Our weekend camping and summer arrives

Celine Saco river: Bathing suits - who needs 'em

Our first camping trip of the season on Memorial Day weekend always seems to kick off summer. This weekend we swam (well the kids did - have you noticed kids aren't the least bit affected by cold water), climbed mountains, slept under the stars (in the tent), ate every meal outdoors and sipped cool beverages on our "town" day. Summer, summer, summer. Even the rain we experienced wasn't the cold rain of spring.

At home this morning I planted the sunflowers and carrots because tomorrow it's supposed to rain. And it's unlikely we'll get anymore frost so later this week I'll pick up tomato seedlings. Little white strawberries are peeking out where blossoms once were and in the background we hear the grind and whir of the neighbor mowing lawn. Summer, summer, summer.

pea seedlings

It's not all sunshine and blossoms of course. The kiddos and I also washed and hung four loads of sweaty, sandy, smoky laundry this morning. I swear we didn't take that many clothes camping so I don't know where it all came from!

Getting back into the groove after a long weekend away from the house is always a bit challenging for me. I lost 2 of my work days and I'm trying to pick up the pieces and fit them into this coming week.

home again: the scene after we arrived home last night

But I'm getting better at this. After a couple years of camping once a month May through September and hiking almost every weekend all year round I've learned a lot. Like how to let go of unrealistic expectations while still holding onto the things I value most. And how to re-structure the schedule around the needs and wants of my family so we can truly enjoy and live summer while it's here.

{photo credit: Celine Tougas}

I'd be remiss if I didn't say this: Damien, thank you for this gift of adventure, light living and all the work you do to get us out every weekend.

Here's more photos of our weekend. To view them in slideshow format click on one, it will get big and you can use the arrows to scroll through.