The typical winter weekend night at my house is hardly a party. We are usually snuggled up on the sofa, staring at some screen, wondering what we can reheat for dinner (or who we can call to bring us food), dreaming of the longer days and shorter nights of summer.
Aaaah, summer. In these dog days of winter, I long for the feeling of grass between my toes, the smell of the grill, and the sticky fingers that always coincide with s’mores.
Indoor camping is the perfect cure for a bad case of cabin fever. Unplug from everything and let your kids’ imaginations cut loose! Put on your PJs and circle around the campfire. This family activity is sure to bring out the wild side of your entire family. A child’s imagination is as limitless as all the stars in the sky so let them soar!
Not sure how to pull this all together. We set up camp in our living room in about fifteen minutes. How did we do it? Here are our simple camping guidelines!
Camping Supplies
Tent
Any good camper knows that the first thing you do to set up camp is pitch your tent. Ours is made by using 3 chairs, a flat bed sheet, and some plastic clips to hold everything together.
Flashlights
The kids spent the better part of our evening running amuck, playing their own toddler version of flashlight tag.
Binoculars
These binoculars are powered by creativity, so be resourceful and create this set of specs using recycled paper tubes and some string. Using the book, We’re Going on a Bear Hunt; we took our kiddos on a Bear Hunt through the long wavy grass of my kitchen, the oozy mud of my front porch, and the dark forest of my dining room. Their giggles were 100% childhood magic!
Campfire
What would a campsite be without a fire? We made our own out of rolled-up brown construction paper and set it aflame with red, yellow, and orange tissue paper. We added a flickering light by adding a battery operated tea light. It won’t keep you warm at night, but you can still snuggle up around it for a campfire story.
Food
Camp food is all about convenience, simplicity, and creativity. Cooking outside (even if it is the “fake outdoors”) is a culinary challenge. This menu is filled with some tried and true campfire favorites that we’ve adapted to cook indoors.
Pretzel Matches
Pigs in a Blanket
Oven-Baked S’Mores
Trail Mix Coleslaw: This is just a basic coleslaw recipe that I added some nuts and raisins. Voila! You have “Trail Mix Coleslaw”!
Ready, set, camp! Indoor camping is a great way to spend some time together as a family, make some memories, and play together!
Oh I love this idea! We will definitely be doing this next snow day!
Looks like that may be sooner than I’d like to admit! A Valentines camp out could be extra fun! Let us know how it goes!