Camping Tips & Tricks

I know...FINALLY!!!!
After we've already done two major camping trips,
I'm finally getting to this post that I promised a long
time ago :) Well, here it is...my camping tips & tricks.

First of all, here's what we bring and why:

These are plastic containers I found at
IKEA. BTW, Ikea is a great place to buy
camping stuff. Cheap!!
We use these for kitchen stuff like
spoons, tongs, lighters, knives, & more.

I know this seems obvious, but you
must bring potholders or mittens!!

This is another Ikea purchase. A block
with knives. I think it was something
like $4.99

Here is one of those plastic containers &
what we keep in it...kitchen scissors, a peeler,
& steak type knives.

Lighters, lighters, lighters. Another one that
seems obvious, but you're totally bummed
if you don't have them. And they fit nicely
in those plastic containers too.

Instead of buying a bunch of silverware, we
use an old plastic stash from our little people.
I believe these were purchased at Ikea too
when they were little. We also have bag clips,
a scrub brush (for dishes) & sponges.

Some plastic utensils purchased from good
ole Walmart. Tongs are a must!!! Spatula
& little plastic scrapper.

Here's what you'll need to wash your
dishes...a scrub brush, sponges & lots
of old kitchen towels. We use old ugly
kitchen towels...you know the ones you
got for a wedding present, that you vowed
never to be used in your kitchen :) Some of these sponges
have soap already in them. We bought them from Walmart in
their camping section, but don't waste your money. They're
only really good for one load of dishes. Just bring a small
soap container & sponges or washcloths. You will also need
two plastic tubs, but I'll talk about that a little later.

We got these travel mugs at Target in the
dollar bin. The lids leak a bit, but they were
cheap and we now use them without the lids.
One is broken and we still use it :) Or you can
upcycle old ones from your kitchen!! Camping
is a great way to use all that stuff in your kitchen that you've been
meaning to get rid of :)

We have two kettles...one for hot water & one
for coffee. We've been doing this forever until
this year, when my hubby discovered instant
coffee. I can't drink it, but I'm not a big coffee
fan anyway. I just bring my tea bags :)

One of those vinyl tablecloths...you can find them
at Target, Walmart, Biglots, etc. I just used an
old one that had been used for an art project.
It has orange paint on it :) But, it's great because
camping tables are gross & this is easy to just
wipe down. I would get this longest one there is, because every table
is different.

Cutting boards!! I have three...one that's flexible &
the others are these cool ones with handles...very
handy!! I also purchased these from Ikea...very cheap!!

These are leftover from the girls again. You
know Philip loves drinking out of those pink
cups!!!

This little guy is actually the pan we use the
most. I think it belonged to my grandma.
Very cute 70's pattern!! It's easy to clean, has a
cover and the perfect size for a couple cans of beans,
eggs, veggies, whatever!! It's about 9ish inches.

Here are some more well used pans. I think most
of these belonged to my parents. I have to say,
we have learned that non-stick pans are a must!!!!
It is a bear trying to clean eggs off of a pan with our
little plastic tubs and luke warm water!!!

CAN OPENER!!!! Hello, how else would you eat :)
And some more utensils. I think I got all of those
at Walmart as sets for like $1.99.

Love this little toaster!! It's simple, cheap, and
works great. You used it on your propane stove...
but you have to watch it and you need tongs!!!

Have to have these!!! Foil is an awesome tool. You can
wrap things and grill them, put them in the fire, cover
things, line pans...very important!! Paper towels are a
must with kiddos!!!

This is a tent ceiling fan. We got this at
Walmart...again. It runs on batteries, and isn't
super powerful. But, it takes the edge off if you
need an afternoon nap!!! Keeps the air flowing!
Let me take this opportunity to say that Walmart
has a grrrrrreat camping section!!! And pretty inexpensive!!

Hello...kids loved it!!! I got these in the dollar bin
at Target like a year ago...and they were still good.
I know, not super healthy, but fun!!!

Here are those lovely plastic bins...and yes you
need two. They're cheap & everywhere. One for
washing & one for rinsing. A lot of campsite have
rules about washing dishes at the sinks. Most
places want you to wash your dishes at your campsite.
We set up a little "sink" at our site with these, two towels, sponges & a
scrub brush. We lay out one towel to lay dishes on & one for drying. Also
another must have (we discovered this one on this last trip...we learn
something new everytime) A gallon water jug. we just used an old one
from water we had purchased. Sometimes the only place to get water is
from the bathroom. So having a jug to transport the water in is very handy.
Trying to fill these up and walk with them isn't super fun unless you wanna
get wet. You can get bigger jugs of course, but our girls helped us out
a lot, with carrying water and larger jugs are super heavy. Also pictured are
a small broom & dust pan. We also bring a big broom...they're a great way
to clean your tent & tarps. We have a little "patio" with our tent, so we
like to keep that clean.

Here's one of the boxes we pack with all that stuff!!
We put all this stuff in two...yes only two...plastic bins.

Here's the other bin.

Some other things we bring...not pictured. Mallot purchased from a
camping section, for hammering in stakes. It has a hook on the
end for pulling them up when you're done. Gloves for handling wood
and so there are no blisters from hammering in those tent stakes. Axe
for chopping wood. Use a pill box...ones with the dates...for carrying
spices. Here's a great little example of someone's cute version: HERE
I use reusable bag to hold & carry all of our dried goods...cans, peanut
butter, bread, chips, etc. Crocs (or imitations :)) are great for camping!
Especially when you have to make a potty trip in the night and have
socks on :) A propane stove is really a great tool. You can get much
more creative with your cooking!!! You can get them at Target, Walmart,
REI, and other places that sell camping equipment. They come small (one
burner) all the way up to many burners. We have one that Philip's dad has
had forever. I think it's older than my husband. They are sturdy and you
can use them forever!! And the propane canisters can be found everywhere
and they're cheap and recyclable. We also have a propane grill and love
that too. Another great cooking tool is a dutch oven. They are great for
creative cooking or baking and for simple camp food as well. We actually
don't have one and I REALLY want one. My parents have one & sometimes
we borrow it.
I think this puppy is getting super long. I may have to break this up into
two posts. If you have any questions or need some advice, feel free to ask!!!