Jackson's first campout

I have been wanting to take Jackson camping ever since he came into our family. I had been debating how old I would let him get prior to taking him and decided 16 months old would be just right for his first trip. Being all excited about camping, I decided to invite two of my youngest sister's kids seeings how their dad is away for work. Even though I was apprehensive to take (3) young boys all by myself, it turned out really well as Isaac and Carter were a big help with Jackson. We ended up going to Jones Crossing for this years father and son's outing.

This is our trip up. Jackson is getting rested up for his first camping trip.

Isaac was also getting some rest. Looks pretty comfortable if you ask me. Carter was a trooper and stayed awake the whole time.


Here is the big man all decked out.

Overall Jackson did pretty well. It seemed as if everytime I needed both hands (setting up the tent, unloading the gear, eating) Jackson would suddenly get clingy and wanted to be held. This is just shortly after setting up the tent and Jackson finally let me set him down.

Trying to steal daddy's orange soda.

This is breakfast time. I failed to take photo's of the inside of our tent. Just before Jackson joined our family, I took my sister and her family camping at this same spot. Not thinking, they didn't bring a lot of warm stuff to sleep in and as a result they got cold at night. This year, I grabbed almost every blanket I had, gave the boys mummy sleeping bags and covered them in blankets. Jackson slept on the ground without his port-a-crib. I made sure I made it plenty soft for him. We had a mound of blankets under him, he slept in his daddy's childhood sleeping bag (Dukes of Hazard) and had several blankets on him. That night it got down to 30 degrees. I was paranoid throughout the whole night. I would sleep a few minutes and wake up to check Jackson. He likes to sleep with his face uncovered and his hands above his head. I was able to sneak a beanie on his head which he would keep slipping off his head. Each time I woke up, I would feel his hands and face. ICE cold. I spent the first half of the night trying to keep his topside warm. Finally I just took a chance and threw a blanket over his head and hands. Jackson didn't seem to mind. He slept pretty well overall.

Exploring the campsite.

Jackson had a meltdown about an hour after he woke up. After trying to pacify him, I finally decided to lay him down in the tent so he could calm himself down. A few minutes later he was out. He napped for another hour or so.

Can you guess what makes him happy?

Isaac and Carter playing around on our hike. We stayed till the bitter end and were the last of everyone to leave.

Jackson enjoyed the hike too.

All in all we had a super fun trip. Thanks to Isaac and Carter for helping out. All (3) boys had fun exploring the woods, playing with the other boys and got plenty of dirt on their faces. I am already looking forward to our next campout.