Glamping with the Giesens

This weekend we went camping with friends. Heather is an old friend we met at church 18 years ago in Toronto. She moved away 16 years ago and we hadn’t seen her since. Thanks to Facebook, we reconnected a few years ago. In that 16 years apart, our lives had grown very similar – married with kids (she has three), with the last two (boys) being the very close in age to mine. We are both also avid glampers. Way back in early May, we decided to plan a glamping weekend together – in Lacombe, halfway between Calgary and Edmonton where she lives with her family. Max was really looking forward to finally glamping with boys! It seems we always go with families with girls. Or take one with us – this weekend we also took one of Kira’s best friends. The weekend was tons of fun and a success in our books. Max declared it “the best camping weekend” he’s ever had. Kira keeps saying that she really enjoyed herself. Heather’s youngest told her that he wants to go out with us again. There were no i...

No shoes in the trailer. We learned this during our first trip with the Schobers. Your trailer is such a small space - when it gets dirty, it gets dirty fast. We take our shoes off outside the trailer - they're not even allowed on the stairs. Then we bring them in and hang them up on coat hooks on a low wall. This helps keep the trailer grass, dirt and pebble free, and really helps with cleanup when we get back home and have to put the trailer away. Save your toilet/paper towel rolls and your dryer lint. Stuff the rolls with the lint and you have a great fire starter. We have a huge box of rolls and containers of lint in the outdoor storage. An added bonus is, you have a stash to access whenever your kids need them for school art projects. Purchase a separate set of everything for your trailer: kitchen stuff, likes plates, cups, mugs, utensils, cutlery and even appliances; toiletries, like hairbrushes and toothbrushes and all your soaps and shampoos; and tools. Pack older, not...