The Great Camp Out

I survived 13 girls and some siblings (including Bud) in the woods on Friday night.  And they survived the woods!  I know it was the first outside sleepover in the woods for my two and some of the others as well.  It was great.

We arrived around 5 pm and hauled our sleeping bags and stuff up the hill to the campsite; there was a single, big platform tent for the troop downhill from the campfire and several lean-tos for the boys above the campfire.  I actually slept in a lean-to myself, since the big tent was pretty full and the lean-to was easier to sleep in.

But sleep was a long way off.

We made pizza first, with the girls mixing and kneading their dough by hand.  They even wandered the lovely herb garden to find toppings for their pizzas.  "I can't believe we can just pick leaves and eat them!" one said, as they sampled sorrel, onion chives, garlic chives, lemon balm, sage, basil, cherry tomatoes, kale, and other things.  The pizzas were pretty good.  Well, Bud thought it was dough-y but loved all the herbs; Sis got to make hers with no sauce, just cheese.

Next we lit the campfire, which I tended while they went on an extended night hike (the whole event was for their Night Owl badges.)  They had a very exciting time--climbing rocks, watching for wildlife, gazing out at the city below--maybe too exciting, since they were near a tall cliff!   The hike was Sis and Bud's favorite part.  I sat meditating by the fire, listening to the symphony of the forest, and making and eating by myself the best s'more ever.  I only missed hearing any owls.



The kids returned all full of stories and inhaled their s'mores.   We then all shared our experiences with wildlife--turkeys in the yard, hawks on the wing, a bear on the road.  The woman in charge of our group, an outdoorsy woman with shorn hair and an impish smile, told of a deer jumping over her one night as she slept by the fire.  She loves kids, you could tell, and talked straight to them.  (And all the leaders giggled when she made one of our precious snowflakes pick food out of the garbage can for the compost bin and another return a wheelbarrow she had tried to avoid putting back!!!)  And most of them liked her (except a few snowflakes.)

And we sang around the fire--"Baby Shark," "Bear Hunt," my favorite "Barges," "Linger," "On the Loose," and "Taps."  Such a lovely time.

And then there was no sleep.  I could hear the girls all the way up the hill until around 3.  I think Bud fell asleep despite it all.

Then the coyotes started around 4 a.m.  Bud heard them, too.

But I missed the owls hooting at 5 a.m., apparently.

And we were up at 6 a.m. by the fire to warm up.  I had actually been relatively comfortable in my bag, even with the chilly mist--I thought it was great sleeping weather; everyone else was cold.  I loved watching the full harvest moon through the trees and the flicker of the waning fire.  The sound of the girls and the insects and even traffic in the distance were comforting.

For breakfast, the girls gathered eggs in the chicken coop and picked some more herbs.  They also admired the sheep and ducks.  And their parents soon arrived to take them home.

It had been a great camping trip.

And I napped three hours that afternoon.

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"Linger"

Hmmm, I want to linger.
Hmmm, A little longer.
Hmmm, A little longer,
Here with you.

Hmmm, It's such a perfect night.
Hmmm, It doesn't seem quite right.
Hmmm, That this should be,
My last with you.

Hmmm, And come September,
Hmmm, I will remember,
Hmmm, Our Scouting days,
Of friendships true.

Hmmm, And as the years go by,
Hmmm, I'll think of you and sigh.
Hmmm, This is good night
And not good bye.

Hmmm I want to linger.
Hmmm A little longer.
Hmmm A little longer,
Here with you.

"On the Loose"

Have you ever seen the sunrise turn the sky completely red?
Have you slept beneath the moon and stars with a pine bough for your head?
Have you sat and talked with friends, though a word was never said?
Then you're like me and you've been on the loose.

Chorus:
On the loose to climb a mountain,
On the loose where I am free.
On the loose to live my life,
The way I think my life should be.
For I've only got a moment,
And a whole world yet to see,
And I'll be searching for tomorrow, on the loose.

There's a trail that I'll be hiking
Just to see where it might go.
Many places yet to visit,
Many people yet to know.
And in following my dreams,
I will live and I will grow,
On a trail that's out there waiting, on the loose.

