I’ve been camping at Leo Carrillo in Malibu throughout my entire life. It was always one of my most favorites family adventures as a kid and now I love to take my own kids so they too can have those wonderful memories of crackling fires, squishy smores, fending off the bold ground squirrels, playing board games by lantern light, and waking up to the sound of Scrub Jays in the morning.
While I love the change of pace and excitement of being outdoors I am also very organized and clean, like to come prepared, and I enjoy to make our campsite as homey as possible (typical Libra that I am). As we’ve got two trips coming up in October to Yosemite and Malibu I thought I’d round up my favorite items (almost all found on Amazon) to make camping a breeze.
Tents:
This is the tent we have had for years and LOVE it. For some, it may be way too much tent but for our family of four and two dogs it’s perfect. We like that it has the little screened off area where we can put our dogs when it gets dark (they like to sit in their beds with their bully sticks and watch us while we hang by the campfire).
If you aren’t camping as a family and don’t need all that room but want a similar screened area for dogs or just for helping keep the bugs out the tent try this one.
I love the beautiful shade of green this enamelware comes in. Click here to shop the dining set and here to shop the matching cutlery.
These are things I never used to bring and now I am so glad I do. Having a pop up trash can is much nicer than a random trash bag hanging from the tree (which just does not make the campsite look cute). Just make sure to always empty it before bed! I also love having an extra table to put the gas stove and chopping board on, so that there is more room for eating and games on the main picnic table.
For washing up, I love having a collapsible washing tub handy (and this one is a 2 pack!) and a collapsible drying rack next to it. Makes it soooo much easier to do the camp dishes when you have this little set up.
These items both make camping easier. I love this water dispenser (much easier to bring one big 5 gal water then a bunch of the big jugs and this spout makes it easy to pour into your cup). Also, this pack of eco-friendly mesh food covers are perfect for keeping the flies and wasps from your food. For my morning coffee, this is my favorite mug. Its big enough to hold a proper amount of coffee that I am always needing when camping with my little early risers and I love the speckled blue vintage vibe it has. Also the Coleman Camp Stove seen below is a must. It’s no fun warming water up for coffee on a fire ring as it takes foreverrrrrr.
This outdoor rug is gorgeous and is handy for the kids to have a dust free place to play and hand and these collapsible light cubes are also another fav of mine. They are solar powered and you can put them or hang them wherever it’s convenient. Having a camp hammock is always a treat for those lazy afternoons with a book.
One of the less glamorous sides of camping is the toilet situation. While some of camp sites have restrooms, they always are a bit yuck and awkward and it’s not fun running the kids back and forth from them so this year we are making our own little set up. This pop up tent and Luggable Loo combo will make it a much better bathroom experience than hovering over a metal bowl in a smelly community bathroom.
Camp Chairs:
I love the cozy, plush vibe of this camp chair and it gets amazing reviews (though a bit spendy at $80). Also love that you can order a matching footrest.
I also love having a loveseat by the fire for snuggling with the kids in.
So there’s that! If I think of anything else I will add it to the list! Also, feel free to message me with your favorite camp gear and accessories. Happy Camping!
