"Mooommmmm! What are we doing after dinner?" We've all heard it. We all know it's coming. We all dread it. (And, sometimes I haven't even cleared the table yet.) The day is over, dinner is done, and the kids are bored.
Ok, so the reality is that if you've got a whole bunch of kids, you're playing the role of "cruise director" at some point during your trip, whether you like it or not. I'm certainly no expert, but I've participated in enough trial and error instances to be fairly confident that I've built a solid repertoire of games and activities. Or so they tell me.
Before each adventure, I hit the Dollar Tree. They have an incredibly festive inventory of crafts for each season and holiday- you really can't beat it. Sometimes they have coloring books, or felt projects, or even some sticker books, etc. (For example, during Halloween, I scored some paint and a handful of foam pumpkins for the kids to paint Jack-O-Lanterns at camp. They truly had a blast.) I'll also usually grab some bubbles, chalk, bug catchers, bouncy balls, fishing nets, and other outdoor entertainment that easily goes missing...or gets dumped out...or crushed up for 'magic potions'. You can literally never have enough of these things.
*Craft Hack* Garbage bags made the perfect smock for this activity.
There's one other purpose to my dollar store trip- THE PRIZE BOX. So, I keep a prize box in the camper. Why? Well, for BINGO, of course! I'm tellin' ya, I've never seen a single game keep SO many kids engaged for SO long. I splurged on a BINGO set from Amazon that has the sliders on each board- this appealed to me for the sole reason that I wouldn't be picking up those tiny little tokens for years to come. Anyway, back to the prize box. I'll typically stock up on prizes before we depart for any trip. I make sure to choose items that will entice players of all ages and genders. Some of the prizes might include: bath bombs, art supplies, chapstick, dolls, candy, water bottles, gloves, body scrub, matchbox cars, travel toothbrushes, play doh, toy dinosaurs, army men, hair brushes...the list goes on. Every once in a while, I'll make a run though Target and Walmart to see what's on sale- I've been able to track down some cute jewelry, beanie hats for around the campfire, and even a few insulated camp coffee mugs on clearance. Those were hot sellers during a particularly competitive game in Chincoteague, Virginia.
Aside from crafts and bingo, we've also stocked up on legos, sparklers, poppers, duplo blocks, diamond painting, kinetic sand, play doh, rainbow loom bracelets, and board games. Oh - and speaking of board games - I need to recommend a game that is tremendous if you happen to have a preschooler who wants to join in on the fun, but is often times too young for certain games. You NEED picture charades. No reading required and it's guaranteed to get everyone involved. My girls have been playing since they were toddlers and none of them have outgrown it yet!
Camping with kids requires an enormous amount of preparation. This much we know. It's not always easy to keep everyone happy, no matter how hard we try. But I'll leave you with this thought- none of us will ever look back on this season of life and think, "I spent too much time with my kids." Soak it all up, because babies don't keep.
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