Chorus

So in search of love and laughter,
I'll be travelling through this land.
Never sure of where I'm going,
For I haven't any plans.
But in time when you are ready,
Come and join me, take my hand.
And together we'll find life,
Out on the loose!

Chorus

Coyote Scary

We were sitting around the campfire on Friday night--Goo, Mama, Sis, Bud, and I--singing songs, telling stories ("I'm going to catch you, then I'm going to eat you!" the story of the booger-eating gnome) and eating (albeit microwaved because of miniature marshmallows) s'mores.

And I heard a "hooo" in the background, which at first I thought was an owl.

"OOooo, oooo, a-ooooooooooo!"

I knew that sound.

When I as a child visiting my grandparents home, Raucus, in the "wilds" outside Dallas, we all slept in a big room with two double beds.  Mom slept with Aunt Banana because she was as squirmer and I slept with Dad because I wasn't.  (Could also be that the best fit in those small beds was adult-child, not adult-adult)  I know Gommie got kicked, but I got the short end of that stick, because, just as I would be falling asleep, Pop would begin to howl like the coyotes we often heard outside.  And he'd even poke me for emphasis.

Very restful.

But still, I know from a coyote.  And that's what we heard outside Friday night.  I know there are coyotes in the area--they've been spotted for years--but I also know that coyotes are very rarely dangerous to humans (three fatal coyote attacks in US and Canada EVER.)  Still, the kids were a bit spooked, even with the assurances of three adults and a roaring campfire.

So we just sang louder and soon the howling stopped.

But Pop, please don't howl at the kiddos next time you're outside together.  Or I'm going to send them to sleep in your room!

Summer Fun: Summer Days and Nights

We've had a busy ten days or so.  Last week was Bud's week at day camp, his third year at this particular place.  It's a traditional outdoor camp with swimming, games, crafts, games, and activities.  This year, he loved the zip line!   It was a rainy week for camp, though, with Thursday being the first day it didn't shower on them.

Meanwhile, Sis was home with me.  Unlike Bud, she had some friends over a few different times, even going to the movies with one.  And then there was her first sleepover!  She had a friend over on Friday.  And it was great.  I realized that my job as the mom was to feed them, provide entertainment, and step back.  Dinner took a little longer than I expected because Sis wanted to cook out on our campfire and the coals weren't cooperating.  But the friend, who has some of the best manners I've ever seen on a child, was really flexible and liked dinner, which was pocket stew and s'mores.  They also caught fireflies and played on the swingset until the mosquitoes got bad.  Then they watched the Doctor Who 50th anniversary special, which Sis's friend hadn't seen, though she is also a huge DW fan.

The only downside is that Bud's own overnight--his first--at his kung fu academy was canceled.  I was mad at the coach because Bud was disappointed.  The coach is probably also canceling kung fu camp, which is also disappointing for Bud.  Good thing Bud doesn't mind too much and that he really likes kung fu.

Last week was also a festival we always go to, this year themed as kind of a country hoedown.  There were even real horses and cowboys and a mechanical bull!  Sis loved the horses and the petting zoo with a calf, a goat, ducks, chickens, sheep, and even a llama.  And Bud line danced the whole night.  "Mom, I will always remember tonight as the night I discovered line dancing."  You should have seen him boot, scoot, and boogie!  I got it all on video, at his request--so he can practice!!

Then over the weekend, we went down to the city to see my in-laws before they head to Thailand.  The kids' great-grandfather, Lao Gong, who is 94+, has metastasized lung cancer.  Ma and Gong are going to stay as long as they can, so this was probably our only shot at the beach for the summer.  And they loved it! They played in the sand and in the waves.  There was a rip tide so they could only wade in, not using the boards Ma and Gong got them.  We also had two wonderful meals and treats from the ice cream truck, not getting home until after 10 p.m.

And now it's another week of camp, this time both of them together.  So I'm home alone, my own "camp" this summer.  In fact, I am taking a camp, a Summer Soul Camp, with Heather Bruggerman of Beauty that Moves.  Just a way to rest and rejuvenate before the rest of the summer.

Summer Fun: More S'mores!

