Roam With Friends

Tag: camping with children

Mother’s Day Weekend 2021
To camping fanatics and outdoorsy mom’s there isn’t a much better way to spend Mother’s Day weekend than at the campground. We spent the holiday at Wallace State Park in Cameron, Missouri.

Thanks to a well placed Missouri State holiday (former President Harry S. Truman’s birthday) we got a three day weekend and an extra day of camping. Is there a better Mother’s Day gift than a day off work?

Thursday night was cold but clear. As we sat outside talking our 5 year old points out the most bizarre site. Lights traveling across the sky in a straight line. Very uniform. Very bright. Well after moments of uncertainty we started googling. Have you had the opportunity to see Elon Musk’s Starlink satellites? Well, we can say we have!
We spent Friday traveling to Jamesport, MO to the annual May Days festival. We visited the Amish community for baked treats, spices, and flowers. Then we visited all the venders in town for extra shopping. We found a small town grocery store that makes fresh deli sandwiches for lunch. Try not to judge but I was able to have a childhood favorite: white bread, liver cheese, Mayo, lettuce, and onion! Best sandwich for $3.99!

Saturday, my son and daughter-in-love and his best friend joined us at the campground. The sketchy weather kept changing to our favor and we ended up with a sunny, windy, slightly chilly day. So we made the best of what we were given by playing bags and sharing a few meals.
The forecasted storms found us late Saturday night early Sunday morning. The rain, thunder, cooler temps made for perfect sleeping weather! The only person disturbed by the storm was our dog, Moose. I woke to find he and I nose to nose and he sought comfort from the thunder.

Sunday morning was cold, damp but full of friendships, food, and fellowship. The men made us moms a wonderful camp breakfast with Mimosas and chiliquilas!
- The whole gang soaking up sunshine and company.
- Beautiful Mommas
Food:

Just sharing some of the yummy food we consumed on this camping trip!
Top left: Elote on the Blackstone. Definitely a do-over! Top middle: what goes better with Elote than homemade guacamole! Top left: Bloody Mary Grilled Cheese with bacon and pickles. A crowd pleaser! Bottom: chiliquilas with a over medium egg and mushrooms
We also enjoyed the heck out of a new cocktail! A Raspberry Mint Smash! We used a 3 ounces of a local Raspberry Liqueur, 1 3/4 ounces of a local Rosemary Mint simple syrup, 3/4 ounce of lime juice, and a splash of tonic water. You may not have access to the local ingredients but I think you should be able to find easy substitutions. Otherwise order online!
Random Photos:
- We got the new Yeti colors (Aquifer Blue and Prickly Pear) customized!
- How cute is this burrito?
- S’more fun!
- Pretty red bird came to bid us farewell.
- This guy is new to RV’ing and is excited!
- Moose the camping dog.
- Ruby Lou ready for the weekend
39.655520 -94.218223
May 9, 2021
Should You Agree To Camping With Your Child’s Friends?

If you have children and you camp, then I am going to guess you have at least mentally tackled the question: do you allow friends of our children to go along on camping trips? We have two children (with a significant gap between ages) and quickly found ourselves pondering this question very early on in our camping journey. Because of the way we camp, group camping with friends, our daughter has a playmate at every single camping trip but that has never been the case for our oldest.

We had a popup trailer the first time The Boy asked us if he could bring a friend along on a camping trip. Wayne and I processed the request differently. I started calculating bed space and extra food. He never made it past the bathroom situation. The popup camper had a cassette toilet and the only privacy was a shower curtain. Knowing an unrelated person was behind the curtain made him super nervous. We never took that friend camping but we did start looking for a different camper.

The great thing about children is they continuously present you with second chances. Last year The Boy asked if he could take his best friend along on our family vacation to the Smoky Mountains. Two weeks traveling in the campers with The Todd family. It was a simple request on the surface but not a simply decision.

There are several considerations for us to mentally think through before we agree to take another child on a trip with us. Even though we enjoy less structure during our trips, there are still camper rules: pick up after yourself, no running or jumping in the camper, no feet on furniture, and leave the outside voices outside to name a few. There are even campground rules: respect the other campers, no cutting through other campsites, quiet hours, no wondering off alone or without permission. The question we must ask ourselves is, “can this guest follow our rules or be redirected if needed.” Our agreement to take another child camping with us hinges on the answer to this question.

If we make it past the first step, the second step is to ponder the personality of the invited guest. Your child obviously gets along well with this friend but how well does the rest of the family? At the core you are simply assessing family dynamics. The addition of one can, and will, alter the status quo of your family. Big brother can be less likely to play with younger sister when his friend is around. Hopefully this child has spent some time around your family so you can assess what type of impact their presence will have on your camping trip. Do they interact with everyone in the family? Are they standoffish? Do they join in during activities or do they watch from the side lines? Camping trips can be fun moments for a family full of adventure and new experiences but also be full of moments of down time. Do you know enough about the invited guest to make an informed decision about the impact they will have on the camping trip just by being there?

