Joining the four of us was Sarah and Jason and their four boys. Although they had previous camping experience, this would be the inaugural trip for Mandy and the boys. I wasn't too worried about Noah and Elliot adapting to a tent and sleeping bag, but I admit I was a little concerned about how Mandy would do.
The big day dawned beautifully - blue sky, crisp fall air and lots of sunshine. The forecast was for a great day, but for a cold front to move through that evening. We packed up the tent, sleeping bags, flashlights and warm clothes. It was an easy couple hour drive to the farm at Callao.
We all arrived about the same time, and the boys wanted to to on Gator rides right away. As Mandy took a few boys out for a ride, the rest ran out through the soybean fields to play, while Jason attempted to fix the three-wheeler in the barn (unfortunately, mice had been using the air cleaner as a home for too long).
Jason trying to fix the three-wheeler. Grandpa Gene was hoping to trade it in for a safer 4-wheeler for the boys.
We spent most of the day just enjoying the good weather, and playing around the farm. I took each of the boys on at least one Gator ride, letting them "drive" - my foot on the gas pedal, and them steering. It was a crackup to see how serious they were about driving this thing, how cautious some were, and how crazy others were. Away from the barn it was no problem - the driving expertise ranged from keeping it in what can only very loosely be termed a straight line, to a that of a drunk on a three-day bender, but we managed at least to keep the wheels down. Around the barn, though, I had to make several grabs for control of the wheel as we occasionally careened towards death and destruction. And as opposed to the 4th of July when he was scared, Elliot loved it - you could barely pry him out of the Gator.
Elliot enjoying his ride
A truckload of boys
Driving is serious business
Later, Gene took Noah out in the big tractor, and let him drive out in the fields.
The boys all ran through the fields, played in the grass and just generally had fun.
Playing in the soybean field
Giving his great-grandma a flower he found
Noah playing chase
Having a sword fight. Of course.
Resting at the picnic table Gene found for the kids
Playing on the tire graveyard as we collect firewood around the pond
The boys just having fun goofing off around the farmhouse
After that, Lois had Jason and me cutting down some of the trees around the pond with her that she was trying to clear out, and picking up some firewood along the way. The boys had a good time running around, playing in the fields, building "secret" hiding places, having sword fights (for some reason, everyone had swords on this trip), playing on the mountain of discarded tractor tires and occasionally being yelled at to avoid the poison ivy. They even pitched in to help load the Gator with the firewood we had collected.
We got the tent city set up, a fire pit dug and a fire started just about the time the sun started going down. The earlier wind had died down fortunately, but that meant the cold front was now arriving. We bundled up as best we could (Mandy forgot actual jackets for the boys, thinking they would be warm enough in fleeces), and cooked hotdogs by the now-roaring fire. It was pretty apparent that several of the boys quickly ate their hot dogs only to get at the s'mores afterward.
It started getting colder quickly, and we piled more wood on the fire. We had some impromptu entertainment with Jason and his boys doing a song and dance for us, and then everyone began telling stories. Noah was excited to join the story-telling, and must have told us at least three or four stories, all starting with "Once upon a time..." He was mostly reciting bedtime stories Mandy and I have made up with him in the past. He must have gotten a little stage fright, forgetting some large portions of the story, but it was a crackup to watch.
Warmed by his mom on one side and the fire on the other, Elliot was asleep in Mandy's arms. We sat around the fire for quite a while, with about half a dozen conversations going on at once. Noah had never really seen the stars before, especially in a dark countryside, and he was excited to see them when we came to the farm. Mandy asked him what he thought, and he said "Cool", but then got a confused look on his face and asked, "Why don't they look like this?" - drawing a five-point star in the air with his finger.
Our tents. We were in the green one.
Digging the fire pit. And supervising.
Gene and Lois drove down to see how we were getting along
Watching the fire.
Warming up as the fire gets going
Cooking hot dogs
Cooking marshmallows. Noah is wearing one of my fleeces in an attempt to stay warm
Pretty soon after that, Noah lost steam quickly, zoning out in front of the warmth of the fire. He asked if he could see the tent, so I walked over with him. He wanted to lay down, so I got him situated. It took him a minute to grasp the concept of a sleeping bag - he kept wanting to get under it rather than in it. After all that playing, he was out in a few minutes.
The rest of us spent a few more minutes by the fire, and then the rest of the boys went to bed as well. We finally put Elliot in his sleeping bag, and went to "sleep" ourselves. I could hear Mandy moving around quite a bit, as she adjusted to her first night ever of camping.
Coming from living in the city, where a certain amount of noise is always present, the stillness of the countryside is very striking. Since we usually sleep with a fan on, the quietness is even more profound, and I can hear every little movement from Mandy as she struggles to get comfortable. Quiet is also relative, and while we cannot hear sirens, traffic and the hum of appliances, what we can hear is the howling of what must be the largest packs of coyotes ever having a howl-off somewhere nearby (or is it? In the quietness of the countryside, sound travels a long way). They yip and howl for what seems like hours, and then just for good measure, a bird of some kind joins in the yelling just outside our tents.
I hear Mandy sit up. I look over at her and ask her what's wrong. She responds, "This is the longest night of my life!!!". I look at my watch. It's been an hour and a half since we crawled into the tent. "This is going to be a long night for both of us," I think to myself. I roll off my sleeping pad and put it on top of hers, giving her only a slight bit of additional comfort - she would prefer if I'd brought our Tempurpedic, but at the very least I should have gotten an air mattress. I'm now on the hard ground, and in the coldest sleeping bag on a night that will soon become 32 degrees, but I'm actually not that uncomfortable.
Elliot wakes up around his usual 5:00 AM or so. From a few tents away, I could hear the other boys from time to time during the night talking about the cold. I bundle Elliot up and start carrying him up the quarter mile or so to the farmhouse, when I see headlights heading my way. Jason had gone to get their minivan for Sarah and the boys and was coming back to retrieve them. He gave us a ride to our van, and after I warmed it up, I went back to get Mandy. Noah was still fast asleep, barely having moved since he went to bed, so I stayed with him and Mandy - glad to see the night end, I think - drove Elliot into Macon for some coffee, hot chocolates and biscuits.
Noah and I were the only ones that remained in the tents, and I fell back asleep (now very comfortable in Mandy's warm sleeping bag and two sleeping pads). Mandy showed up a little while later with hot coffee, and Noah finally woke up with a "where am I?" look on his face.
Elliot happy in the warm van
Since we had burned pretty much all of the firewood the night before, there wasn't enough left to get another fire going for the bacon and eggs we planned on cooking for breakfast, and aside from that, there wasn't much appetite for hanging around the frosty field while we got it going. So we all crashed the farmhouse around 6:00 AM, waking Gene and Lois up, and eventually getting breakfast cooked. The boys all promptly forgot the cold as the sun came up, and went back out running in the fields without their jackets on.
We have a few tweaks to make before the next camping trip, but it was a fun time. Noah and Elliot slept the entire trip back.
