We’ve been celebrating Halloween with the identical group of mates since Chase was a child and certainly one of our mates started internet hosting our crew about 6 years in the past as a result of they’ve the perfect neighborhood for trick-or-treating. This 12 months the social gathering was greater than only a Halloween social gathering nonetheless, because it doubled as a shock fortieth party for our buddy Lauren!
Halloween Weekend 2025 + Our Tenting MVPs
All the girls in attendance got here to the social gathering dressed as completely different variations of Lauren! I used to be College of Tennessee Lauren (she’s a diehard Vols fan since her faculty days) and her response when she realized we had been all dressed as some model of HER for Halloween was priceless!
After all it wouldn’t be Halloween with out trick-or-treating and we trick-or-treated till the youngsters’ luggage had been virtually overflowing with sweet.
After trick-or-treating, all of the dads took the youngsters house so the mothers might keep again and have a good time Lauren till near midnight. It was a fantastic Halloween!
Weekend Tenting Journey
On Saturday, Ryan and I awoke and instantly went into go-mode packing up for a fast 24-hour tenting journey!
Once we noticed a largely free weekend on our agenda a few weeks in the past, we nabbed one of many final websites out there at Dan Nicholas Park and crossed our fingers for good climate. It ended up being completely attractive outdoors (I’ll by no means recover from the colourful fall leaves in North Carolina) and although temperatures dropped down to simply under 40 levels in a single day, we had been ready with sleeping luggage, blankets and layers.
We love tenting at Dan Nicholas Park for a myriad of causes, the very high one being quick access to a small lake that gives our boys with loads of leisure within the type of netting small fish and frogs. (For any native mates, it’s not the perfect lake for catching fish with a rod and reel although, as we’ve by no means had good luck and by no means seen anybody else catch a factor.)
The park can also be very near our home (solely a couple of 60-minute drive) and has lots to do past the campground, together with a number of playgrounds, a mini zoo, gem mining, mini golf, paddle boating and extra. (It seems like a step again in time as many of the actions are priced beneath $2 per individual.)
The campground is situated throughout the lake from all the points of interest which we love because it makes tenting really feel secluded from park guests however every thing remains to be walkable through the lakeside path.
I had somebody on Instagram ask me to spotlight our tenting “MVPs” so right here’s a fast rundown of the provides we discover most useful as novice campers:
CORE Tent:
Ryan spent lots of time researching this tent earlier than he ordered it 3 years in the past and it paid off as a result of it’s improbable. It arrange/breaks down simply (5-10 minutes!), is sweet and spacious (it says is sleeps 12 which feels aggressive nevertheless it’s lots huge for our household of 5) and lined with LED lights which are extremely useful at night time. It additionally has zip-down dividers so you’ll be able to create separate sleeping areas which was particularly useful when Rhett was 3 and went to mattress/slept longer than everybody else.
Tenting Blankets:
The blankets I initially ordered to convey to the boys’ soccer video games that ended up being so nice for tenting, too! I like that one facet is nylon (aka it doesn’t decide up dust/grass/turf/leaves) and the opposite facet is sweet and comfortable. We used these by the campfire after which introduced them into the tent to place them over our sleeping luggage at night time. I already ordered two extra as a result of they had been so useful on this journey and all of us wished our personal.
Razor Griddle:
We’ve had this for years (we initially obtained it for tailgating!) and use it to cook dinner all of our meals. It pops up and may be very simple to make use of to cook dinner every thing from burgers and sizzling canine to eggs and pancakes.
Mini Noise Machine:
Aka the one purpose all of us get any sleep. It’s small however can get fairly loud and simply holds a cost via 2+ nights. A $8.99 gem of a discover!
Hest Sleeping Pads:
Oh my gosh these are a recreation changer. Ryan and I flopped round on a deflating air mattress throughout our first tenting journey and it was a catastrophe. These mats are unimaginable. I sleep 1,000,000 occasions higher they usually really feel like a real luxurious. (The boys nonetheless use air mattresses as a result of the Hest pads are a splurge they usually sleep largely nice on their air mattresses to this point. We do pack the Hest pads for household journey although once we want an additional sleeping spot for them.)
Water Jug/A Few Gallons of Water:
Having clear water entry on the campsite is so useful for brushing tooth while not having to go to the bogs, washing arms, refilling water bottles, and so on. (We normally simply purchase a few gallons of water earlier than a tenting journey.)
Eno Hammock:
It is a carryover merchandise Ryan had from his in a single day climbing days that our entire household enjoys hanging round in on our tenting journeys.
Chairs:
Our moveable ALDI tenting chairs I purchased on a whim 2 years in the past have held up properly for the boys (they’re practically an identical to these tenting chairs) and this pop-up outside rocking chair is for certain essentially the most coveted seat in our household — a lot in order that we could must get one other one. (I initially obtained it for Ryan as a birthday present final 12 months.)
Marshmallow Roasting Sticks:
The boys and I gave these to Ryan for Christmas years in the past they usually’re the perfect!
Wipes:
For cleansing arms, surfaces, your physique, and so on.
Kindle/Nighttime Studying Lights:
These are actually useful for our household, as all of us learn earlier than we fall asleep. Since we’re sharing one sleeping space, the power to learn earlier than mattress offers everybody a quiet exercise they’ll do in the event that they’re feeling stressed.
Sleeping Luggage:
This was one other ALDI buy that labored properly for us! Our boys all have sleeping luggage from ALDI meant for 40(ish)-degree tenting and above they usually work properly, although we could must spend money on hotter ones as a result of Chase talked about he was a little bit chilly on this journey. Ryan and I take advantage of two Large Agnes sleeping luggage he’s had for years from his previous climbing journeys they usually’re tremendous heat, simple to pack and really light-weight.
Each time we go tenting, we attempt to take stock of what works and what doesn’t, what we use and what we don’t and it’s at all times a studying course of. A number of the gadgets listed above are completely an funding and never essentially one thing I’d suggest in case you’re simply going to present tenting a shot one time to see if it’s one thing you may like. They’re gadgets we’ve acquired over time, as a household who plans to proceed tenting with our children for years and years, they usually’re gadgets we hope/imagine will maintain up properly.
It’s by no means good and each tenting journey inevitably has some complications or obstacles pop up nevertheless it’s at all times price it, particularly for the reason that boys additionally appear to take pleasure in it a lot.
All they actually need for a enjoyable tenting weekend in a giant pile of dust… and s’mores.
As soon as we made it house on Sunday, we spent the remainder of the day doing laundry, cleansing up round the home and getting organized for the week forward. Ryan additionally put up half of our Christmas lights although we’re going to attempt to withstand turning them on for a pair extra weeks. (I make no guarantees.)
And now I’m off to get this Monday rockin’. The large youngsters have a instructor work day at this time and all three boys wouldn’t have faculty tomorrow both so it’s a little bit of a wonky week over right here. I hope you all have a fantastic Monday and luxuriate in the remainder of your week!
