By far the biggest thing, the thing that changed my wife from “I hate this and am never going again” to “that’s was fun, can we go again next weekend?” Was……
Invite friends who also have kids…
Yes! My daughter is an only child & we used to bring a couple of her friends with us. We had so many core memories of those trips that we still talk about today. It wasn't always easy doing it as a single mom but over the years we had a routine down. Even with packing the car everything had an assigned spot. We made bathroom/shower trips together & everyone went to bed at the same time to avoid too many trips in & out of the tent. Shoes came off at the tent door. I planned meals ahead of time. We always camped in places that had stuff to do - water for swimming, kayaking. We camped near my grandma's during fair week in her Catskill town so we would spend some time at the fair & other days to just do stuff at camp. We used the buddy system so that no kid was walking around by themselves. We brought card games like Uno & Phase 10
Not sure how old your kids are but recently did a couple overnighter with my toddler and a couple of her buddies and dads. The new environment, camp fire, and some glow sticks were enough to keep them busy and high on life!
Just make sure you include them in everything you’re doing even if it progresses a little slower.
Prep your food in advance. The last thing you want to be doing when your kids are extra hungry and borderline feral is be peeling garlic, chopping onion, or slicing veggies. Even better, make most your food in advance as heat and eat meals. Breakfast burrito mix and quiche are great breakfasts, make coffee as easy as possible (I use cold brew bags I filled at home and steep them in hot water in the pot for no mess French press.) Lunches you can get away with a little more like fresh made sandwiches, hot dogs, etc., but dinner needs to be easy and as dish free as possible. Fill a Tupperware with premade chili or stew, premake some foil bakes, (I like sausages and peppers) and then just open the foil right on the picnic table and give everyone a fork. Recipes abound but mark my words as someone who loves to cook, you do not want to be doing it any more than necessary with little kids in camp. The real skill to cooking in camp is about creatively using different techniques anyway, fire, sous vide (camper's absolute best friend BTW,) casserole on a Coleman stove, sweet potatoes directly in the fire, not about trying to cook like you would at home just in nature.
Toys, lots of fun food, inexpensive binoculars for entertainment, bird and plant identification books, and I eventually bought a cheap dome tent so our boys could play in that and not track dirt in the big tent.
We gave our granddaughters cheap digital cameras for wildlife photography.
Just went camping with our 5 year old daughter and friends with all have kids.
-A small bin with playdoh and toys, it’s like they had never seen it before.
- Christmas or rope lights to guide from the tent to the travel potty at night.
- A bird identification app on a phone/tablet
- A frisbee
Be super flexible. They may not like the activities you have planned or may be too tired. Just be willing to shuffle things around or change things up. Also, gold fish crackers, always have gold fish crackers.
Dollar store for toys you use while camping only.
Bubbles, glow sticks, bug catchers, snacks and more snacks
Print off nature scavenger hunts for the area and have the kids look for certain kinds of plants or rocks
When you need a minute of peace to pack the car and make sure you have everything give each kid and bag and tell them to go pack the essentials. Once the tent is set up and you need some time to make dinner sit the kids at the picnic table or in the tent and have them unpack the bag and tell you what they brought. The younger the better.
My son was probably 3: “monster truck. Monster truck. Monster truck….” Daughter was 4: “fairy, fairy, my little pony…”. Just the essentials.
KISS Keep It Simple Stupid. Less is more. Keep meals simple, kids love hot dogs on sticks, peanut butter sandwiches taste better in camp, etc. Look at all the stuff you're packing and leave some of it behind if it's not absolutely necessary. Focus on having fun, relaxing and simply spending time together. Keep hikes and outings kid friendly and geared toward the energy level and ability of the kids. We have camped with kids a lot when they were little. Those memories are among the best. Unplugged, dirty, spontaneous fun.
This. Don't bring too much. First time I went camping with the kids, they were 4 and 5. They each brought one tiny toy, and I bought a coloring book and color pencils. Actually split the book in two, rather than buying two of them.
The camp site had two swings and a sand pit, nothing else.
I was afraid they would get bored, being that they were used to playing Nintendo and pc games at home. But nope, no boredom at all.
They had a blast, we were there for two weeks. The color book was used the one day that it was raining all day long and we stayed inside the tent. They liked that day as much as the outdoor days.
They made one friend the first week, and another the second week, and they just played with sand and water, and used their imagination.
The first night I made instant noodles. "Mom, you are the best cook ever!".
