away from the dirt, the elements, and the insects. My husband is the exact opposite. He seems to crave the outside environment, and looks for opportunities to spend long hours out there...gardening, working on outside projects, grilling, etc. Not me. I'll stay inside thanks. Much to the chagrin of my children, who have grown to share my husband's passion for the great outdoors.

Despite this, every year I look forward to going camping. Now, I'm not talking about strapping a tent on my back, hiking to the middle of nowhere, and "living off the land" type of camping. The type of camping I'm talking about is where there are fully functioning bathrooms, my car is only a 100 feet away, and I over pack the car with snacks, clothes, and amenities. For several years, Marcus and I have joined our good friends for a summer camping excursion in Northern Michigan. We stay at the Platte River Campground...located at the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. It is gorgeous! While I'm there, I find myself taking deeper breaths and soaking up the outdoors. Sure, I douse myself in mosquito spray...and usually the most strenuous thing I do is walk around Glenn Arbor for an afternoon...but lazily sleeping in a tent and shared time with amazing friends around the campfire is just the recharge I need mid-way through the summer.

This year, in addition to this all adult excursion, I went camping with Violet. A "Mom and Me" Girl Scout camping trip at Camp Deer Trails in northern Michigan. This was the first time she had been camping and she was so excited to be going with me...her energy was contagious. I don't think we were well prepared for this trip, though. Our accommodations were platform tents. When I was told this, I didn't realize what it really meant...a platform tent is a wood platform with a canvas tent over it with tie closures. No zippers. When I was setting up our tent, it dawned on me that the lack of zippers meant free access for woodland creatures and winged insects. Luckily we were given mosquito nets before sleep on the first night...and I'm not aware of any 4-legged visitors to our tent during our stay...and I'd like to keep it that way.

Of course it was an exhausting, but wonderful trip. Here are a few of the high points:

• Watching Violet make and eat her S'more. It was a gooey mess by the campfire light.  
• Playing elbow tag with the girls and moms. I made Violet pretty proud...she said I was so fast!
• During craft time, Violet sat down to make a butterfly with plastic twine and beads. This was a craft a bit too challenging for her...so I swooped in and took over. It took me the whole allotted time...and the finished product barely looked like a butterfly...but it made Violet happy, and the high point was finishing the darn thing. And when I finally finished it, Violet so lovingly said "Great job, Mommy...I was making it for you!"
• I didn't realize how much singing there is a Girl Scout Camp! I had so much fun watching Violet interact with the other girls and learn the songs, with accompanying motions. (We still sing "Rare Bog, Rattlin' Bog" around here.) She also had a speaking part in the skit performed at the talent show. It always amazes me how eager she is to join the fun.
• During the globally conscious lesson on oil spills and how to clean them up, the girls were tasked with making a boat out of tin foil. One girl in the group made one and put it in the water...a simple, but workable boat. Violet decided she wanted to do a more complicated boat...she took her time (while the lesson continued) and crafted a sail boat. I was proud of her creativity!
• Violet had found a tall stick early in the trip which she immediately dubbed her walking stick. She took it everywhere...and REALLY wanted to bring it home with us. Of course, she forgot it, which brought her to tears...but it made me smile that she had it with her the whole time. Just like her Daddy, who seems to find a walking stick every time we go camping.
• When we were getting ready for sleep on the 2nd night, I was busy digging out Violet's pajamas from the bag. She whispered ever so sweetly..."Mommy...you are my best friend." There's no words to describe how it warmed my heart.

Here are a couple pictures from our very special time together...and I can't wait to go again next year!

The view of the lake next to Camp Deer Trails.  Violet and I (and 2 other girls)
took a row boat out on the lake...which I'm sure amuses my husband. 

Violet and I turn the camera on us during a morning hike.

Violet enjoyed her swim in the lake, mostly spending her time looking for treasures...
like this plant, snail shells, stones, and a zebra mussel. 

Violet with her walking stick.

