Camping

Each year I try to take the kids camping in the summer.  Usually we manage one trip per year.  I know that's not much, and I'm trying to increase it this year.  Seems as though our summer week-ends fill up so quickly!  Generally the whole summer is fully booked by mid-June.  I took the kids for the first camping trip this past week-end.  I allowed each of the older girls to invite one friend (J's first choice couldn't go, but her second did, A1's friend's mother said she couldn't go because she was afraid the girl would be eaten by bears... insert eye rolling facial expression here)).  So we packed everyone and everything in the van, retrieved the extra girl and headed to our all-time favorite campground.  We left on Friday and returned on Sunday.

The best part of camping is that there are no electronics permitted.  And because we camp in a National forest, there is no cell service.  Once we are there, the only real rule I have is that there is no leaving.  So for the few days we are camping, the kids are just kids!  No phones, no iPods, no computers.  We take board games and cards, we visit with fellow campers, we build fires and talk around them, toasting marshmallows and telling stories.  We use a tent, we play flashlight wars, I make all our meals from scratch on a camp stove (an adventure in itself!), everyone takes turns with chores, we hike the mountain trails, we swim in the nearby lake, and we flat-out just have good old-fashioned fun.

I've been doing this every year for almost 10 years, and I love it!  The first year we went, the girls were quite small, 5 or 6 maybe.  I got us a sleeping bag (the girls already had little ones) and a 6-man tent.  We took food like Poptarts and hot dogs and marshmallows.  I took a couple flashlights and everyone a change of clothes.  I think that was about it.  Since then we've upgraded our tent to a 15-man tent with 3 rooms, 2 air mattresses and good sleeping bags for all.  a medium rug for the middle of the tent and a mat for the tent door helps cut down on dirt coming inside the tent.  A canopy to put over the picnic table and a cloth tablecover, canvas chairs for around the fire.  A propane campstove and a tote-box of cooking equiment, a good clothesline plus pins for drying wet towels and suits.  A large cooler plus 2 smaller ones.  Various buckets and wash basins.  Also flame lanterns and flashlights and a first-aid kit and a myriad of other little things that make camping out easier.

There is one thing that I will not leave home without, that is pre-cut wood and lighter-logs, usually the 3-hour kind.  Our first camping trip we went without any fire and ate cold food.  I couldn't get a fire started with newspaper and sticks.  Then I got some of those 50-cent firestarter things and STILL couldn't get the wood to ignite!  When I finally switched to the 3-hour logs it literally eliminated the stress of fire-making.  Simply put the log in the firepit, light it, then add larger wood across the top of it.  These days we purposely save smaller wood for just that purpose.  Though this last time I did see several trees had been carried to a communal place for people to cut and use, so I'll take my ax and saw with me instead of loading up with our own wood.  We'll still take some of ours, but since we'll be there longer next time, I figure it would be a good idea to use some that's already there too.