We took Ella on her first "camping" trip last weekend. I use the term camping loosely...I'm sure some of you wouldn't call staying in a 27 foot camper that sleeps 7, has a fridge, microwave, stove, toilet, shower and tub camping! But it was a change from the cottage, and we were in a campground, so I'm calling it camping. This is the second Labor Day weekend camping trip we've taken with the same group. We borrowed the camper from some good friends...the sister of Ella's godfather.
The group we went with included 14 adults, 11 kids and 3 dogs. The kids ranged in age from 21 months (Ella) to 14 years old. Most of them fell in the 5 to 8 year old range. The campground was totally geared towards children, with plenty of activities. There was a bouncy-pillow, playground, plenty of strange-looking bikes of all sorts, mini-golf, swimming pool and swimming/fishing pond with inflatable obstacles. The kids participated in t-shirt decorating, a glow party and parade, magician's show and play-dough making. One of the dad's in the group organized a great scavenger hunt one evening that was a total hit.
Ella did awesome - better than I was expecting. She was laid-back and easy-going. She had a ton of fun (especially in the pool). She was a hit with all in the group, but I must say, the dogs won the popularity contest with all the little girls! The 8 girls were constantly walking the 3 dogs around the campground...to the point of exhaustion for our 12 & 14 year-old Springer Spaniels.
It was a great weekend, the weather was absolutely perfect for the first time this summer. The friends we went with were tons of fun, and all the kids got along wonderfully. We've already agreed to doing it again next Labor Day!
