We survived!

I just wanted to let you all know how our trip went since a few of you wanted to know. It was definitely busy for me, but so worth it! We rented a cabin for the week since we knew it would be so hot plus the thought of keeping them contained within a camp site without walls made me a little nervous. We had to drive about 8 hours (which turned out to be more like 11 with stops) but they did so well! We went to the beach every day so they got to play in the sand, float with us in the bay, and we set up a little baby pool under an umbrella for them to play in the rest of the time. They had a blast and so did we!! So if you're thinking about it, it is possible!

I wanted to share the products that worked so well for us in case any of you are interested. We have a baby jogger SBS stroller and that thing was a life saver! We fed them in it when we were traveling (wheeled into a store/rest stop and fed them in the AC), it went on trails in the woods and even right onto the beach...a little tough in the heavy sand, but it went pretty easily on the harder sand near the water. Plus the seats recline flat and it is so well vented and shaded that we were able to let them take their afternoon naps right there on the beach! I just set up an umbrella to give extra shade. It was the only time I could really relax on the beach without watching them like a hawk so that they didn't eat a shell or make a break for the water on their own! Also, the pea pod plus tents were amazing. They slept so well in them. They actually had fun while they were going to sleep...rolling around in it like it was a bounce house until they got sleepy enough to just roll over and fall asleep! Same thing in the morning...I woke up to two bouncing babies making each other giggle (we set it up so they could see each other through the screens). So fun! I think they were sad to be in their cribs again last night! The only thing I got that I wasn't happy with were the safety first inflatable travel high chairs. We got them because we're going on a few trips and they are so small for packing, but they are really wobbly if your LOs are as squirmy as mine, plus since they don't have trays, you have to push them right up to the table. Mine figured out tat they could rock the whole chair backwards within a matter of minutes so when we fed them we had to sit between them with a foot on each chair so they didn't fall over. The stroller honestly ended up being a better travel chair!

ETA I forgot one thing - we had a little pop up tent on the beach that was great for changing diapers, nursing, and letting them play for a minute after we had gotten them dry and changed as we were getting ready to pack up. That was worth it, too, just to have a small shady semi-private spot!

 

you've given me hope. we're taking a trip to attend my family reunion at lake michigan in august when the boys will be just shy of 11 months. i've been trying to figure out whether we'll survive the experience, but it sounds like i shouldn't be so pessimistic!

glad you had a good time.

 

:woo: I'm glad your trip went so well! It sounds like you had a great time & the little ones enjoyed it too!

 

:clapping: Hooray for a great trip and thanks for sharing your expert advice with us!!

 

Sounds like you had a great trip! Thanks for sharing tips with us, we might be going camping in a few weeks so this was very helpful!!

 

Sounds like fun!! Thanks for all the helpful tips too!

 

Glad you had such a good trip!! :wub:

 

Sounds like a lot of fun! What are the pea pod tens?

 

never mind I googled it. OMG I so need those!

 

I'm glad the trip went well. I have to say you are way braver than me.

BTW I missed you on the site

 

:clapping: congrats on a successful trip! i'm glad the pea pods worked out so well for you.

 

I'm glad you had a fun time and well done you! I agree, definately BRAVE!

 

:banana: for a successful trip.

 

Congrats on a great trip! Sounds like you had a marvelous time!

I have a question about the Pea Pod beds; don't your LO's "escape" from them? I think if I tried to put my boys in there to sleep, they'd be out and scooting across the floor in .2 seconds. Or do you "zip" them in? And what happens if they get rambunctious? I have visions of Jack tearing it up inside the tent and collapsing the darn thing....

Otherwise, those sound like they'd be much more manageable than 2 Pack-N-Plays!