.. But he's too small to understand he should stay put on an airbed. We're booked to go away at Easter. He's 2.4 no longer in a cot at home, but stair gate on his bedroom door.
What have others done at this age when tenting?
My vague plan is to drive him around until he falls asleep then plonk him on an air bed.
We have 2 double airbeds, so one parent to one child (Other Daughter is 4 and understands!)
Not sure about the whole duvet/sleeping bag thing either. He's an upside down back to front sleeper at the best of times. I have borrowed a ready bed for our daughter previously and wasn't impressed.
If you cover the floor with a plastic backed picnic blanket and a fleece blanket would it be the end of the world if he fell asleep on there and you had to move him later? Stick him in a fleecy all in one suit and he will probably be OK.
Both mine were put to bed at that age on airbeds and fell asleep on the floor. We just moved them later.
I opened the sleeping bag to make it more like a duvet so the upside down back to front bit wasn't a particular problem.
I would personally avoid starting to drive him around to get him to sleep unless you already do it or don't mind either carrying on or having to get him back to routine when you get back home. But then I stuck to routine come hell or high water when the boys were younger just for my sanity.
------------- pork
Remember a good wife always helps her husband with the dishes.
I think it's just the fact that ideally I'd like them both asleep early evening; before husband and I would want to go to bed. It's just the getting up and mucking around that I'm worried about.
I don't ever drive him around to get to sleep usually. He just stands at his stair gate, shouts a bit then toddles back to bed. I suppose zipping him in to the bedroom bit behind the mesh door would actually be the same thing.
We had those wee suits that are like a sleeping bag with sleeves....stopped them legging it out tent but cosy! The can sit up and play with toys on tent carpet/ listen to a story...drop off, then we moved them onto airbed. We also used an inner tent.
Have you thought of a sim(self inflating matteress) rather than an airbed, If he is like my son he will end up sleeping on the floor, half the time, I wonder why I take the airbed for him. Along with the suggestion from above posts. During the day, keep your children active, with those lovely long walks. Along with that lovely outdoor fresh air. The children should crash.
Our tent has 2 bedrooms and we usually have a double airbed in each. Not much room for anything else. Rather than a SIM I might just put some duvets down to cover the excess floor. Yes to legging it in the sleeping bag suit thing!
Thumbs up for sleeveless sleeping sacs from me! Keep zips done up to the top of the bedroom pod so they can't be reached by littlies. I would definitely go for SIMs, we once "lost" my DS when he was about 3- he and DD used to share a double air bed but he was/is a wriggler and would fall off, once we couldn't find him in the morning, looked everywhere,we were all hysterical but he had actually fallen off the bed and wriggled underneath it! Took years off my life so now DD has single air bed, DS has a SIM and everyone's happy.
Love the thought of a lost child. Sorry but I can just imagine it. Thank-you all for you help.
Those dinghy type beds look great.
I think we're going to let both DC stay up late late late on the first night then lie down with them, then get some fricken freezing air the next few days to tire them out.
I'm going to stick with the plan of a double airbed in each bedroom. Zip em in and that's that. After the cot days are over there's nothing that's going to contain him. He might as well just crash out on our existing air beds in the bedroom compartments. He can't come to any harm.
Off topic somewhat but have to share - when my second son was little we bought an inflatable travel cot for him to save space in the car.
The first year was fine. When he was 2 he learnt how to lean on the front slowly so that the whole thing toppled over and he escaped.
Didn't use it after that much for some reason!
------------- pork
Remember a good wife always helps her husband with the dishes.