Camping.
Family bonding. Weenie roasts. Getting back to nature. The lullaby of crickets’ chirping. Lifelong memories.
Or…
Screaming toddler refusing to sleep in the tent, punting all other family members in the guts while thrashing through a tantrum at 3 am. Mosquito bites the size of dimes. Burnt marshmallows. A whole lot of work for not a whole lot of fun.
We have not camped as a family before. (In case you couldn’t tell.) My husband is a lover of the great outdoors but we haven’t done much traveling with the kids since our lives have been so busy with him running the apple orchard (the spring and summer are his most demanding times of work) and with me always being 76 months pregnant each summer. We have stuck close to home, which isn’t so bad since we live in the Okanagan Valley and spend the whole summer break at the beach.
That being said, we’re getting to the point where we’re thinking about traveling with our kids and I know that camping is a cheap, wonderful way to spend time together. I am just a little scared about it, that’s all. I grew up with our family vacations consisting of crossing the border into North Dakota to hit up Target, then staying in a hotel and eating at a buffet. (We liked to party.) Since I didn’t grow up camping, there are parts of it that I find really intimidating: the packing, the cooking, the “our kids are monsters, why did we DO THIS?!” question that is bound to come up.
I think that the best way for me to transition into a positive camping experience would be do rent or borrow a fifth wheel, go and park at a site with some friends who have kids the same age as ours, and bring LOTS of snacks. Then I think I’d be OK.
Do you camp with your family? Is it awesome or do you secretly dread it? Do you tent or diva it up in a trailer? Any tips for a camping rookie who might be ready to take the plunge?
We have been a camping family, while pregnant, with babies etc. It is a ton of work for sure (esp. if you are like us with no fancy camping mobile and just the good ol’ fashioned tent). We tend to overpack and have brought as much of the comforts of home with us (the booster seat, playpen, a separate tent just for toys, bikes etc.). There is out-in-the-wild camping, like my brother does, and then there is cushy camping like we do…out in a provincial campground with flushing toilets, showers and paved roads. I don’t do well without being able to get clean. So I would suggest you pick a place that is more “cushy” to start and see how it goes. Three nights is about the max we did with little ones. The fresh air will wear them out…or if not…as I did many nights camping…you can enjoy long walks around the campground with them in the stroller til they’d pass out! I guess that’s where maybe wilderness camping would be a good idea if you’re worried that they’ll scream through the night or be up with the birds. Anyway…you can always try it and see how it goes!!
We used to tent but when the kids came along we back off. Last year we tried staying in a yurt. Two kids – then four and six weeks. It worked quite well. We had a heater when the nights were cooler, real beds, real table. No tent to set up or take down. A decent shelter if it rained. Under $50/night. The mosquitos were a little crazy so it was nice that we could be in the yurt and eat, play games, watch movies on the laptop etc. (Yay eletricity!) We enjoyed the beach, mini golf and ice cream! I was a little leery of taking a six week old so we stayed a little closer to home – about 45 minutes away. But we were fine. We went on our own as a family, but invited friends and family to drop in if they felt like it. We enjoyed having “company” for meals and beach time.
We’re booked in again this year. This year’s challenge will be a 14 month old and poison ivy. And getting him to sleep. But hearing my five year old talk about the yurt over and over again made me realize how much fun he had and he’s so looking forward to going again this year.
It is a lot of work still. Packing food, clothes, bedding, beach stuff, bikes…but I think it’s worth it. We usually go for three nights. Not super long but long enough. And we all enjoy time with my husband. Time away from the farm to unwind and relax is rare so we take it when we can.
Try it out a few times in the backyard first! I’m planning on it this summer with my kid. Just to see how it actually pans out. We camped when he was one…ugh. but I’m willing to give it another go!
I’m not an outdoorsy girl. Mosquito bites turn into bloody welts on my body – all OVER my body, while everyone else has one or two tiny bumps. Poison ivy crawls out of the forest to find me. Tents give up on waterproofness just for me. I cannot pee without a seat and toilet paper, it just ends up all over me and my pants. And sleep on rocks WHY?
But I’m thinking maybe camping in a tent on the roof deck might feel like a nice adventure this summer.
I grew up camping, and I love it. I find it a bit of a break because Jon does all the cooking. We either cook over the fire or on our camping stove/bbq. I prepare the food, he cooks it, we both clean up. Seeing how I do that by myself at home, it’s kinda nice to have the help while camping. We tent it. We have a 2 room tent. Kids on one side, we get the other. Each room has it’s own door. So we can put them to bed and then creep in there much later without having to trip over them or step on their heads trying to get to our bed in the dark. We differ in where we like to camp though. Jon likes the most remote middle of no where kinda camping. I prefer a campground on a lake. With flush toilets, showers, concession stands, parks, etc. My personal favorite camping spot is Shuswap Lake Provincial Park Campground. It’s great. The camping spots are each surrounded with trees so you don’t feel like you’re in a parking lot. There’s TONS of stuff for the kids to do around there. Paved roads so they can ride bikes, rollerblade, etc. AND there’s a Store that sells really good ice cream. There’s also an area that has mini golf, bumper boats, arcade, and there’s river rafting not to far away either. Jon and I actually honeymooned there. ha ha. 🙂 It was perfect.
Dude. Outside of the odd Girl Guides/Brownie’s retreat, or a (forced) week-away sixth grade trip, the idea of camping gives me the hives. It DOES sound like a whole lot of work for not a lot of fun. Erect this tent? That’ll chip mah nails. Paddle my own canoe?! Ack. That’s what chauffeurs are for. And the bathroom is where? What is this little spade for again?! (Ew.)
I like hotels. Your family trips across the border for Target shopping and buffets? Sounds like heaven to me. Killing mosquitoes is haaaaaaard. DON’T DO IT!!!
(Did you see how I snuck the word “erect” in there before? *snickers*)
We love camping and all 4 of our children were camping before their first birthdays. We started in a tent, until we spent 12 days in pouring rain with 2 under 3, then bought a tent trailer, then a hard side trailer, although we still tent from time to time. I like the family time – getting away from the phone, tv, computer, video games, etc. We play games together, make up stories around the campfire, and create great memories for all of us. The kids seem to get along better when we are camping, too.
It is a lot of work, but so worth it. Easing into it by renting something is a great idea, and the Okanagan has many great places to go so you won’t have to drive too far, and can bail if you really need to.
I won’t lie … it’s tons of work. And truthfully, I found it even more work in a camper. BUT it’s fun and worth it. Do it!
I HATE camping. And that has nothing to do with the kids and everything to do with dirt. Under my fingernails. And not showering for more than two days. And if I do have to shower it means wearing flip flops because who knows what’s growing on those floors. And then there’s the whole sleeping on the ground (which BTW is dirty)….Poor Corey.
Corey did take Bethany camping last summer with a bunch of other dads and they rocked it. I made up my mind I’d learn to fake it for our girls so they could make up their own minds about camping, but for me, from the bottom of my heart I really would rather 4 star resort, ice cold drink, soft and fluffy bed!
We have been camping since Delaney was 3 and Avery 15 months, and that was in a tent (a very large tent!) We then camped in a tent trailer with a 5 , 3 and 3 month old. We always camped with friends and their kids which does make it better. Trailers are the way to go for sure. We camp every summer, several times, and each year it gets easier! Go for it!!
I guess Andy and Ryan were talking about this a couple of weeks ago…group family camping trips. We’ll tune out your 3am’s if you’ll tune out ours kinda deal.