Memorial Weekend Camping - A Dangerous Activity

Over Memorial Day Weekend a group of us went camping at La Wis Wis. This was the third year of camping at La Wis Wis over the weekend and we knew we were in store for rest, relaxation, and just a darn good time around the campfire. Going up on Thursday were my parents, Andrew, Jessica, Karen, Nate, and myself. We quickly got all the trucks and SUVs unloaded and the camping equipment set up as we knew that the rain was soon to be upon us. Luckily the rain stopped right as we drove into the campsite and stayed away until the last tent was set up. That night we heated up Taco Salad, passed around the drinks, and settled in for some good chit-chatting.

The next morning, after gloriously being allowed to sleep in, we began the days activites of sitting and doing nothing. :-) Well, almost. We started out the day hundled under all the tarps and canopies staying dry while reading books but after a few hours the guys decided that we needed more firewood and that the fallen trees around us would be a great opportunity to get free wood. So out came the axes and manliness. Everything was going smoothly. Girls were reading, boys were doing firewood. Then suddenly a large snap sounded at the exact moment that Nate was trying to chop a limp into smaller pieces. I looked up and saw Nate with his hand to his cheek and taking a few steps rather dazily. Then he took his hand away from his face and blood started to freely fall. I quickly got up (or as quickly as I could since I had Lily, my Mom's Shih Tzu tucked in my jacket) and went towards Nate. Mom got him quickly sitting in a chair while Jessica ran to grab the first aid kit. I tossed Lily to my Dad, or at least I think I did. One moment Lily was in my jacket the next she wasn't. Then I grabbed cleaning wipes and began to clean the blood, dirt, and outdoor yuck off of his face. The wound was probably a good inch gash across his cheek that went several centimeteres into his skin. There were also scrapes above and below the gash where the tree limb had hit, and bruises forming from chin to eye. It took quite a few cleansing wipes just to get all the dirt off his face and out of the wound. Finally, he was cleaned up enough to put a bandage on. Or the first of many bandages. The first bandage was a large piece of gauze with gauze tape across his face. (As shown below.)

After this gauze picture Nate then had a large band-aid, a medium size band-aid, and finally a small band-aid. Each time we checked the wound, cleaned it up a bit, applied Neosporin, and then checked to see if any of his facial numbness had worn off. The rest of the weekend was a lot more relaxful as we made Nate sit that whole first day. :-) Then it was hiking, sleeping in, the Packwood Flea market, and a trip to Miner's on the way home.

Now that we're home Nate still has a gash on his cheek but it's healing nicely. The numbness in his face is still there, but it is getting a little bit better every day. I figure he took such a hit that it may take a while for his facial nerves to fully come back online. Well, he had a cute smile before and he'll have a cute smile afterwards even if it is a little lopsided. :-)