Memories...Not Perfection...

(John Wesley making some crazy moves on some unfortunate fly that kept bothering him!!  Haha!)

This past weekend, we loaded up the camper and headed for a nearby campground. Harold had a few work-related meetings lined up at the state park where we were camping, but for the most part, we were just looking forward to relaxing and having a good time.

We brought Anna, William’s dog, with us for her first camping trip! Being a “farm” girl, she has almost NEVER had to be on a leash, so she doesn’t really understand how they work. To illustrate…Harold had Anna in the bus with him as he went to drop the kids off at the tennis court early on Friday morning. On the way back to the camper, he stopped to help one of his volunteers with trying to get her keys out of her car. Anna didn’t like being in the bus alone, so she jumped out the driver’s window after him. What she didn’t understand was that she was attached to the leash, which was attached to the bus’ door-opener arm. So…when she jumped out of the window, she got caught on her leash and tumbled, landing sideways on her rear leg.

We thought she had dislocated it, but after William and I spent most of the day at the vet and spent a few hundred dollars on pain meds and x-rays, we found out it’s broken--really badly…so badly that it‘s going to require surgery. The vet sent us home with her leg splinted and some pain killers for her, with instructions to see our vet on Monday morning to set a date for surgery. In the meantime, keep her comfortable, don’t leave her alone, etc.

So, William and I had spent literally ALL of the first day at the campground getting Anna taken care of. But that’s okay I thought , ’cause we’ll have all day Saturday to relax and enjoy ourselves, right? WRONG!!! Jared woke up throwing up the next morning. He didn’t just lose it once. Over the course of the day, he went through 4 outfits, we had to clean his wheelchair AND a camping chair, 4 blankets and a pillow. Poor guy. He just kind of laid around for most of the day. So, while Harold took the kids to “tomahawk-throwing” lessons, cave tours, horseback riding, and the ice cream social, I stayed at the camper with Anna and Jared.

I was tempted to write this trip off as a wash, but really, I bet this will be one of those trips that the kids will talk about when they get older. You know, “Hey, do you remember that camping trip we took when we were 10 or 12 and Anna broke her leg and Jared puked all over everything??? Yeah, those were good times!” --and they are…

These are the days! These are the days I’ll look back on someday and wish hadn’t gone so fast. The days I’ll wish I could recapture. So, as imperfect a camping trip as this may seem, the truth is that the kids will have lots of fun memories from it. And THAT’S what is important. It’s not about it all being picture-perfect and flawless, it’s about making a life out of the imperfections, having fun together, and loving each other even when it’s not-so-fun.

Doesn't he look so pitiful?  Poor guy!

Thankfully, Jared was better the next day (just in time for us to leave).  As for Anna, she did have her surgery Monday, and she is currently officially the most loved-on doggy EVER!!! Poor girl!