so who's going camping this weekend?

[millenniumfalcon]

where you off to? last trip of the year? have you learned anything new this season? what was your best buy? any first timers?

not been on a bank holiday before so i'm a bit nervous about that, not keen on busy campsites (d'oh!). were going to mid-wales so at least with all the rain the waterfalls will be looking pretty.

couldn't resist the chance to take our new canvas pyramid for another outing, i'm currently ignoring (slubber ) the prospect of what happens when we have to take it down wet...

we've got one more trip in september but that's a festival sans-kids [happy dance]. i've learned that getting organised further ahead takes away a lot of stress - my boxes of ktichen stuff and essentials are on standby and i've mostly packed the kids clothes already, yay.

i'm getting excited already, i luuuurve camping

Not me

This is the first w/e in the past 6 that we won't be going away

I'm feeling most folorn that my box of minimalism won't be coming out of the garage on friday.

Hope all you campers have a lovely time.

can't work out if i'm or at your uber family trip becky. camping with the inlaws wouldn't exactly be my idea of fun

i'd rather not say either sal, less for stalkery reasons than it's a new site for us and i can do without any tales of how dreadful the place is at this late stage

last family trip, although i have been browsing the yurt-type places with stoves with increasing interest for october half term. have learned that our usual trick of ordering an enormous pizza the night before and having the leftovers for lunch when we get to the site (who wants to spend all morning making sarnies?) doesn't work as well when you're a bunch of piggies growing family and the leftovers are never enough best buy the new tent.

as for you mary, you live in a blessed land of eternal sunshine over there back atcha

Millenniumfalcon, I'm in Caaaardiff. i just fancy going to the South East.

ah yes, that's understandable

This is the second year with this many of us, last year the Aunt and Uncle didn't come, but the rest did. Mostly we got along just fine. The person who cause me the most moments was DH who was a real grumpy badger that weekend.

We've camped with MIL, FIL, BIL and SIL for about 5 years in a row now. Only (long) weekends though, never a whole week.

It makes things quite easy as PIL have a motorhome so we've got better cooking faciltiies than if we were by ourselves. We've also got a huge gazebo thing, a proper one with big doors and windows, not just panels. We use this as a communal tent so we're not all stuck in our own tents when it's raining

do you have loads of windbreaks too

we do have a few, I know some people find them very antisocial, but we've found it helps to keep the little people in our area rather than running off into the rest of the site / into other people's tents This year we've got ds walking, he's 19m and likes running away! When dd3 was this age we tried tieing a rope to the back of her dungarees to stop her

I do acknowledge they're jolly useful for hampering absconders.

That is the only excuse for more than one IMO

lol at rope dungies it seems for some reason people with windbreaks are public enemy #1 amongst online campers atm, certainly doesn't bother me

I'm not really that up-to-date with camping fashions! Are bunting and fairy lights OK?! I think I know they're officially naff, but I quite like them Are big flags considered poor taste?

Becky, it's camping. It's sitting in a wet tent with wellies and pretending we're having a great time. Your hair looks like crap, you haven't worn ironed clothes all weekend and you're eating junk. I really wouldn't worry about what people think about fairy lights

I'm not bothered what they think.

We're going to use our huge new flags whatever. We've not got fairy lights and bunting, but only cos I've been too slack about sorting it out! I was planning to make the bunting myself you see, only I'm far too lazy.

The judgey ones can judge all they like. I'd just like to know when I'm being naff so I can enjoy it more.....

that might be what camping's like for you mary

You were planning to make your own bunting? That would gain you serious brownie points on the party topics. I think we should try to share some values here!

One windbreak with some fairy lights would be really nice, i'm thinking.

sorry Mary, laughing too hard at MF's travel iron to reply sensibly!

snorts at lobsters claws. do not start me on that one again!

again? you have history with lobsters in tents?

Not in tents. Poncey delis. Recent lobster rant here Sorry.

Fairy lights and cooking lobster in a tent would be very very funny. That takes a certain style

and champagne...

I think you'd have to be drinking champagne, (from proper champagne glasses of course) while you cooked the lobster in the fairy lit tent

I think you'd need a proper linen tablecloth too....

Tent will of course be canvas bell type.

oooh I'd love one of those. I tried to convince DH. I failed

Oh lord, really do need ot go to bed. Night all.