I gently woke up from my nap, as the motorhome rumbled to a halt. Oh! Are we at the campground already? I stretched and yawned, hopped once, and stretched so I was able to peek out and above my hay tunnel’s entrance. Nope, not at the campground. I should have noticed the smell right off. Many cars of different shapes and sizes, another motorhome, and some big trucks were all snaking their way into lines. We were stopped at a gas station. I withdrew into the hay tunnel and shuffled back to my cozy spot in my hidey-hole. My humans did their usual gas station rituals, then Mama came into the house part to check on me. She wanted to make sure I was ok, and lured me out with a carrot. I enjoyed all the compliments of how well I was doing while savoring my carrot. Soon we were back on the road. Jingle, jingle, jingle. Oreo was all over his bunk and complaining again. Mama told him he was fine and that we were half way there, then turned her music back on.
Finally, we arrived! I could tell because 1) we had been driving forever, 2) my humans were excited, and 3) there were beautiful trees outside my window. I could hear Oreo pacing below me when we started our slow drive to the campsite. Big Rabbit got out and he and Mama backed the camper into the site, using their walkie-talkies. Wow, that went a lot quicker than with the truck and trailer! As soon as Mama announced we were parked, I emerged from my hay tunnel to check it out. Real camping! That’s what we call it when there are trees and nature around our site, instead of being in a sea of other campers parked close together. Oh, man, my window is awesome! My ears perked up as I saw Little Girl bound past – my window’s on the best side! Yes! In Grey Wolf, I was on the hookup side. Here, I can hop right up to my window, and it’s on the door side, so I’ll see a lot more of my family now! Yes!
I saw Big Rabbit take his laptop bag and watched as he disappeared behind the camper, where there was shade, then I watched Little Girl skipping around, happy as could be. Mama kept walking back and forth, checking things, putting the tire covers on, and getting distracted, taking pictures of adorable Little Girl. They were both smiling. A few minutes later Mama came in and fed me snack. Food is always good, but it’s even better with a great view! I’ve never gotten to watch Little Girl so much!
Big Rabbit started work really early that morning, so he was able to stop working earlier than normal. The humans checked on Oreo and I and left to explore. I settled in for a nap. There was a soft thud and I figured Oreo was doing the same. It was almost dinner time when they came back. I could hear them before they got to the door – Little Girl’s happy chattering floated up to me. What a great way to wake up. Jingle, jingle, jingle. Oreo must have heard them too. Little Girl bounded in after removing her sneakers, and came over to our bunks. She was wearing a cool pink vest and announced she was going to be a Junior Ranger. I had no idea what that meant, but she looked adorable and was happy, so I was happy.
Mama fed me and cleaned my box, Big Rabbit fed and watered Oreo, then the humans headed outside to make a campfire. In Hideout (our first camper), I never could see anything. The shower does not give any good views. Shudder. In Grey Wolf, I had a window, but my condo was a couple of feet away, and it was on the hookups side, so the most I ever experienced from their campfires was smelling it (not a relaxing smell for a bunny) and seeing the smoke as it wafted over the treetops. With my motorhome bunk, though, I could see everything!
Little Girl put in the few branches that were already laying on the site, Big Rabbit squirted something from a bottle on the wood, then approached it with a small flame from a lighter stick, and boom! We had a campfire. It was rather spectacular, actually. Jingle, jingle, jingle. Since he was rescued from a campground, I figured the chances were good that Oreo had seen a campfire before, but maybe he didn’t remember, or maybe it was scary to him. Jingle, jingle, jingle. Our humans sat down around the fire, happily talking to one another, with laughter interspersed between their conversation and chewing. They had opted for a simple, easy dinner of sandwiches and snacks for our first night. I listened for Oreo, but he was quiet. He must have settled down and realized everything was fine.
By the time the humans came in for the night, I was already asleep. My tummy rumbled – it hadn’t received it’s nightly feed portion yet. I got up and stretched, and Mama was ready to bring me down for our evening time. I was too tired to really run, but I hopped the length of the camper a couple of times and let Mama pet me. Oreo watched me with big eyes. It was late. Mama gave me a last snuggle, then tucked me in for the night. I ate my feed and smiled as Mama put my curtain up, telling Big Rabbit how good I am for not tearing it down like the kitten does to his (the curtains are held up by velcro in the corners). I stretched out in the open area of my condo, thinking about what a good day it had been. I hoped we were going to have another campfire the next night. Listening to the jingle, jingle, jingle of Oreo enjoying his evening time, I drifted off into a deep sleep.
