It’s been about a week since we got home from camping at Clear Lake, and I think I’ve *finally* recovered. HA HA HA HA! I know. You would think that sitting outside, like, making s’mores, playing Go Fish, parking your butt in a chair and reading for two hours straight (DREAMY) would be totally relaxing, but…no, not really. I learned a lot from this trip, including that camping can be kind of exhausting, especially if you have to plan the trip and parent a young person at the same time. I mommed SO HARD, you don’t even know!
Camping as a parent is waaaaay harder
Honestly, I did not realize how tiring parenting while camping was until now. Most of my previous experiences with camping were trips where I just showed up with a sleeping bag and a box of Frosted Flakes, because every summer in high school, my best friend Jen’s extended family would pack up all the gear and the kids and the food and drive out to a lake somewhere in the middle of nowhere, where we’d spend a few days camping. I didn’t appreciate all of the work involved in the planning and the food prep and the packing.
I was crazy exhausted when we got home, but happy because we left with lots of good memories that I hope get tucked away into Connor’s memories like those trips with Jen’s family are tucked away in mine (like the time my friend Cindy and I unknowingly pitched our tent on a slight downhill grade, so we spent the entire night slowly sliding down the hill in our sleeping bags, HA HA HA!).
Thumbs up to Clear Lake
By the way, Clear Lake State Park is lovely. 100% recommended. It’s about two hours north of Marin County, and it’s a beautiful place to camp because there’s a lot of trees and life surrounding the like, so there’s lots of animals and plants and places to hike, fish and swim.
There are three campgrounds within the park, and we stayed at the Kelsey Creek one in site 88, which was perfect for us because it was a little further from the main strip of campsites and consequently quieter. It also had lots of trees for shade. The only downside was that it’s a bit far from the swimming and fishing areas, about a 15-20 minute walk, so if you have little ones, you might want to ride bikes or drive your car out to those places. Yes, you can totally walk there (and there are beautiful, easy trails), but it takes some time.
Now, how clear was Clear Lake? Well, it was a little murky, to be honest! In the swimming area, the lake itself is nice and warm for swimming, which was nice, but there were a ton of plants floating on the surface near the water’s edge, so you won’t be able to look down and see your feet like you can in Lake Tahoe. Connor was a little bothered by the plants at first, but after I told her that they were “mermaid jewelry” and made some lake grass into bracelets, she got into it.
Also, there’s an outdoor shower close to the swimming area, so you can easily rinse off before returning to your camp.
A new book!
When we weren’t swimming, sitting around or snacking (THERE WERE A LOT OF SNACKS), I was reading. I started a book I’ve had on Audible for ages, The Silent Patient, a New York Times Best Seller.
It’s a fictional thriller about a woman who allegedly murders her husband and then refuses to speak. She gets a new therapist who starts playing detective to get to the root of the murder, and chaos ensues. It’s suspenseful and scary, so I wouldn’t call it relaxing, but if you like a story that doesn’t let up, you’ll probably enjoy it. I am so far.
Speaking of reading, don’t laugh, but I just added Mariah Carey’s memoir to my reading list. Her book is coming out in September, and I think I’m going to pre-order it as I love me some Mimi.
I hope she talks about the making of her Butterfly album, which is my favorite MC album because it has a lot of her best songs, most of which are underrated, IMHO — The Roof and Breakdown (with Bone Thugs-n-Harmony) are easily in my top 5.
Mimi’s makeup!
Yet another eternal source of ’90s makeup inspiration
Oh, and ohmigosh! — I recently fell through a Wikipedia black hole (you know how it is) and found out that Bizzy Bone, one of the members of Bone Thugs, does a lot of advocacy for children who are abducted because he was kidnapped as a child. A babysitter saw a picture of him on America’s Most Wanted, and that’s how he got rescued from his abductors.
Did you know this?? I had no idea.
Abrupt transition ahead
Alright. On a lighter and completely unrelated note, I’ve been making this quick lunch salad lately and loving it — pesto shrimp salad with pear gorgonzola vinaigrette.
