My Camping Birthday

I called a one hour fog delay to our start of school today, the fog being in this teacher's mind!  Plus, we had a ton of post-camping laundry and unpacking.  So, a later start to our school day was in order.  A slower start to our week won't interfere with our goals to be diligent!  Here's a look at our weekend away. 

The leaves were breathtaking! 

I was blessed to have such a wonderful birthday, so sufficiently celebrated.  What more could I want than to be treated to a weekend away at a favorite state park with my family.  Well, not all of my family, the oldest was excused as he wanted to stay warm and dry and spend time with grandparents.  Normally, I would not allow him to miss a camping trip, but it seemed like a win-win situation!  (He gets grandparent time and I had peace!) 

Jeff took Friday, my actual birthday, off from work.  We packed up the van and camper and headed down to beautiful Spring Mill State Park in Mitchell, Indiana, about 2 hours south of here.  Friday's weather was wet and cold.  We had hopes of a nice Saturday, so we did not cancel this trip. 

Friday evening, as we contemplated a wet dinner at the camp site, it was decided that we should go to the park's inn, which serves a lovely buffet dinner.  I was more than happy about a warm, dry birthday dinner, plus we could hang out at the inn for awhile playing games, namely, Jenga.
 

Friday night was cool,in the low 40's, but with plenty of warm blankets and a little space heater, we slept well enough.  It was "misty" in the morning, but not terrible.  The weather never really did improve much on Saturday, except to turn dry by evening. 

The main event of the weekend was to go to the 1800's music festival at the village.  There were bands playing from 10 in the morning until 5 in the evening.  We heard two sets between some wandering around the village.  We also bought 5 bags of freshly ground corn meal at the mill.  I hope it lasts the winter!  We really enjoyed the day, despite the cooler temperatures.  They had roaring fires in the little cabins, which made listening to the music all the more cozy. 

Saturday for lunch, I had made a big batch of chili and cornbread.  We reheated the chili for dinner over a big fire.  We also made hot cocoa with whole, organic milk for dessert.  Oh, it was so rich!  I enjoyed the hot meal next to the warm fire.  And as a bonus, Jeff did all the dishes!  I sat by the fire wrapped in a blanket tending the flames.  The kids were again playing Jenga.  After kitchen duty, Jeff and Trevor played a game of APBA baseball, a board game of baseball that Jeff has always enjoyed playing. 

Saturday night was again chilly, but not terrible.  Sunday warmed up nicely and of course we had to head home! 

This was our last camping trip this year.  I would really like to camp again this year, but with other commitments and needing money for Christmas, we need to think ahead to next year instead.  And really, that is OK.  We were blessed to go so many times this year.  I hope that next year is as full of camping trips.