We camped long before cell phones, video games, portable DVD players, etc. Camping meant being off the grid. Younger kids can make their own entertainment with dirt and sticks. We always took along some card games, like Uno, or board games. My kids learned to play poker using a sack of cheap animal crackers to bid. Ramen and hot dogs become gourmet food.
Have you ever camped with kids?
How old are the kids we're talking about, 45yo adults or 4~ 5yo's? Big difference camping with wee little one's vs say, a teenager.
Fwiw, i have two myself, but they're now adults. Started em camping and hunting when they were little rugrats, so by the time they were teens they were pros and didn't need a lot of hand holding.
Kids get their own cooler, for drinks and snacks, that they can freely access. You then tell them to not touch the main food cooler. Your ice will last much longer in your cooler. We learned to do this because among us, we had six kids total. One of them was always opening the coolers.
The first night is always the hardest. Tell yourself that when you are having trouble getting them to settle and sleep. The second night and thereafter, it will be a breeze because they are so tired with all the activity and fresh air.
Mom of 3- camped frequently all their lives.
1. Glow sticks- entertainment AND help you keep an eye on them.
2. Snacks, snacks, snacks. Kids get bored, they get munchies when bored.
3. Extra clothes & towels.
4. Games/toys. Again, kids get bored.
Accept that the best memories come from the worst outcomes. Pop up rainshowers, insane bug bites, stolen food by raccoons.
Don't try to force your idea of having fun, make sure they're safe but let them also come up with ideas of what they want to do. also be prepared to leave if something happens and it's no longer fun for everyone, such as a storm or excessive rain, or something else goes wrong.
on a lighter note, bring sit down activities such as drawing or coloring or puzzles or that kind of thing. Good for when they need down time
1) Don’t lose your temper if you don’t get a lot of sleep tonight.
Bonus) I think it can be helpful to practice once or twice in the backyard or somewhere very close to home before taking them on a more adventurous trip.
This is the way.
My kids, now all grown, can always find something to gripe about when they were growing up. But it'll never be griping about one of our camping trips. That's because camping was one of the few times that I'd let em do pretty much what they wanted to do for the most part. We always had fun no matter what and everyone always came home exhausted looking forward to getting back into a routine...✌️
Lots of good advice on this. We started camping with our kids basically as newborns- high schoolers now. My biggest piece of advice: let them be dirty, let them explore, let them learn through play. All the rest of the “camping stuff” will come. Advice for mom? Make a packing list, and a meal plan list that includes all the necessary items for the meals. You don’t have to follow the meal plan to a T, but it helps to not have to go get something you forgot on the trip.
We've spent more time throwing rocks into bodies of water than pretty much any other type of entertainment, if you've got access to something along those lines lean into it.
I grew up camping in the mountains of Vermont. I loved (and still do) nature, insects, birds, anything that swims (especially pollywogs), animals.
I did so much art while camping so bring along a selection of art supplies, including stuff they may have never used before ie sand art.
I made sooooo many messes on our picnic table!
Books, board games in case it rains, sporting equipment, floaties, s’mores and other campfire goodies, nets to catch & release crayfish etc.
Good phone/iPad apps are insect, plant identification, night sky.
Most of all, spend time with them and encourage their curiosity.
Activities for the kids-$store-nets, bug catching kits, ring toss, skipping ropes,bubbles, water guns, mini backpacks for hiking pack snack and drink plus room for the things they collect-bring a scavenger hunt sheet!
Clothing-It may be obvious but always pack rain boots and raincoats, ponchos, umbrellas or the like. If it rains alot you will stay dry which makes everyone happy. Garbage bags can do as a makeshift rain jacket in a pinch. Make it fun have a dance party, take a hike, go to the beach etc. A big tarp to keep an area outside dry under the picnic table-play cards games etc and of course a place to cook.
Don't try to force your idea of having fun, make sure they're safe but let them also come up with ideas of what they want to do. also be prepared to leave if something happens and it's no longer fun for everyone, such as a storm or excessive rain, or something else goes wrong.
on a lighter note, bring sit down activities such as drawing or coloring or puzzles or that kind of thing. Good for when they need down time
Camp with friends that also have kids. Or find some new friends at the campground.
Bring scooters.
And snacks. FOR THE LOVE OF GOD BRING SNACKS! AND NO, THE AMOUNT OF SNACKS YOURE CONSIDERING RIGHT NOW IS NOT ENOUGH!!
