We’re 45 minutes north of Savannah, GA, and both boys are asleep. We camped last night at Jones Lake State Park, in North Carolina. I failed to get the much-requested photo of camping-averse husband in our tent, so will have to be sure to get it on the way back.

We got to the campsite at about 6:30pm, and after pitching the tent, we grabbed our loaner fishing pole and headed for the fishing pier. Sadly, our bait, 10-yr old salmon eggs, disintegrated on being speared on the hook, so fishing didn’t work out so well. We promise S that we’d try again in the morning.

We made a quick run to the local Food Lion for dinner supplies and snacks, an came back to camp to cook up hotdogs and s’mores. J was so excited about the marshmallows, but, it turned out, he ended up not really liking them (he tried them in the s’more and raw before pronouncing them “Yucky”.

As the daylight faded and the stars came out, both boys exhibited a lot of anxiety about sleeping in the dark in a tent. We had a little tussle between them about the lantern being on or off, and then, the were out for the count!! Couldn’t impress them with the stars, although J did ask “Where did they all come from?”

This morning, S was torn between his desire to catch a fish, and his yearning to swim in the lake – mutually exclusive activities due to our hope to get to Vero Beach before dark tonight. We finally all agreed on the swim, which was a huge success for all of us. No cold, and just the right depth for J to be able to walk out to the middle of the swimming area and still stand up! He was so proud of himself, and happily announced that he is a big boy! S was happy as well, and could stand at the deepest area at the boundary, which made him quite proud also.

When we were done with our dip, showered and clothed, the park ranger had arrived and let both boys help him raise the US and NC flags up the big flagpole. And we drove into town to the Corner Cafe, a sweet family-run place that fed us heartily, and all the staff doted over both boys.

And now we’re scoping out our stop for lunch – hoping for someplace with a climbing structure or playground for the boys – they need to use their legs and stretch…for our sanity as well as theirs!