Backyard Camp Out

The 1st Mullen family camping trip was a success...and a failure depending on which of our two kids you talk to. Marielle & I set up the tent yesterday afternoon on our lawn during MK's piano lesson, while Jenna happily played next to us on a blanket. Our tent is HUGE! One neighborhood kid declared, "You could fit 24 kids inside!" We didn't test that theory, but we did put Jenna's pack-n-play along with our sleeping bags and still had plenty of room.

We all went to bed around 8 and MK read Marielle bedtime stories by flashlight while we all were "cozy wozy" (Marielle phrase) in our sleeping bags. Marielle's bag even has a little pocket that she can put her glowworm Glowie inside. Jenna wasn't quite ready to sleep yet, so MK came back inside to do dishes and let Jenna play. When they came back, Jenna was dressed in her snowsuit to make sure she was warm enough. We put a big blanket over her, too, but she had a cough that made us nervous. By 11:30, MK's mom instincts took over and she brought her coughing child to sleep in the warm house.

Marielle had a much better experience. I brought her in around 4:45, so I could use the bathroom, and she snuggled in bed with Mom. I wondered if we should go back out to the tent, b/c it was 39 degrees outside, colder than we expected. But when Mom asked Marielle, "Do you want to stay in bed or go back to the tent?" Marielle said, "To the tent!" And she must have been warm enough cuz she slept all the way til 7:10. Next we'll have to camp more than 30 seconds away from our front door.

Thank you Doc and Shula for the great camping gear!