Vacation Sick

When my brother was 6 or 7 years old, he came down with the stomach flu while we were vacationing in Lake Tahoe. He came out of our room onto the porch, clutching his stomach, looking green, and said, "Now I know what it feels like to be vacation sick."

As much fun as we had camping the last few days, I now know what it feels like to be vacation sick too. Our first night at camp I was nearly delusional with a fever, my head felt like a boulder the size of our tent (which is a very large tent) and I grimaced with pain each time I swallowed. As soon as the kids awoke, I sent them to grandma's trailer to get some pain reliever. Thank goodness for her expired bottle of Aleve.

Are you ready for the rest of the story? The kids and I drove 200 miles with my in-law's to camp with a flickr friend whom we had never met. Yes, a two day long blind date, far from home, chaperoned by my in-laws. It was the best blind date I've ever been on.

Sarah and I had exchanged many lengthy emails and talked on the phone for an hour before deciding to meet in person - what an excellent decision we made. From coffee in the morning til toasted marshmallows at night, we exchanged stories, compared notes on homeschooling and parenting, shared delicious food, and watched our children become fast friends.



The kids combed the beach for mermaid scales, climbed trees, and trolled the campground on their bikes in search of mysteries.



As we were packing up to go yesterday morning, Aidan informed me he was ocean sick, which I interpreted as sick of the ocean and homesick; though I know he had a very good time with his new little friend, who was more than willing to pull his finger.



We are already making plans to camp again - this time in my neck of the woods without chaperones. I'll make sure to pack medication, just in case someone gets vacation sick.