Pages

Thursday, August 12, 2010

Camping with a Toddler

On Monday we are leaving to go on our annual huckleberry picking trip with Andrew's side of the family. I've been working on preparing mentally for this trip... and let's just say John is a busy boy, so I've been scouring the Internet for any tips on making our trip safe and fun for John (and us). I'm not worried about the "fun" part because John loves being outside and is always leading me to the door during the day because he wants to play outside - so he will have a blast camping. I just worry about him getting cold at night, walking too close to the fire, being exposed to mosquitoes, tripping over roots... I'm just a worrier!

Here are the websites that I have found most helpful so far:
  1. 5 Tips for camping with a toddler
  2. Camping with kids
Theses aren't really related to kids, but they are still helpful:
  1. KOA camping checklist
  2. Camping Recipes
  3. About.com camping checklist
Do you have any advice for me?? Please leave a comment and let me know! Thanks =)

3 comments:

  1. Expect the worst. Hope for the best. Camping with toddlers can be tough!

    Every time we have gone camping with the boys the first night has always been HORRIBLE (one time when Isaac was a little over two years old he was up singing/ screaming/ crying from 11 pmish to 3 am) We finally gave him Tylenol to help him calm down and go to sleep.

    But it got better after that.

    All through that night I just kept telling myself over and over - this will be funny someday. You'll look back and laugh. And I was right - it is funny to me now (a little bit :) )

    Good Luck! It gets easier the more you do it. And it is worth it. Think of all the fun memories you all are creating!

    ReplyDelete
  2. We've gone camping with Lydia twice this summer and it's gone great both times! We have one more trip planned for Labor Day weekend.

    Advice: don't worry too much about dirt consumption. It's not worth it. It just contributes to the bushel he'll eat in his lifetime. Bring easy finger food for him and plenty of wipes for hands/face/etc. Lydia's a warm little body so we haven't had too hard of a time overnight, but we dress her in her warmest sleeper - sometimes 2 and then if she seems cold I put her in my sleeping bag. The thing we've had a harder time with was napping. She naps reasonably well in the Ergo, so we tried to work out ways that she'd fall asleep at conducive naptimes. We also don't normally pressure a certain bedtime, so we let her sit up with us until she fell asleep on my lap around the campfire. I just didn't want to fight her.

    You'll do great! Have a good time.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I can't wait to hear your thoughts. We've done a lot of day hikes with Elena, but I don't think she's ever slept overnight in a tent. That's the part I'm most nervous about, and the mosquitos. Sounds like he'll have lots of arms to hold him and laps to sit in! Hope you guys have a great time!

    ReplyDelete