Everything AND the Kitchen Sink

The first weekend of Spring Break this March, the girls and I joined up with the Jolly family for a camping excursion. The trip was anticipated by Maggie and Gabbie for months in advance. I now cannot remember what initially brought on this obsession with the girls, but it was fast and furious and, I found, irreversible. The girls spoke of camping daily and played camping on the weekends. It became evident that a camping trip was inevitable...even though I knew that the girls had no way of knowing what camping was REALLY all about.

I spoke with Tiffany and the trip was planned. We began planning for meals...I think this is when I began to realize that if you plan to have beans, you better plan to pack a can opener and ensure that there will be a container in which to cook the beans. That's right, I realized the camping rule..."If you're gonna need it, better plan to pack it!" This is what camping is....living minus convenience...on purpose! I will admit I was a little overwhelmed when packing ensued.

Tiffany called at about 11:00PM the night before departure and lifted quite a load as she had already seemingly packed her entire kitchen. Spatulas, electric griddle, Coleman stove, pots, pans, plates, plastic-ware, serving ware, table cloths, etc. With this, I tackled the limited items left and slept knowing that the next couple of nights could prove close to unbearable with the girls sleeping in the woods with nothing but a thin wall of fabric between them and the wild.

By 7:30AM the next morning, we were packed and on the road. We met the Jolly family in Frisco at their home and watched the wonder that was the packing job in the back of their truck. I'm not 100% sure to what I owe my ultimate feeling of peace, happiness, and tranquility as we drove out of the city and into the middle of nowhere. It could have been the perfect weather on the morning of a perfectly stress free day...it could have been the fact that I was escaping the ever-nagging reality that my house needs cleaning, the laundry needs folding and the yard needs mowing...or it could simply have just been the abundant exhaust I inhaled from the Jolly's diesel truck that I was so closely following; I'm guessing a combination of all three had successfully catapulted me into VACATION mode. I knew that the girls and I only had a couple of days to take in all the fun and relaxation we could muster...and I was set and motivated to create an experience they would remember and love. I had no idea at the time that Tiffany was already like 24 steps ahead of me...

As we pulled up to our remote camping peninsula at the Oklahoma State Park, I began to watch in wonder and realize that I was way out of my league. The Jolly's began scoping out the lay of the land to choose the perfect spot in which to set up camp. Once the site was chosen, Tiffany began vigorously sweeping the dirt in the areas that would soon become ground zero for the guys' tent pitching mission. What an experience...the first tent (a very reasonably sized, "get the job done" type tent) went up without a hitch. The second, not so much. First of all, as the guys laid the thing out flat, I wondered...does the Oklahoma State Park have enough room to accommodate this monstrosity of a fabric dwelling? Oh my word, as the poles were placed and the tent took form, my keen sense of space began calculating...that thing...we're going to have to squish it into the 20 or 25 foot space allotted by our surroundings.

Once the tent pitching mission was completed, and the unpacking began, I discovered something about my older sister that I had never before so fully realized. She is what I will kindly refer to as "hyper-prepared." The woman had brought a folding table which she quickly covered with a tablecloth and promptly topped with a square mesh container in which she stored all bread products, a metal utensil organizer filled with every size of serving and cooking utensil available to mankind, cutting boards on which to slice what, I was not at this moment certain, and a crate for the paper goods and plastic-ware. Okay, the setting of this table was definitely my first clue...but I was still in for more shock as she began to create all kinds of areas around the camping site. Before long there was a dish washing area equipped with a large Rubbermaid tub containing towels and washcloths, topped by a large metal bowl, dish washing liquid and a dish scrubber. On the nearby faucet, she had placed a coiled water hose with an adjustable spout. Closer to the table, I found the kitchen area. Marvin had separated the items in the coolers to create a beverage and ice cooler, a meat and cheese cooler, and a condiment and miscellaneous item cooler. These were set side by side, creating the refrigeration area. Across the way, one could find three more Rubbermaid tubs creating the pantry area. One tub housed all of the pots and pans, a second housed all of the canned and boxed foods, and the third housed the snacks and desserts. Amazing! All of these areas where established and open for business in a matter of minutes. Just as I thought I had witnessed all the organizational genius I could possibly handle in one day, the camp liaison came to collect our payment and was bleeding rather profusely from his forearm; I sarcastically joked that he had come just a little too soon, Tiffany hadn't gotten her medical, hospital area set-up yet, to which Tiffany replied, "Oh, yes I have!" as she ran over to a first aid kit set-up on a boulder beside her tent. It wasn't until a little later that I saw Tiffany's bed made in her tent with a self-inflating air mattress, a set of toile sheets (fitted and flat sheet), a blanket, and a matching toile comforter....now, it was official...I declared Tiffany, my older sister, the "FIVE STAR CAMPER!" She had managed to "WOW" me. I am still amazed at her ability to prepare and organize even in the most primitive circumstances.

But of course, being the annoying little sister I am, I couldn't possibly let her know that I was in awe of her...I quickly assessed my options saw the glasses darken in the sunlight and asked the most important question of the trip, "Are those transition lenses?" Her reaction of spite and her hesitant affirmative response let me know...there it is!...the nerve I can strum all trip long.

It was a trip to remember...and what I'll always remember the most is that the girls and I left just in time. (If you're curious as to my meaning here, read Tiffany's chronicles of her experiences once we left on her blog.)