Raising Cubs in a Campground

It's back to school season and whether your kids start before or after Labor Day new routines are on every mom's mind these days. Today I'm sharing my routine for staying on track with our busy schedule and how I start my morning off in a way that motivates me to get things done.  I have this cute sign in my design shop that says,  COME HERE YOU BIG BEAUTIFUL CUP OF COFFEE AND LIE TO ME ABOUT HOW MUCH WE ARE GOING TO GET DONE TODAY. If only that weren't so close to the truth!  Some days that IS how life works in our house, but it does make for a very prickly MamaBear by the end of the day if I don't have anything to show for my day!  I work from home and am solely responsible for my time. That gives me great freedom, but also great responsibility. If Mama don't do it, it doesn't get done!  Enter my morning routine.... If I don't exercise first thing in the morning it just isn't going to get done, so at 6am I pop in a DVD and fumble my way thr...

Car campers and backpackers typically have a completely different set of camping gear, but when you travel with three kids, a husband, a dog, and a canoe then packing light like backpackers do applies to car camping as well.  Eighteen years ago I bought a Coleman duel fuel stove and had to replace it this summer before our trip out west. We searched REI, Amazon, Gander Mountain, Fleet Farm....and read review after review.  We had a pretty specific set of requirements and I'm happy to say we found a stove that met them in every way. WHAT WE WERE LOOKING FOR: Under $75 Didn't require expensive fuel Refillable fuel tank Compact Long lasting Sturdy I found this Coleman duel fuel 533 campstove on Amazon for $65. There are a LOT of stoves to chose from but we knew we didn't want to have to buy fuel canisters 'just in case' (That kinda defeats the purpose of compact if you are bringing fuel canisters that are as big as the stove!). We have a special fuel bottle that holds ...