Welcome to the June Carnival of Natural Parenting: Outdoor fun
This post was written for inclusion in the monthly Carnival of Natural Parenting hosted by Hobo Mama and Code Name: Mama. This month our participants have shared their stories and tips for playing outside with kids. Please read to the end to find a list of links to the other carnival participants.
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One of my favorite outdoor activities — with or without kids — is camping. I love everything about it. Unless it rains. I’m not a fan of rain.
Our older two began camping when they were about six months old. And in two weeks, Ellie will do the same. Camping with a baby might be intimidating but it’s really not hard if you plan well.
Things to think about before camping with a baby:
- Where will the baby sleep? This will depend on your normal sleeping situation and what kind of sleeping bags you are bringing. We have always had our babies in a pack and play in the tent. Though the older two began sleeping in sleeping bags before they had moved into a bed at home. If you are going to use a pack and play, is your tent large enough for it in addition to the big people’s sleeping bags and luggage? Make sure you have enough warm clothes or sleep sacks because it often gets cooler at night than you expect.
- Where will the baby hang out? Our babies happened to all be in the 6- to 12-month stage during camping season. We bring an exerciser so the baby isn’t spending too much time sitting in (eating) the dirt. You can also just bring the pack and play out of the tent and put toys in it during the day.
- Do you need special equipment for certain activities? For example, you’ll need a backpack carrier or sling if you’re going to go hiking. You’ll need a life jacket if you’re going boating.
- What will the baby eat? If you’re bottle-feeding, you’ll need a way to heat water for formula like a grate and tea kettle for the fire. Jar food is easy to bring along, of course, but you can also bringing bananas and other fork-mashable foods.
Once they get a bit older, what’s the most important thing to bring?
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Visit Hobo Mama and Code Name: Mama to find out how you can participate in the next Carnival of Natural Parenting!
Please take time to read the submissions by the other carnival participants:
- Garden Treats — Asha at Mom Costume has once again been bitten by the gardening bug — and this time her baby’s tagging along for some fresh air and dirt exploration. (@titbagsandsnoot)
- Outdoor Free Roam — Mamapoekie at Authentic Parenting follows her daughter’s lead whenever they go outside. (@mamapoekie)
- Summer fun in Austin with a toddler — Jessica at This Is Worthwhile is brainstorming ways to beat the heat in Texas. (@tisworthwhile)
- summer fun… — Mandy at Living Peacefully with Children is looking forward to spending the summer outside with her children the way she used to spend summers with her mother.
- Outdoor Fun for Pre-Walkers — Maman A Droit has figured out ways to let her pre-walker enjoy the outdoors. (@MamanADroit)
- Summer Homeschool Fun at Camp Review — Deb Chitwood at Living Montessori Now discusses how Camp Review motivated and captivated her homeschooling family. (@DebChitwood)
- Digging, Tree Climbing and Puddle Jumping — Laura at Laura’s Blog bemoans the loss of her girls’ climbing tree but knows they’ll find something else just as naturally tempting.
- The Sweet Smells of Summer — Erin at A Beatnik’s Beat on Life is looking forward to the many smells of summer she and her daughters enjoy and identify. (@babybeatnik)
- June Carnival of Natural Parenting: Outdoor Fun — Sybil at Musings of a Milk Maker is a confirmed couch potato who can’t help but be inspired by the outdoor opportunities Seattle offers her family. (@sybilryan)
- Take a Hike — Michelle at The Parent Vortex connects with her family and the Earth on frequent hikes in their Pacific wilderness. (@TheParentVortex)
- Following Paul — Julie at Simple Life gives her kids unstructured time to dig in the dirt and pick mulberries. (@homemakerjulie)
- Instilling a Love of the Outdoors in Your Baby/Toddler — Tessasdad at Stay At Home Dad in Lansing offers a photo book of tips for helping your little ones enjoy the outdoors. (@tessasdad)
- Camping, baby! — Jen at Grow With Graces has easy tips for tent camping with a little one. (@growwithgraces)
- Think Outside the Easel for Summertime Fun — Acacia at Be Present Mama finds several ways to bring art fun to the outdoors.
- Outdoor Learning in our Urban Environment — Andrea at Ella-Bean & Co. has found ways to get grass between her daughter’s toes, even in the city.
