Before I found out I was pregnant, we had talked about how we wanted to take Charlie camping a few times this summer. Last summer when we took him to Goblin Valley, it was a little bit of a nightmare at night trying to get him to sleep in a sleeping bag... but we figured he'd do a lot better now that he's older and wanted to give it another shot.
Well, there's no way I was about to sleep in a sleeping bag at 27 weeks pregnant (my bed is hardly even comfortable at this point) so Landon decided he would invite his dad and have a boys camping trip. Leading up to the trip we told Charlie about it and he was sooooo excited! Then he got sick a few days before the trip (seriously the worst stomach bug ever! He threw up 18 times!) I was so heartbroken for him because he was really looking forward to it... but it didn't seem like he'd be feeling better in time. Luckily, the day before he finally started to feel better and he was able to go!!
It was really hard for me to say bye to my boys, but I knew they would have so much fun! Charlie was seriously BEAMING as we buckled him up and I said goodbye.
They went camping at Albion Basin up Little Cottonwood Canyon. Charlie looooved setting up the tent.
Then they went on a little bike ride and a hike up to Cecret Lake. I can't believe Charlie hiked all the way up on his own, but Landon said he did great!
Then they went back to camp and roasted hot dogs and of course had s'mores. Landon told me that Charlie was so scared of the fire at first and wouldn't go near it, so he ate at the picnic table and was FREEZING. They finally convinced him to come closer to the fire and he of course loved it. :)
Unfortunately, it started raining at 3 am, so by the time they woke up in the morning they decided to come right home. But, even with the rain I think all three boys had a really fun time camping! I know that Landon and Daren will treasure these memories forever!
Camping with a two year old is not for the faint of heart. We seriously almost called it quits a few times, but I'm so glad we stuck it out because all of the stress and hard work was worth it for the memories we made as a family!
if you would prefer to skip all the "words" here's a cute little video I made :)
When we pulled up to the campsite, it was sooooo windy! We were all able to set up our tents, but ours would just collapse every few minutes in the wind and Suzette and Jason's tent actually got a little ripped. The whole time we were trying to deal with the tents and stuff blowing away, Charlie was SO scared and basically a nervous wreck from the wind and watching all of us struggle. The whole situation was just very, very stressful!
So we all decided to take our tents down and do some hiking before we decided if we were going to be able to stay or not. Goblin Valley is seriously one of my favorite places! It is such a fun place as a kid because there's so much to climb on and explore... Charlie was in HEAVEN!
After doing a little bit of hiking, Suzette and Jason decided to go home because of the rip in their tent and not knowing if the wind was going to die down or not. Dang it! :(
We went back to the campsite and of course Landon came up with a genius idea to move the picnic table and put our tent there instead, because it was pretty sheltered. I'm sure it wasn't allowed, but seriously we didn't have another choice! Charlie thought the tent was awesome (until later that night... ha!)
Our campsite was seriously UNREAL. It was awesome to be surrounded by all of the rock formations and Charlie loved climbing around (the kid has no fear--which is not necessarily a good thing!!) and playing in the sand with his toys.
Isn't this the coolest camping spot ever?!
I had been so nervous for the campfire with Charlie because he can be pretty clumsy, but Landon's Aunt Bab told us they use a dog pen and it worked perfectly! Charlie thought the fire was pretty cool and he would blow on it like he was blowing out a candle. Is it just me or do hot dogs taste WAY better cooked in a fire? :)
Once it got a little darker, we busted out the glow sticks (thanks for the idea Mary!!) and Charlie thought they were the coolest thing. We then went back to the Valley of the Goblins where the park ranger had a telescope set up. Landon and I stayed there long after everyone left and just laid on the ground looking at the sky (while Charlie stayed in the car watching Nemo) and the stars were just UNREAL. It's definitely one of my favorite parts about camping.