Tonight we had our own backyard campfire cookout, practicing all my Girl Scout skills.  In our new fire pit (alas the old one was destroyed in the garage accident), we set up and started the perfect A-frame fire, after discussing fire safety, the three requirements of a fire (fuel, oxygen, and a spark), the three kinds of firewood (tinder, kindling, and fuel), and setting up a water bucket with a fire stick soaking.  Then, with no paper, no firestarter, just a few extra matches because of the wind (yes, even in the fire pit), I got it lit.  Let the fun begin!

Sis sorted the firewood

The beginning of our campfire

The meal was a bit cattywampus, starting with s'mores.  Then we made our pocket stew dinners--with hamburger patty, onion, mushrooms, peppers, carrots, potatoes, seasoned with Maggi and garlic powder--in foil pouches.  While those cooked for about 30-40 minutes in the coals, we roasted doughboys (crescent roll dough) on sticks, dipping the finished product in sugar.  Then we got to eat the foil packets--yum!  There was even a whole extra packet of vegetables that we all shared; campfires make you hungry!  We had more s'mores and doughboys for dessert, plus banana boats.

The kids did wonderfully well helping with the fire and the cooking.  Sis especially seemed to like to gather wood, feed the fire, and stir things with the soaking fire stick.  Both enjoyed collecting fuel.  Bud liked to pretend he was a witch summoning dark powers; mostly he managed to summon the smoke in his direction (so much for "smoke follows beauty!?!)  He said he wished we could have lit the fire under the giant fire pit and used it like a bubbly cauldron.  We sang a couple of songs, as campfires almost require it, but had done most of our singing and storytelling at our hurricane party two nights before (we turned off the lights, sat around some candles, watched the lightning, sang songs, told stories--NOT ghost stories; I told the tale of the rescue dog Balto--and ate from our stash of snacks, really glad it wasn't truly a hurricane.)

We stayed outside until late, watching the embers die down, and then separated them and sprinkled them with water until they were cool to the touch.  Even the firepit was cool by the time we were done.  And then, with no more smoke, the bugs came out--and our evening came to a close.

Summer Fun: Campfire Cooking

This is not the fire I built.

Today, I made a fire (mostly) all by myself, withing noting but twigs and sticks and started it with nothing more than a plain old match.  No handy wax-covered homemade fire starters; no newspaper or cotton or dried leaves; no clicky lighters; and definitely no accelerant!  Nope, I had to build the right "a-frame", stuff it with tinder (like toothpicks), layer it with kindling (like pencils), and have fuel (like your forearm) on hand, and get all the way down on my hands on knees to blow on the little flame.  (We had even practiced beforehand with "edible fire"--coconut flake tinder, thin pretzel kindling, thick pretzel fuel, red hot fire starter, and even a little cup water bucket with toothpick fire stick!!)  Mine didn't work well the first time because some of my tinder was damp and would extinguish the flame, but with some help I found some other "tiny tinder" and got it started.  And it burned strongly for three minutes . . . which means I passed my official Girl Scout fire safety and skills test.  Now I can take the Girl Scouts into the woods to make s'mores.

No overnight camping in tents yet; that's a different training.  Later.

We also learned the proper way to clean the latrines (hint:  gloves and sani-tabs), to set up a fire circle (with water bucket and soaking fire stick), to wash dishes (soap, rinse, sanitize), to set up a dish line (with clove hitch and taut line knots), to hang up a tarp halfway over the fire in case of rain or wind, and to extinguish a flame.  Other tips:  use aluminum foil instead of cutting boards; soap bottom and most of sides of pots to decrease charring; make a "dribble bucket" out of a big water container with spigot (and extra big hole cut in top for ventilation) along with soap-in-a-stocking; save birthday candles and candle stubs for firestarters (or cotton ball and chapstick!).

And we cooked!  Because what is a campfire without cooking?  There were "walking" salad, dough boys, one pot lasagna, one pot chili, and, of course, s'mores.  Cooking and campfires were always my favorite parts of camp.  I've mentioned all the singing before--"Titanic", "Barges," "Buffalo Song," "Balloons," "Bunny Foo Foo" etc etc etc--but there was also food.  Not necessarily the food served in the cafeteria but what we cooked at our units:  s'mores, banana boats, soda ice cream (batches of grape and root beer), hobo stew, and some egg thing with frozen hashbrowns.   Meals always tastes better around the campfire . . . and I'm looking forward to many more with Sis and her Girl Scout friends.