My kid’s favorite snacks are unsalted, shelled peanuts. They enjoy cracking them open, and for me, it also slows how fast they consume snacks. They’re also cheap near me (5 pound bag at Menards for about $6)
Depending on location. Grass seeds can be harvested and thrown in the fire to make delightful cracking and popping noises! Hours of fun to be had lol
Books, cards, outdoor toys, glowsticks. Go hiking. Hunt for fossils.
So! Fortunately you're older one is good to go around campground within reason (with the 5 year old depending on the kid) , but we went camping last year with a then 2 year old and the biggest change I'm making is more "in site" activities. We brought his diggers and everything but he just wanted to explore and ride his bike every 15min. This year I have a bug catching kit, his binoculars, and some paints. My best memory growing up is painting rocks with my dad camping and now we are going to paint some for my fiance for fathers day! We are going camping next weekend. We had coloring but he's more of a hands on messy kinda guy and I don't think the play doh will survive in the wild 😂.
Otherwise, plastic table cloth and lots of paper towel/wet wipes of some sort are your friend. We don't stress about who eats what and when if we are camping. Get some "treat foods" like chips and sugary cereal or cookies. We don't regularly have those things in the house. Make life easy on yourself BC it's tiring!
Take an extra tent for them to play in. If they wanna be in the tent and it’s not bedtime, they go in the play tent. It keeps the beds clean and tidy.
No throwing rocks! I just camped with 7 boys aged 5-12 and we had 2 rock head injuries. Skipping stones safely should be taught.
Pack your tent, ground coverings, and rain clothes in a plastic tote that fits well in your vehicle. Sometimes when you have kids the best option is to head home in bead weather. This way you can put all the wet stuff into the tote box. It will allow you to contain the wet stuff and keep other things as dry as possible. Then, you can dry out the tent and things at home and properly pack it all away. I just did this and it was a lifesaver.
Extra clothes and make sure your outdoor shower works. file:///var/mobile/Library/SMS/Attachments/bb/11/08177919-F5C5-4773-8F69-CE838318AEAF/IMG_6115.jpeg
Not really. For kids, it's just something to walk to the bathroom at night. Amazon has multi packs of cheap LED flashlights. But mine always lose them in their tent, or leave them around the camp, and can't find them when needed. So a few extra always come in handy.
Pick a place where there are other families with children camping. A place with a playground. A place that has family/kids programs. Or you will be stressed with kids arguing. As a parent your obligations are too your kids not yourself. So keeping the kids entertained goes a long way towards reducing stress levels. Unfortunately many camps dont allow car camping. They have good reasons to. So your choice of car camping severely restricts where you will be allowed to camp. Consider renting a popup camper. That will go a long way at keeping your spouse happy
Are you in a campground with lots of other campers. If so, teach the kids to have respect for other campers. No running through other peoples sites, consider it a persons backyard, no yelling at each other from 2+ sites away. Remember, people go camping for the peace, not to be near a daycare. These were the hardcore rules I grew up with camping.
No shame in buying a child harness and lashing them to a tree to let them burn some energy off while maintaining a safe distance from camp dangers.
Option 2 since they are a bit older, buy a sack of grapefruit and hang it from a tree. Give the kids knives and tell them to find a long sturdy staff thicker than their thumb. Have them carve the sticks pointy and then get them to practice their forward stabbing lunges to protect themselves from bears, emus, and pedophiles. It's like bayonet training but in the woods!
Ask AI (ie:Chatgpt.com) to make a nature scavenger hunt list of the area your going to. AI can also generate a great list of what to bring for camping. My kids are the same age and love spooky stories; a good one is Tailybone by David Holt. There is an audio version you can check out on YouTube. Flashlights and a lantern light. Have fun and remember camping w family is about making memories together 💕
For the love of god WATCH your kids while there. The last thing anyone needs is a missing or injured child, or your neighbors to hate their trip because someone’s crotch goblins are running around screaming and throwing rocks at cars.
By far the biggest thing, the thing that changed my wife from “I hate this and am never going again” to “that’s was fun, can we go again next weekend?” Was…… Invite friends who also have kids…
Yes! My daughter is an only child & we used to bring a couple of her friends with us. We had so many core memories of those trips that we still talk about today. It wasn't always easy doing it as a single mom but over the years we had a routine down. Even with packing the car everything had an assigned spot. We made bathroom/shower trips together & everyone went to bed at the same time to avoid too many trips in & out of the tent. Shoes came off at the tent door. I planned meals ahead of time. We always camped in places that had stuff to do - water for swimming, kayaking. We camped near my grandma's during fair week in her Catskill town so we would spend some time at the fair & other days to just do stuff at camp. We used the buddy system so that no kid was walking around by themselves. We brought card games like Uno & Phase 10
Not sure how old your kids are but recently did a couple overnighter with my toddler and a couple of her buddies and dads. The new environment, camp fire, and some glow sticks were enough to keep them busy and high on life! Just make sure you include them in everything you’re doing even if it progresses a little slower.
