Winter Camping, Literally

With a new tent in hand, we decided it was time to introduce Emmeline to camping! We recruited Kristy, Konrad, Maddox, and Mila along too, and made the short drive to Hunstville State Park. We thought January would be a great time for camping to avoid the heat, but we didn't quite count on it being true "winter" camping!


It was a beautiful day, cool with the sun shining which made it perfect for setting up camp and taking a little hike through the trails! Our site was right along the water, and more secluded than most in the park, which was nice.


Emmeline loved every second of being outside. From the birds and squirrels to running through leaves and sitting around the campfire, she is an outside girl for sure! She loved roasting hot dogs and marshmallows and was very good about knowing it was hot and not getting too close.


We knew it was going to get cold at night, but I don't think we were quite prepared for how cold. We bundled up Emmeline as much as we could, and she fell asleep right away in her Pack n play, even in the strange environment of the tent! But, at midnight she woke up crying (she never wakes up!) We aren't sure if it was the bitter cold or the fact that she just couldn't use her hands (they had socks on them) like she normally does to grab her lovies during a sleep cycle change. We tried bringing her into bed with us, but after 45min-1hour we realized it wasn't going to work. She was too excited/distracted by being in our bed and seeing the tent to go back to sleep. After running through various options in our head, we ultimately decided just to drive home for the rest of the night. (Benefit of only being 40 min away! The car said it was 37 when we left!)


Our plan was to come back as soon as she woke up in the morning, as we had breakfast plans with Kristy and Konrad, but when we woke up the next day I had a text saying they left at 3am too! Just Nick and Konrad ended up going back to pack up all the stuff. Too cold of a night, but we are definitely going to try it again. I think she will do much better if she's not freezing!