Tips and Tricks of Camping with a Toddler
Last weekend my family went camping. Me, my husband, 8 year old Dawn, 2 year old PJ & little furry Hundley. Overall it was a fun experience and we all enjoyed ourselves but we definitely had some bumps along the way along with the great time. So here I am to share my tips & tricks of camping for the first time with a toddler.
#1. PLAN! When we were planning our trip we decided on two things. Firstly, we would stay within a 45 min drive of home in case of forgotten items or if we needed to bail. Secondly, we would only go for 2 nights as to not overstress ourselves. These were awesome decisions since the first night PJ did not want to sleep & I had to bring him home at 10:30pm.
#2. Bring a divided tent! We have a large tent with a divider in the middle. The kids were able to sleep on one side(PJ was in a Pack & Play, Dawn was in a sleeping bag) and we had an air mattress on the other side.
#3. Use a seal-able container for food! It made it very easy to keep the bugs away & to put it in a tent at night to avoid attracting animals.
#1. PLAN! When we were planning our trip we decided on two things. Firstly, we would stay within a 45 min drive of home in case of forgotten items or if we needed to bail. Secondly, we would only go for 2 nights as to not overstress ourselves. These were awesome decisions since the first night PJ did not want to sleep & I had to bring him home at 10:30pm.
#2. Bring a divided tent! We have a large tent with a divider in the middle. The kids were able to sleep on one side(PJ was in a Pack & Play, Dawn was in a sleeping bag) and we had an air mattress on the other side.
#3. Use a seal-able container for food! It made it very easy to keep the bugs away & to put it in a tent at night to avoid attracting animals.
#4. Have a travel high chair! We used a ciao baby portable high chair and it was wonderful for meals & to keep PJ contained away from the fire.
#5. Pack favorite toys from home! We even brought a little tent as the "play tent" for the kids to keep their toys and hang out in without messing up our sleeping tent.
#6. Bring a good stroller! I was so happy we had our Jeep Liberty stroller because we ended up taking it off on some trails exploring a few times.
#7. Kids camping chairs! The kids loved having their own camping chairs around the fire like mom & dad.
#8. Prepare dinners a home & heat on the fire! The first night we had mac&cheese. The second night we had hot dogs wrapped in croissants. It was wonderful to still have a great filling meal cooked over the fire.
#9. Bring the comforts of home! After PJ didnt make it through the first night we realized we forgot his biggest comforts from home & brought his nightlight and white noise machine for the second night. It made all the difference!
#10 Take lots of pictures! You will want to remember all the messy, dirty, fun!
Thanks for sharing! I'm getting ready to have my first baby and Hubby and I love to camp. I will definitely be saving this for later.
ReplyDeleteWhat a coincidence as I just posted our preparation list for camping with a toddler this weekend! Thank you for same great additional tips, especially about the stroller. I have been debating on bringing it or not. Great photos too Mama!
ReplyDeleteTip #8 is massive! I know its stressful thinking about it, but totally made a difference with our camping experience. It's so hard to keep track of tiny feet by yourself in the wilderness and better to keep them contained at home. We also loved back yard camping at first, and camping with friends. More hands on deck the easier it is.
ReplyDeleteThe travel high chair looks so helpful! Sometimes you just need to make sure little ones are contained and safe while you get something done. Thanks for all the tips. I'm going to save this for future reference!
ReplyDeleteAwesome tips! We are planning a trip in the next few weeks. This will definitely come in handy.
ReplyDeleteI love the travel high chair! I have been wanting one for a while now
I don't camp because I hate creepy crawlies and all insects. I would never sleep outside by choice but I can see how this is appealing to families and fun for kids.
ReplyDelete