I am thankful that my children love camping, and even love camping with us. I can count on them to be salesmen when talking to their friends. They are going to point out all the reasons that camping is cool and why their friends should go along with us. I, on the other-hand, am the realist. I want to explain to their friend all things that a novice to camping might not think is cool. Things like; all the kids sleep in the same room, or that conserving water is a really big deal to us and all showering will happen at the campground bathhouse. I will even let them know about lack of internet, cell service, general activities we engage in, and the fact that we generally do not eat out. I am hoping that between my children glamorizing our time together and my realistic preview, the guest has a good idea of what is about to go down if they decide to join us for a camping trip.

I would imagine some would add expense to the list of considerations; and I believe that is valid. Of course and extra person comes with expenses: food, activities, or even camping fees (some private campgrounds charge a per person fee). There are ways of handling the extra expense. You could ask the parent to cover some of those cost but we have always taken the stance that if we take on the responsibility of taking another child we also take on that expense. This has worked for us.

Lastly, before we say yes, we go right back to the popup camper and the close quarters. Do you have physical space for another child? Everyone needs privacy and a sense of boundaries. Families have a long history of establishing these but a newcomer to that mix won’t have that history. Walking around in your skivvies may feel comfortable at home or in your camper with your family but suddenly with a stranger present feels inappropriate and naughty. Even having a cocktail after dinner feels different when looked at from a strangers perspective.

We did consent to taking our sons friend with us on a two week vacation. The inclusion of one more balanced things out for us; everyone had a buddy and everyone got along so well. I actually think we had less sibling spats on that trip than we have ever had. The vacation ended up being one of the best vacations we have ever had. My son and his best friend still talk about that vacation and the memories they made and now share.

We have said yes to taking other friends of our children on trips since then (our camper upgrade in 2015 has made that so much easier). We love camping and love sharing that with others. Every time a child goes with us and they say, “I have never done this before,” “I did not know that,” or even, “this is so cool,” we get excited. We hope that we are planting a seed, a seed that will continue to grow and might just develop into a love for the outdoors and for camping. We hope we are introducing a new generation to something they will see as an escape, or a way to disconnect from a busy world, or a lifestyle. Enjoying life can be about small moments. Our biggest hope is that besides our own two children, one of the “extra” kids we have taken camping will grow up to be a camper.

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May 16, 2017
Growing Up Camping

This week we have a special guest post by our friend, Meeghan. Meeghan grew up being a camper; something I did not. Today, she shares her childhood memories as well as her camping hopes for her own children.

Growing up, camping is what my family always did for vacation. We camped at many of the state parks in Nebraska. Camping seemed to be the most affordable thing for our family of 6 six. I credit my mom for always making these camping trips fun and of course memorable. We always had good meals and dessert; we always rode our bikes or skateboards all over the place, went on hikes, swam at the pool and if available went horseback riding. Camping was one of my most favorite things to do as a child and is still to this day.

As a very young child we always camped in a big green tent (see picture above from Louisville State Park Louisville, NE near Omaha). The tent was an old Boy Scout tent that my dad received from a friend. The tent was quite complicated to put together. I remember my dad cursing the entire time because it never seemed easy to find which pole went with which. But when he finally accomplished this task I vividly remember standing in the middle of the tent and feeling it was so HUGE! I remembered the plastic tarp that covered the ground was so loud to walk across – nothing quiet about it. I remember the big metal zippers that this tent had – weird thing to remember, huh, but many of you may remember the old camping tents and pop-up campers had these types of metal zippers. Do any of you remember these kind of zippers? My older brother, Colin, remembers camping during a rainstorm and water rushing through the bottom of the tent – obviously this tent was not up to waterproof standards of tents today!

We eventually graduated to a popup! (See picture above – Two Rivers State Park in Waterloo, NE also near Omaha). I loved this camper! Some of my fondest memories are camping in this popup! My dad paid next to nothing for the popup and traveled out of state to get it.

There was no electricity – we always used the faithful old Coleman lantern for light at night. I can still recall getting ready for bed in this old camper by that light. The only hook up was water. Everything else was manual – you had to crank the handle by the hitch to raise the tent part and then you slid the beds out. I used to be so excited to take my turn at cracking the handle. There was an old ice chest that you had to use a block of ice to keep the food cold – normally we just used coolers to keep our food. The camper came fully stocked with bowls, plates, and silverware – I mean real silver! I now have all the silverware in my camper and use it regularly!

The one table in the camper was always pulled down for a bed. If I remember correctly, my older brother always got to sleep on the table bed and he never had to share with anyone else. It’s lucky to be the oldest! The rest of the family bunked-up on either of the side beds – mom and dad on one side and my little sister, little brother and I bunked on the other.

All our meals were eaten outside on the sites picnic table and/or foldable table we carried around with us. I don’t remember eating extravagant meals for breakfast – always cereal. Although, for dinner my mom always did something fun. Many times mom cooked over the fire in a pie iron. And for dessert we made tin can ice cream.

