Prior to becoming parents, my husband and I both liked to camp, hike, and generally escape to the great outdoors. With twins, however, just escaping out the front door became a great adventure. When a friend of his invited us all to join them camping in mid October, we both shrugged and thought ‘well, why not?’ I know, I had about one hundred reasons why not… but it sounded like fun to get away. I mean, worst case scenario we end up driving home in the middle of the night, right? And that may have made for a funny story, but I am happy to say that didn’t happen!

At three, I think it would have ended in a very long, late night drive… but three and a half, apparently, is just old enough to comprehend that just because something is mildly uncomfortable or out of the ordinary, it can still be fun if you think of it as an adventure. And what kid doesn’t want to have unfettered time with a campfire and a forest full of sticks?

We went up to Ricketts Glen State Park, past Wilkes-Barr. There were bathroom facilities, showers, a nearby store, and even a fireworks vendor just across the road from our campground. There was a time when that would have offended every sensibility I had, but with kids, hey, I say, "Yay sparklers!"

The drive up last weekend with the trees turning was worth it alone – I had forgotten how absolutely gorgeous that is, and it is at this moment in full autumnal glory.

Now, the filled-to-capacity campground was certainly a far cry from hiking into Pacific NW wilderness, but when you have a few preschoolers in tow, suddenly the creature comforts outweigh the population density. Kind of like how having grandparents nearby can outweigh having a cool hipster lifestyle in the big city.

Anyway, I did bring along a potty seat and made a little bathroom near our tent for the three-year-olds. My daughter isn’t too keen on pooping while leaning back as I hold her arms, and she certainly wasn’t going to agree to use the spider filled outhouse. She smiled for what may be our greatest blackmail photo yet a she sat there in the morning sunlight, grinning up from the potty seat holding her Polly Pocket dolls.

The most difficult part of the trip was when the kids woke up at 6am, (after a 4am wake up that we talked them out of), when it was still dark out, and declared that they were done sleeping. We were surrounded by other campers, who I am sure had no intention of getting up before dawn. I read Winnie the Pooh by flashlight until the sun came up to join us.

We came home with that brilliant combination of exhaustion and invigoration. And we will definitely be going camping again next spring… especially if the economy keeps lagging!