Now that Jared is officially a Boy Scout, he has to start doing the whole camping thing. Nathan & I used to really enjoy camping - until we had kids. Then it somehow lost it's appeal. Keeping the kids out of the dirt (impossible), trying to get excited kids to sleep in a tent (HA!), freezing your butt off when a kid has to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night . . . No thanks. Give me a nice Best Western with an indoor pool, fresh towels every morning, and a complementary breakfast buffet in the lobby.
But, as I was saying, Jared wants to get his Eagle. And that means campouts. Luckily, this will be primarily Nathan's responsibility. They don't really invite the moms to come along.
Nathan & Jared went on their first Boy Scout campout last fall. They went to Fort Flagler State Park, right on the Puget Sound. They had a good time, but rather than pitch a tent and sleep in the cold drizzle, they decided to sleep in the back of Nathan's truck, which had a shell. Nice and dry and quiet.
But one of the requirements for earning the rank of Tenderfoot is to "sleep in a tent which you've helped pitch." Throwing a sleeping bag in the back of a truck just doesn't count. So . . . . (to cut this long story short), Jared helped pitch the tent in our living room this evening. And he will earn his Tenderfoot at the Court of Honor on Thursday.
5 comments:
Tell them to watch out for all the ferocious household wildlife — dust bunnies, Gummi bears, animal crackers, Lion Kings and bear claws.
Oh, and cheetahs. (Well, Cheetos, anyway.)
That gets to count?!
Shape up Brooke! Quit being a wimp!! Camping is free fun in the fresh air. Think of it as hanging out at the park and letting the kids have good fun- for an entire weekend! I'll work on you, or at least find a hotel near me so that you can "camp" with me.
Jim - actually, the biggest danger around here is our night-prowling calico cat, who likes to plop on your face to sleep.
Wendy - sure it counts (technically). The book simply said, "sleep in a tent which you helped pitch." We checked - it doesn't indicate WHERE it needs to be pitched. Of course, if you and Kid want to volunteer to come camp outside with my boys, you are MORE than welcome! :-)
That is classic!! We have camped a few times, and my only two requirementa are running water at the campsite, and bathrooms with showers. That is as campy as I get...I even have all the gear to help make my tent as dirt free as possible! We are planning a Yosemite or Sequoia trip this May possibly.
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