Camping, shmamping - no big deal

That's right folks. Aaron and I took AJ & Mikko on their first camping trip. Everyone thought we were crazy- putting two pack-n-plays in our tent, but it was no big deal. Three and a half days of tents, bugs, dirt, and camp fire smoke. I have to say it was such A BLAST!! I had extremely LOW expectations for this trip. We went to Turlock Lake, only about an hour away, just in case it turned out disastrous. But there was no need to take off early, in fact, it went by SO FAST! We could hardly believe it was time to go. I could go on and on with all the details, so I am going to give you the 10 best things about it and the 10 worst things about it.

The Worst
10. The first day we were there, it was 105 degrees outside. What were we thinking?

9. Community showers. I guess its nice they even had them, but come on... they are gross and no one really LIKES having to use them.

8. AJ split his lip open 3 times, falling in the rocks. He also skinned up his knees and hands pretty good.

7. Heating bottles for Mikko. So annoying. We had to fire up the stove every time he needed to eat.

6. Dropping pacifiers in the dirt. This was CONSTANT! I felt like I was washing pacifiers all day.

5. No soap or towels to wash hands in bathroom. Yuck!

4. Mikko constantly wanted to be held. We couldn't let him cry because it echoed through the whole campsite. So now that we are home... he thinks he needs to be held 24/7. HELP!!

3. This is gross. Really. We were giving AJ a nap in the tent and because it was so hot, we just put him down in his diaper. Well, we heard him playing/crying for a while so we went to check on him and found him naked as a jay bird. He had torn his diaper off and thrown it out of his pack-n-play. To make it worse, he pooped in his diaper. There was crap everywhere. Luckily it wasn't "messy" crap, they were more like little pebbles. But it was still disgusting. Heat and crap, just don't mix. Especially in a tent.

2. Mikko had a 100% true blue melt down the second night. His voice literally echoed through the entire camp... when people were trying to sleep. Aaron had to put him in the car and drive around with him until he fell asleep. A first for us. Luckily it didn't happen again.

1. BUGS!!! I have about 12 bites on one foot alone. Aaron too. Luckily the boys didn't have any... how did that happen? I'm glad it was me and not them, but still... they itch!!!!

The Best

10. The last 2 days of camping were 70-80 degree weather. It was PERFECT and BEAUTIFUL.

9. The campsite was nice and shaded. There were trees everywhere. It made for really nice scenery.

8. A stream right by our campsite. This was actually really nice. The water was cool and refreshing. It was very shallow, in fact Aaron and the cousins walked all the way across it. AJ walked out to the middle of it and loved splashing around in it. He also kept trying to bend down and drink the water. It was really fun. A lot of other campers would take their chairs out to the middle of it and get some sun, while feeling the cold water on their feet. It was a nice treat to have close by. We enjoyed it.

7. No dress code. As you will see in these pictures, I gave no thought at all to how me or my children matched or looked. I kept my hair in braids or a pony tail the whole time (no blow dryer or curling iron) and no makeup. However, we did make sure everyone got a good shower/bath before bed. But it was refreshing not to worry about "looking good". And I let my boys get as dirty as they wanted!

6. Our tent. My parents let us use their two room tent. It was really nice, we had plenty of room. We had our queen blow up mattress and a pack-n-play in one room and AJ's pack-n-play with the walker and bouncy chair in the other room. We kind of used that one as a play room too. It worked out really well. Thanks mom and dad!

5. Wide open space. AJ was in heaven! He ran ran ran ran ran. He could have walked around all day long. There were practically no limits on WHERE he could go. He was always ready to be on the move.

4. The food, the food, the food. Yummy breakfasts and dinners and lots of treats!!! AJ tried bacon for the first time (he loved it of course) and drank capri suns all day (I know, that's so bad). We had extravagant breakfasts with eggs, hash browns, bacon, sausage, toast, pancakes, french toast and fruit. For dinners we had tacos, roast with potatoes and carrots, spaghetti with corn on the cob, garlic bread and vegetables, and snacks and treats galore. I gained a pound over the 4 day trip. Aaron, of course gained nothing. Thanks mostly to Dad. You are the best camping cook! Grandma Donna also. Mom... you helped too, thanks!

3. The Lake. Saturday we went to the beach. AJ loved to play in the sand. The water was nice and cool. Mikko did well in the shade. He didn't like the cold water.

2. Spending time with Grandmas, Grandpa, and cousins. This was so much fun. Its nice to spend time with family without having to eat out, have the TV on, go to a theme park, or some other extravagant thing. I felt cool, calm, and relaxed. AJ almost ALWAYS had a grandma with him. And he loved following around his older cousins. Thanks everyone for all your help with the boys!

1. Exploring new things with the boys. There were so many firsts on this trip. It truly is something wonderful when a parent gets to see their child experience something fun for the first time. I am grateful that Aaron had the time off to spend with just us and that as a family we could grow and experience new things together.

These 10 best things 100% outweigh the 10 worst things. I can't say enough about it. So all in all it was a success! Totally doable- no big deal.

AJ pushing Mikko