A month of camping...in a tent

Well, nearly a month. I had planned on doing weekly posts, maybe more if things were interesting enough. So far, I don't think they have been.
The weather has been hot and dry for Southern Michigan. We are actually in a drought right now, with burn bans in the northern/central Indiana counties south of us.  Some cities have even postponed fireworks unless we get an inch of rain by Saturday. Tomorrow. Not gonna happen.
It's rained exactly twice since we've been camping. The first time, it was just a slow drizzle. The ground got wet and the dust around our fire ring became dirt. Yay!!! The same thing happened today, too. There were sever storms south of us, and we got some good rain, but nothing major. No high winds, no leaking tent, nothing. I'm glad of that, but we really need rain!! I never thought I would say that, camping in a tent, but we do.
Our days have become routine. It doesn't get dark until around 10 pm, so the kids dont even get to bed until then. We let them enjoy the nightly fire for about a half hour before putting them to sleep. I was really worried about air mattresses and such, but they sleep on the ground, heavily padded with sleeping bags and blankets. No complaints from them, yet.
Our days are spent by the lake or doing errands. It takes a long time to get anything done, it seems. A large shopping area is south of us as well, and we've been there at least once a week. That trip takes at least 3-4 hours, which really chews into the day.
We've met some long timers, too. Here I thought we were going to be the mayors of our little slice of camping heaven. Wrong! There are people who live here year round, who have been here for years. They live in their RV's like a mobile home. It seems nice and something I would like to pursue in the near future, believe it or not.
A few things this camping experience is teaching me is that I have zero patience. I did not think I was that bad, but I am a very impatient person. I also discovered that 70 degree weather is quite pleasant, and 60 is quite cold at night! The lower 50's is downright frigid! Raccoons sound like thunder coming out of the trees, but once out, you can barely hear them, until you hear a snuffling noise right by your foot and there is a family of raccoons right there, next to you! Our tent is gets amazingly like an oven between 9:30 and 10 am. There is no sleeping in on sunny days, unless you want to broil. But you can take a decent nap, albeit a stuffy one, after 1 pm.  I have slept decadently well on the air mattress. I don't know if it's a mix of the outside air and the comfort, but I don't get my normal backaches anymore, and I find myself sleeping sounder at night.  People who camp are very friendly, and most people when they find out that we are tent camping with 5 kids are amazed. I am too!