Our friends Sarah and Sandy are big campers and took their baby Ezra camping at Devil’s Lake, WI when he was not yet two months. Remarkably, they enjoyed themselves.
When Sandy mentioned to Daniel that they were going on a second camping trip before the end of the summer, Daniel expressed interest in tagging along. He gently introduced the idea to me a couple of weeks ago and I agreed that I’d love to go camping with Sarah and Sandy: bed and breakfast camping. After 3 or 4 days of negotiations/bullying, we developed the following schema:
Prior to leaving home: If Ellie was completely out of sorts, we could cancel the trip right up until departure time.
<12 Hours: In the presence of extreme heat or biting bugs, we come home after spending the day with S & S.
12-24 Hours: If spending the first night in a tent is a complete disaster, we can go home a night early.
24+ Hours: Wow.
The trip there was lovely (Ellie slept in the car the whole way) and we had a wonderful day with S & S: reading on the beach, swimming in the lake, sharing a delicious dinner, playing with the babies, toasting marshmallows and catching up. The weather was cool and sunny and the bugs weren’t even bad. We had a palatial 6-person tent loaned to us from S & S’s cousin and thermarests and a darling little Moses basket for Ellie to sleep in. But sleep she didn’t. Poop and cry she did. I went through 2 outfits, 1 blanket and the only pair of pants I brought. And then it rained the next morning. And, again, I had no pants.
Instead of fighting damp firewood, we all went in to town for a delicious diner breakfast (I have now worn pajama pants in public in Wisconsin). I pulled the plug on the idea of a second night and we headed home taking country roads.
I’m glad we went. It’s a good story and there isn’t anything better than spending time with good friends with crap on your pants.
You guys did great. Next year: two days, and no poop on the pants. And we’ll bring the scotch.
Until then, all beds, all the time.
Camping is one of our favourite activities…though we have 5th wheel trailer to do it now. When we first got married – ask Tara to tell you about the ‘Dining Tent’ fiasco. If your marriage can withstand camping – it will last forever (I am sure sombody important said that…probably in Latin!)