• Who is Kat Biggie?
    • My Other Sites
  • Kathryn’s Story
  • My Books
    • Lose the Cape
    • Meltdowns Book
  • Products I Recommend
    • Product Reviews
    • Book Reviews
  • My Writing Elsewhere…
    • My Writing
    • I Have Guest Posted Here!
    • Advertise/PR
    • Disclosure Policy
    • Find Me Here!

No Holding Back

Living With Purpose

  • Momvocate
    • Children’s Health
    • Motherhood
    • March of Dimes
    • activism
    • Call to Action
    • ADD/ADHD
    • TTTS
    • Maternal Health
    • Newborn Health
    • Prematurity
    • Do Good Feel Good
      • Philanthropy
      • Social Good
  • Healthy Body
    • Children’s Health
    • Health
      • Gluten Free
      • Recipes
    • Fitness
    • Healthy Environment
      • green living
    • TTTS
  • Healthy Mind
    • Healthy Mind
    • Depression
    • Healthy Spirit
  • Grief/Bereavement Support
    • grief
      • Pregnancy & Infant Loss Awareness Month
    • infant loss

9 Things NOT to do when camping with kids

August 31, 2015 By katbiggie 5 Comments

We finally took the whole family, including the dog, on a full weekend camping trip. It was great. Well, mostly great! I thought I was prepared and had done a lot of research into what TO do when camping with small children, but we learned quickly there are several things NOT to do when camping with kids.

  • Do NOT over pack clothes. The kids repeat-wore most of their clothes. I was okay with that. They were comfortable, and who cares? We were in the wilderness.
  • Do NOT pack new or nicer shoes. I had just pulled a pair of Stride Right tennis shoes out of the attic for Tiny to wear. Somewhere during the trip, we lost one. Easy come, easy go.
  • Do NOT forget some kind of activity for them at the campsite. Card games, easy board games, outside toys – anything like that. While I just wanted to relax and read my book in front of the fire, the three kids were, of course, bored. So I was really glad my husband grabbed the Old Maid game right before we left the house.

  • Do NOT try to pre-assign sleeping arrangements. We thought we had it all figured out. We had a little mini pop-up camper that had a double bed and a pull out couch. JD and I figured that he and I and Tiny would share the big bed and Bug and Jelly Bean would sleep on the pull out couch. WRONG. After much arguing, crying, and some yelling, we finally settled in after 11pm with me, Tiny, and Jelly Bean on the bed. The boys were on the pullout couch, feet to head.

what not to do when camping with kids

  • Do NOT assume that your kids are going to want to rest and relax like you do. Our kids were crazy excited and all over the place. However, on Saturday we wore them out with a jampacked day of hiking, picnicking, swimming, and a bonfire. We were all worn out and in bed by 8:00pm!

hiking

 

  • Do NOT try to over plan your trip. JD wanted to also fit in a canoeing trip, but we were all beat after hiking and swimming. Instead, we opted for an early bonfire, smores before dinner, easy hot dog/burgers dinner, a couple games of Old Maid, and off to bed.
  • If you have a dog, Do NOT leave your dog on a leash/chain outside during the night. I wasn’t really worried about her because we were in a fairly populated campground, but at some point in the middle of the night, another animal attacked. I heard the dog scream, yelp, and bark hysterically. I remember jolting out of my sleep, screaming “Mia!!!” and trying desperately to untangle myself, get off the bed and out of the door as fast as I could. I honestly thought she was being eaten by another animal. By the time we got out, the other animal was gone, and she was fine. Scared out of her wits, but fine. Our guess is that a raccoon came up (another don’t – don’t leave the dog food bowl out!) and got too close, scaring Mia into a fit. We packed up her pillow and brought her inside the camper. Poor puppy.
mia on guard

Mia on guard – high alert!

 

  • Do NOT forget the First Aid Kit. I almost didn’t pack it, but thankfully my husband put it on the packing list. It was definitely needed on this trip.
  • This 9th tip applies to all of us who are prone to get hurt: If there is some kind of a crazy event, Do NOT try to scramble outside of a pop up camper so fast that you wind up cutting your hand all up and really bruising your arm. At least, try to avoid those situations! I don’t really know what happened, but I noticed after we got Mia settled down that my hand was pretty sliced up. I noticed the bruising on my arm the next morning. It must have happened when I crashed through the metal door.

boo boo

butterfly bruise

Overall, despite my crazy injuries, we had a great time. The kids enjoyed it, we learned a lot of lessons on what to do better next time, and we decided this is something we’ll do again and again.

What lessons have you learned while on a family camping trip? Any pointers on what things NOT to do while camping with kids?

 

Come #LosetheCape with us! Available on Amazon. The perfect book for ALL busy moms!