It’s super easy. Start by defrosting a handful of frozen shrimp in the fridge overnight. Then, next day at lunch, remove the shells and tails, and stir in a few spoonfuls of pre-made pesto.
Next, in a big bowl, add 2 cups spinach, 1-2 cups sliced cucumbers and bell peppers, and dress with two tablespoons of Trader Joe’s Pear Gorgonzola Vinaigrette (it’s in the refrigerated section with the pre-cut, bagged salad).
Add the shrimp to your greens, and you’re done!
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
Guurrlllll! Camping, actual tent camping with a young child? I would have warned you against this if you had consulted me. Tabs never ever would have signed off on that trip.
Camping with a kid is soooo exhausting. You really need a vacay after that sort of vacay.
And when did Connor Claire turn into a young girl instead of a baby/toddler? She looks All Grown Up!
All paws up on the shrimp pesto salad. I make a really fab shrimp pesto pizza.
Get some rest!
No, Tabs would not have allowed me to go, that’s for sure! HA HA HA!
I used to camp as a child in Girl Scouts. I HATED it! My leaders had us cooking full course meals out in the woods and there was so much cleaning! I can make a mean bbq chicken though over a bunsen burner made out of a coffee can though! Ha!! I will say after being cooped up in my house since March this camping trip you had does look wonderful. Yes to Mariah Carey! I do love her! ?
Awww, you lived my childhood dream! I desperately wanted to be a Girl Scout… Mostly because of the uniform. Every year I’d ask my mom if I could join, and every year she’d say, “Next year.” She did this until I grew out of it.
Did you do it for a while? That’s crazy that they had you making chicken with a bunsen burner, LOL!
Aren’t you glad, though, that you didn’t know ahead how challenging it would be? Otherwise, you might not have done it and shared a wonderful experience (challenging and fun with hard parenting all at once) that none of you will forget. 😉
I was just talking with my hubby about how he’s SO OVER camping, as he was the Austrian equivalent of a beyond Eagle Scout (a Ranger??) and they did all the survival/camping thing, carrying everything with them on their huge packs. A friend of ours really wants to camp at Bellows Beach but he’s all, “Nah, I’m good.”
The Silent Patient is on my library list.
Salad looks amazing! I sometimes wish I could still eat food like that.
Oh, I love Bellows Beach. Haven’t been there in years! I do love the pines there!
That’s cool that your hubs learned all that stuff, even if he’s over it now at least you guys would have a fighting chance if you had to live off the land during the zombie apocalypse!
P.S. I had some ramen in a brick last night! It was mystery ramen, from my friend in Japan.
Haha, so true! I remember first visiting him in Austria we drove out to some wine country/woodsy area and he’d be sticking all kinds of leaves and twigs in his mouth to taste.
I think I’d rather nosh on a brick of Japanese noodles LOL. Ooh, pesto shramp in buckwheat noodles would break my mouth!
Bellows is a great mix of beach and woods! I keep meaning to buy huli huli chicken from the bbq tent at the entrance to the road to Bellows Beach. One day!
Oof! Camping is not for me, ba ha ha! Did it once and never again. I just started reading these kid/tween books by Diana Wynne Jones (Chrestomanci series) I love her quirky writing and very imaginative story telling! She’s very underrated. I have The Silent Patient! I was thinking of reading it once I was done this series. I usually stick with fantasy books but I’m venturing into thrillers and picked up a few the last time I was at Chapters.
I think it really depends on who you go with; I think car camping can be really fun, especially when you keep it low key.
Thanks for the recommendation for the series, because I love YA fiction!
I am into camping but you are right, it is a lot of work! I end up packing/bringing way too much! And camping with a kid sounds like a nightmare, no offense Connor Claire! But I’m sure she loved it and will have lots of memories like you said! What was the bathroom situation at Clear Lake? My main requirement when I am camping is that there are flushing toilets! How about the mosquitoes? The bugs are fierce up here in North Dakota/Minnesota. We went to the lake a couple weeks ago and I was alternating layers of bug spray and SPF 30. That salad looks amazing! I just made a pasta dish with basil, tomatoes, and tuna so I will be eating the leftovers this week!
