Camping Fun!

When Emma was a little girl, the town did not allow trick or treating. They offered a very lame Halloween party for kids in the neighborhood. At that time, it was an older neighborhood, very much small town, not many children. I guess that is why. So we took her to one Grandparent or the other's house for trick or treating the first couple years. Somehow, when she was maybe 2 or 3, we went camping with a group for Halloween. That was it for us! Every year afterwards we have camped for Halloween. Emma has even said that she will continue this camping tradition until the day she dies. I would say that more than half of that time, the weather has sucked. Why do we do it? What is the appeal of camping in torrential rains, windstorms, freezing temperatures, and a lovely Sunday to pack up?

When we arrive, campers are busy setting up sites, decorating, getting costumes together, reserving sites for next year, cooking, eating, and visiting. The kids are fired up! They are running all over the place, sometimes playing football in the rain. You can literally feel the electricity in the place! There is always a Friday night family/halloween movie. Saturdays events leave us exhausted by 8pm with ceramics, pumpkin carving, bake sale, bingo, costume parade and judging, trick or treating, Haunted House (which is no longer and now a haunted hayride), campsite decorating and judging, and and adult dance with costume judging.

We camp with another family and typically dress as a group. This year we did not. In years past we have been an Elvis Convention, Superheroes and Villians, and Fairies, which included the fitness fairy, snack fairy, goth fairy and more. We won the year we were all Elvis. This year My Handsome Prince and I did not dress up, much to the disappointment of our friend. We had spent the day at the hospital and the time leading up to the weekend in a different mindset. It was just not a priority. That's for another entry. Our girls were Gangsters, or as they like to say "Gangstas!"

As a side note:
I hate haunted houses. One year I went through the haunted house while we were camping and when that guy came at me with the chainsaw running, I almost knocked a kid down trying to run away! I rarely go through. I have passed that nervousness down to Audrey. One year she was working up the nerve to go through, MHP was overseas (he normally is the designated adult), and Audrey wanted me to take her through the haunted house. No complaints, I was going to swallow my fear and take my daughter into the haunted house. We waited in line, hearing screams and chainsaws, and got to the front, and Audrey panicked. She did not want to go. So we got out of line and took a walk. She was sobbing! She had worked her nerve up as much as possible and still could not do it, she disappointed herself. My heart broke to see her in this state. But then she looked at me and said she was sorry that I did not get to go into the haunted house and felt bad because she knew I wanted to go through. HA! I was relieved! She has since been in the haunted house and has decided, just like her Mom, it is not for her. But, she has conquered that fear and feels that she does not need to do it again. Good for her. We can both handle a haunted hayride, nobody ever gets too close.