"Well it was fun when we weren't awake"

This was Trustin's assessment of the first camp out we did with Zeke last weekend.  I replied "You mean when we weren't conscious enough to know we were miserable?" "Yep."

We've wanted to take Zeke camping for a while now but somehow have never gotten around to it.  We have soccer games every Friday night so it has never really been a convenient option.  But last Friday we had no game and we knew that our days of "warm enough" weather were numbered.  So we went for it, but decided to keep it simple: a tent in the backyard so Ashlynn could stay in the house. 

Our first mistake:  we thought if we didn't start the camp out until Zeke was exhausted he would fall asleep quicker.  So we didn't even start setting up our tent until 10:00.

 Memo to me: Exhausted Zeke equals quicker meltdown. 

We were expecting oodles of excitement that not only did Zeke get to sleep in the same room as Mom and Dad (a goal he has definitely been inching towards lately) but he would get to sleep in a tent!  He was thrilled as he set the tent up with Trustin.  But by the time we were all situated in our sleeping bags it was one meltdown after another winding up with Zeke in the double sleeping bag between Trustin and I, trying to kick off the covers, begging for far more water than in safe to intake just before bed even with a diaper, pleading for a toy that was in the house bur refusing the tell us which toy, and when he wasn't crying and whining he was simply wiggling, talking, and doing anything but sleeping.  After more than an hour of this he finally fell asleep.  Hallelujah! So we finally did too.  Then the night was filled with Zeke partially waking, half asleep moping, and not staying in the sleeping bag (and remember that "warm enough" weather?  It wasn't actually warm, it was COLD).  Finally around 6 a.m. Zeke had had enough and woke up--ish. He wasn't awake enough to know what he wanted (he didn't want to stay in the tent, he didn't want to leave the tent...happiness could not be achieved under such conditions) so he just rolled around on us semi crying with us trying to decipher the means to bringing him (and us) sleep or at least contentment.  And then we realized the excess liquid of the night before had made its appearance.  Thus ended our camp out. Good thing our washer is big enough for sleeping bags.

Funny thing is, now that is over, Zeke thinks we had a great time.  He says with a giant grin "Zeke did camp-out with Mommy and Daddy!" And what might be even funnier, Trustin and I kind of think we did too.