This is where things get stressful again... Charlie is not a snuggler and he has only ever slept in a crib. But, our tent is way too tiny for a pack and play, so getting Charlie to lay down and go to sleep in his sleeping bag was ROUGH. It was just soooo stressful knowing that probably everyone in the campground could hear Charlie screaming for a good 30 minutes. Plus, I just felt SO bad for Charlie. He was just exhausted and confused and probably traumatized. I really just wanted to pack up and go home!!! It was a miracle when he finally settled down (he still woke up about 8 times crying...) but we made it through the night and he actually ended up sleeping in until 8:30!
We spent the morning eating breakfast, doing some more exploring around the campsite, and packing up. Landon caught a butterfly and Charlie thought that was the coolest thing! He also thought the big black crows were eagles and he would say, "eagle! tweet tweet!" He's funny.
After we were all packed up we decided to go hike around the Valley of the Goblins one more time before heading home. We had the best time! Charlie got a little more adventurous and started climbing on the "gomlins" and jumping off. It seriously is kid heaven there!
It was such an exhausting and stressful weekend, with some very rocky parts... but overall I know we will look back on it with so much fondness and happy memories! I love living in Utah and can't wait to take Charlie camping again...
Over the weekend we went on a camping trip with my parents (Nana and Pops). They have a trailer and go camping frequently, so it's really fun to get to tag along! We sure love spending one on one time with them and it was the perfect little mini-vacation.
"Charlie" picked this flower for me. Melt my heart!!!
Leading up to the trip, Charlie had a fever (it spiked up to 103.4 one night!!!!) and a pretty bad cough. I called the doctor twice on Friday and was reassured that if he seemed to be doing better and his fever was lower (it was still 100.5 that morning!!!) that I was fine to go camping, but just to bring him in on Monday if he still had the fever. I seriously went back and forth ALL day on whether or not we should go, but by the afternoon his fever was gone and he hadn't even had any medicine so we decided to go. I'm SO glad, because he really was feeling so much better (other than a lingering cough that just won't go away...)
Poor little sicky!!!
Best little road-tripper! And finally fever free!!!
We got to the campsite on Friday evening and Charlie immediately wanted to get down in the sand and play. I LOVE seeing my baby acting like a little boy playing with the sand and trying to eat rocks (ahhhh! scared the crap out of me haha).
Apparently he thought his little set up in the trailer was hilarious. He slept surprisingly well!
On Saturday we attempted to have a "beach day" at Sand Hollow, but the wind had other plans. It was blowing a good 15-20 mph and gusts up to 35 mph. And they don't call it "Sand" Hollow for nothing... the sand is sooo fine, more like dust, so it was blowing EVERYWHERE. Not fun! It was blowing in our eyes and stinging our skin. Ouch! Not to mention, our little Corolla got completely stuck in the sand so Landon and my dad had to go to Walmart and buy a tow rope to tow the car out with my dad's truck...
But despite all the sand... we still tried to have fun at the beach. Charlie took a little nap in Nana's chair and just looked SO cute. He also LOOOVED playing with the water and sand and would just giggle as I held his hands and walked through the water. It was adorable.
Landon tried to kiteboard, but the wind was just way too crazy. He got dragged around a bit, which was pretty entertaining to watch. Ha! I wish he could've gotten up, because he's never done it on the water, but oh well!
After our failed beach day, we went to Black Bear Diner with my cousins, Jon and Michelle and their kids. It was so good to see them! Then my parents and Jon and Michelle went to a show at Tuachan so we took Charlie to Thunder Junction.
Again, he would just GIGGLE as he walked around the park because he was having so much fun. He kills me. Then we did the tandem swing and he was in heaven! He loved it!!! It really is the coolest park ever! I can't wait to take him back when he's a little older.
On Sunday morning it was still windy, so instead of attempting another beach day, we decided to drive into Zion. It's seriously one of my favorite places on this planet and I can never get over how beautiful it is!
After Zion we had dinner with my cousins and had so much fun hanging out with them. We just love them!
It was a quick trip, but so much fun. Of course, trips like this are a lot harder than a one year old, but it is definitely worth the extra effort. Thanks for the invite Mom and Dad!!!!
