Camp in the back yard!
Yes, we like camping. There is something about getting away from it all. Why National Parks? How do you do it with Littles? Yep, those are important. But when life won’t let you take the 10 hour drive to the nearest National Park, make use of the outdoors you have in your yard. If you have a yard…
We knew that when we bought a house, we wanted a good sized yard. We aren’t the best at keeping it mowed, but we try to enjoy it.
We have a fire pit, made from an 18-wheeler wheel, that we roast pudgie pies over occasionally. (a pudgie pie is a hot pizza sandwich made in a sandwich maker over a fire)
Making pudgie pies over the fire in the wheel gives us a chance to teach fire safety in a very contained situation. And when Little Man touches the hot metal on accident, it’s a quick trip inside to rinse with cold water and assess damages (it wasn’t much, a 1st degree burn that hurt like the dickens).
And on comfortable and cool nights, Daddy and Little Man will camp out. It’s not the ideal “getting away from it all”, but it makes sleeping outside in the tent more a normal thing.
Then, when we do get to camp, Little Man isn’t quite as crazy excited. And it gives us adults a chance to figure out what all is needed for a comfortable night. Sleeping bags are rated to a certain temp, but as each person sleeps a bit differently, one person might find the 40° bag is too cold even in 50°, or vice versa: the 40° bag is just too hot in 40′ nights. Even Little Man gets the experience of sleeping with a hat, staying in the bag, and figuring out what he needs to do to stay comfortable.When Mr Wigglesworth is old enough (aka sleeping not in a crib, can be reasoned with to some extent and can follow the basic instruction of “lay down in your bag”), we will include him in these excursions.
And it’s excellent father-son time. Can’t beat that.
