Each April I host a Grandkid's Camp Out. The Camp Out tradition started out in my living room when only two grandkids were old enough to attend. I cleared out the furniture and turned the space into a campsite. Tent, silk trees and plants, camp clothes line, ice chests, campfire, camp chairs the whole nine yards!
Since then we have been camping outdoors. The kids arrive on a Friday after school and we begin our campout with a snack. The children help set up the tent and the camp. Each year they make their own handwashing station and their own foil dinner.
We do crafts, outdoor games, campfire songs and stories, a night hike with flashlights, roast s'mores, and a teaching unit such as learning about the stars, animals of the southwest deserts, camping techniques, and first aid.
At bedtime the tent is wall to wall kids with Grandma being snuggled from all sides. The morning brings hungry campers ready for breakfast. We do a few more outdoor activities and everyone helps to take down camp before the 11:00 a.m. pick up by their parents.
These campouts have proven to be great memory makers for my grandkids. The two oldest who are eight and seven still talk about our very first camp out in great detail. This tradition is an absolute keeper!
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