When Bryce and I were growing up, our parents took us camping all the time. We had this cool pop-up camper and we must have visited every Jellystone campground in Michigan. We took it camping at Acadia National Park in Maine. There was this old sticker that said, “We Climbed Castle Rock” over the doorway. I have so many wonderful memories of exploring with Bryce, sitting by the campfire, learning to play euchre, meeting new friends every weekend.
From an early age, Bryce and I were down by the creek by Blue Park looking for crayfish, playing capture the flag at Jaycee Park, Bryce was racing around on his Mongoose bike. We LOVED being outside. So it’s no surprise that this joy has followed me into my adult years.
Now that Bryce has kiddos, I cannot wait to share this with them. Recently, Evan and I went exploring in the greenbelt behind Bryce and Kathryn’s house. We climbed trees, played swords with sticks, pretended to slay dragons, found a skull and femur bone of some animal… and in general got dirty and had a blast.
A few days later at Caitlin’s birthday party, Evan led all the kids out in the woods collecting leaves and sticks and cool looking rocks. I’m not sure all the parents were pleased to see their kids getting so dirty in birthday party attire, but it made my heart so happy. It was fantastic to watch Caitlin and Evan get as excited as Bryce and I used to.
 |
| Collecting leaves with the birthday girl |
If Brett and I have kids, we will most definitely be buying an old, used, 80s style pop-up camper. Bryce and Kathryn both love the outdoors, so I see many weekend camping trips with all the cousins, grandparents, and dogs. Adults sitting around the fire relaxing while the kids go off with exploring with Evan (being the oldest) in charge. And maybe, further down the road, some bigger backpacking trips to some more extreme locations.
For now, I’m just glad to be around to watch them kindle their love affair with the outdoors and to be a part of encouraging them to explore their world and get outside.
No comments:
Post a Comment