I am a self proclaimed city girl. I love the noise, subways, taxis and all of the intricacies of the big city. I love to see people walking everywhere and restaurants full until the wee hours. I love the hustle and bustle. So when my then boyfriend and now husband of 16 years told me with a twinkle in his eyes that he LOVED camping and could not wait to take me into the wilderness, I couldn’t help but laugh and say Heck to the No, No, No, NO.
Yeah. No.
But you’ll love it! he said. Be one with nature! Embrace the fresh air!
Still a No. That will never happen.
The whole sleeping in a tent thing, bathroom situation, bugs and other animals…No, not my thing. Take me to NYC, Paris and Madrid!
For 15 years I held on to my firm NO on camping.
But then something happened. Maybe it was my boys growing and wanting to partake more in these activities. Or maybe it was just me searching for something. My husband waited patiently for 15 years and slowly dropped little hints about the great outdoors in hopes that I would come around. So last Spring Break, I put on my big girl panties and finally said YES to the tent! We can go camping. For ONE night. We had to go near Fredericksburg, naturally, because momma needed a perk out of this whole thing! It was my husband’s birthday weekend too, so this was his perfect birthday gift. For years, he has talked about his happiest childhood memories being around the times he went camping with his parents. I could tell he really wanted to create those same memories with our kids.
I have to tell you that I went into this whole thing with a lot of trepidation. What if it gets super cold? What if the bathrooms are gross? What if a big snake shows up? So many thoughts! The hubs did such a great job planning it all and trying to make it as “glamping” as possible for me. He even gave me his blanket overnight when the temperature dropped, and I know he has to have been pretty cold. What can I say other than I was pleasantly surprised. For two days and 1 night, we hung out together as our tight little family of five, away from distractions, noise and worry.
We fished and caught nothing. But we learned about patience.
We kayaked on a lake and learned about teamwork.
We enjoyed hiking, playground time, and cooking burgers on a tiny grill. Blessed simplicity.
We climbed up Enchanted Rock and felt so accomplished as a family of five. All of us made it to the top even though there was a little voice that every now and then complained about being tiiiiired. We experienced determination and enjoyed the view.
This was the perfect little family getaway, and you know what? I felt recharged, happier and joyful. I secretly even thought to myself, Wow, that wasn’t so bad!
So yes y’all, here I am a year later, and I even agreed to go camping again during Spring Break this year to Garner State Park! And this time, I took an extra blanket while taking it to the next level :: TWO NIGHTS!
There is beauty in nature and even more beauty in stepping out of your comfort zone.
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We LOVE camping in Garner!!