Friday, July 21, 2017

Dear Glamping, It's Not You, It's Me. (And Boredom Busters for Kids)

If you follow me on Instagram (please do, I need all the followers I can get!), you'll know that we packed up the kids and took them glamping a couple weeks ago.  What is Glamping?  It's "glamour camping."  For us, it meant staying at Dustin's grandparent's cabin in the mountains where they have running water, a toilet (soooooo important to me!), electricity, a fridge, a small stove, and even "backyard" area where they had a nice gas BBQ.  I mean, how bad could it be?

Let's be real.  I'm not very outdoorsy.  Or the roughing it kind.  I'm actually a spoiled living in luxury especially on vacation kind.  I'm just saying.  But I thought I could do Glamping.  I mean, it's just like a little house, right?

In my defense, I lasted 4 days!  With no air conditioning in JULY and no cell service.  That's like a small miracle.  But on that fourth day, I had it with the being hot and sticky.  I couldn't handle more bug even though I was coated in bug spray.  I couldn't handle not being able to sleep because the kids were up all night chatting then having to wake up super early because the sun was shining right in my face.  I also couldn't take more time without the internet.  I need to be able to look things up and plan out my day.

I did, however, want to share with you a couple ideas for keeping the kids entertained when you're out in the wilderness besides the usually making s'mores and board games which we also did.  Obviously, I'm NO expert but I did come up with a couple things that the kids really enjoyed so I figured I should tell other moms and dads.  Maybe you struggle like me.  ALSO, these ideas are great for at home too.

1. Foam Glow Sticks
Here's a picture I got off Amazon of what they look like.  I didn't get a picture of ours before they were in action.  I actually picked up a couple at the Target Dollar Spot for 4th of July festivities.  These ones are cheaper on Amazon (affiliate link) if you wanna spring for 18 for $8.99 which I would because the ones at Target were $1 each.

Anyhow, we waited until evening and the kids each got a foam glow stick.  They are like short, thin white pool noodles.  You crack the glow stick inside and shake it.  The concept was SO cool!  I don't know how people didn't think about it sooner.

The kids had a blast outside with these!  They threw them in the air and caught them.  They had pretend lightsaber duels.  The spun them.  They danced with them.  They ran and jumped and swung them around.  It was literally the best $3 I spent on this trip!  Also, I got some SUPER cool pictures and video!

 2. Photo Scavenger Hunt
The next day when the kids were walking around and complaining they were bored.  I decided that we should have a photo scavenger hunt and everyone got a prize for COMPLETING the challenge.  I think it's important that they learn that they have to finish something before getting a prize.  Also, the kids all have tablets that they were allowed to bring on this trip for the purpose of taking pictures and a little bit of down time each day.  But you could either let them use your phone or buy cheap disposable cameras and actually print the pictures.  I prefer digital pictures.

Notes about my list.  I wish I had put more collaborative things on the list so people had to work together to get the photos.  14 photos was the perfect size list for the boys (ages 8 and 10) but we probably could have added a couple more.  This activity only took about 30 minutes but that was a lot for my 4 year old who was partnered with Daddy.  Also, the insects were extremely difficult for the kids to photograph so I would not suggest that.  I would suggest things like "a leaf with green and yellow", "a plant you've never seen before", or "art made from sticks" so they would have to really look around or make a little something.  This was really fun for us!  Here's my list and a couple pictures I took.

3. Farmers Market
Ok, this one is kind of cheating.  We can go to the farmers market at home.  I guess if you're roughing it, you might not wanna leave your cabin and go to the farmers market in the next town.  BUT if you're anything like me (bless your heart) and you want a taste of the local produce, why not check out the farmers market?  I just went on Facebook and typed in the town we were going to and looked around for events.  I found this market and it was SO fun!  There was a band and it was in a park with a playground.  We got some lemonade from the local baseball team lemonade stand that was fundraising and tried a bit of local food.  Oh and Avery got her "nice soft peach."

4. Giant Bubbles
Hey, it's me and I'm cheating again on this list.  We actually found a guy at the farmers market doing giant bubbles for the kids.  I checked out what he had and it was just dowels and cotton string.  I figured you could make it yourself at home.  There's tons of tutorials on Pinterest.  The man said his bubble solution was Dawn dish soap, water, and a little glycerin.  (The tutorials on Pinterest have bubble solution recipes too.)  It was SO cool!  You can see on the kids faces how amazed they were!

Hope you enjoyed the list!  These are things you could do at home too!  You don't have to Glamp if you don't want to... I know I don't.  :D  Sigh... I'm sure I'll try it again at some point.  Probably.  Maybe...

Connect with me on social media:


  1. Remember when you told me not to come home early?!?! Buahahaha! Just kidding. Love the glow stick idea. I'm ordering some today!!!

  2. I'll use some of these ideas at home! Glow sticks are always fun.

  3. I'm with you about glamping. I'm not into it. I prefer a resort vacation. At least you stayed in a cabin. I like the photo scavenger hunt. That sounds like fun!

  4. I'm sorry you didn't have a better experience! I mean, it sounds and looks like overall y'all had a good time, I just feel badly that you're not a converted glamping lover. ;)

  5. I'm definitely more of a running water and electricity kind of camper but I don't mind it as long as it's not more than a couple of days if we do tent camping. My husband and I are thinking about getting one of those pop up campers as a compromise.