We took our first camping trip as parents this week. The original plan was to spend 3 nights, but we couldn't hack it- needed sleep. I don't know if you have ever been camping with a preschooler, but everyone should. Although I have always loved to camp with my husband, I have never been with small children (since I was one..long ago). But, we decided that our boy needed to know how to "rough it". So, we headed up to Unicoi for Jonathan's first trip. We needed to be near home in case it was a disaster plus, my grandparents were staying at the cabin, so we could kill 2 birds with one stone!
After setting up and playing in the tent awhile, we decided to go for a short hike. We were planning on eating dinner at the Unicoi Lodge with my family later. Our "short hike" turned into a 2 hour journey. We got our exercise because my usually very active toddler decided that he wanted to be held almost the entire trip. We got to see geese, bugs, fish, and one really cool floating bridge that moved when you walked on it. When we finally got back to the camp site, we were in such a hurry to get ready for dinner that we didn't notice the sudden darkening clouds or the cooler breeze. Needless to say, when we returned from dinner the inside of our tent had major puddles!
Although Jeff and I had spent big bucks on our sleeping bags, Jonathan's was just an old sleeping bag that we usually took to the laser show. Because it was cotton, it soaked up all the water on his side. Jeff spent the next few hours standing in front of a blazing fire trying to dry it out enough to put Jonathan on. Jeff's side of the tent was also a pool- I was in the middle, so my stuff was fine. We used a cloth diaper (we are never without several) to sop up as much as possible.
While Jeff was roasting our sleeping bags, I decided to attempt a shower. Jonathan's shower shoes were too big, the stall was tiny, and the water spray was so hard it sprayed under the curtain. He was terrified of it, so I had to hold him the entire time. I did get him calmed enough to put him in the changing area (about the size of half a stall) naked while I quickly showered. Thankfully, we were the only ones in the whole bathroom. While I was brushing our teeth, I remembered that I didn't bring a hair dryer. We had to dry under the hand dryer (which was motion activated)!
The rest of the trip was fairly uneventful. Unless you count the loud cries for Daddy when Jonathan woke up in the very dark and cold tent (not that Daddy actually got up with Jonathan- we ALL know who did that). I was very glad to get back to my cozy home on Friday afternoon. Isn't modern technology awesome!!! I'm thankful for the chance to rough it for a few days though- makes you appreciate what you have.
