5 Tips for Camping Fun!

We go camping every year for Cassandra's birthday and Mexican Mother's Day. I believe the tradition started when Cass was little and that was what her mom wanted for Mother's Day, so off they would go every year to the same camp grounds and spend about 4 days. This is only my 3rd year being of part of this tradition, and I love it! When her family camps, they camp in style, with a Cabelas set up kitchen, shower/bathroom tent, pop up ramada over the picnic table and 2 people per 8-10 man tent.  Seriously, we have people stop by and comment on how nice the set up is and ask how long we've been camping. We always have a blast and sit by the creek and fish as much as possible. So, here are the few camping tips I've  learned in the past three years.

1.) Styrofoam will keep your buns toasty. Cassandra's dad always takes rectangular Styrofoam pieces that he cuts in half long ways and duct tapes to the concrete picnic tables. This is GENIUS...not only does it add a bit of comfort, it also keeps your bottom really warm when it is super cold and the concrete is even colder. Seriously, I would highly encourage you to give it a try. You can get Styrofoam at Lowes or The Home Depot for $5.00, you may need 2 to cover the benches, but it will be worth the $10.00!

2.) When you camp, everybody pitches in. Cassandras parents said it a few times, "when we camp, everybody works." Truth be told, I napped the first 2 days, and they were glorious naps...however, I also helped cook, wash the dishes and put food away at night. Let's face it, there's not a lot of cleaning to do when camping, but nobody should have to do all of the cooking or washing. Also, this makes set up and take down go by much faster. I was not looking forward to packing up at the end of our trip, but it went by quickly and smoothly because we all pitched in. Even Albert packed up his toys.

3.)Socks. You cannot take too many pairs of socks camping. Even if it's hot they may get wet in the creek, or full of sand or whatever else can happen to socks. We happened to camp during a cold front and we doubled up on socks while Mr. A usually had 3 pair on. I'm a desert rat so I don't like being cold as it is, but when my feet are freezing it's just horrible. 

4.) Don't forget the games. We did. We still had a lot of fun, but I was really looking forward to playing dominoes. I guess I was too focused on packing enough socks, that I forgot the dominoes.

5.) Smores are a must! Here's my secret. I like to place the chocolate on the graham crackers and place them near the fire (usually there's a ledge or a little grill) and let the chocolate get melty while I toast the mallows. So yum. 

We love to fish and Cass makes her own bait by mixing cheddar cheese with garlic powder and little bit of flour to bind it. The trout loved it. We were also told by a little boy that he uses corn and tosses a hand full in right after he casts. We saw a guy doing it and he was reeling them in! We had fresh trout for lunch one of the days and mmm mmm it was delish!

Summer is here and it is always good to reconnect with nature, so get out there and enjoy the great outdoors. Remember to clean up after yourselves and give your left over firewood and Styrofoam padding to your camping neighbors.

Time for my shameless plug: 

These fishing lures are handmade and flat out awesome! They make a great addition to your tackle box or a great gift for Father's Day which is just around the corner. You can order them here.

I take special orders and try to accommodate your bottle cap requests.