Crack of Dawn

"We will leave at the crack of dawn." Sounds like a simple task. Even plausible. But then, you have never tried to go on a camping trip with six, count them, six girls. Each with a suitcase, plus a backpack, with a cosmetic bag, a sleeping bag, some sort of sleeping mat, an activity bag and a pillow. Then come the other essentials. Kitchen stuff, table, sink, food, dishes, wash tubs, tin foil, tooth picks. Then we have to come to the camping essentials, tent, umbrellas, shovels, rakes, tools of every make and size, hammock, etc... and the list goes on. So here we are, everyone is packed and ready for the trip the next morning. We put all of our gear by the front door because Dad is going to play puzzle games getting each piece of equipment to fit just right. He then ties it off in a masterful web which can not be undone, unless you are the Dad-Man. The Plan: Load the car starting at 4:stinking 30 in the morning. Then we can all load into the vehicle by the time the sun cracks its first rays in the dusky sky. As luck would have it, everyone overslept. It is now 6 am and the first hint of light is on the horizon. Then each girl has to get into her makeup bag, because we have to look beautiful to ride in a car for three hours to get out into the natural elements of dirt and dust. It is now 7:30am. "Wait! Don't load the suitcases yet." someone has to repack her suitcase because she forgot a jacket. 8:15 am. Oh and the backpack has to be repacked because "she" got out her Book of Mormon the night before and did not put it back. 8:45 am. Oh and then someone has to get back into her makeup bag to find her toothbrush to make her teeth sparkly after eating breakfast, which we did not have time to do in the first place. 9:45am. So, finally, Dad is allowed to put all of the items into the back of the truck, suburban, SUV or whatever and begin tieing it down. 11:30am. It is time for family prayer and potty business before we load in the car. 12:18 pm. It is officially the "Crack of Dawn". We can leave the driveway and embark on our journey.

This was inevitable every time a big or small trip was being undertaken. So when we would ask Dad, "When are we leaving tomorrow?" He would say, "Crack of Dawn." We would moan and complain because in our hearts we knew it would be Noon-thirty before we would be on our way.