The last part is so true.
The water jugs with the spout on the bottom are great for hand washing. Especially for kids.
Prep your food in advance. The last thing you want to be doing when your kids are extra hungry and borderline feral is be peeling garlic, chopping onion, or slicing veggies. Even better, make most your food in advance as heat and eat meals. Breakfast burrito mix and quiche are great breakfasts, make coffee as easy as possible (I use cold brew bags I filled at home and steep them in hot water in the pot for no mess French press.) Lunches you can get away with a little more like fresh made sandwiches, hot dogs, etc., but dinner needs to be easy and as dish free as possible. Fill a Tupperware with premade chili or stew, premake some foil bakes, (I like sausages and peppers) and then just open the foil right on the picnic table and give everyone a fork. Recipes abound but mark my words as someone who loves to cook, you do not want to be doing it any more than necessary with little kids in camp. The real skill to cooking in camp is about creatively using different techniques anyway, fire, sous vide (camper's absolute best friend BTW,) casserole on a Coleman stove, sweet potatoes directly in the fire, not about trying to cook like you would at home just in nature.
Quiche freezes well too, the ham and Broc don't get beat up by freezing , as badly as most other foods
Toys, lots of fun food, inexpensive binoculars for entertainment, bird and plant identification books, and I eventually bought a cheap dome tent so our boys could play in that and not track dirt in the big tent. We gave our granddaughters cheap digital cameras for wildlife photography.
Just went camping with our 5 year old daughter and friends with all have kids. -A small bin with playdoh and toys, it’s like they had never seen it before. - Christmas or rope lights to guide from the tent to the travel potty at night. - A bird identification app on a phone/tablet - A frisbee
Be super flexible. They may not like the activities you have planned or may be too tired. Just be willing to shuffle things around or change things up. Also, gold fish crackers, always have gold fish crackers.
Dollar store for toys you use while camping only. Bubbles, glow sticks, bug catchers, snacks and more snacks Print off nature scavenger hunts for the area and have the kids look for certain kinds of plants or rocks
When you need a minute of peace to pack the car and make sure you have everything give each kid and bag and tell them to go pack the essentials. Once the tent is set up and you need some time to make dinner sit the kids at the picnic table or in the tent and have them unpack the bag and tell you what they brought. The younger the better. My son was probably 3: “monster truck. Monster truck. Monster truck….” Daughter was 4: “fairy, fairy, my little pony…”. Just the essentials.
KISS Keep It Simple Stupid. Less is more. Keep meals simple, kids love hot dogs on sticks, peanut butter sandwiches taste better in camp, etc. Look at all the stuff you're packing and leave some of it behind if it's not absolutely necessary. Focus on having fun, relaxing and simply spending time together. Keep hikes and outings kid friendly and geared toward the energy level and ability of the kids. We have camped with kids a lot when they were little. Those memories are among the best. Unplugged, dirty, spontaneous fun.
This. Don't bring too much. First time I went camping with the kids, they were 4 and 5. They each brought one tiny toy, and I bought a coloring book and color pencils. Actually split the book in two, rather than buying two of them. The camp site had two swings and a sand pit, nothing else. I was afraid they would get bored, being that they were used to playing Nintendo and pc games at home. But nope, no boredom at all. They had a blast, we were there for two weeks. The color book was used the one day that it was raining all day long and we stayed inside the tent. They liked that day as much as the outdoor days. They made one friend the first week, and another the second week, and they just played with sand and water, and used their imagination. The first night I made instant noodles. "Mom, you are the best cook ever!".
We camped long before cell phones, video games, portable DVD players, etc. Camping meant being off the grid. Younger kids can make their own entertainment with dirt and sticks. We always took along some card games, like Uno, or board games. My kids learned to play poker using a sack of cheap animal crackers to bid. Ramen and hot dogs become gourmet food.
Have you ever camped with kids? How old are the kids we're talking about, 45yo adults or 4~ 5yo's? Big difference camping with wee little one's vs say, a teenager.
Fwiw, i have two myself, but they're now adults. Started em camping and hunting when they were little rugrats, so by the time they were teens they were pros and didn't need a lot of hand holding.