Lose-the-Cape-Sized-1

Related Posts

  • Getting in the holiday spirit #makeaholidayfaceGetting in the holiday spirit #makeaholidayface
  • Day of HopeDay of Hope
  • Awkward…Awkward…
  • This House Needs a MouseThis House Needs a Mouse
  • Let’s Light the White House Purple for Preemies!Let’s Light the White House Purple for Preemies!
  • Still {International Bereaved Mother's Day}Still {International Bereaved Mother's Day}
  • Author
  • Recent Posts

katbiggie

Freelance writer at Kat Biggie Press
Alexa B, who blogs as "Kat Biggie" is a wife, mother, and writer. She has three children and one in heaven. She recently self published a book entitled "Sunshine After the Storm: A Survival Guide for the Grieving Mother" which is available on Amazon. She blogs about life after the loss of one of her twin daughters to TTTS, motherhood, all things parenting, advocacy, grief support and social good.

Latest posts by katbiggie (see all)

  • What to say when a baby dies ; words of comfort - October 31, 2019
  • Try listening to her, not fixing her – October 15th - October 15, 2019
  • Pregnancy & Infant Loss Awareness Book Bundle - October 3, 2019

katbiggie on Google+

Related

Filed Under: Life Tagged With: Camping, camping with kids, Hiking

Comments

  1. Janine Huldie says

    August 31, 2015 at 12:25 pm

    Glad you all had a great time and will admit not much of a camper here, but definitely awesome advice for those who are or planning on trying.
    Janine Huldie recently posted…Disney Family Vacations – It’s the Memory That LastsMy Profile

    Reply
  2. Nicole Johnson says

    September 1, 2015 at 12:46 am

    We’ve never camped but I imagine we wouldn’t be very good at it. I’m glad your family had a great time though, minus the injuries–they look like they were painful!
    Nicole Johnson recently posted…How the Fu*k Do We Potty Train Again?My Profile

    Reply
    • katbiggie says

      September 1, 2015 at 8:36 am

      Yes, the injuries were not so fun! We practiced camping a few times in the back yard to make sure it would even be feasible!

      Reply
  3. Chris Carter says

    September 1, 2015 at 9:37 am

    Oh OUCH!!! Bless your heart!! That looks soooo painful!! I love your list… and I’m SO glad you were able to enjoy camping with the entire family!! Despite poor Mia… but YOU supermama went into ACTION!!

    What a great experience for you all!!
    Chris Carter recently posted…Weekend Warrior- Mama StyleMy Profile

    Reply
    • katbiggie says

      September 4, 2015 at 4:09 pm

      Ouch is RIGHT! And you should see how bad it looked 5 days later! GROSS! And yes, you don’t realize how much you care about an animal until they are potentially being eaten by something else!

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

CommentLuv badgeShow more posts

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

You Liked These Best

  • Words To Say When A Baby DiesWords To Say When A Baby Dies If you're here, you're probably struggling for the right words…
  • From Couch to 10K in one month!From Couch to 10K in one month! Yes, you read that right. Couch to 10K in one…
  • Let Them GrieveLet Them Grieve My husband hit it right on the head today. "I…
  • Does preschool really need to be a fashion show?Does preschool really need to be a fashion show? Every day we walk into preschool and I try to…
  • I Did Not Medicate my Child Because I am a "Lazy Parent" - Recognizing Signs of Mental Health Issues in ChildrenI Did Not Medicate my Child Because I am a… Mental Health Issues in Children are a Real Issue May…

Don’t Miss a Post!

If You Enjoyed This, Please Sign Up for my Posts (It's Free!)

Find me here!

Facebook

Facebook

Follow me on Twitter

My Tweets

Follow me on Instagram

Instagram

The Mother of All Meltdowns

Encouragement for Grieving Mothers

Get Sponsored by Big Brands

What You Said

  • katbiggie on Stories from the TTTS Trenches {Jackalyn and Alexa}
  • Marsha on Stories from the TTTS Trenches {Jackalyn and Alexa}
  • Liveitthebest on I Did Not Medicate my Child Because I am a “Lazy Parent” – Recognizing Signs of Mental Health Issues in Children
  • Trans4orm on Garcenia Cambogia: Miracle Weight Loss Solution??
  • Alden Smith on 6 sites with fun activities for kids

Search

Advocacy baby loss babyloss books children children's health depression Encouragement FEATURED Fitness Grief grieving mothers guest posts healing health infant loss Kathryn love March for Babies March of Dimes Mental Health Miscarriage Mom Connection mommy blog mommy blogs mommyblogs motherhood Mothers Day Neonatal intensive care unit NICU Novel Publicity Novel Publicity Blog Tours organization Preemie Pregnancy Preterm birth TTTS TTTS Angels TTTS Survivors Twin twinless twin twins Twin to Twin Transfusion Syndrome Uncategorized writing
 photo Picture44_zps250d112f.png


I'm a featured blogger on Mamapedia Voices

Categories

Blogger Babes Influencer Network

Are You Writing a Book?

Shot at Life

Shot@Life Join the Movement

I Recommend… (Affiliates)

SAVE TIME AND MONEY WITH EMEALS MEAL PLANS Ebates Coupons and Cash Back
BundleoftheWeek.com, 5 eBooks for $7.40!

Affiliates


Copyright © 2025 · Tricked out by Fabulous Blogging · WordPress · Log in