Camping Hair Dont Care

Before we had kids, I always imagined we'd be one of those families that vacationed together in exotic places and posed with Mickey Mouse in Disneyworld every year. My kids would be perfectly behaved, be seasoned plane passengers by age 2, and my husband and I would spend our evenings taking in sunsets from around the world. Andddd then I actually had kids and realized that A) vacationing with kids is not a vacation...at all and B) Disneyworld for a family of 5 costs more than I spend on groceries for an entire year.
So, in a effort to find a happy medium between sipping cocktails on the beaches of Maui as my kids entertain themselves for hours in the white sand and considering a family vacation a trip to a local hotel to hit up the indoor pool for a few hours, we bought a camper and decided to hit the road.
And guys. It's been worth every single penny. Camping is the shit (our camper has AC so I can say that).
Here are my top 10 favorite things about camping:

1) Its cheap. Like cheapppp. As in we can stay at a campground for 5 days for around $150....for the whole trip. 

2) I'm force get my shit together before we leave. I cannot stand coming home to a messy house....it gives me anxiety. So I scrub, declutter, wash, dust, and vacuum my entire house before we go which sucks at the time but nothing motivates me more than the idea of coming home to a stank house.  

3) The beaches. We're from the great Mitten State and camping has allowed us to visit some pretty amazing beaches and there aint no beach like a #westside beach.

4) There is no WiFi. None. Zero. And we refuse to get our kids tablets that use data so we all get a few days 'unplugged' and its honestly refreshing to not hear Daniel Tiger singing about potties and sharing for a few days. 

5) The fresh air. Honestly, I love that our kids are practically forced to spend 95% of their time outside because they spend entirely too much time on the couch (whining about boredom) all summer long. In my mind, camping cancels out all the screen time they get in between our trips. Balance.

6) Meal time is a breeze. Camping is all about simplicity and nothing is more simple than hotdogs and hamburgers thrown on a grill. Chips as a side? Yuppp. Juice boxes and paper plates? Sign me up. 

7) There is no agenda. I love chill vacations where we do what we want when we want. Hit up a local Farmers Market or festival in the morning? Yup. Beach time whenever we are ready? Uh huh. Family naptime at 2pm? Lets do it. Adult beverage at 4pm? Yes please. I'm not driving anywhere. 

8) Speaking of naps. Ya wanna know who naps or has a solid hour of downtime every day we are camping? My exhausted, bike riding, beach going kids that's who. 

(Nap. So. Hard.)

9) The community. People who camp are the friendliest bunch of people Ive ever met. They wave. They strike up conversation. They have perma smiles plastered to their faces because camping = no work= smiles for everyone.

10) The adult time. This is major guys. We camp with friends who all have young kids and, after we psych each other up ('Okay guys. Hands in the middle...Bedtime on 3!!') and get our exhausted, dirty kids to bed, we get to sit around the fire, pour a cocktail, and relax. We travel with baby moniters so we can be sure no one is trying to pull a Great Escape and try not to get yelled at by 20 yr old DNR rangers to 'quiet down!' too many times. Adult time is everything.

There's a cocktail in the woods waiting for you Mommas. Pack some snacks, grab your kids, and chase your dreams.