This weekend also marked (roughly) the one year anniversary of our camping. McKinney Falls was actually the first park that we went to one week (!) after we purchased the trailer. When I scheduled us for McKinney this weekend, I didn't realize the significance until later. That first weekend we were nervous and excited and trying our best to get there before dark. Backing into our spot took more than a few tries. It took us a while to set up too, learning where all the hookups were and finding the best method for everything.
2012
A year later and approximately 20 trips later, Kyle and I have setup down to a science and Kyle can whip that trailer into even the tightest spots in the dark. We have made so many wonderful family memories! A few arguments when I'm trying to help direct but that's the way I remember camping goes!
The biggest change, however, has been with Reese. Our first trip to McKinney Falls involved lots of whining and crying, frustration, and reluctance to do just about anything. He would start complaining the minute we started on a short hike and we had to be back at the trailer before it got dark, otherwise he panicked. We were just driving around the park in the truck one night and he was hiding behind the set because the sun was setting. If a bug got anywhere close to him, he would freak out. And I mean FREAK OUT. Screaming at the top of his lungs, park rangers running kind of thing. And instead of us having to make him stay out of the fire (like most boys), we had to beg him to just stay outside a little longer. Talk about frustration. It was so hard for us to want so badly to hike and explore and not be able to because of Reese. My parents even offered to keep him so we could enjoy a weekend of hiking. After things didn't improve after the next couple of trips, I started to question the wisdom of continuing to camp. But I had waited so long for this camper that I wasn't about to give up that easily.
And I'm so glad we didn't.
Things did improve. This weekend Kyle and I were astounded when we realized that Reese had accompanied us on a 2 hour hike and didn't complain once. Didn't even ask how much further. In fact, part of it he pretended to be a soldier and another he raced me. We walked past the swimming hole on our hike and he said not one word about how he hated to hike and wanted to swim instead. A year ago he would have been whining and crying about us making him do something he didn't want to.
He requested that we build a fire so we could roast hot dogs and gladly cooked his own. He saw a bug in his chair and instead of screaming about it, he told me calmly so I could remove it. I didn't even flick it that far and he sat in the chair anyway. A few months ago he even held a bug! It was a doodle bug, but still, it's progress. When we left on Friday he was watching a movie he hadn't seen before. He calmly remarked in the truck that when we got back in a couple of days, he was going to continue the movie. This is not the same kid we had a year ago!!
I still can't say that he looks forward to camping trips but he does find ways to enjoy it and some aspects he eagerly anticipates (he loves swimming in the rivers). And he actually has a favorite park (Pedernales Falls State Park).
2013
I'm so glad that we didn't give up. We have made some concessions, such as the Ipad and the computer to watch movies but Reese needs that downtime. His mind is constantly running so to him, media is a time when he doesn't have to think. He has learned to enjoy himself and that to me is priceless. These camping weekends are priceless. Our sweet camper is priceless. And our memories will last forever.
