GLAMPING WITH KIDS
Camping is hands-down our favorite family activity. I feel present and centered — probably from the forest bathing, lack of electronics and the meditative state of a campfire. And honestly, I just feel like a better mom. I’m more connected and in-the-moment with my kids.
But I’m not the kind of girl who likes to be dirty. And I also really appreciate the comforts of home, my skin-care routine and being able to find things easily. So it took me a while to get where I’m at now.
I started with rugged cabins. Then graduated to a safari tent, to just one-night at a campsite with a clean restroom and shower. And now I can be in a tent for 5 nights and am ready for more! I’ve even done 10 days in an RV. It’s been a journey and a process that I’ve cultivated into a system that works for us. I get asked about it a lot so here are my recommendations if you’re interested:
1. CampNab.com is my NUMBER ONE suggestion. The biggest problem with camping in California (and the West) is that campsites are booked many months in advance. I’m not the kind of girl who knows what I’m doing tomorrow let alone a year from now so planning ahead just doesn’t work for us. We’re fly-by-the-seat-of-our-pants adventurers. That’s why we use CampNab — you tell them when and where you’d like to go and they scan all the public campground reservation websites for cancellations and then notify you via text when a campsite is available. It has never let us down. Not once. We always get a campsite this way. Every.Single.Time. It’s a website, not an app with really reasonable rates. It’s definitely a must for us.
2. I also think it’s key to get a good campsite and not all are created equal. I use a combo of google maps, campsite photos and all the camping review sites when choosing a campsite. I try to find something that isn’t close to the bathrooms, has shade, and is on the outer loop so there’s more privacy and freedom for the kids to explore. Insider tip — watch out for poison ivy. It’s everywhere in California campgrounds! Pay attention to review notes when choosing a site.
3. One of my favorite things is waking up together in one big cuddled heap when the sun rises. But to wake up well-rested and laughing, you have to be comfortable. Getting a big-and-tall sleeping bag was a game-changer. It feels like I’m in a real bed because I have so much space to move around. And it goes without saying that I couldn’t camp without an air mattress. We use a rug pad underneath it so it doesn’t slip and slide, which always happens without it because campsites are never flat.
4. This part is key to staying clean and organized — get a tent that sounds ridiculously large. When we were a family of three, we had a 6-person tent and it was too small. Now that we’re a family of four, we have a 10-person tent and it’s perfect and not as large as it seems. (They count how large a tent is by how many people it would fit shoulder-to-shoulder like sardines in a can). A large tent allows us the luxury of having one side to sleep and the other side for moving around, dressing, cleaning up, diaper changes and organizing your luggage so you can find things fast. I really like tents that have a hinged door option— it’s so annoying to zip and unzip every time you go in and out of the tent and this makes it much more convenient.
5. A mat in front of the tent helps keep the tent floor clean. And we have a no-shoes rule inside the tent so it’s also a great place for all of our shoes to be lined up. When we do have dirt inside (because I’m always the one to break the rule), we use a small handheld broom and tray to sweep up messes.
6. Bring a toilet and a shower. I’m not kidding. This was a game changer for us. This is what allowed us to make the jump from 1-2 nights up to 5 nights. It sounds like it would take up a lot of room in the car but it all folds-up flat and can fit anywhere. We have this this and this to create our camping bathroom — one pop-up tent becomes the potty tent and the shower tent. I guess you could have two separate tents if you’re fancy (note to self). When it’s the potty tent, I bring an extra paper bag to keep on the ground for trash, a rope to hold the toilet paper, and hand sanitizer to keep in the inside tent pocket. We swap out the toilet when we want to take a shower. Theoretically the water in the shower is supposed to warm in the sun all day but that rarely works for us — we boil water instead and then mix it with cold water to get the best temperature. You can rig a system to keep the spout up high or just use it like a handheld hose. Being able to undress and lather up with warm water makes you feel much more clean and comfortable than wet wipes. A mat & flip flops makes it less muddy. A little shower caddy holds your soap, shampoo, conditioner, razor and face wash.
7. Cowboy baths! I made up the name when I needed to give my son a bath and wanted it to sound fun. We pack supplies in a plastic box and then use the empty box to fill with water, biodegradable soap and dirty kids. My kids are small so both of them fit. It’s my favorite sight to see while camping — my kids playing in the bathtub as we build a fire for the night. I live for these moments.
8. We keep a box of food staples that we need every trip so that we don’t have extra packing every time. It includes small bottles or containers of oil, vinegar, salt & pepper, oatmeal, hot cocoa, tea, peanut butter and sugar.
9. Vegan marshmallows and marshmallow sticks because marshmallows are the highlight of every kids’ camping trip. Sometimes finding sticks for roasting marshmallows is hard and we like that these stretch very long to make it safer around the fire for the kids. We also bring plenty of vegan marshmallows (it made us sad to find out how regular marshmallows are made) because they are impossible to find near campsites and rural locations.
10. Campsites rarely have cell coverage so we print maps, directions, reservations and local information in case our batteries die or we don’t have coverage. We like this charger for our phones so we don’t have to keep our car running to charge them. I’ve got my eye on some fancy solar options I’m excited to add at some point.
11. I keep a master camping checklist in my list app so we don’t forget anything as we are packing. And when we’re at the campsite, we inevitably say “do you know what would be really helpful? …” so we also have a list of ideas and things to bring for the next trip. This has been really helpful for kids because there are so many things you use at home that you might forget to pack like diapers, medications, bike helmets and toys.
A few more things:
Embrace headlamps. It makes life so much easier at night. Everyone gets their own. Plus I like tucking flashlights everywhere — we keep one in the tent, on the picnic table and I have extra to keep in jacket pockets.
I copied my friend Linzey and now wear camp sandals. She wears adidas slides and I wear Birks. With socks! It’s a super sexy look. It’s really easy to go in-and-out of the tent without fussing with sneakers or boots.
I give myself 5 minutes by myself in the tent each morning to feel clean and set up a Little House on the Prairie station. I sit on the ground and put a travel mirror on the box I mentioned above so I can take care of business from the neck up. I bring in a bit of boiled water in a small bowl and use it to wash my face with a washrag. I also bring a collapsible cup of water to brush my teeth. And I bring a zip pouch with my serum, lotion and sunscreen.
I’m in the process of switching over to boxes instead of bags for clothes. No matter what I do, it’s hard to find the things you need when kids are involved. These are collapsable and fold flat — great for being able to find things easily.
I love clips to hang things in the tent — coats, flashlights, washcloths,
The picnic table that comes with every campsite is usually a shit show. I have a vinyl tablecloth that’s easy to wipe down. I keep a small spray bottle and a sponge just to do that. I also have a little organizer to keep all of the things you need — cutlery, flashlights, sunscreen, sanitizer.
To do the dishes — I bring a small plastic bin that stores the kitchen/cooking supplies. I empty that out, fill it with boiled water from the stove or fire mixed with tap water. Voila!
Babies — we love the Baby Bjorn travel crib. I bundle them up in fuzzy footie jammies and put them in a sleep sack. They usually aren’t cold but one night when it was in the 40s, I brought a blanket and some clips to partly hang over the top so it traps some warm air. This is probably super dangerous so you probably shouldn’t do this but my baby couldn’t stand in his sleep sack so I took the risk and he’s still alive.
This list is a work-in-progress. I’ll update it as I remember helpful things.