Family Camping - A Whole New Experience

Olivia not so sure about this camping idea.

<Late Posting... trying to catch up.  We camped 5/4-6>

I'm so proud of us for going camping for our anniversary!  Olivia was a good little girl, and a bit overwhelmed by the change to her schedule.

We were so busy on Saturday that we didn't quite have a chance to pack and get everything ready in advance.  I'll admit, I was interested in planting my new plants in the backyard before they died.  I forget what Kevin was up to during the day.  In the evening, we had Nathan and Sarah's wedding reception out in Brentwood (~1 hour away).  They came to our baby shower, and this was an ideal time to introduce Olivia to a bunch of the Janeiro side of the family - Elmira was very happy that we were using the blanket she had crocheted for Olivia (good thinking, mom!).  Olivia was a trooper and entertained everyone far past her bedtime.  At 9:30, mom called it quits and we left.  Olivia promptly fell asleep in the car.

A chance to sit in the Captain's Seat in Monterey!  How fun!

Sunday was the scramble to pull out our camping gear (good job, dad!), drop off the dogs (nope, they weren't invited this time), and pack the cooler.  We left around 1pm I think.  Grabbed subs on our way out the door and took a detour through Monterey because Olivia had woken and was hungry.  I nursed her in the car with an ocean view - lovely!  Gorgeous day.

Darn it!  Backseat again!  I'll never enjoy this carseat again!

Another snack attack!  Pit stop at a turnout on Route 1!

Dad setting up camp, whilst....

The drive was a bit longer than expected.  Lime Kiln SP is south of the Ventana Inn and further down  route 1 than Kevin had ever been.  We were given a campsite up in the redwoods.... Mom didn't like it at first and had the nice people change our spot to the creek side - but then Dad had them change it back because the original site was more secluded and all the stuff was out of the car - dad chose correctly.  The original site was WAY better.

Mom and Olivia "supervise"

And then.... it was time to set up camp.  We put together the pack N Play for Olivia to play in while we set up the tent but she was having *nothing* of it!  She was like Trixie near water.... the closer Trixie gets, the faster her legs to the doggie paddle.  The closer Olivia got to the PNP, the louder she protested.  So, Mom held her while dad single-handedly set everything up and started a fire.  He's a keeper.  We were fortunate to arrive when we did - any later and some of that activity would have taken place in the dark.

"What's up with that?!"

Olivia was a little overwhelmed and tired from a long day of sleeping in the car.  Eventually, mom just took her into the car (with the doors closed, no one could hear her crying) and nursed her to sleep.  We put her down in the PNP in the tent and had a nice ploughsman's board dinner with Tequila & OJ - DELISH!  Everything was perfect.  Eventually, mom turned in first while dad watched the fire die.  Somwhere around midnight, O awoke and I brought her into my sleeping bag to warm her up and nurse her.  When I eventually swapped sides, she awoke and was inconsolable.  Solution?  Back to the car!  O and mom slept in the car from ~ 4am - ~8 am.  She actually fell right asleep when I started nursing her in the car, so it just seemed easier to stay there.

New toy!  Chips!

Back to the green stuff. Doh!  

But I sure am cute in this little hat. :)

Creek running through campsite

The next morning (our anniversary), we were all a tad bleary-eyed.  Dad made delicious omelets (on the second try when he had the gas figured out) and Mom took care of Olivia.  At this time, mom realized her deficiencies in packing clothes for Olivia - not enough warm stuff... and she's outgrown 9 month clothes.  Thus, lots of blankets.  We wandered down to the ocean side of the park and appreciated our redwood camping site even more.  Once that was done, we were all ready for a break.... into the car for an auto hike!  Perfect!  We drove south on route 1 to Ragged Point where there's a lovely resort.  There, we had lunch and lingered for a good while out on the nice grass, warmed by the sun and cooled by a slight breeze - divine!  Dad took a catnap, Mom played with O and kept her hat from blowing off.  We watched them set up for a wedding and eventually, probably around 4, decided to head back to the campground.

Thanks Cousin Walter for this fancy windsuit!

Checking the surf with Dad

Smoochie Smoochie!

View from beach into campsite - yes that's route 1 above!

Dad's sweatshirt is still fascinating

My hat isn't as interesting

Mom's fleece on the other hand... what *is* this 'zipper' thing?!

Mom!  Dad's snoring again.

I love this weird caterpillar thingy!

Now I'm a MONSTER - ROARR!

All this scenery, and Olivia's still fascinated by the caterpillar (and Mom still has her lists with her)

Our campsite - #26

More smooches

Dinner time for little girls

Tent with Pack N Play

Sleepy Angel

Chef Boyar-Janeiro

Romantic Anniversary Dinner - with candlelight

O was a bit cranky, and mom was smart this time - it was chilly, so I nursed her to sleep in my sleeping bag.  She fell right asleep and was snug as a bug.  We had sausage hot dogs for our anniversary dinner and red wine (does *not* go with sausages).  Kevin was the chef again.  What a great catch!  Then we hung out by the fire, shifting to avoid the smoke, and people watching.  This night a group of college-age kids moved in right next to where Mom had tried to change our camp site  They were having a great time, drinking, playing some music (pretty quiet) and socializing with the California Conservation Corps (CCC) guys who had been there for a week or so working on trails.  This was a moment when I acknowledged that I'm old.  :)  It looked like a great time, and I could think of nothing better than going to sleep. :)  So we turned in and all slept at least a little better than the night before.  It was colder this second night and I'm glad O was in with me so I could keep her warm (and let's be honest, the little heater was keeping ME warm!)

My two favorite people

Tuesday morning, O was very fussy.  Eventually, Mom just called it, "We're going for a hike!"  There were two passable, 1/2 mile hikes from the campsite - just our speed.  Kevin carried Olivia for the first one - to see a pretty waterfall.  I carried her in this Ergo Baby rip off (half the price) for the second one and she fell right asleep.  That time, we saw the Lime Kilns for which the park is named.

Lime Kilns - Kevin was in love! 

Olivia finally asleep in the carrier

Snug as a bug

Back at the camp, we packed up as much as possible while O was sleeping.  It was time to head home.  We stopped a few times along the way, notable by the Big Sur campground where there's a fantastic lunch spot by a big creek.  That was fabulous.  I nursed O in the car before we took off for the long haul home.  She went back to sleep and was out for most of the ride back.  Mom read a good deal from the Western Garden Problem Solver book to try and figure out how to keep our roses healthy.

Happy to be back at daycare - the known world - the next day

Overall, Olivia was quite a trooper!  Mom and Dad are happy to have our first camping experience as a family done, and have lots of ideas for improvement next time (closer, maybe with friends who have kids, pack properly).

Fun times!

And then, we only had a few days of work when we returned. :)

xoxo
Mom (Kate)