I keep psyching myself up to camp in a tent. I love to travel with the kids, and we could go on bigger adventures on our tiny budget if I could just get in a tent. I have anxiety, and camping along with the kids terrifies me. I don’t know if I will ever be brave enough to camp alone with the kids, but thanks to a great homeschool group, I have camped in a tent with the kids.
On Sunday afternoon we packed up the car for a night at Elk Rock State Park. We had the youth group area, so we were a short drive away from the main campsites (you know, the fancy ones with electrical hook ups and toilets).
It was a small group, with four families staying over night. Two of the families had kids close in age to my kids, an they all had a ball together.
The other moms were great. They are the kind of moms that I would want to hang out with even if it wasn’t for the kids or homeschool stuff. I loved sitting around the campfire talking to them while the kids played. We even had wine in little plastic cups. It doesn’t get any better than that.
It was cold at night. I was thankful for good camping gear. We slept in hats. In the morning we had breakfast, sipped coffee, and headed to visit the Peace Tree.
I’m bummed that I just discovered how fun camping is with a group. I don’t want to have to wait until next year to get back to the campground.
mildlygranola 
Your photos look like a wonderful adventure. I feel the same about tent camping. I’ve done it and I’ve also woken up next to the largest spider I’ve ever seen in person in my life! I much prefer a hotel room! Perhaps you can work out some compromise at a campground with cabins and the kids and tent outside, ha! That is cool you went with a group – awesome!
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I mean, aren’t hotels without room service camping?
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Yes! Of course! I see I’ve been on lots of “camping” trips then 😉
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I miss tent camping; it was always such a good time!
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I’m looking forward to doing it again. Next time in a bigger tent.
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It looks like you all had so much fun! So glad your camping trip was a success 🙂
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That’s a great way to camp. Safety in numbers. If we had bears, wolves and coyotes in this country there’s no way I’d be brave enough to camp. Do you get those in Iowa or is it bugs that make you worried to go alone?
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It’s the people that I’m afraid of. We have coyotes in Iowa, and I’m not worried about them. I’m much more worried about creepy dudes.
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Camping with a group is more fun, anyway! That being said, I camp solo all the time, in a tent and with my van, and the only “creepy dude” I’ve had to deal with was invited along by my brother!
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Logically I know camping is perfectly safe, but my anxiety is not controlled right now so I can’t do it. I hope I can eventually.
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By the way – beautiful root system!
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Two things that help me tent camp are 1. Big tent with a porch that I can stand up in. 2. Confortable bed, cots or air mattress or piles of quilts. Anything that is soft and warm and cushions me from the cold hard ground. Some people would call this glamping but whatever works!
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That is what I need. I need a tent I can stand up in. I need something other than an air mattress to share with the kids. I might get an 8 person tent for the three of us.
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I borrowed a friend’s three room tent to take my elderly mother camping in Maryland. It was great – big enough to stand up in any of the rooms, waterproof. I’ve always had an air mattress, and I borrowed a cot for her. Of course, now I have the camper van and usually use it; I also have a tent in case using the car is what makes sense, but there’s no way to stand up in it! The air mattress just fits inside.
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