Backyard camping

We got a tent and will be going camping for the first time this year. I did it a lot growing up, and then a little more as an adult, and want to do it with the kids too.

They're hearteningly game; the sleeping bags came from L.L. Bean and they immediately stretched them out in the living room and climbed in with their sleeping toys and books. They asked if they could sleep in them right away, and have sleepovers in each other's rooms, and so forth.

Yesterday, after the previous several days of rain had finally stopped, we set the thing up in the backyard. They spent the next several hours going in and out through the various entrances, bringing in toys and books and play food and the like. And of course their sleeping bags and camp chairs.

We said we could all sleep there at night, thinking naturally they'd give up after about an hour and we'd all end up sleeping in our beds.

We were wrong. Right after dinner they raced upstairs, washed themselves up and brushed teeth, and got into their pajamas. They climbed into their sleeping bags, Emily read them stories, and we prepared for the hour or so of fooling around followed by going inside and sleeping in beds.

But after the fooling around and talking and saying they weren't tired and whatnot, they fell asleep. Emily and I, seeing as the ground is really hard and the kids immediately traded out their camping pillows for our actual pillows, did not. Emily ended up stumbling inside around 2 or so. I remained, sleeping for half an hour here and there, waking up, sleeping some more, waking up.

The moon was really cool to see in the middle of the night. It got really cold at around 4 a.m. I heard birds by 4:30.

Jack had encroached on my area and I needed to slide him over. At the time he was sleeping on his back. He gave a little start, his eyes fluttering and his hands going up in the air, as I moved him over. It was like when he was a baby. 

Jack woke up  around 4. Snuggled against me, held my hand. Gave me a little smile and wave, then fell back asleep.

Kate woke up around 5. Sat up, asked where Mommy was. Lay back down, and went back to sleep. Neither asked to go in.

I woke up for good around 6, 'cause it was getting kind of light out there. They woke up around 7, and we all came inside. I made a lot of coffee, and gave the kids high-fives for their first campout.

Am already preparing for the questions to come:

"Can we sleep in the tent tonight?"