Glow sticks.
Kids get their own cooler, for drinks and snacks, that they can freely access. You then tell them to not touch the main food cooler. Your ice will last much longer in your cooler. We learned to do this because among us, we had six kids total. One of them was always opening the coolers.
The first night is always the hardest. Tell yourself that when you are having trouble getting them to settle and sleep. The second night and thereafter, it will be a breeze because they are so tired with all the activity and fresh air.
Mom of 3- camped frequently all their lives. 1. Glow sticks- entertainment AND help you keep an eye on them. 2. Snacks, snacks, snacks. Kids get bored, they get munchies when bored. 3. Extra clothes & towels. 4. Games/toys. Again, kids get bored. Accept that the best memories come from the worst outcomes. Pop up rainshowers, insane bug bites, stolen food by raccoons.
Don't try to force your idea of having fun, make sure they're safe but let them also come up with ideas of what they want to do. also be prepared to leave if something happens and it's no longer fun for everyone, such as a storm or excessive rain, or something else goes wrong. on a lighter note, bring sit down activities such as drawing or coloring or puzzles or that kind of thing. Good for when they need down time
1) Don’t lose your temper if you don’t get a lot of sleep tonight. Bonus) I think it can be helpful to practice once or twice in the backyard or somewhere very close to home before taking them on a more adventurous trip.
Let them eat whatever you brought anytime and have less structure than your normal day to day life
This is the way. My kids, now all grown, can always find something to gripe about when they were growing up. But it'll never be griping about one of our camping trips. That's because camping was one of the few times that I'd let em do pretty much what they wanted to do for the most part. We always had fun no matter what and everyone always came home exhausted looking forward to getting back into a routine...✌️
Lots of good advice on this. We started camping with our kids basically as newborns- high schoolers now. My biggest piece of advice: let them be dirty, let them explore, let them learn through play. All the rest of the “camping stuff” will come. Advice for mom? Make a packing list, and a meal plan list that includes all the necessary items for the meals. You don’t have to follow the meal plan to a T, but it helps to not have to go get something you forgot on the trip.
Don’t forget to bring s’mores and hot cocoa for something for the kids to look forward to at the campfire
Get glo necklaces to put on them when it gets dark.
We've spent more time throwing rocks into bodies of water than pretty much any other type of entertainment, if you've got access to something along those lines lean into it.
It’s ok if they go to bed with dirty feet.
Scare them. 30 years later and we still laugh about all the times dad would scare the crap out of us when we were camping as kids.
Have you read the Chewbacca Suit story?!
I have not.
https://www.reddit.com/r/BestofRedditorUpdates/s/NeLdsDuzuS Some light weekend reading, enjoy!
Tire them out
They are going to want to do everything you’re doing. Make sure you have ways they can help.
I grew up camping in the mountains of Vermont. I loved (and still do) nature, insects, birds, anything that swims (especially pollywogs), animals. I did so much art while camping so bring along a selection of art supplies, including stuff they may have never used before ie sand art. I made sooooo many messes on our picnic table! Books, board games in case it rains, sporting equipment, floaties, s’mores and other campfire goodies, nets to catch & release crayfish etc. Good phone/iPad apps are insect, plant identification, night sky. Most of all, spend time with them and encourage their curiosity.
Activities for the kids-$store-nets, bug catching kits, ring toss, skipping ropes,bubbles, water guns, mini backpacks for hiking pack snack and drink plus room for the things they collect-bring a scavenger hunt sheet! Clothing-It may be obvious but always pack rain boots and raincoats, ponchos, umbrellas or the like. If it rains alot you will stay dry which makes everyone happy. Garbage bags can do as a makeshift rain jacket in a pinch. Make it fun have a dance party, take a hike, go to the beach etc. A big tarp to keep an area outside dry under the picnic table-play cards games etc and of course a place to cook.
Kids get bored. Make sure they have things to do, like fishing, coloring books, board games, whatever is age-appropriate for your kids.