Tin can ice cream was always a must whenever we camped and you automatically made friends with other campers while making it. The photo above is my sister and a family friend rolling the can back and forth to mix the ice cream. Inside the big can is a smaller can with all the ice cream ingredients. Surrounding the smaller can is ice and rock salt. As you the roll the back and forth the cans get colder and colder with the motion and the ice cream is made. This whole process takes about 30 minutes – with the making and the rolling included. It’s one of my fondest memories camping.

I’m not exactly sure when we stopped camping. The popup was eventually no longer able to be camped in and purchased by a man who made it into a trailer. It was sad to see it go but the memories will forever remain.

When I met my husband we always camped in a tent on air mattresses. We did this for a few years including some wonderfully fun trips with Pam and her family!

(Smith Fork Campground Smithville, MO)

We started building our family and once we had children we never made it back to roughing it in a tent. In 2012 we purchased a travel trailer, a 34 foot 2007 Summerland with one slide. It has bunks for the kids and queen bed for us. It has been the best thing ever! My children love it! It’s the perfect size. As I am writing this I realize my children have really never slept in a tent. Shocking I know! I’m not sure if this makes us officially bad parents but we have been able to provide them with some wonderful camping with good meals and campfires

My husband’s family has a family campground near White Cloud, KS right on the Mighty Missouri River. This is the only place our camper has ever been and the only place our children have ever camped.

Nine other campers sit on the property all family. Our campground has full hookups. We leave our camper there all summer and we go up on the weekends from April to October. The campground has a boat ramp and a dock for all of the family fishermen.

We also have a building that we call a cook shack which all of our meals are cooked in. You haven’t had a breakfast until you’ve eaten breakfast at a the river. We also cook our dinner meals in the cook shack where we have anything from fish to steaks to fried chicken. Lots of laughter has taken place in the cook shack. Great memories have been made here.

To us our family campground isn’t like any other campground around. The memories we have made as a family and that our children have made will never be forgotten. Our children and their cousins have the best time in the world each and every weekend. Without the camper I’m not sure they would be as close as they are.

We worry as our children grow and become more active in sports that our time at the river will be less and less. As we see this happens our hearts begin to hurt a bit. We know there will also come a time when our children are “too cool” for the river. This too will be a hard day for us. But before this happens there plenty of camping trips that I would like to take! I’m ecstatic to have the river and I know each and every time we’re there is a great time; but I very much want to take our camper other places! I want my children to experience setting up our camping site and making friends with other children who are camping too and to ride their bikes throughout the campground. We definitely have many luxuries at the river and I want my children to see what camping can really be. Our next big family vacation will be taking the camper somewhere. Not sure where because there are just so many place we would like to roam. I can hardly wait!

September 25, 2016
Group Camping vs Solo Camping

A study I read many years ago keeps coming back to me, it was a study about parental workload with multiple children. The study reported that as parents had multiple children their workload did not increase, in fact, it suggested that no more effort was required to parent three versus one. This was attributed to the idea that siblings entertained each other.

Whether this holds true for family workload, it certainly has some rings of truth to me. It also holds the basis for our decision to camp as part of a group versus solo camping. We have two children but their age ranges are wide (eleven years difference) which means they are just developmentally into different things. The Todd’s have one child who is the same age as our daughter.

Our very first camping experience was three years ago. We planned a long holiday weekend together at a local county park near a lake. We tented camped that trip and it was hot. Missouri hot; sticky and humid! Angie and I coordinated our meals that trip purely to address the “I want to eat what she is eating” potential. On the way home from that weekend, The Short Chic informed that she had the best weekend of her life!

We all found that we could sit and relax because the girls entertained each other. They were happy just playing with dolls in the tent and we had more down time for us. We found the holy grail of family weekends: me time, us time, family time, and friend time.

We have been group camping for three years now. Most of the time our group is just two families: The Taylor’s and The Todd’s. Occasionally our group has reached nearly ten families as we have found other friends who RV or camp. We have also gone solo camping when work schedules just could not be coordinated. Solo trips still provide an opportunity to unplug, rewind, and allow us to connect to nature. However, there is something a miss during those trips; our buddies. We find we spend the weekend wondering what our camping buddies are doing. We communicate frequently through text message. And on solo trips, trust me, the girls have let each of us know they were bored and camping without each other was no fun!

I am sure you have experienced at least one group vacation before and know that it is a very delicate balance to meet everyone’s needs. The smallest thing can upset the apple cart and leave a bad taste in everyone’s mouth. To avoid that, group camping takes a little more negotiating and planning than solo camping.

We find ourselves talking about and negotiating the dates for trips, destinations, departure times, travel routes, as well as weekend menu. We divide up a grocery list. We find ourselves balancing preparing food, with cooking, and finally with clean up.

I don’t want to sugar coat any part of our camping experience. There are moments, that everyone just needs alone time, moments when you do not want to be social and hang out, and even moments after a week’s vacation that you are just done. Those moments are to be expected and when they occur, everyone just backs up and provides that space.

After three years, we have developed a ying and yang, a give and take, a sweet and salty pairing that works for us. Our common goal is to get away, enjoy life, and create an experience for ourselves and our children.

February 6, 2016