My daughter and I are gearing up for a 3 day camping trip with my sister.  We began doing this about 10 years ago when Janae was around 2 years old.  My sister had just gotten a seasonal campsite in Tony, Wisconsin, and was excited to share the great outdoors experience with us since she knew how much we enjoyed camping.  And with that one great idea was landed an (almost) annual tradition of campfires, boating, fishing and swimming in the lake for 3 blissful days in the summer.

I am amazed at how much my daughter and I look forward to this mini getaway.  And it’s oh so much fun to be able to get along without the boys.  No disrespect intended but it’s quite empowering to survive in the wilderness on your own without any men to save you.  For some reason I always come back feeling stronger and braver than before I left knowing that I can conquer another year of married life with children because as we all know some years are good and some years are pure hell.  AMEN.