It was overcast today, so even with the breeze, the mosquitoes were incessant. Estelle was 'skeeter bait' last night, and had an array of welts on her face in the morning. The kids didn't seem to mind, though. They were going fast enough on their bikes. Ezra had to content himself with chasing their heels like a wayward dog. The bugs did eventually get to them and they came in for refuge.
I started reading Don Quixote, my bookclub summer read. I had heard horror stories of people struggling through it. I expected a tough, possibly dull, read. It is a hoot! And I have oodles of time to actually enjoy the monstrosity.
The campground cleared out this morning. All the sites were full for the summer solstice. Today, we were the lone campers here. The kids had a heyday scavenging through the empty campsites looking for treasures untold. They came back elated with their finds: 2 broken BBQ grills, 2 tea towels, a nice pillow, a foldable chair, a case of empty beer bottles, two stacks of firewood (the only useable items), and Naomi's personal favorite (because she found it herself)--a half-used bottle of instant coffee. She insisted that we make 'coffee' cake. Nothing like a scavenger hunt to raise the spirits. The camp manager, Vern, was more than happy to let them keep the firewood, since it had already been paid for, and he was probably even happier that the kids inadvertently helped with the clean-up.
Kurt and I took the family swimming at the Rec Complex. The facilities are great and a good time was had by all. Getting dressed again, however, was an ordeal, or a comedy of errors, depending on how you look at it. I took Estelle out first for a shower while Kurt kept swimming with the others. Washing a soapy baby is not an easy task with one free hand. It's more like trying to hold a slimy fish. Then I tried to get dressed, while perching Estelle on a narrow bench so she wouldn't fall on to the less-than-pristine cement floor. At the same time, I attempted to prevent my pants from dragging on the wet floor. Plus, my babies always get very sleepy after a swim, and want to nurse, so it wasn't long before Estelle was crying. So then I was feeding a baby, and back to being one-handed again. Then, multiply that by 6 more kids, who need showers and can't find their underwear in a 4x6 change room...you get the idea. But at least by then, Kurt was there to help manage the chaos.
We succumbed to the ice cream store that we had to walk by on the way home. An appetizer, really, because when we got home we had supper-at 10:30pm. Maybe, just maybe we might have some sleepy children tonight.
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