Camping Chores???
Camping with a newborn can seem overwhelming, but it is important to take baby steps. This is especially true for my situation. New Dads have a lot to do to ensure both Mom and Baby are happy. To be honest, I didn’t find a rhythm to my routine until day three. Luckily, I have a truly amazing family. They even helped us unpack our car on arrival. Many hands make light work. With the sun rising on day two, the morning tasks had already started to pile up on each other. That’s the great thing about camping though. There are no appointments you have to keep and you can enjoy nature while you work. It’s important to not be in a hurry. My wife and I ate breakfast and hung out while our daughter slept for her morning nap. After that, it was time to get to work.
I started my chores by fetching water for the dishes. There’s nothing like handling ice cold water at 7 AM. For any non-parents reading this, washing and sterilizing bottles and pumping supplies is an everyday occurrence. To wash, sterilize and dry everything, it took me a total of three hours. I did all of this while helping with feeds and changing diapers. Finally, it was about 11 AM. I had to now make lunch for my wife. Ladies should always eat first. I guess I’m just chivalrous in that way. After cleaning up camp and one more feed for the baby, we were finally able to head out for a little adventure.
Adventurous Baby Steps
When deciding which trail to do first, we chose the simplest. Things always take longer with newborns. However, baby steps are still steps. They can and will get you to the top of the mountain eventually. However, it was the bottom of Yosemite Falls in our case. The overall hike took about three hours, and we walked five miles in total. Some important reasons for picking this particular hike are it’s flat, paved and near restaurants and stores. These are all good reasons when using a stroller and having to stop to feed the baby. At this point in time, I must commend my wife for being a trooper. Any type of exercise is always hard for any mom after giving birth. The fact she walked five miles is beyond impressive considering she hadn’t exercised in three months. We just took lots of baby steps and never rushed anywhere!
Chillaxin’
There’s nothing like hanging out around camp after visiting one of the most magnificent waterfalls in the world. Yes, nature is fun and awesome. That’s a given, but the people you experience it with make it memorable. The amount of inside jokes and stories are mind boggling. The campground turns into your home away from home. Friends and family play a variety of games, share a few drinks and catch up on life. You start around dinner time and go on through the night. It’s wonderfully perfect am I right? Sadly though, this ended a lot sooner than normal for my family. With bedtime routines and prepping for the next day, there was too much to do. By the end of the day, you are exhausted more than anything. Considering it was only day two, I didn’t worry too much. There was still plenty of time on our vacation.
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