These are the days

We're on the last leg of our RV tour, staying at Hershey Road Campground. It's recently rebuilt (down to the new grass!) and the pool is beautiful—Ben and Sabrina were splashing around in it within an hour of our arrival yesterday. Max preferred to hang back and watch Dave get the RV set up. 

Our campsite is by a pond, and there's a playground and mini golf within walking distance. The requisite firepit is here, too—we've built a fire every single night on vacation. We are going to have major s'mores withdrawal when we get home, not to mention pool withdrawal. The one here has a splash pad, too, and cute red umbrellas that give it a resort vibe.

Our days camping have been in a time zone all their own: We don't much pay attention to the hour of the day, we don't have to be anywhere in particular, we don't have plans. I've put aside my worries about schooling and the pandemic, and just enjoyed hanging outside, the coziness of our RV or staring out the window as we cruise down the road. 

The usual family dynamics have been at play. Max wants to talk about moving to Los Angeles and Ben gets tired of hearing it. Ben wants to use Sabrina's phone and she won't let him. Or he does get to borrow it and ends up watching TikTok until I realize and I'm all: "Please get off of TikTok!" Sabrina makes it a sport of getting on my nerves, as she freely admits herself because: teen. Everyone's loudness gets on my nerves until I end up screeching "WOULD YOU GUYS QUIT BEING SO LOUD" thereby out-louding them all. Dave is always the peacekeeper.

And yet, the combination of extreme togetherness and extreme mellowness and time to ponder life has made me very aware that time is flying by and these are precious days. Ben is going to be 5 in October. Sabrina is closing in on 16. Max is going to be 18 in a few months. EIGHTEEN!!! RV-ing has a way of making you realize that we have to each other while we can. Amid all the madness and sadness in the world, these people are the ones cocooning me and I them...and shouting at me to get out of the shower so they can use the potty.

RV-ing also comes in handy if you are a sleep stalker, as I am. One of my greatest pleasures in life is watching my children sleep, peacefully and angelically. Ben's been sleeping in the top bunk, which puts him at my eye level and makes it especially easy to savor him as he sleeps.

These are the days.