PART 1 of 3: Family Vacation: Packing, Gluten-Free Cooking & Must Bring Items

PART 1 of 3:  

Family Camping: Packing, Gluten-Free Cooking & 

Must Bring Items For a Family of Four

I want to preface this post by saying that Dave Bee and I grew up camping and consider ourselves professionals (haha) but nothing prepares you for camping with a 1 and 3 year old... for better or for worse!

Dave Bee scoured the internet and our "camping with kids" books before we left to make sure that we didn't forget anything.  I re-entered the deep depths of my memory to see if I could remember what it was like camping as a kid and what I thought we should bring.

Mostly, I came up with memories of being dirty ALL the time and Dave Bee read that we should bring lots of sets of clothing.  We went for 6 days and 5 nights to Huntington Lake in the Sierra Nevadas at around 7000 feet in elevation with highs of 70 and lows of the upper 30's.

I covered the clothing and food while DaveBee really thought of everything else.  I will share how we managed to pack clothing, meals and extra provisions with awesome proportions. Yea, we rock.

Part 1: Packing Clothing for Camping

• Adults:  Since adults {usually} stay a bit cleaner when camping here is the way we packed for walking, hiking, swimming, and RELAXING
• Short sleeve shirts & shorts: 1 for each day (you will be wearing these for the majority of the day so clean ones are crucial)  
• Exercise clothing: Leggings, sweat-wicking tanks and shirts.  Pretty much anything you would work out in would be suitable for long walks and hiking.
• Long pants & long sleeve shirts: 1 for each day or 1 for every other day (if packing jeans they can be used two to three days in a row and long sleeve shirts are great for layering)
• Hooded sweatshirts or fleece (warm) jackets: 2 for entire trip
• Waterproof jacket: 1 for the entire trip if you anticipate rain (they are lightweight enough to throw them in just in case)
• Pajamas: 1 pair for every other day. (Fleece pants and layered tops worked ideally for me, however, Dave Bee is just fine in a T-shirt and cotton pajama pants!)
• Bathing suit or swim trunks: 2 (one pair can dry while one is being used)
• Shoes: 1 pair of tennis shoes or "crossover" shoes (i.e.: Keen or Teva Sandals), 1 pair of water shoes (if you are camping near water or will be using public showers).  Optional: Fuzzy Boots (see picture above of The Bird) or hard-soled slipper style shoes and/or flip-flops for easy on and off while entering and exiting tents and RV's and keeping the dirt to a minimum. 
• Socks:  1 pair per day (if you use the "crossover" sandal along with the fuzzy boot/hard-soled slipper you can skimp on pairs of socks)
• Hats: 2 for entire trip. 1 wide brimmed for sun and one knit cap for warmth.
  
  
  
• Children: The crucial thing to remember is that kids get really dirty camping!   You may prefer to be over-prepared than throwing a sweatshirt covered in melty, sticky s'mores on your toddler for 3 days in a row.

• Short sleeve shirts & shorts: 1 for each day
• Long pants & long sleeve shirts: 1 for each day (if packing jeans they can be used two days in a row)
• Hooded sweatshirts or fleece (warm) jackets: 1 for every 3rd day
• Waterproof jacket: 1 for the entire trip
• Pajamas: 1 pair for every other day.  "Fuzzies" or "footies" are fantastic if you layer them with a t-shirt in case your kiddos kick off their blankets/sleeping bags like mine!
  
  
  
• Bathing suit or swim trunks: 2 (one pair can dry while one is being used)
• Shoes: 1 pair of tennis shoes or "crossover" shoes (i.e.: Keen or Teva Sandals), 1 pair of water shoes (if you are camping near water or will be using public showers).  Optional: Fuzzy Boots (see picture above of The Bird) or hard-soled slipper style shoes.
• Socks:  1 pair per day (if you use the "crossover" sandal along with the fuzzy boot/hard-soled slipper you can skimp on pairs of socks)
• Hats: 2 for entire trip. 1 wide brimmed for sun and one knit cap for warmth (If your kiddos are fair-skinned like The Bird you might want to throw in one more in case they fly off in the water or your babe is like The Bird and prefers to toss her hat off at any given moment!).
• Life Jackets: 1 for each child (Only necessary if you are going near water! Duh.)
  

Mental Note:  Pack so it makes it easier on you!  I prefer to be over-prepared and comfortable and do more laundry later.  

Coming Soon... 
Part 2: Family Camping: Gluten Free Cooking
Part 3: Family Camping: Must Bring Items