Sleepless Nights

We've had a few adventures this summer in preparation for our trip to Seattle and so far, we haven't had the greatest success. First, we tried spending the night in a tent on the 4th of July while visiting friends. The kids got cold, Jackson made noises throughout the night and I don't know if I slept at all. Then, last weekend, we spent time at Blue Lake with Matt's family in a small cabin. Unfortunately, Jackson was not only getting his molars, he also apparently came down with some type of virus that made him pretty miserable. And I'm not sure how fond he is of spending the night in a pack'n'play. The first night he moaned off and on throughout the night and I kept jumping out of bed to quiet him before he woke anyone else up. And then Lauren woke up in the middle of the night having to go potty. It was a very short night. The second night we found that Ibuprofen helped Jackson feel MUCH better but he didnt' want to go to sleep...until 11:40! And then at 1:40 (after his meds had worn off) he woke up screaming inconsolably--with both of us trying everything we could, it took at least 20 minutes for him to get back to sleep again. Sadly, our little mini vacation at Blue Lake was cut short. I am starting to second guess our decision to take two young children on a big trip...but was inspired tonight by our friends who just pulled off a family vacation in Europe. I think the key must be to have low expectations and to be very ready to "go with the flow." Hope for the best, prepare for the worst.