UPBEAT TIMES • July 2014 • 19 A Modern Family Perspective
SANTA ROSA, CA. ~ In a couple of weeks, my fam- ily will be participating in the Great Boat Race of 2014. This involves the children building boats out of bark and twigs and sending them down the creek. The adults stand on the banks using long branches to dislodge the frequently stuck flotillas. In some fami- lies this might be done in an orderly fashion. Not our crew! We act like lunatics, jumping up and down, shrieking with laughter as we try to sabotage each other’s masterpieces. There are usually accusations of misconduct and a healthy debate over who won. These are the grown-ups, the kids act like…well, adults.
The first Great Boat Race was held ten years ago. I had made the fool-hearty decision to take my two kids and grandniece, all of whom were under eleven, on a two week camping trip, nine hours from home, by myself! My husband had to work and I thought it would be good for both my son and daughter to see that Mommies can do outdoor things too.
The tent was lopsided, but it did stay upright. I gave the kids a crash course in safety, reminded them that only boring people get bored and settled in for fourteen days of relaxation. By noon the second day, our ice had melted (someone didn’t secure the lid to the cooler), we were sunburned (oops, I forgot the sunscreen) and covered in mosquito bites, (the bug spray was in the bag with the sun- screen.) We headed to town, replaced our ice, bought the for- gotten items and drove back up the mountain.
I taught the kids how to chop
wood properly and build a fire. Did you know that ALL chil- dren are potential pyromaniacs?
By Cindy Cowan •
seacyd@comcast.net
We played pine cone hockey with willow branches and con- structed boats out of whatever we could find. We spent days working on them: designing, building, fishing them out of the creek, redesigning them etc. Fi- nally, it was race day. I couldn’t tell you who won, but if there were any wild an- imals within
Campfire Tales
a mile, they were scared off by our jolly screams. We fished, played cards, told stories and genuinely en- joyed ourselves, but boredom did eventually arrive. I wasn’t bored because one of the three kids was constantly talking to me. That was when I struck upon a fabulous idea. I had them stand on wood stumps and
whoever could stay still, and not talk the longest, without falling off, would be crowned Stump Champ of all time. That bought me about an hour of peace. I also took them on ‘midnight rambles’. At exactly midnight we would take our flashlights and walk down to the creek. Kids are sooo jumpy in the dark, and after four nights or so, I decided to have some fun. We were creeping along the path when I suddenly stopped and said “Shh. Don’t move!” They froze in their tracks. One of them whispered, “What?” I put my finger to my lips and shook my head. After about twenty seconds I threw my arms in the air and yelled, “Run!” They took off in opposite directions, realized they were running away from me and one anoth- er and crashed back into each other. After I stopped laughing and they decided to speak to me again, all was well, mostly.
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Joanne Denner sporting the Upbeat Times in front of the Hermatage. The Hermitage is a historical plantation and muse- um located in Davidson County, Tennessee, USA, 10 miles east of downtown Nashville. The plantation was owned by Andrew Jackson, the seventh President of the United States, from 1804 until his death at the Hermitage in 1845. Jackson only lived at the property occasionally until he retired from public life in 1837. It is a National Historic Landmark.
UPBEAT TIMES • July 2014 • 19 Your Homeowners
Because I had scared them so bad, whenever someone had to go potty at night, I had to get up, crawl over bodies in the tent and stand guard outside. I clearly hadn’t thought that one through.
On day nine the air mattress popped, leading to the discov- ery that there was a rather large flat rock under the tent. I lasted
... continued on page 22
Weird Facts & Fun Trivia -8 On male shirts the buttons are on the right side, on female shirts the left side. This is because in Victo- rian times, the men were right handed and buttoned their own shirts, but wom- en had a maid to dress them and the buttons were on the correct side for the maids to do up.
Upbeat Times in Davis County, Tennessee!
SINCE 2010
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