LOL, it’s definitely NOT as easy, but it does have its very fun moments.
The bathroom situation at Clear lake is typical of what you’d find here for car camping — running water with toilets, sinks and showers. If you want to use the showers, you have to bring quarters.
I didn’t get bit by any mosquitoes (and trust me, they’ll find me within a 10-mile range), however, about 10 minutes after the sun sets, a thick swarm of gnats descends upon the campgrounds, and it is INTENSE. We were completely zipped up and in the tent by that time, because it was just too hard to be outside.
How is the lake water out where you live? Is it warm and clear?
Minnesota (I live right on the border of North Dakota and Minnesota) is known as the land of 10,000 lakes! So a lot of people “go to the lake” on the weekends and have second homes at the lake. The lake I go to is called Strawberry Lake and yes it is very clean! They have a lot of regulations to protect the lakes and keep pollution to a minimum. And this year it has been warm so the lakes have warmed up quite nicely!
I got The Silent Patient from the library in March and still haven’t read it. (Our favorite librarian tipped us off a couple of days before the library shut down, so we were able to max out our cards with check-outs.???)
Excuse me, but who is that big girl you have there? It can’t be Connor Claire. She is just a baby. I say that in denial, because our two youngest are starting Kindergarten and Pre-K next month and I just cannot.
It’s a good read, but pretty scary. I have to listen to it when I’m *not* in bed, otherwise I get too freaked out and can’t fall asleep.
And le sigh… I drove by the library today and thought about how I miss it terrible. What book are you reading right now, by the way?
I am NOT a camper and no longer ashamed to admit that. After “Always be my Baby”, “The Roof” is my next favorite Mimi jam. That’s crazy, fun fact trivia about BIzzy Bone. Thanks, Wikipedia!
Isn’t it CRAZY? Apparently he’s also still making music!
P.S. I’ve been enjoying all your ’90s flashback pics on Instagram.
OMG, that face! <3 I know she's still a baby, but Connor is getting so grown up! I'm glad you enjoyed camping, even though it's tiring. Totally with you on the cot. We have a place here called Lake Clear so I kept misreading! I hope all is well with you and the fam; I know there have been some surges in CA so stay safe and fingers crossed things will return to normal eventually!
I know. Her face seems to be changing the fastest. It’s crazy.
Funny thing about the cot. It was one of my non negotiables on the trip, because the last time I slept on the ground (my in-laws house when we visited them last year), it just about killed my back. I just can’t do it anymore unless there is a buffer in between me and the floor!
Unfortunately we’re living in one of the hot spots and there’s been a major surge over the last couple weeks. Places that were open have been locked down again. We’re staying safe and only leaving for essential trips.
How are things on your end of the keyboard?
I don’t blame you a bit with the cot. I think after 40, sleeping on the floor is not an option. 🙂 I even have issues with pull-out couches and some hotel beds. Goldilocks! HAHA!
I’m so sorry to hear that. The set backs are tough. I think everyone was so hopeful that the worst was behind us. It’s even harder with the beautiful weather. I’m glad that you’re taking precautions and hope it’ll be better soon!
We’ve been fortunate, being in such a rural area. We have basically no cases. But we are still in masks all day, every day. Even in my office with the door closed. I just remind myself that others are suffering more than an inconvenience. 🙁 That said, we’re totally open (with masks and distancing in effect) and hope we can continue to move forward safely! I think almost all of NY outside of the city is out of lock down, so that’s positive.
We just moved to the next stop of our camping roadtrip with a 4 and a 6 year old and while it was lovely, it surely isn’t as relaxing as it used to be without the kids.
Still fun memories though.
I totally get it. We were surrounded by a couple of young couples without kids and I kept thinking, “That looks like a relaxing trip,” LOL! Still fun though. I know it’ll get easier when she’s older. (Hopefully she’ll still want to go.)
Karen, how many creepy crawlers did you encounter? They deter me from camping. The spiders. If I go camping, those spiders will find me. I know it. (insert icky shiver here)