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"Walking" Salad
Place bite-sized vegetables (baby carrots, cucumber slices, chunks of bell pepper, grape tomatoes, broccoli/cauliflower florets) in a plastic baggie.  Add dressing if desired.  Walk around and eat your salad by hand.

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Doughboys

Wrap foil around the end of a  long metal campfire fork or wooden stick.  Heat it near the fire.  Remove from fire and wrap single triangle of crescent roll dough around the foil.  Place over coals and rotate until cooked through.  Remove from foil and stick by twisting and pulling.  Serve with jam, butter, cinnamon-sugar, etc.

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One-Pot Campfire Lasagna

Mix together:
12 oz. jar spaghetti sauce
12 oz. jar water
12 oz. bag egg noodles

Heat over fire.  When noodles are cooked, add

8 oz. shredded mozzarella cheese
1 1/2 lbs ricotta

Serves 6-7

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One-Pot Campfire Chili
 Mix together:
3 lbs. hamburger
1 onion, chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
1 can diced tomatoes with jalapenos (like Rotel)
1-2 cans water
1 package elbow macaroni

Heat until macaroni are cooked through.  Serves 12.

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S'Mores
Heat marshmallow on stick over fire.  Squish between two graham crackers with one square Hershey's chocolates.

Me and My Campfire Songs

Last night after the welcome-back campfire last night, reminiscing about previous campfire singalongs, I remembered one of my favorite songs, "Me and My Dinosaur."  It's silly and peppy and talks about friendship. And I found the lyrics, which I include here.

My co-leader put together a great little songbook, with some of my old favorites like "Barges," and also many songs new to me.  We sang some of them last night, also below.  We both think that learning new songs is one of the great parts of Girl Scouts.
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Me And My Dinosaur

One day when the weather was cloudy and gray

And I wished that someone would come out and play

I heard a knock-knock

And I opened the door

And there stood the loveliest big dinosaur!

Chorus:

Me and my dinosaur

I’ve never had such a friend before

As big as a house, twenty times and a half

And fifty times taller than any giraffe

Legs long as sequoia trees

Teeth big as piano keys

No two people are buddies more

Than me and my dinosaur

I got out some cookies and we had a snack

And he asked if I wanted to ride on his back

I started to climb

From his tail to his cheek

The whole darn trip it took nearly a week!

We hop-scotched to Africa, quick as the breeze

While leapfrogging over the coconut trees

And when we got thirsty

For mile after mile

In one great big gulp

We just drank up the Nile

Me and my dinosaur

I’ve never had such a friend before

As big as a house, twenty times and a half

And fifty times taller than any giraffe

Legs long as sequoia trees

Teeth big as piano keys

No two people are buddies more

Than me and my dina, nothin’s as fine as,

Me and my dinosaur Bum Bump!

Alive Alert Awake (action song)
(to the tune of "If You're Happy and You Know It")

I'm alive, alert, awake, enthusiastic
I'm alive, alert, awake, enthusiastic
I'm alive, alert, awake,
I'm awake, alert, alive,
I'm alive, alert, awake, enthusiastic!
Actions:

Alive: hands on your head
Alert: hands on shoulders
Awake: cross arms over chest
Enthu-: hands on thighs
-si-: clap
-astic: snap with both hands
Repeat the song a number of times, getting faster as you go!


Purple Stew
We're making a purple stew
Whoop whoop whoop whoop
We're making a purple stew
Shooby doobie do
With purple potatoes
and purple tomatoes
And we want you!

*Leader points to someone on "you."  That person stands and joins.  Then repeat and both point to someone on "you" until whole group is standing and singing.


The Bear (repeat-after-me song)
The other day, I met a bear,
A great big bear, Oh way out there.

Chorus:
(Same lines in unison)

He looked at me, I looked at him,
He sized up me, I sized up him.

He said to me, "Why don't you run?
I see you ain't, Got any gun."

I says to him, "That's a good idea."
"Now legs get going, get me out of here!"

And so I ran, Away from there,
But right behind me, Was that bear.

In front of me, There was a tree,
A great big tree, Oh glory be!

The lowest branch, Was ten feet up,
So I thought I'd jump, And trust my luck.

And so I jumped, Into the air,
But I missed that branch, A way up there.

