Going Camping!

  Sometimes you just have to pitch a tent and go camping.  When the woes of the world come crashing down upon you, taking a brief respite can be all it takes to get you back on track.  The grandlittles had intentions of taking a swim in the pool this morning but before they could get dressed in swimsuits, I heard the distant rumble of thunder.  Uh oh.  That was not good.  I am one of these folks who respects the weather and all it has to throw at you so the dip in the pool idea came to a screeching halt. Needless to say, the grandlittles were a bit...umm...disappointed at the outcome of their plans.  MawMaw had to think and think fast!  What could divert their attention from the devastation they were facing.  Hmmm??

  I headed to the craft room and pulled some rope, a painter's tarp, a large cardboard tube and a couple of large screw-eyes.  Yep!  We were going camping right in the middle of a thunderstorm!  Mary Ruth trotted herself upstairs to fetch the "guys" as she called them (aka her dad and uncle) and I made plans of how to erect said tent.  "Just throw the rope over the beam, tie a slipknot, pull it tight and measure it.  Then drill a hole here to install a screw-eye.  Slip the tube over the rope and tie off the end in the screw-eye!"  I had it pictured in my head and just knew it would work....the "guys" were not so sure of their mom's tent building nor of her sanity in coming up with the idea in the first place. Erecting a large tent in the living room and camping out sounded to be a bit more trouble than it was worth.

  Come to find out....I was right!  It did work and the kiddos had a blast crawling in and out of their new abode.  Toys from the playroom and about ten thousand balloons were carted in to complete the campsite.  What fun! A couple of scavenger hunts complete with lanterns in the darkened rooms added to the experience!  Needless to say, the grandlittles had a blast pretending in their own tent  especially when PawPaw joined them in the fun. The pool was soon forgotten and the rainy day carried on without a problem.  MawMaw to the rescue!