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It’s been an experience. One I can’t wait to repeat year after year.
There’s a nice breeze blowing, and I’m sitting outside with the rest of the ladies, Merrick’s mom, and all the kiddos. The guys all decided to try their luck at the lake with fishing. They offered for us to go with them, but we all declined. Blakely wanted to go, but Declan convinced her to stay with the other girls. She pouted, but as soon as they were gone, she came out of it.
I don’t think it’s that he didn’t want his daughter with him. Something was up. All the guys seemed a little jazzed to be fishing. It’s hard to tell what they’re up to, but whatever it is, they didn’t think it was wise to take Blakely with them.
“Blakely, how are you liking school? Are you learning anything new?” Alyssa asks her niece.
Blakely sighs dramatically. “Apparently not, since I have to go back.”
Quickly, I turn my head and cover my mouth to keep from laughing.
“Blakely!” Kennedy scolds. “You love school.”
“I like camping more.”
“We know you do, sweetheart,” Carol coos. “But it’s important to go to school to learn all the things you’ll need when you get older.”
“I already know about the arm porn,” Blakely tells her. “I’m really smart.”
I watch as Merrick’s mom bites her cheek and takes a minute to compose herself. “Yes, you are, but there is still so much to learn.”
“Fine,” Blakely grumbles and we all chuckle.
“How about we go for a walk?” Palmer suggests.
“Yes. It will do us some good to stretch our legs,” Crosby agrees.
“Can we pick some flowers?” Blakely asks.
“Of course you can, but you have to stay with us,” Kennedy tells her daughter.
We spend the next ten minutes strapping babies and toddlers into strollers and wagons and packing water and bottles, and we’re off.
There is no method to our madness. We all help out, pushing strollers, carrying cranky babies who want to be held and not pushed, and reminding Blakely to not get too far ahead of us.
We come to a sign that says Hidden Drive, which is a road that circles back to the campground. It’s the path we’re taking to get back to the cabins.
“I think the sign people need to go back to school,” Blakely announces.
“Why’s that?” Crosby asks.
She points to the sign. “It says Hidden Drive, but it’s not very hidden because they told us. They definitely need to go back to school.”
“Blakely, the driveway is hidden, and when you’re driving a car, you might not see it. That’s what the sign means,” Scarlett explains.
“I still think they need to go back to school,” she grumbles. “This is the longest walk ever,” she whines.
I look down at my watch and see that we’ve been gone for over an hour. It’s getting dark, so that should have been a clue as to how long we’ve been walking. All the kids have fallen asleep except for Blakely, and something tells me if she had a stroller or wagon to ride in, she’d be conked out as well.
When we reach the row of cabins, I notice the back of one of them all lit up with fairy lights. As we get closer, I see that it’s the cabin in the middle. The one I’m staying in with Merrick. My heart starts to race as we get closer.
“What’s going on?” I ask.
“What do you mean?” Jordyn asks. She’s a terrible liar.
“The lights?”
“Oh, those are pretty,” Carol says.
