Shake Out Your Shorts!

When my sister and I were in our Tweens/Teens we used to camp out at Woods Lake near Kelowna British Columbia. Our parents rented a little tent trailer and we did like all the kids did out there, slept in a tent outside the trailer. It had its pros and cons, we were able to sneak out unnoticed some nights and it gave us the illusion of having freedom. One of the cons was the fact that you didn’t really get to sleep past 6 o’clock in the morning since it was boiling hot in the tent and the tiny creepy crawly bugs called Ear Wigs that made there way in to our tent!

They are gross, creepy looking things and we always found them everywhere out there. In the showers, on the air mattresses and hiding in the corners of the tent! When you are a 14 year old girl that doesn’t care for bugs this is a tragedy! Each night before we went to sleep we would do a search making sure that we didn’t have any uninvited guests for the evening. It was the worst part about camping out there!

The muppets don’t have a lot of experience with insects since we live in an almost bug free part of the world compared to Canada in the summer. They have put up with the mosquitos, wasps, black flys and little spiders but this afternoon was the first time they had been introduced to an Ear Wig!

The middle muppet came running up the beach to use the bathroom. The other two followed him to get a drink. I told them to grab a towel and dry off and I would grab their water bottles. As they grabbed and wrapped towels around themselves I heard a little screech. “Uhg what is that” said the youngest muppet “It is so gross!!” The other two quickly jumped away as I swept it of deck. I explained to them what it was and told them about what their aunt and I had to deal with when we were younger at the lake. They looked at me in horror and disbelief and then I told them they were lucky that they didn’t have to shower or or potentially sleep with them. All three had a case of the hebejebes after that and could not believe that these gross bugs could hide in all the places I described. I laughed and watched them run back in to the lake all saying they hoped not to see one of those bugs again. I know it won’t be their last!

I guess every day you learn something new and today the muppets learned a valuable lesson about Glamping at the lake. Always make sure you shake out your shorts!!!

Sleep Baby… Sleep

One of the first years at the lake with the oldest muppet we rented a trailer off of some family friends and set it up at a visitor lot near my parents property. The oldest muppet loved the lake so much that he would wake us up at 5 o’clock in the morning every day. My husband and I would take turns walking him around the campground while the other got an extra hour of sleep. Every so often we would skip the walk and take a drive in to town to get Tim Hortons in hopes that the oldest guy would drift back to sleep. By the time the rest of the campground was up and about the two of us had already put in a full days work at the whim of a toddler and we were ready for bed. The one thing that saved us  and gave us some sanity back was my Dads boat. No matter what the oldest muppet would fall asleep on the boat and sleep for at least two hours. We would park the boat in a familiar bay, drop anchor, put the sleeping boy in the shade and relax for the afternoon… it was heaven!

When the second muppet came it was pretty much the same game we were blessed that the middle muppet also had no power against sleep when it came to motorized vehicles. But he did not out grow this like the oldest muppet did, for years he would fall asleep on the boat as soon as we left the shore and wake up to find us back right where we started. We would joke that he probably thought we never drove the boat anywhere and hr probably figured he was being ripped off in the boat ride department. As he got a little older he could stay awake a little longer, but most of the time he didn’t stand a chance and he would fall asleep no matter how hard he fought it.

The past two weeks we have spent a lot of time out on the boat. The middle guy has been good and kept him self up most of the time. I watched the other day as his little eyes drooped and head bobbed with out him wanting them too. He caught himself and opened his eyes as wide as he could. I smiled at him and told him to take a little rest as we had a long ride. He laid his head in his Nana’s lap and he was done, three seconds later he was fast asleep. Poor guy some things never change, the only problem now is he is too heavy to carry off the boat!

The Tube

When my husband and I were growing up tubing on the lake usually meant flying through the air at insane speeds with as many tubes tied to the boat as possible. People would try to jump on to your tube and the whole point was for the driver to whip you off in to the lake. I am fairly certain that my chronic back and neck pain came from this summer sport, but man was it fun.

Every year since my dad has had the boat we have taken the muppets tubing. It started off as a slow ride me clutching my babies in between my legs until they started crying. The years that followed each muppet graduated in to their own seat in the middle of the tube. Every year the tears were fewer and the rides were longer, soon the middle guy was asking to go instead of us encouraging them for days at a time.

Today I watched as the middle and youngest muppet screamed for more speed, more waves and higher jumps as they rode the tube with their dad. Every time they caught huge air I held my breath and waited for the crying to start but the boys were smiling, laughing and screaming for more!

Every summer we come out to the lake the muppets are a little taller, a little stronger and a little braver. It is awesome to watch them take more risks, and start to find the things they enjoy. My little babies who sat between my legs so many years ago are ready for their own seats on the tube now.

Every year a little taller, a little stronger a little braver and a little more letting go.

Farm Muppets

The middle muppet is my animal guy, I am pretty sure if we were able to he would have 2 dogs, 4 cats a horse and a couple dozen chickens. This summer in Canada he has been in his glory because everyone we visit lives on a farm, ranch or acreage and they have animals. The other day we went to visit one of my husbands old co workers who lives in Central Alberta. The muppets were thrilled the minute they stepped out of our over packed car to see two giant black dogs greeting us. After short introductions the three made fast friends with the little boy that lived there and they were off exploring.