Now don't you fret, And don't you frown,
I Caught that branch, On the way back down!

This is the end, There aint no more,

Unless I see, That bear once more.


White Coral Bells (round)
 White coral bells upon a slendor stalk
Lillies of the vally deck my garden walk
Oh, don't you wish
That you could hear them ring

That will happen only when the fairies sing


Linger
Hmm, mmm
I want to linger here,
Hmm, mmm
a little longer here,
Hmm, mmm
a little longer here with you.
Hmm, mmm
It’s such a perfect night.
Hmm, mmm
It doesn’t seem quite right,
Hmm, mmm
That it should be my last with you.
Hmm, mmm
And come September dear,
Hmm, mmm
We’ll all remember here,
Hmm, mmm
The perfect times I had with you.
Hmm, mmm
And as the years go by,
Hmm, mmm
I’ll think of you and sigh,
Hmm, mmm
It’s not goodbye, it’s just goodnight!

Rain, Rain

There is an amazingly dramatic thunderstorm raging outside, with more thunder and lightning then we've seen here in CT for years.  It reminds me of Houston, except tomorrow we will have cooler temperatures.

Now, without being ungrateful, I would only say that its timing was off.  Two months plus of very little rain and the deluge had to start in the middle of our welcome-back Brownie campfire?  Just as we were making s'mores?  I'd watched the radar all day and thought we were clear, but drumbeats of thunder punctuated the sharing circle as we told of summer vacations, saw a banana/bandana skit, and Sis and I sang "The Beaver Song" together, but the drizzle held off for almost an hour.  Until marshmallows.  Oh, well, the girls loved it.  And fortunately we had somewhere safe inside to be.

Where we then sang several verses of "If All The Raindrops Were Lemon Drops and Gumdrops" from our new songbook!

Making Campfire Memories

I smell of wood smoke and marshmallows, if you can smell of marshmallows, more like I "feel" of marshmallows, being sticky from s'mores.  This evening Sis's Brownie troop went to an outdoor evening with a hike, fire safety lesson, s'mores, and a puppet show.  The only thing we didn't really do was sing, except "Taps."

I love to sing around a campfire.  It is, hands down--even more than crafts (though I love tie-dye and telephone wire bracelets and ice candles in milk cartons and plaster of Paris objets d'art)--my favorite Girl Scout activity.  I remember singing at campfires almost every evening as a camper at Camps Robinwood, Agnes Arnold, and Casa Mare, and as a counselor at Mira Sol and Strake, plus various day camps in both capacities.  Oh, the songs, which I once listed here.  Most of the time, we didn't make s'mores, maybe once a week.  Sometimes we made banana boats (split banana in peel stuffed with chocolate chips and marshmallows, wrapped in foil til melted) or foil packet dinners (what is it about ground meat and potatoes and onions and carrots and bell pepper and salt and pepper that is so good?) or maybe hobo stew, if there was time and a pot (ground meat, potatoes, cans of corn and maybe green beans and tomatoes and salt and pepper, maybe.)  But we'd always sing, alternately boisterous and quiet, sometimes with stories or skits in between (almost never ghost stories--I'm sure the counselors didn't want to cause trouble for themselves by upsetting us.  Smart.)  I love the look of stars above the light and smoke of a fire, all ringed in by pine trees (usually).  "The stars at night are big and bright". . . .

Tonight, I stayed around the campfire, not up for an uphill hike, hearing the lessons about kinds of wood (kindling, tinder, and wood, I think), types of fire (square for charcoal for s'mores), and safety--the bucket of water, the fire ring of stones.  I should have just started singing.  The fire refused to light, repeatedly, and we resorted to paper, which even then took quite awhile.  The leader suggested that smart Girl Scouts always dry their wood under tarps, gathering it the first day of camp so that it's ready by the last night.  She didn't reveal the firestarter secret I learned:  the inside of maxi-pads catch fire really easily, as do tampons (sans applicator, of course), and Girl Scouts of a certain age always have those when camping.  We did eventually get it started . . .and then no one knew the "smoke follows beauty" saying as the smoke wafted around.

The girls had a great time, as did my outdoorsy co-leaders . . . so there will no doubt be more campfires and more chances to sing in the future.