I absolutely love camping.

Where to start:  Camping gets me outside and back to nature which I absolutely love.  It also makes you realize just what you do and don’t need in life (warm weather preferred). I have found that having a good tent which enables you to stay warm and dry, where you can lay on a soft cushy air mattress looking outside at the trees and/or stars, food and some appropriate clothing is all you really need in life.I love having family and friends all grouped together sharing nature and all that goes with it.  Preferably I love to camp by water, just because I love the water which enables me to enjoy swimming, birds, sounds of boats, waves, sunsets, sunrises – you have to get up too early for that – whatever.

Now when we go camping let me explain it is not just with a tent, two chairs and a cooler as we often see on other camp sites leaving my husband to wonder why we can’t go that way.  Oh no, we go with first getting more than one (preferably three) sites together (try to accomplish that one if you can).  Each one has a tent or camper or several, we have camping kitchens, a tent screened shelter that is twice the size of most I have seen, crates to store all our supplies, several picnic tables strategically arranged and lots and lots of campfire chairs around, of course, the campfire.

We actually have what I consider our “antique” kitchen to add to the handy dandy ones we have purchased out of catalogs.  My husband from day one of our camping experiences built a big kitchen (which is olive green) in color – a very important feature!!!!  It holds our silverware, dishes, matches, flashlights, pots and pans, cutting board, you name it.  I might also add that this item weighs at least eighty pounds, but has to come whenever and wherever we go.  When you open this for the first time that year, that wonderful camping smell permeates the air.  It is an absolute must.

I have to add here that we used to have a very large orange tent that we started camping with.  It was 12’ x 12’, had a potty room that if anyone used unless only under a dire emergency, would get killed by the potty cleaner a/k/a my husband.  This huge one room wonder also had to be closed by clothes pins as the zippers were all broken. It was made of heavy canvas and could hardly be carried from one place to the other.  We also called it “our circus tent”.

Finally after many, many years of using this wonderful old tent we upgraded to our present three room wonder.   My tent takes a while to set up.  It has three rooms, our bedroom, and living room (consisting of two chairs, area rug, and end table for reading light and magazines, and the other one for all the kitchen supplies and food, or extra bedroom if needed.

I love little white lights strung around and torches for atmosphere.  You see, your atmosphere is very, very important in the whole scheme of things.

When it rains, black garbage bags with holes for head and two arms is all that is needed to keep you warm and dry.  My son-in-law was appalled when we went touring fancy boutiques in this fashion.  Great fashion statement, but all part of our camping experiences.

Then there are the wonderful campfires.  At the end of the day, after a wonderful meal over the campfire (or one of the fancy kitchen stoves we have), cocktail in hand, and moon gazing while the fire blazes and once in a while silly camping songs and, of course, lots of talking and debating.   You also need a wonderful quilt to wrap up in which is one of my staples for a great campfire experience.  This also comes with grandchildren cozying up with you.  Nothing beats waking up to the birds singing and little animals scampering around, and the smell of coffee brewing.

Did I say, I absolutely love camping, so off we go to the cottage!!!!!

#sidetrackedsisters #sidetrackedsandy #camping #family #vacation #soul #self

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