The good, the bad, and the ugly

THE GOOD

We just returned from a fantastic weekend spent "yurting" at Grayland Beach State Park. Yurting, a verb I may have invented, is our favorite form of camping. A few WA state parks have these structures, which are a cross between a cabin and a really big tent. These have a twin-over-full bunk bed, a futon couch that folds out to make another full bed, a cute mission style table, a lovely plexiglas skylight for watching the moon drift by, and HEAT and ELECTRICITY! As if that weren't enough, we traveled with our good friends who happen to be camping-pros. They have the whole outdoors thing down to a science and come with their own well stocked camper-- running water, electric coffee maker, potty, oven and microwave. So cush! This is the second time we have spent the weekend at Grayland Beach with our dear camping-pro friends and their beautiful girls. We have learned so much from them! For instance, we learned that you get to eat anything and everything your heart desires when camping. That even includes oreos for breakfast. No kidding. We also learned that it's okay to sack out for hours on end in the middle of the day with your kids because that is what it means to relax. Relax? It's like I never even heard the word before! We spent time walking on the beach, letting our poor neglected dog Ruby run free, and cozying up in front of a well-made fire (courtesy of the camping-pros). Champagne on hand for breakfast, beer with lunch, wine with dinner...the camping-pros know how to do it all! Top it off with watching our daughters frolic with their girls for nearly 48 hours and you are describing a little slice of heaven. Thanks beloved camping-pros for another fantastic weekend. Love ya!

THE BAD

Three days before heading off on our camping trip, Julia came down with a doozy of a cold. Fearing strep (she had been previously exposed at pre-school), I took her to the doctor who ran a throat culture. Fortunately, it came back negative. Meanwhile, my poor punkin was burning up with fever and sleeping round the clock, waking every few hours to cry, whimper and/or take another hit of Tylenol. By Friday (departure day) she was fine. I, however, had spent the past 48 hours nursing her and hadn't packed so much as a stitch of clothing, not to mention survival gear such as marshmallows and frosted mini-wheats. Didn't sleep much on Friday or Saturday as Mimi started cutting her 2 year molars and the poor baby became gradually more and more miserable through the trip. Then, the "piece de resistance" came on Monday when Mimi cried all day long as those teeth slowly tortured her into a frenzy. We tried Tylenol, Motrin, little homeopathic teething pills, ambesol, cold rags, cold chewy food but to no avail. My girl found no relief. Tuesday was a bit better but now I'm going on 7 days without much sleep and getting desperate myself. Stay tuned...

THE UGLY

Today (Wednesday) Mimi threw up her lunch. Turkey and cheese, in case you were curious. My kids have never vomited before so I found myself unprepared for the sheer grossness of it all. She spewed on her plate, the table, the booster seat and down her dress. Nuff said.