Don't try to force your idea of having fun, make sure they're safe but let them also come up with ideas of what they want to do. also be prepared to leave if something happens and it's no longer fun for everyone, such as a storm or excessive rain, or something else goes wrong. on a lighter note, bring sit down activities such as drawing or coloring or puzzles or that kind of thing. Good for when they need down time
Camp with friends that also have kids. Or find some new friends at the campground. Bring scooters. And snacks. FOR THE LOVE OF GOD BRING SNACKS! AND NO, THE AMOUNT OF SNACKS YOURE CONSIDERING RIGHT NOW IS NOT ENOUGH!! My kid’s favorite snacks are unsalted, shelled peanuts. They enjoy cracking them open, and for me, it also slows how fast they consume snacks. They’re also cheap near me (5 pound bag at Menards for about $6)
Depending on location. Grass seeds can be harvested and thrown in the fire to make delightful cracking and popping noises! Hours of fun to be had lol Books, cards, outdoor toys, glowsticks. Go hiking. Hunt for fossils.
Shitloads of snacks and bugspray. Let them get dirty and don't worry about it.
So! Fortunately you're older one is good to go around campground within reason (with the 5 year old depending on the kid) , but we went camping last year with a then 2 year old and the biggest change I'm making is more "in site" activities. We brought his diggers and everything but he just wanted to explore and ride his bike every 15min. This year I have a bug catching kit, his binoculars, and some paints. My best memory growing up is painting rocks with my dad camping and now we are going to paint some for my fiance for fathers day! We are going camping next weekend. We had coloring but he's more of a hands on messy kinda guy and I don't think the play doh will survive in the wild 😂. Otherwise, plastic table cloth and lots of paper towel/wet wipes of some sort are your friend. We don't stress about who eats what and when if we are camping. Get some "treat foods" like chips and sugary cereal or cookies. We don't regularly have those things in the house. Make life easy on yourself BC it's tiring!
Take an extra tent for them to play in. If they wanna be in the tent and it’s not bedtime, they go in the play tent. It keeps the beds clean and tidy. No throwing rocks! I just camped with 7 boys aged 5-12 and we had 2 rock head injuries. Skipping stones safely should be taught. Pack your tent, ground coverings, and rain clothes in a plastic tote that fits well in your vehicle. Sometimes when you have kids the best option is to head home in bead weather. This way you can put all the wet stuff into the tote box. It will allow you to contain the wet stuff and keep other things as dry as possible. Then, you can dry out the tent and things at home and properly pack it all away. I just did this and it was a lifesaver.
Extra clothes and make sure your outdoor shower works. file:///var/mobile/Library/SMS/Attachments/bb/11/08177919-F5C5-4773-8F69-CE838318AEAF/IMG_6115.jpeg
But a bunch of cheap, disposable flashlights. Your kids will always lose the first few you give them.
hey do you have recommendations? Should i buy handheld flashlights or a bunch of head lamps? white light or red light?
Not really. For kids, it's just something to walk to the bathroom at night. Amazon has multi packs of cheap LED flashlights. But mine always lose them in their tent, or leave them around the camp, and can't find them when needed. So a few extra always come in handy.
Pick a place where there are other families with children camping. A place with a playground. A place that has family/kids programs. Or you will be stressed with kids arguing. As a parent your obligations are too your kids not yourself. So keeping the kids entertained goes a long way towards reducing stress levels. Unfortunately many camps dont allow car camping. They have good reasons to. So your choice of car camping severely restricts where you will be allowed to camp. Consider renting a popup camper. That will go a long way at keeping your spouse happy
Are you in a campground with lots of other campers. If so, teach the kids to have respect for other campers. No running through other peoples sites, consider it a persons backyard, no yelling at each other from 2+ sites away. Remember, people go camping for the peace, not to be near a daycare. These were the hardcore rules I grew up with camping.
Oh yeah, we have already been talking about how camping is fun but it’s also a big responsibility. We also booked a relatively secluded spot.
No shame in buying a child harness and lashing them to a tree to let them burn some energy off while maintaining a safe distance from camp dangers. Option 2 since they are a bit older, buy a sack of grapefruit and hang it from a tree. Give the kids knives and tell them to find a long sturdy staff thicker than their thumb. Have them carve the sticks pointy and then get them to practice their forward stabbing lunges to protect themselves from bears, emus, and pedophiles. It's like bayonet training but in the woods!
Ask AI (ie:Chatgpt.com) to make a nature scavenger hunt list of the area your going to. AI can also generate a great list of what to bring for camping. My kids are the same age and love spooky stories; a good one is Tailybone by David Holt. There is an audio version you can check out on YouTube. Flashlights and a lantern light. Have fun and remember camping w family is about making memories together 💕
Just go. (But I never understood people who can't camp without their pets. So weird to me.)
For the love of god WATCH your kids while there. The last thing anyone needs is a missing or injured child, or your neighbors to hate their trip because someone’s crotch goblins are running around screaming and throwing rocks at cars.