The Aftermath of Camping

     I have officially decided that camping was a lot more fun as a kid. Now don't get me wrong the actual
camping part is still a blast, but the after effects are not my thing.
     For instance, when you're younger you fill your backpack with your favorite gear, put fresh batteries in your flashlight, find your emergency whistle, test out your waterproof matches, smuggle in a few firecrackers to scare people with, get in the car, and off you go into the wild blue yonder. Then you get there and mom and dad sent up camp while you look for arrowheads. After a long night of S'mores and campfire songs you sleep soundly and wake up in the morning to a warm fire and a hot breakfast. When the camping trip is done you empty your backpack and life is back to normal. But whew, now, as an adult, it is not that easy!
     Jon and I were excited about going camping. We giddily packed all our gear into the car and set off towards the Rocky Mountains to off-road and find the "perfect spot". There was a slight drizzle all weekend, but since we were camping out of the back of the 4Runner it was no big deal. Jon also set up a few tarps to keep our fire and wood dry.

     We roasted steak over the fire for dinner that night and, oh my word!, it was SO good! There was that perfect hint of smoky flavor and the juices were continuously dripping down our arms as we ate the steak off the coat-hanger skewers. A while later we hid the cooler from bears and settled into sleeping bags in the bed of the 4Runner. All night we kept hearing phantom bears and we discovered that the car wasn't quite long enough for Jon to stretch out his legs (haha poor guy!) but overall it was a good night.
     Monday morning we packed up and headed out just as the rain started to pour. Isn't it amazing how stuff just explodes during a trip and it never gets packed up the same way?! When we got home and started unloading the car it was just amazing how much stuff we had! Plus, every single item smelled like camp fire smoke! Geez, I don't remember that happening as a kid! But wow the smoky smell just about knocked us over every time we took a deep breath in! Every single thing had to be washed. Mom and Dad, how did y'all ever manage camping with seven kids?! It was all a little overwhelming, but dear Jon was right there with me doing laundry, wiping out the cooler (candy had dissolved into the ice water, coating everything in skittle slime), and cleaning mud out of the carpets.
     An hour later I learned there's only so much cleaning a man can do without him involving some good-natured teasing. I was telling Jon that before we could relax there were a few dishes that needed to be washed and some laundry to switch out. To which he replied, "You know Babe, I was thinking about how important a clean house is to you and well I'm just not as good at household chores as you are. So maybe I shouldn't clean, you know, so everything can be up to your standards. I just don't want to mess anything up. I mean your folding is so much neater than mine. And I like the way you do the dishes, the silverware is just so much cleaner when you do it! I like the way YOU clean. *sweetest smile*"

     "Haha, what?!" I said in response. "I see what'cha did there! But oh no I'm not falling for it, not for one minute!"
     "I'm not trying to get out of anything! I'm just saying that I like the way you clean so much better than the way I clean! Honey, your folding is so much prettier than mine and the way you load the dishwasher is, wow! Outstanding! Incredible really... I honestly wish I could clean like you but there is just no comparison."
     "Oh no, haha! I like YOU'RE cleaning much better, Babe! "
     "No... I'm pretty sure you don't. I mean, I don't even scrub the dishes before I put them in the dishwasher! Ha, crazy me, I just expect the dishwasher to get all the grime off. But not you, Babe! Oh no, you clean them and then put them in the dishwasher. I mean that takes dedication and I'm afraid that's just not me."
      Lol, I didn't fall for his trickery (ahem flattery), but he made me laugh which is really all that matters. :)

     Live. Laugh. Love.