April 10, 2006...I hope you have children just like you!
****Moving over an old blog***
I had the sad realization this weekend that my mother's curse has come to me full force. My oldest son is so much like me...in most of my negative ways! I don't know how I made it through adolescence, because I know (now, though I'd never have recognized or admitted it then) that I was one smug, selfish little b****. And I don't believe my mother ever slapped my face, which I found myself fantasizing about doing to my son. I guess this is part of enduring a teenager, huh? And I know that he's a good kid...he's very responsible and smart, and he has moments of wonderful-ness...but they were in short supply this weekend!!
Other than large amounts of bickering among the oldest 3 and large amounts of whining from Jacob, the weekend was wonderful. I'm sure we'll look back on it as a good one...much as women look back on childbirth as a beautiful experience!! Great pain to endure, but worth the results.
We stayed at Babler State Park, outside of St. Louis. We'd never been there before, and since it was April, didn't figure we'd need reservations. Wrong! Every electric site was taken...except one. Thank goodness, because Sunday we checked out the next state park down the road (Robertsville) and weren't impressed by the campground at all. The campsites at Babler were nice and level, paved, and ours was pretty private. The bathhouses were state park bathhouses, but they were clean and the water was hot (my own personal heaven, a hot shower!).
Since we arrived late Saturday morning, we had lots of time to set up and explore. We went up to the visitor's center first thing to get our passport stamp (that MO passport program is going to cost us a lot in gas money this summer!) and then hiked a 2-mile trail. We hadn't eaten lunch, so after the hike we headed back to the campsite and made dinner (hamburgers, corn on the cob, and leftover cheesy potatoes from the other night...what, no vegetable? as my mom would say). It was very strange for us to finish eating, clean-up, and smores before dark!! Little Man didn't care much for the smores, but he is a certifiable marshmallow fiend!
Sunday we had a pancake and bacon breakfast, courtesy of Nathan, who cooked. After clean-up (ours, of course...not the kids), we went to Purina Farms for their Easter festivities. It was neat to see the animals up close. We got to pet piglets, lambs, bunnies, dogs, and chickens as well as seeing horses, cows, sheep, goats, and ducks, but I wasn't floored by Purina Farms. What do you expect for a free attraction, though? Shouldn't complain...it was a nice afternoon.
We through Robertsville State Park after getting lunch. There wasn't a whole lot to see. We did find one 1-mile hiking trail. Little Man walked most of it, much to the chagrin of the older kids, who needed to use the bathroom and weren't interested in a backcountry experience! After that, we headed back to Babler. I was pretty proud of dinner. I made a chicken recipe I'd found on popupexplorer.com, and it turned out really well. Chicken, spaghetti sauce, onion, zucchini, red pepper, and noodles, all cooked in foil.
I had the sad realization this weekend that my mother's curse has come to me full force. My oldest son is so much like me...in most of my negative ways! I don't know how I made it through adolescence, because I know (now, though I'd never have recognized or admitted it then) that I was one smug, selfish little b****. And I don't believe my mother ever slapped my face, which I found myself fantasizing about doing to my son. I guess this is part of enduring a teenager, huh? And I know that he's a good kid...he's very responsible and smart, and he has moments of wonderful-ness...but they were in short supply this weekend!!
Other than large amounts of bickering among the oldest 3 and large amounts of whining from Jacob, the weekend was wonderful. I'm sure we'll look back on it as a good one...much as women look back on childbirth as a beautiful experience!! Great pain to endure, but worth the results.
We stayed at Babler State Park, outside of St. Louis. We'd never been there before, and since it was April, didn't figure we'd need reservations. Wrong! Every electric site was taken...except one. Thank goodness, because Sunday we checked out the next state park down the road (Robertsville) and weren't impressed by the campground at all. The campsites at Babler were nice and level, paved, and ours was pretty private. The bathhouses were state park bathhouses, but they were clean and the water was hot (my own personal heaven, a hot shower!).
Since we arrived late Saturday morning, we had lots of time to set up and explore. We went up to the visitor's center first thing to get our passport stamp (that MO passport program is going to cost us a lot in gas money this summer!) and then hiked a 2-mile trail. We hadn't eaten lunch, so after the hike we headed back to the campsite and made dinner (hamburgers, corn on the cob, and leftover cheesy potatoes from the other night...what, no vegetable? as my mom would say). It was very strange for us to finish eating, clean-up, and smores before dark!! Little Man didn't care much for the smores, but he is a certifiable marshmallow fiend!
Sunday we had a pancake and bacon breakfast, courtesy of Nathan, who cooked. After clean-up (ours, of course...not the kids), we went to Purina Farms for their Easter festivities. It was neat to see the animals up close. We got to pet piglets, lambs, bunnies, dogs, and chickens as well as seeing horses, cows, sheep, goats, and ducks, but I wasn't floored by Purina Farms. What do you expect for a free attraction, though? Shouldn't complain...it was a nice afternoon.
We through Robertsville State Park after getting lunch. There wasn't a whole lot to see. We did find one 1-mile hiking trail. Little Man walked most of it, much to the chagrin of the older kids, who needed to use the bathroom and weren't interested in a backcountry experience! After that, we headed back to Babler. I was pretty proud of dinner. I made a chicken recipe I'd found on popupexplorer.com, and it turned out really well. Chicken, spaghetti sauce, onion, zucchini, red pepper, and noodles, all cooked in foil.
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