This was Rian's first time camping, and it was also a first for Rian's grandpa. Rian was super excited as he saw mom and dad toil around from 9am to 3pm, hustle and bustle, to get us packed and out the door. The days activities also came along: breakfast, Rian's bath, Rian's breakfast, lunch, our showers, and coffees and lunch. Amit's mom made lunch @ home for us. The poor little beemer sedan could not handle the luggage that 4 adults and a baby resulted in, when car camping :-) Luckily Mausami-Gunjan gave us a break by offering to carry some of our stuff for us. Thanks guys, because of you, we were saved from renting for 2 days. It's times like these when I wish we had a bigger car, but for now I'm happy with friends that have big cars too :-)
We timed the drive so Rian could sleep in the car while we got there. Rian woke up in an hr but thankfully went back to sleep. I think he finds his new car seat (Britax Marathon) very comfortable. Anyways, so we reached the place around 4:30 or so and paid for registration. The guys started putting up the tents and the girls were trying to help (trust me, I was!). The store closes at 6pm, so the guys bought firewood from the store. We put up tents (one for us, one for Amit's parents), while grandparents watched over Rian. Rian seemed to have had the most fun during this time: he was playing in his play yard with a few of his fav toys, and Shayona and Parv on the outside.
What did we forget on this trip? Rian's medicines. I didn't have his Tylenol, Mylicon or his regular Zantac. I guess I need to make a small first aid box for Rian, and carry it with our first aid kit from now on.
Finally we were done putting up 2 tents: one for the 3 of us, and one for the grandparents. Daddy was pooped by then, and mommy was hungry. Plus it didn't help that the place was teeming with mosquitoes :-( Anyways, once we got the Citronella candles rolling (and maybe it was the time of the day), the mosquis retreated. Rachana made some awesome sandwiches, and Mausami made some awesome bhel. Top it up with the awesomeness of wine, and we were soon in a "merry" place mentally.
We dropped by to see the show on Condors, but Rian was way too noisy for the amphitheatre, so Amit and I got back to the campsite again. The others followed. The campfire was also burning now. On the dot at 8:45, Rian started crying, and all of us were clueless, isko kya hua? Then we figured it out: his juju time and sleepy time! Amit managed to do an amazing diaper change inside the car, while I got his juju ready. After juju, 10 mins in my arms and the darling was asleep!! :-) I just didn't have the heart to put him down into the tent. Also I was damn sure he'd wake up with our noise and commotion, so up he went, right against my chest, in my Ergo carrier.
We started our hogging again :-) with bhuttas and smores. The restrooms didn't have any lights, so we went with flashlights to do the needful before turning in.
The temperatures dropped quite a lot, quickly. Inside our tent, we were on an airbed, and we zipped our sleeping bags together, and got Rian between the 2 of us. I think the cold and the bodily heat from us kept him asleep for a long time, almost till 4am which is his midnight milk time. The water had gotten so cold, he just could not drink the prepared formula! Amit tried to warm the milk in his hands, then passed the bottle to me. I held it against my warm mummy tummy :-) and it got an almost normal bodily temperature, and Rian was finally happy :-) One of those moments where I felt so proud about doing what I did to get the milk warm!
The morning was nice and warm at 8am. Yup, Rian slept through till 8am :-) Grandpa and Grandma were not quite that lucky and were almost up the whole time. Grandpa's specs lost a screw and one of the glasses came off, then grandma had to go with him to the restroom. The temperatures rose quickly in the morning, and the mosquitoes and flies were back again in the shaded areas where our tents were put up. That meant Amit and Grandma who were wrapping up the tents were bitten again. Grandpa and me fed Rian, and gave him his juju too. Grandma made tea and some sandwiches too.
By the time we were wrapped up and packed, it was 11am, and we were too tired to do anything, and it was too hot, almost 90 something! Neither Amit nor me had the enthu to continue onto a hike, so we packed up and came back in our cool beemer ride. A nice way to spend my first mother's day, we picked up sandwiches on the way, and then slept for a straight 3 hours :-)
