OxfordPress.com

Mandy Nagel spent Monday night buried in her sleeping bag.

"I was so completely cold," said the Cincinnati resident.

But she and tent mate Sean Mulcahey said the cold was not the biggest challenge to a good night's rest as they camped in line for IKEA West Chester's Wednesday grand opening. Waves of reporters with lights and cameras hit the scene at dawn, they said.

"Every time they lifted up their satellite (masts), I was like, 'please, stop!,'" Mulcahey said.

"It seems the reporters come at you in waves," said Nagel. "They're all here at once and then they leave."

Both noted IKEA had set up outdoor space heaters overnight, and said staff members handed out blankets, as well as hot coffee, tea and snacks as nighttime temperatures dropped into the upper 20s.

"It worked out good," said Matt Lanzoff of Fairfield. He and his wife were able to watch movies on his iPod, thanks in part to an extension cord strung from a wall outlet to their tent. He said they also spent the night watching less hardy line campers casing the parking lot.

"People would come in, look at how many people were in line, and go back out," he said.

With today's temperatures expected to reach the mid 40s, all three campers said they expect to have more company by the end of the day.