Thursday, August 23, 2012

First camping trip

The Babe's first camping trip started off with a bang. Literally. Less than a kilometer past the Vedder Road exit in Chilliwack we blew a tire on the motor home we borrowed for the weekend. Awesome. At least we had food to get us through the two hour wait for BCAA roadside assistance.

When we arrived at our campsite, we rushed to get the Babe down for a nap in the hopes this will start two days of good sleeping. It works, somewhat. She wakes frequently to feed the first night, but goes right back to sleep each time. Can't say the same for me. Staying in a motorhome with my husband, a baby, another couple and a beagle that snores louder than most humans is a bit much to take.

Plus, camping with a baby is hard. Much harder than either myself or my husband anticipated. Because she can't walk or sit at the picnic table unassisted, we were holding her much more than any of us, her included, would prefer to. She's becoming fiercely independent and would rather be crawling and exploring than sitting and playing with Sophie the Giraffe. So being in the pack & play didn't entertain her for long.

Feeding a baby in a motor home is the same as trying to feed a baby in a restaurant which doesn't have high chairs. She sat on my lap as I tried to navigate the spoon towards her mouth while looking at the back of her head. Easy right? Oh, and the motor home is borrowed so I was also trying to get her not to smear food all over the upholstery. Point: Mom. Yes!

I forgot how cold 6:30am is out in the wilderness. I did not pack properly for the Babe and ended up wrapping her in my sweatshirt and a fleece blanket until I could beg a ride to the Walmart a half hour away and buy her the only thick baby sweater they sold, a Joseph & The Technicolour Dreamcoat-esque style one, only in baby girl neon colours. I also bought too big pants, 3 pairs of socks, and two hats. We only had one night left. Safe to say I felt a little bit of Mommy guilt.

We made it through the weekend. Kudos to the couple we were camping with, who do not have kids yet, but didn't say a peep about all the nap times, which meant not entering the motorhome for two hours, or the one hour pack up and hike to the beach with a shit ton of stuff, only to go in the water once, determine it too cold to stay in, and then get out and hike back up to the campsite for, you guessed it, nap time.

Will we do it again? Not this year, as the short summer appears to be drawing to a close. Next year? The jury's still out on that one. But I think the Babe had a good time, so that's all that matters...

~ H

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