twosmallcones

A few weeks ago, Arco and I (and Chossy) took to the road. We headed north for a mountain getaway; our very own adventure. E had some weekend work in Halfway, so rather than stay home, we packed our bags for a night away.

Seeing as this was my first solo camping trip with a toddler and Chossy, we didn’t stray too far from home, just in case we had to bail. We drove an hour north, locating a campsite at Glacier View Campground, which is a camping loop minutes from Redfish Lake.

Our campsite for the night. Glacier View Campground, Redfish Lake.

While packing, I made sure to have everything handy and at the ready. Since Arco is running around now, brewing coffee, cutting up vegetables for dinner or boiling water for pasta can’t wait. Our Little Man is on the move!

Arco found a puddle. He got his only pair of shoes soaked within minutes after arriving. So, we went shoeless and he loved it.

I packed the essentials and had dinner already made. A smaller cooler, dinner and forks wrapped together, and snacks in every nook of Myrtle made things easy. We slept in the truck, which helped immensely, too. No flat spot to search for or tent and bedding to make up. Insta-ready was our adventure mobile.

Upon arrival, Arco spotted the river. That river made up the rest of our night. We hiked to the river, walked the loop around said river, threw rocks into the river, sang songs about the river and kissed the sweet river goodnight. Arco adores the river, so it was no surprise that we spent most of our time, “…down by the river doot doooo, down by the river…”.

Headed to the river…

Morning arrived. It was damp and chilly. A thick fog covered our camp and the campground was eerily quiet. Rather than lounge in the dark, barely able to see each other, we packed up what little belongings we had and headed north just a few miles to the Stanley Baking Company. I told Arco the night before that we’d visit the ‘bakery’ and order him a pancake. He was tickled and woke up saying, “pancake, Mama, pancake”.

Such a cozy spot. The Stanley Baking Company.

At 7:06am (the bakery opens at 7:00am), we opened the doors to that sweet, sweet bakery. We ordered. A coffee and cookie for me, one pancake for Arco. We picked out a booth seat for just the two of us and we waited patiently for that cake. Within minutes, a large, oval-sized plate was sitting before us, and on it, a pancake that filled it (Mama fail. No photo)!

Arco was so proud; that sweet smile of his said it all! We’ve never ordered pancakes for him before, but, like he’s had several, he knew exactly what to do. He grabbed his fork and quickly stabbed at the butter-laden, oval-shaped cake, tearing off pieces to shovel in his mouth. He looked up at me with those big blue eyes, cake spilling out of his mouth and he said, “pancake, happy. pancake, happy”!

Be still my heart. That smile says it all.