- Outdoor Education — Alison at BluebirdMama offers parents tips and resources for making each outdoor excursion a learning experience. (@childbearing)
- Turning Inside Out — Christie of Childhood 101 finds kids get a kick out of taking indoor toys outside. (@Childhood101)
- Watching Peas Sprout — Deb at Science@home combines fun with purpose in this educational outdoor activity. (@ScienceMum)
- How To Create a Pirate Treasure Hunt & Other Easy Outdoor Pirate Activities (June Carnival of Natural Parenting) — Dionna at Code Name: Mama has pirate-themed play ideas for ye scurvy landlubbers. (@CodeNameMama)
- What We Do — Luschka at Diary of a First Child has managed to expose her 8-month-old to a wide variety of outdoor fun, even with the notoriously dreary UK weather. (@diaryfirstchild)
- Summer Fun — Darcel at The Mahogany Way finds her family’s visits to the beach refreshing in so many ways. (@MahoganyWayMama)
- Playing outside without a backyard — Sheryl at Little Snowflakes doesn’t let the lack of a backyard stop her family from enjoying the outdoors. There are plenty of things to do outside of your yard! (@sheryljesin)
- Having Fun Outdoors, Playset Free — Guavalicious at They Are So Cute When They Are Sleeping has resisted a backyard playset in favor of the regular backyard. (@guavalicious)
- Moon Gazing with your Toddler — Paige at Baby Dust Diaries is keeping her toddler up at night, but it’s for a good reason: to share the wonders of the night sky! (@babydust)
- the great outdoors — The grumbles at grumbles and grunts wonders whether her urban child can experience the same free-range childhood she enjoyed. (@thegrumbles)
- Let’s Take It Outside! — NavelgazingBajan at Navelgazing is looking for ideas: how can she spend time with her pre-walker outside this summer? (@BlkWmnDoBF)
- A home by the sea: June Carnival of Natural Parenting: Outdoor fun — Lauren at Hobo Mama is living her dream of a home near the beach, and taking full advantage of it. (@Hobo_Mama)
- An Outside Girl — Zoey at Good Goog moved her family to (almost) the middle of nowhere so that her outdoor-loving girl could have more grass and less concrete. (@zoeyspeak)
- Neighborhood Nature — Kelly at Kelly Naturally has learned to connect with the nature she has instead of mourning the nature she misses. (@kellynaturally)
- Building Lovely Memories of Swimming, Spiders and Gravestones — Joni Rae at Tales of a Kitchen Witch and her family are simply outdoorsy people. (@kitchenwitch)
- “Buh-Bye” Season — Danielle at born.in.japan must leave laundry behind and follow her son’s call to the outdoors. (@borninjp)
- Backyard Camping — Becoming Mamas took her family camping very close to home! (@becomingmamas)
- The Color of Dreams — Seeking Mother at Woman Seeking Mother makes gardening magical by teaching her son that each flower is a faery. (@seekingmother)
I have been pestering Tom to try a family camping trip. I camped with my family when I was little, I’ve done several trips as an adult, and he was an Eagle Scout – we should be able to swing it, right?! He’s hesitant b/c Kieran is kind of a sleep spaz. But we have a queen sized air mattress, so I’m confident it will be better than he imagines (we cosleep at home). We also have another family willing to go with us and split the food/responsibilities – and our kids love each other. Really, what else could we ask for?!
If he sleeps with you on the air mattress it will be no different than home.
And having another family along is really helpful. I don’t think we’ve ever camped alone with the kids. There’s always grandparents or friends along.
Go pick a weekend and schedule it now!
We haven’t been camping in a few years. Pre-babe and pre-living abroad we did bunches of camping and backpacking. Thanks for the reminder that we can, and should, get out with the babe. I bet he’d love it!
We’ve been camping once, last year when Mikko had just turned 2. We slept in a tipi, which was cool, but we don’t have any actual camping gear, so we all huddled on one of the platform beds under our usual blankets from home. The foam mattress was a double size, vs. our king size at home, and Mikko kicked his father all.night.long to try to get him to move farther away!
So I think we’ll borrow legit camping gear if we go again, which we hope to, even though Sam and I both kind of loathed camping as children. For some reason, it seems more fun now we’re in charge. Go figure!
Also, adorable S’mores picture! Love it.
We’re going to do our first camping trip this summer as well. Our daughter is 14 months right now. I’m okay with trying it and am not super excited about it.
I enjoyed camping years ago until I got a job where camping was part of my job. It’s hard to shake that feeling that it’s just going to be a ton of work.
I like your site a lot and am glad to find you through the Carnival
I love the idea of camping, but when it comes down to it, I really don’t like it. The biggest (and really almost only) problem for me is the bugs. Not even just regular bugs, but spiders. Spiders and I do not get along. And inevitably, every time I go camping, I run in (often times, literally face to face) with the scariest spiders out there.
I do imagine, however, that we will be doing plenty of backyard camping as the girls get a little older. A friend of mine has a fire pit in his backyard, so we could easily recreate at least a portion of the campsite appeal.
Camping with little ones *is* a ton of work, but that is part of what makes it worthwhile in my opinion. I never appreciate hot running water more than after returning from a camping trip!
We’re hoping to get out to do some camping soon too, if it ever stops raining. I am not much of a fan of camping in the rain either…
CAMPING! We LOVE camping- Willow had her first night sleeping under the stars when she was three months old! <3