Camping with Little Ones

I am by nature a very impulsive person. Therefore, Thursday night before bed, I said to Nate, "Hey, wanna go camping tomorrow??" To which is answer was "Huh???" We've camped many times before, but only once with William in tow. Now we have two little boys and the task seemed SO daunting. But, I did a little reading online for tips, psyched myself up, called our good friends to come along with their little girl(which, they did!!), and went camping!

It was WONDERFUL! The kids were all SO good. The boys went to sleep better at the campground than they usually do at home! They looked for bugs, played with their trucks in the dirt, splashed in water, played frisbee, got FILTHY, ate smores, looked at stars with Daddy, and then went to bed. The next morning was much more of the same. I was so relaxed and happy I never wanted to go home! The only change I would make is to go for more than one night.. Setting up and taking down takes SO long!

My tips for a successful camping adventure with little ones..

• Bring some trucks/cars for driving through the dirt
• Let them get dirty!
• Help them appreciate nature by exploring for bugs, and exploring their surroundings for animals and plants. (We were even lucky enough to show the boys a raccoon from 10 feet away!)
• Take it easy as a parent, let all your stress go and focus on relaxing and having fun..
• Bring along all-natural bug-spray such as California Baby, as well as slathering them with safe sunscreen, such as Neutrogena Pure Baby

Have fun this summer!