One of my favorite memories of the single life is camping. Without children to pack for, I could be out the door 30 minutes after making the decision to go. What a feeling of freedom!
Now that I have children, camping just isn’t the same. Many parents who take their children camping own trailers and generators. Using a generator to run the same appliances you would use at home just isn’t the same for some of us.
Can you still “rough it” when camping with children? Of course you can, and like anything else, you can use it as a teaching opportunity. Have your kids help you plan what to bring. Determine which items are actual necessitates and teach your kids to pack these items first.
After the necessities have been packed, let your kids select a few of the other items. Ask them which items will make the trip more fun and which items will easily fit into their bag.
Food is the next thing to plan. How are you going to cook your food? What utensils will you need? Make sure you plan ahead so you don’t spend all day and night cooking or realize you have all canned food and no can opener.
Every parent has heard the phrase “there’s nothing to do.” Camping is an opportunity to teach kids to find things to do in nature. Go walking, watch the stars, play in the dirt – enjoy the surroundings.
Nature provides an endless supply of entertainment. Children who have never been camping may be skeptical of this at first, but they’ll soon see how much fun can be had without all their gadgets of modern technology. Lead by example by appreciating all that nature has to offer.
Now that I have children, camping will never again be as easy to plan for as it once was. But it is more rewarding than I ever dreamed possible.
The writer also regularly contributes articles about products including home monitoring system and do it yourself home security cameras.
