Adventures and meltdowns at the Hahn Ranch

Fun fact about me, I hate to be rushed. I don't do well when I feel like I'm being pushed to go at your pace, pushed to "go go go" because that's how you do things. I know I've always been this way to an extent, but after having kids it is especially difficult for me. My control-freak tendencies seem to have magnified ten-fold; feeling pressured and pushed just makes me anxious, grumpy, and if it gets too bad those ridiculous, uncontrollable water-works start up. 

We took the kids on their first camping trip this weekend with my in-laws. We weren't going to go, in fact it was the kids who changed our minds for us. While the kids helped Grandma Hahn bake a cake and muffins on Friday, and I wrote my last blog post, she mentioned that the muffins were for camping. That was the end of it. The kids were convinced we were going camping, even though they had no idea what "camping" was. There was no way out of it. We were going camping with the kids on Saturday.

That night, we didn't get home from their house until 12:30am, we were supposed to leave by 3pm on Saturday. This meant I only had a few hours to get everything ready for the trip, and I lean toward the "it's better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it" school of thought whenever we go on a trip with the kids. I was able to push myself as much as was necessary without getting anxious or grumpy. I packed, organized, and loaded everything into the car. I felt great about what I was bringing, not too much, but enough to feel like we could handle whatever was thrown our way. We piled into the Trailblazer and away we went on our first family camping adventure.

My in-laws own a beautiful little piece of property near Wanship, in the Tollgate area past Park City, and that was our destination. I thought it was a good place for the kids first camping experience, especially since I wasn't sure how they would do. On the drive up, Jayden started telling his sister that we were going to the "creepy forest" causing her to start crying and exclaiming that she "didn't want to go camping anymore." After Jayden got scolded for being a butthead and Aubrey received some comforting reassurance from me that we were, in fact, not going to a creepy forest, she calmed down and was rather excited by the time we got there.

My brother-in-law, Matt, caught a tiny little frog while he was scouting a place to put our tent with BJ. They brought it over to show the kids. In typical Aubrey fashion, she screamed her banshee scream and climbed up my leg so I could save her from the terrifying animal. Jayden, on the other hand, thought it was cool. After seeing Jayden's reasonable reaction, Aubrey decided that the tiny frog was actually cute. We were off to a good start.

After some searching, BJ finally found a location he liked enough to set up the tent. I was very happy to see how simple the setup was for our tent. We were able to fit a full-sized air mattress and 2 kids cots in the tent comfortably. For my little family, it was just right.

Hahn Family Tent

Kids Cots inside the tent

We spent most of our time chatting, with a little exploring on the side. Nothing too far from the property though. 

Outdoor Common Room

Daddy & Aubrey

We had a great time Saturday night. I was able to use the solar-powered gadgets I purchased for our emergency prep kit, which was far more exciting for me than I should admit. The weather was perfect and we were able to see the stars. Star gazing is something I love, and I stood in the field staring up into the beautiful nights sky until I was tired enough for bed.   

Sunday was another fairly uneventful day, much the same as the day before. We stayed close to camp, explored a little around the property, I mostly just enjoyed the kids and the outdoors. Here are some more pictures from our adventure. 

Aubrey & Aimee

Jayden

Jayden & Aubrey

Cassy, Chris, & Jayden

Jayden with his Uncle Matt

Aubrey

Jayden needed the skin cut off his apples...

The boys putting the tent together.

My cute kids

Aubrey

Overall it was the perfect first camping trip for the kids. We had a lot of fun and I can't wait to take them camping again. Now that we have most of the gear we need to be able to go camping, I see a lot of family camping trips in our future. 

Monday morning, I wont lie, I had a meltdown. It comes down to the fun fact I told you about myself in the beginning of this post. I don't do well when I'm rushed. I know this about myself. I plan ahead. I give myself time to do things at a relaxed pace. I have 2 kids to watch and care for, usually while I'm trying to get things done. My sanity depends on going at my own pace. Monday morning, I was rushed and pushed into going someone else's pace. 

Immediately following breakfast it was "go go go" to get out of there. It was as if there was a fire and they were running for their lives. Everything was chaotic and rushed. It had rained hard the night before. There was mud everywhere and people were clearing out camp at breakneck speed. Before breakfast even began, I was calmly folding the blankets inside the tent, trying not to get mud on everything but still packing in an organized fashion. I was packing up camp, but I was going at a reasonable pace. I was going at my sanity-saving pace. The kids were allowed to help me, which is something they love to do, and I wasn't grumpy. 

Post breakfast apocalypse was the opposite of my sanity-saving pace. Everything was in disarray. Well, I should clarify, everything of ours was in disarray. The other pairs of adults were just fine, getting their stuff packed up and put away. It was so frustrating for me. I felt so rushed, so pressured, so chaotic. I reached the eff-it stage rather quickly and just gave up knowing there was no way I was going to be able to load up the car for the return trip in an organized fashion and keep it clean at the same time. Everyone just wanted out of there. I was so frustrated and upset that I spent the first 20-minutes of our drive home bawling to BJ. 

If I had known that we were planning on packing up the second we swallowed the last bite of breakfast, I would have prepared more the night before. I know myself, I know how I function. I know that I hate to be rushed. I plan ahead! I would have spent more time packing up all non-essentials for the night of sleep. I would start loading the car and organizing things. I know, I know, I sound like a complete and utter control freak. The thing is, I can only do my best, and that might not be the same as yours, but that is okay! I have to be true to myself. When I'm true to myself, I'm a better mom, a better wife, a happier person all around. 

We all know what works for us, we know the best, most efficient way for us to get things done. The beauty of it is that it's different for each of us, our "best" is subjective. It changes from day to day, person to person. Your best isn't better than mine, nor is mine better than yours. It just is. The only real expectation we should have of ourselves, is that we do our best day after day. Whatever that days best might be. 

Obviously, I'm going to have to find a solution going forward for situations like the one I just described. I will let you know if I come up with something. None of us like it when our crazy is showing! Goodness knows I don't.