The excitedly bounced on trampolines, drove battery operated jeeps, swung on swings and watch the cows and donkeys in the field. The middle muppet came to find me on the deck and I offered him a burger to eat. “I can’t eat now Mummy” he said catching his breath “There are kittens in the garage, really little tiny almost just born kittens!!” He asked me follow him so that he could show me where they were. We entered the dark garage and I saw the two big dogs sitting on either side of the place the kittens hid, “Don’t worry Mum” the middle guy said “They are just protecting the kitties while the Mama Cat hunts!” He comfortably walked past the big puppies, knelt down and carefully picked up one of the kittens and cradled it in his arms. “This one is Grey Paw” he said handing the small bundle to me and picking out another “We have named most of them, they are still too young to leave their mother tho so we can’t take one home yet, maybe tomorrow they will be ready.”

My heart broke a little knowing that this was not going to happen but I let him live in his dream world a little while longer. The little boy who owned the kittens came in to the garage and I asked him what they would do with the kittens once they were old enough to be away from their mom. He shrugged his shoulders and said “Don’t know, sometimes they just grow up and disappear!” I hid a chuckle thinking that sometimes that happens living on a farm, a coyote might get them, or they just wander off never to be seen again. The middle guy looked at the boy in horror, he whispered to me “Mum we need to rescue these cats before they disappear!” I gently told him that they would probably find the kittens good homes but we could not take one with us back to Doha. His bottom lip quivered and he explained that he didn’t want to leave them and that since they were so little they would not take up that much room and only make me a little allergic. I hugged him and told him again that it was jut not possible but he could play with them all he wanted that day.

The next morning the middle muppet woke up and as soon as he was dressed he was down playing with the kittens. The three went down to the barn with their dad and collected eggs for breakfast and thought it was super awesome that we got to eat the eggs that they had collected. They chased the baby calfs and fed the horses, and soon it was time to go. I found the middle guy in the garage with the kittens, he was giving each one a hug and a kiss goodbye. “Can you take a picture of them mummy so I can remember them in Doha?” I smiled and told him to get his brothers and we would take a photo together.

With all the goodbyes said we piled in to the car, I buckled the middle guy in to his seat and he said “That was pretty special hey mummy, being able to play with those kitties that were so small and cute” I agreed with him and said that maybe one day he could have a farm full of animals to care for. He smiled, got that gleam in his eye and said “I think I am going to need a lot of land Mummy, because I love so many different animals!”

 

Where are all the Zebras?

One of the first trips we took as a family after moving to Doha was to visit one of my best girl friends in Tanzania. She was out there living with her fiancée and they were getting married when we planned on being there. It was my husbands and my dream to go to Africa and the muppets were so pumped to see animals in the wild. We had adventures in the bush, the city and even in a Maasai village, but the muppets liked playing in the back garden the best. They had three dogs, three tortoise, and a bush man to keep them occupied there was also an old blue VW Bug that had been painted but wasn’t running any more. The three boys would play for hours in the car and even though they loved going on safari I think that the kids loved that old blue bug the best!

Our friends moved back to Canada a few years ago and when we came back that summer we went to visit them in their new place in Edmonton. It had been two years since we had been to Tanzania and the youngest muppet was only two at the time so I wasn’t sure if he would remember his African adventure. We jumped out of the car and the youngest and middle guy ran straight to the door to ring the door bell. As soon as we said our hellos the youngest muppet asked to go and play in the back yard. I asked if it was alright and their uncle enthusiastically took them in to the back yard to play soccer. The youngest muppet stood in the door way with a strange look on his face, when I asked him what was wrong and he said “Where is the car mummy, and the puppies, where are all the turtles” He had thought that we were going to their place in Tanzania! After I explained to him that all of those things had to stay in Africa and that the puppies and turtles liked warm weather he warmed up to the idea of playing soccer with the other two muppets.

This year we went to visit our friends again, life had changed a little bit more for them. They had another baby a new puppy and they had moved to an acreage out of the city. The muppets were really excited to see their friends and meet the new baby. We stepped out of the car and the youngest guy gave his uncle a hug a minute he saw him but then he heard something in the bushes, “Uncle Lau” he said “Are their Zebra’s in those bushes!?” We all laughed and told the youngest guy that the sound he was hearing was a dog barking but it sure sounded like a zebra. He cuddled in to me and said “Mummy where are all the zebra’s, I want to go back to Africa and see them” I gave him a hug and told him that one day when his auntie and uncle move back we will go and visit them and have more adventures in Africa, but for now maybe he could have an adventure with their new dog.

The middle and youngest muppet played with their friend and the new puppy who was almost the size of a baby zebra and the same colouring! It is amazing to me that the youngest guy remembers so much about our first trip. I love that they have made amazing memories and that we have made so many  life long friends along the way. We are so lucky to be able to share our lives with so many amazing people. The past few weeks have been spent reconnecting with some of these amazing people. We will have many more adventures ahead this summer and hopefully get to share some more time with our special friends and family!