Mummy Milli

The third camping trip, we have to be getting the hang of it by now?

I would like to confirm that I am not getting paid for my blogs and/or links, my posts are my honest reviews.

Learning from our last adventure in camping we spent a lot more time researching this camping spot. We felt limited keeping it to state or national parks and chain campsites don’t really appeal to us, we like the more natural setting. Finally we stumbled across Hipcamp, which offers a large selection of private campgrounds, often in nature or secluded spots on private land. The inclusions are different with each site and it is easy to search by what you need or want, such as toilets, showers etc. along with what style of camping you will be doing.

The campsite that Hubby picked has now set the bar too high for other Hipcamps. We picked The Scrub Campsite it as it was a large open site, giving Monkey lots of space to roam, there was a lovely view over the fenced dam and this campsite boasted spaces for children. It did not disappoint with a sandpit filled with diggers and other toys, basketball hoop, covered eating area and some buggies/bikes. There were walking trails into the sheep paddock,  which was also full of kangaroos and a small loop around the dam.

One of the highlights of camping is having a campfire. We are not big marshmallow people but the inconsistent flickering along with the warmth is hypnotic. These last two camping trips have been within two weeks of each other as we wanted to make sure we got some trips in before the fire ban season started and we wouldn’t be able to have campfires. Luckily this weekend was a lot more comfortable temperature wise so we could have a fire.

Monkey loved being able to sit and watch the fire. He, of course, wanted to interact with it, put wood on it and poke it but we were firm that he is not old enough to do these things yet and we kept very close to him. Having now undertaken our three week trip to Victoria, where Monkey was much closer to three years old, we have found that only 6 months of age difference has heavily impacted his understanding the risks associated with fires and how to act safely around them. While we are still cautious and close to him around fires, we are comfortable him interacting with them.

We had recently listened to an episode of the Raising Wildlings podcast, which has a big focus on getting children outside and pushing their boundaries. They discussed teaching fire safety to children and really only started at 3 years old, in listening to this we were confused as surely we can be teaching Monkey some basics but after this interaction we realised that while we can put down the safety groundwork the ability of a newly two year old to follow it was near impossible. If you are interested in my top 5 podcasts for parents, (this is the only parenting podcast on the list) you can find them here.

After dinner we bundled Monkey up and put him in the carrier, we used the walk to around the sheep paddock and the dam to calm Monkey down after he got to play with all the new toys, the sandpit and being around the campfire. Walking is also a big part of Hubby and my interactions, prior to having Monkey we would hike most weekends. Keeping Monkey in the carrier is important for us as it helps him relax but also helps us relax as we are able to go at our own pace, there is no chasing a toddler around and it is a great time to chat with little distraction.

The set up of the tent was great, we fit a whole double mattress in it. I thought for sure this would be the way to go. Monkey slept on the outside this time and it was not a winner. As he was on the outside of the mattress there was the added stress that Monkey would roll off the mattress and not only end up with just a thin piece of tent fabric dividing him from the cold ground but also what he could get himself stuck in between the mattress and the edge of the tent.  I must have woken up 20 to 30 times that night with that fear and then would drag him back onto the bed and back into my arms in the hope to keep him contained. It did not work. 

Monkey has been used to his own bed since about 9 months old and so doesn’t sleep well between us, as we learnt from our last camping trip, so unfortunately, sleeping in a tent will not be the option for out car camping trip to Victoria.

After a long night the simplicity of overnight oats for breakfast was a relief and we decided to spoil ourselves on the way home. One of the biggest perks of living in Adelaide is the wineries and the wine regions. Our drive home went directly through one of them, so we had to make a stop. We like to try out different places and this time we headed to Battle of Bosworth wines in McLaren Vale, an organic winery in a lovely setting with the cellar door in one of the original buildings.

Often wineries have toys for children or simply a large open space to cater for families. It can be fairly common for families to stop by, grab a couple of glasses to have outside as they watch the children run around, some even encourage picnics if they don’t offer food themselves. While a winery may not be high on peoples list of places to go with children they can actually be great outings for the whole family. This may just be an Australian cultural thing as we have been to a few wineries in Canada and I don’t remember them being overly family friendly.

While we figured out on this trip that the tent would not work for us on our three week trip, the campsite itself was well worth the stay and Hubby and Monkey have a trip booked to go back in a few weeks time.