I know some of you may be cringing at the thought of getting your and the family out in dirty, bug infested environs, sleeping in the cold and trying to call it fun. And, sometimes that is what it feels like, but there is a lot of beauty in nature and getting our kids out in it is vital to their development and your bonding as a family. Having the luxury of a home and comfortable surroundings is a blessing that most American’s share, but getting our kids out in nature, braving the elements and seeing the wild in its natural state is a very important part of our job as parents, even though, at times it may be less than luxurious.
With the warmer weather, there are a lot of advantages in taking a weekend away and visiting a local National Park or campground on a whim or a fun pre -summer vacation. Especially if you are in a part of the world that got a lot of snow this year. Visiting a campground now, is a perfect get away, because there are not as many summer crowds in the parks at this time.
WHAT YOU NEED
There are a lot of different kinds of camping from sleeping outdoors to RV parks, but I’m going to focus on tent camping as it is the best way for your family to be protected from the elements and enjoy being close to nature. So you will need a tent….
TENT
Depending on the size of your family you will need a tent big enough to accommodate your family, their stuff and beds. I do not recommend using the tent manufacturers guidelines for number of people a tent can hold, usually those are optimistic (read uncomfortable) at best.
Family Camping Gear has great tips for family campers and is a good place to start if you have never camped with the family before. The best method to finding the right sized tent is to divide the tent capacity the manufactures give by two. So a four person tent is really a 2 person tent and so on. We have an 10 man tent and it is just big enough for our family, so keep that in mind when shopping for a tent.
http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00610669000P?prdNo=1&blockNo=1&blockType=L1
Some of the best places to shop are Walmart which always has good prices on tents, but make sure you read the reviews and inspect the product as best as you can when buying it online, because you want to make sure that you are buying a tent that will last a while.
Sears also has a great selection of tents at great prices. Campmor.com has a great selection of tents and is a wonderful one stop shop for all of your camping needs. Target also has some great deals on tents.
My favorite tent is one that has a screen room, like this one
http://www.google.com/products/catalog?q=tent+shopping&hl=en&rlz=1C1SNNT_enUS384US384&biw=1024&bih=624&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.&um=1&ie=UTF-8&cid=617012613867350636&sa=X&ei=_sK5TajdLOzSiAKSpIAV&ved=0CIcBEOUNMAE# is a good idea because you can store your gear and camp supplies in the screen room and leave the tent portion for sleeping, changing and resting. This keeps your stuff a little cleaner, keeping it out of the daily foot traffic and provides a screened in bug free space for getting out of the elements, but still enjoying the breeze.
SLEEPING
The next thing you will need is a bed. Again there are many choices, but I have found that avoiding pads and inflatables beds is your best bet for a good night sleep. You can buy an air mattress 
SLEEPING BAGS
There are tons of sleeping bags from just okay, to amazing, search the REI website and especially the REIOUTLET for great deals on the best in camp gear. You don’t want to skimp on your sleeping bag, because it is what will keep you warm at night and in most places, nights will be cold, because you are essentially sleeping outside. Here is my trick….buy on of these
Pendleton Wool Blankets and you will never be cold ever again. Just throw one of these over your sleeping bag and you will stay warm and toasty forever. Yes, they are expensive, but will literally last you the rest of your life. You can find them cheaper here, on Amazon.com
FOOD
You will also need a cooler and camp stove, remember to keep things simple and organize before your trip and you will have a great time, just be prepared for the unexpected and go in with an attitude of fun!