Licking her lips from a scrumptious campfire breakfast...chocolate chip pancakes and baked apples.

reflections

Recently, I traveled to Chicago for a work conference.  I don't travel frequently for work (or otherwise)...on average only once a year.  This was one of the better conferences that I've attended since it dealt specifically with asthma and the work that I do every day.  Even though I didn't learn very much or gather anything that was actionable upon my return, I used it as an opportunity to network with my epidemiology counterparts from other states which definitely made it worth the trip.

Anyway...
I stayed at The Palmer House hotel - a very old hotel (c. 1870) with an incredibly rich history in downtown Chicago.  Famous entertainers have played it's Empire Room, like Sonny and Cher, Jack Benny, Dorothy Dandridge, and Tony Bennett.  My walk to my hotel room was lined with photographs of historical Chicago and head shots of these famous faces.  It was very charismatic...an Old Chicago feel, with heavy wood doors, small irregularly shaped rooms, a grand lobby, ornate carpeting, and mismatched antique door knobs...a nostalgic and fanciful atmosphere lifted from another time.  I really enjoyed walking those halls...I seemed to pick up on the energy of the place and all the fashionable people that walked there before me.

My bathroom in the hotel room had one of those magnifying mirrors on an extending arm attached to the wall.  They really should put warnings on those things!  As I gazed upon my face in this little demon mirror, I saw every wrinkle that from far away didn't seem "that bad."  I had dry patches on my forehead and around my eyebrows.  And what's with my eyebrows?  I've always felt like I'm still learning how to tweeze...I hadn't realized I needed a remedial course.  The wrinkles were the most alarming - lines between my eyebrows from my scowling juxtaposed against arcs over my eyebrows from raising them...in interest or disbelief.  I also have smile lines on either side of my mouth...parentheses punctuating my face.   

I turned 34 this year and as I march toward 40, I realize how uncomfortable I am with aging.  I know that it sounds vain, but I'm not ready to watch my body deteriorate.  I don't consider myself to be a remarkably beautiful person and now I will be forced to watch the attributes I am proud of fade away.  This mirror was showing me all of this...up close and personal...

To make it all worse, the full length mirror in the hotel room was a "fat mirror."  You all know what I mean, right?  So, after coming to terms with my wrinkly dry face with renegade eyebrow hairs, I got to witness my lingering baby weight exaggerated by the full length "fat mirror." UGH!   I used to be...well...different.  I used to be younger...fresher...thinner...flexible...in better shape...proportioned.  It was a bitter reflection on my former self.

I don't really have an uplifting way to tie up this blog entry, except to say that I got to have dinner and wine with my dear friend Amy while I was in Chicago.  She even said I was cool...something I needed to hear.  Good conversation and a good wine with someone you love can let you forget selfish reflections...at least for a little while.

Brighter Moments

In these last few months I've become stretched thinner than ever before. I've taken on more responsibilities at work...more than I should and still be able to feel proud and confident in the work that I do. It's become a game of which fire to put out first in the time I have between meetings, which isn't much. On average, I am in about 10 meetings a week.  It's an insane schedule with an increasing number of deadlines and responsibilities.  I've also made the not-so-smart choice to instruct 2 online courses simultaneously.  I really enjoy teaching and so I jump at the chance to do so.  These courses are not credit based, but rather continuing education for public health professionals.  You would think that this would ease up the pressure a bit, but it really doesn't.  My students are working professionals in need of instruction that is applicable to their daily work.  That means that I want to be as responsive as possible to their questions, assignments, and discussion postings...it's a lot of work.  So, I do all of this while trying to manage an increasingly busy household.  The worst part is that I'm starting to feel a bit whiny about it.  I don't consider myself to be a whiny person...but lately, I've been thinking how stressful my life is and that I want others to notice, too.  I've got a case of the oh-poor-me's.  It's not very pretty.  I really need to pull myself out of this and focus on what's important. 

There have been some bright moments...especially with my 3 amazing children.  Just look at these beautiful pictures from Easter.  Despite all the craziness that is my life, it's easy for me to feel good about it when I get to share it with these little people...inspiring, guiding, and loving them.

Hazel couldn't keep from grabbing her shoes. 

Doesn't she look lovely in these pink tulips?

My Calvin and Violet hamming it up for the camera.

Violet and Calvin out on the egg hunt.