A Family Adventure

It's been a VERY LONG time since I've posted an update (so long)...but as a new school year has begun today, it's time to start blogging again.  You've noticed it's updated (new background/fonts/etc.)  I've also added a new tab at the top that will be updates related to Toby and his medical condition, etc.  

So, here goes:

This year we decided to go on a family adventure and go....(drum roll please)....

CAMPING

This was Toby and Caris' first camping trip.

To give a bit of background -  I grew up camping - all over northern Michigan and the U.P. (Upper Peninsula - for you non-Michiganders).  I have many family memories going to Mackinaw City, Mackinaw Island, Burt Lake, Cheboygan, Petoskey, Copper Harbor, Tahquemenon Falls, etc. (all places in Michigan!)   I enjoy camping - I don't enjoy the dirt so much, but I love being outdoors and the memories it creates for our kids.  Our campground usually has lots of trees, showers, and decent (not always clean) bathrooms

Bruce and I tent/cabin camped with Conor and Garrett when they were little, but after Toby was born and he came home with all of his medical equipment - AND a trach (i.e. no WATER immersion) I never thought we would ever be able to camp again.  This year we did it!

Bruce and I jokingly said we couldn't call it a family vacation, but more of a family trip or family adventure because it was going to require a lot of work and letting go of the whole dirt thing for this Type A - Clean Freak!

Most years my family (think parents, sisters, brother-in-laws, niece, nephew and extended family like grandparents, second cousins, aunts, uncles) camp in northern Michigan, and this year we joined them.  

We rented an RV, which was delivered to the campground, and made an adventure out of it.  Here are the top ten reasons we enjoyed camping this week:

Reason #10 - Hiking in the woods

Reason #9: Visiting MaMa Mia's in Mackinaw City and the Mackinaw Bridge Museum - a family tradition since I was a kid!  I didn't take a photo, but also buying eating good old fashioned Mackinaw Island Fudge!

Reason #8: The gorgeous sunsets

Reason #7: Making sand castles with Uncle Anthony, enjoying the beach and warm water

Reason #6: Watching Caris get dirty in the mornings - just seconds after putting clean clothing on her.

Reason #5: Watching Toby dance with Grandma 

Reason #4: Playing Miniature Golf and getting a hole in one!

Reason #3: Watching the Mackinaw Bridge light up and driving over it to the price of $8.00 just to have the thrill!

Reason #2: Having campfires and delicious hot smoes (s'mores)

Reason #1 - Spending time with my wonderful family!

I won't deny that it was A LOT of work - especially with Toby - all of his care (trach, vent, cathing, bathing, bowel program - lots of work).  BUT, it was fun!!  I'm sure we will do it again in the future - a few years down the road!

Sun, Sand, Sparklers, and Summer Fun!

Since we've had Toby, we haven't been able to go on very many family vacations.  Part of it is because traveling alone as a family with a special needs child really isn't a vacation, and some of it is the distance (can't be too long in a car or on an airplane)...other reasons are the mounds of equipment that must be taken, and his medical needs. (We did fly on a plane one year with Toby to Texas!)  Some days I feel quite sorry for ourselves, especially when I hear of all the wonderful things that other families are doing, and that's tough, BUT most days we just accept things the way they are and do the things we can.  Last year it was a short weekend to Indy to go to the Children's Museum, this year it will be "stay-cation" stuff around here.

One thing that we do almost every year is visit my parents and extended family in Michigan. Up until this year I would never (I mean never) have dared to take him to a beach: trach, water, and sand don't mix and the thought of it scared me to death.  BUT, this year we did it!  I think part of it was because I've met other families that vacation with their trach/ventilator dependent child in Hilton Head all the time, and I thought - if they can do it, we can do it.  Another plus is Toby is getting more independent, less fragile, and he can communicate his needs.  So this year we decided to brave the beach. You have to understand when I mean beach...I'm talking about the fresh waters of the Great Lakes. I grew up on these beaches - camping, swimming, running, etc. - I never knew salt water until my sophomore year of college (don't get me wrong, I love the ocean, snorkeling, etc.), but going to Lake Michigan or Lake Huron are quite fun.  I also was very excited to go with some dear friends of our family - Stephanie and Yolanda (an adopted aunt and grandmother).  We have been doing "Beach Days" with Stephanie since I was a little girl - they counted the years up and it's going on 24 years!!

This year we went to Tawas State Park - where you can walk out in the water for to your chest and still see your feet.  When we plan a day at the beach, it's an entire day.  This year we arrived at 10:00 a.m. and left around 8:00 p.m.  It was great (even though the water was cold - think 60 degrees - enough to make your goose bumps have goose bumps), and we did get in the water.  We set up our camp, and the beach had a nice boardwalk all the way out to the beach so we wheeled Toby to the end and then carried him to our camp.  Caris and Toby took naps on the beach (our wagon came in handy for that with Toby).  The kids loved playing in the sand building sand castles, and we bought an inflatable boat for Toby to get on the water, but not really in it.  If the water had been warmer I would have taken him in, but he sat in the boat playing with water in cups that I would give him while my legs froze!  (not sure why this text turned black instead of white - still trying to figure out this blogging thing!)

Our visit to Grandma's also included some swimming at the cousins' pool, campfires, s'mores, sparklers, playing in the pond, and fireworks!!  We have had a lot of fun together, and I'm so glad we ventured to the beach with Toby - we will definitely do it again next summer.