Car Camping with Babies

Can I confess that I am not much a camper?  I really wish I was, I really wish I was all outdoorsy and pee behind a tree comfortable and tent savvy...but I'm not.  I really LOVE the idea of camping, and I often envision my family wearing plaid flannel and rugged jeans, bouncing along a dusty back road in an old beat up Land Rover, and fishing and cooking those fish over an open fire, and the chilrens eating smores and falling asleep on my lap, then going to sleep in their snug sleeping bags, all warm and quiet.  Mostly I picture them quiet.

The reality is, as I discovered last weekend camping in Big Sur at the Ventana Campgrounds with the whole fam-damily, that I have a love-hate relationship with the great outdoors.  I love the fresh air, and the quiet of being under giant redwoods, the crackle and warmth of the campfire, and the fact that in the evening we have real conversation instead of zoning out in front of the TV.  I love the food prep and dish washing collaboration, and the day trips to hike or beach comb or whale watch (or, in our case this trip, the hour trip where we drank cocktails and ate french fries!).

Then there are the parts I hate.  I hate smelling like smoke for days, and having dirty, brown snot from dust and soot.  I hate the pitch blackness and piercing silence, but I hate the baby waking up and screaming even more and when waking up, finding it so dark that I couldn't tell which way was up or even figure out where the hell she was.  I hate HATE having to pee in the middle of the night and having to hold it until the baby wakes up for the morning and then having to hold her while I go.  But I hate even more that if I have to pee so bad that I have to get up, I hate knowing that I will have to put shoes and clothes on, unzip the tent, and walk on crunchy gravel with a flashlight in the cold and dark and all alone.

That said, my family made some awesome food, grilled ribs, corn, asparagus, tortelloni salad and fresh sausage, and the best breakfast burritos I've ever had.  And the coffee - damn that was some good coffee.  Was it made better by the fact that we were camping?  Or because it is a chilly morning outside?  Or because I barely slept (3 hours that night, maybe)?  I don't know, but that goes down in the Coffee Hall of Fame.  Credit goes to my brother-in-law, Paul, who put coffee ground for a cone filter in the press pot and made a camping version of Turkish coffee.  Heavenly.

And Ivy did well, and at least for the first night she slept longer than she has ever slept.  Not that I was able to sleep during that time, but you gotta love those kinds of firsts!  And my niece and nephews were perfectly happy rolling around in the dirt and making mud pies (my niece did remind us that we can't eat mud) and were not in the least bit bothered by all. that. dirt.  So, good!  Maybe one day I won't be bothered by all. that. dirt.

So will I do it again?  Yes!  Why?  I don't know!  Maybe because I loved the time spent with my family or because I love a challenge.  Regardless, there will be camping in my future, and it has to get easier, right?

Comments

[Dr. Biggles]

Yeah, I dunno man. We did a few trips while the kids were babies. Each one, as we were pulling from the cabin, both of us muttered, "never again" or "not until they're at least 3".

It was so tough not having what we needed to care for the baby. All the homey things we were used to were gone. And yeah, waking up in pitch blakness with no idea where you are or how to deal with anything and you've got a baby coming unglued every milisecond. Yeah, huh.

Biggles

[C]

I'm getting ready to take my 18 mont hold on her first trip,
and I'm really excited. Just me and her- I haven't been out since before I was pregnant.