Making Your Home Sing Monday - Camping Edition

Making Your Home Sing Monday for us this week is all about taking our trailer out after a long winter's nap. We winterized it in late September and the cover came off in April, but that was it!

By the time some of you will be reading this, I will have pulled out of my driveway and hit the road for our long-awaited and much-anticipated first camping trip of the season. Sunday we plugged in and cooled the refrigerator and freezer, put the sheets on the beds, cleaned the little bathroom, wiped down all the surfaces and mopped the floors. Then we loaded up the pantry and refrigerator, put clothes in the bathroom (the shower is tiny, we use it for our clothes!), make sure we have band-aids, bug spray, Benadryl, first-aid ointment, sunscreen, etc. The great thing about using a trailer is I don't have to worry about packing a cooler and managing food in such a ways as to prevent spoilage. Once you get a rhythm and know how your family will use it, it makes these trips fun for even the mom!

Today, I need to run to Walmart to get marshmallows and chocolate bars (s'mores, anyone?), as well as milk and eggs. I froze two loaves of bread at the end of last week, so that's covered. The last thing in the car? The hamster. Yes, I'm serious...I'll tell you about it later in the week, but please know that we are the only people I know who camp with their hamster...sigh.

But what about our real home? What will be going on here? Well, Charming isn't enamored of camping and, at 18, he's opting to stay home. That means I don't have to worry about who will care for the garden and the menagerie, who will pick up the mail and the newspaper, and all the other worries that come with leaving your home for any period of time. I've changed the sheets, vacuumed and dusted, and cleaned the bathrooms. I love coming home to a clean house and I told Charming that is what I'd better walk into when I come home. (I actually said, "Keep the chaos contained to your room, please. If that fails, please know I'm stopping in on Thursday and I'm home for real on Sunday, so prepare accordingly!") He's excited to have the entire house to himself and I'm leaving with fewer concerns on my mind knowing he's watching out for things. Now, I just hope he remembers to water everything that needs manual watering and feed everything that depends upon us for food.

Finally, what about my blog? Don't worry, I've got you covered. I'm posting a terrific recipe from Game Night and I've got a little tip tomorrow for those of you who are joining in with Nan's Summer Cleaning Frenzy (and those who aren't, too!). The kids and I have done a cute Father's Day present that I'll post this week (so Superman can't see it!) and other fun things to share...I don't want you to miss me too much. Actually, I'll be popping in on Thursday because we're driving back into to town to witness and celebrate Mrs. M's college graduation. We wouldn't miss it for the world.

In the meantime, head on over to Momstheword and see who else is joining in with Nan's Making Your Home Sing Monday party this week. This week, Nan is talking about managing your own expectations for your home life. Norman Rockwell pictures were just that: a picture...a moment in time captured. No life is always that way and trying to make yours that way just leads to frustration. Someone once told me we must have unhappiness so that we can recognize happiness when we're blessed to have it. That is so true. Head over to Momstheword to hear what she has to say to help you manage your own expectations. It is just so important.

Oh, yeah, what are we singing this week? 99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall, of course! (Pretty funny, when you think about it...we don't drink!)