The Fine Art of Layering for Fall

By Heidi Drake

Fall officially arrives this week (it’s been near freezing at night here in Sunriver)—time to pack up the kids’ flip-flops and shorts and think layers for school and outside play.

Why is layering so important? Uncomfortable kids are cranky kids, and that’s no fun for anyone (especially them). I don’t know about where you live, but today it was 38 degrees when my kids left for school and it’ll be in the 70s by the time they get home. Can’t send ‘em with a complete change of clothes, so we layer. How?

•    Start with a moisture-wicking base layer.  Classroom temperatures vary, and some kids just run hot, so make sure they’re not sticky to boot. Synthetics work best—we love Patagonia’s Polartec Capilene fabric… oh, so comfy!
•    Let ‘em rock their style. Now that the first layer is taken care of, encourage your child’s sense of individual style by letting them wear their favorite cotton tee or fleece hoody over it.
•    Cover up! Jeans, cargo pants, skirts with leggings… your kids’ largest muscles are in their legs, so keep ‘em warm to avoid dragging feet by the end of the day.
•    Keep those tootsies toasty. It’s sock season, so arm your active kiddos with form-fitting performance socks that wick moisture and fight odors. If your kids are anything like my daughter Elise, you’ll save their classmates from horrible foot odor and help their favorite boots last longer.

Swimming Lessons: Just How Important Are They?

By Heidi Drake

Summer means water and beach fun, and swimming lessons are just a normal part of the long break for a lot of kids. But for each story I hear about kids being enrolled in lessons since babyhood, I hear a "I just tossed 'em in the lake and let 'em figure it out" tale.

Are swimming lessons really necessary? They're never a bad idea, and it's a no-brainer that a kid who can swim well is gonna be safer in the water. However, participation in swimming lessons doesn't guarantee that they won't get into trouble, and some kids pick it up naturally without a lot of coaching. Here we offer some tips for deciding what's best for your little waterdogs:

• If you have the time and the cash to enroll the kids in lessons at the local pool, do it! But don't let it become a point of stress if you can't swing it this year.
  
  
• Got the time and inclination, but lessons just aren't in the budget? Check out eHow's How to Teach Kids to Swim video series, and you be the teacher! You can still have fun at your community pool without paying for swim instruction.

Bikin' and 'Shroom Huntin' - It's On!

By Heidi Drake

It all started with vanilla malts. Daddy made 'em at 7:30 on a Sunday evening when bedtime for our school-bound girls is 8:00 pm. When six-year-old Maya started bouncing off the walls and talking so fast we couldn't understand her, I ordered Dad to get out the kids' mountain bikes and take 'em out to burn it off before snooze time. 

Not long after they set off to cruise our two-acre spread, Maya ran in yelling, "Mom! We found a Morel mushroom! I need Daddy’s pocket knife!" I gave it to her (with a host of "be careful, it's sharp!" warnings) and it was only a couple of minutes until they asked for a bag 'cause they'd found a bunch more. They gathered 67 before I made them come in for bed.

When the weather turns to a mix of warm days and rain, the Morels pop their spongy little heads out of the ground and it's harvest time. There are a bunch of helpful mushroom hunting websites to consult for complete information before you go, but here are a few tips to get you pumped for the hunt:

• Make sure you're legal. Before you head out to search for Morels, visit your local forest service office and get a permit. It's free, and it'll keep you out of trouble! Even on private land, permits are needed for large quantities, but if you happen to stumble upon a few and plan to use them right away for dinner, it's okay to harvest them without a permit. Do talk to a ranger to clarify the rules in your area.

The Full Meal Deal: Backpacking with Kids

By Meredith Russell

As we've previously discussed, camping with kids can suck. So imagine how crummy a backpacking trip can be!  Done simply, however, backpacking with your kids can create some of the best family memories. 

Start Small. Consider not only a short hike, but also a short drive. A shorter distance to the site helps keep the kids' enthusiasm up, and a short trip home limits confined periods of whining!

Start simple. An easy way to limit the complexity of a first trip is to camp at the trailhead. You can have the fun of camping without having to trudge your tent and sleeping bags uphill the next day. You can fit in an overnight, a full day of hiking, fishing, etc., and then head back to the car in the evening for the trip home.

Plan destination hikes. Once the kids are up for it, there's nothing cooler than hiking to a waterfall, lake, or some final spot that takes your breath away and makes everyone forget about their blister or sore shoulders! Set it up so you camp at your "destination," which will make your kids feel that the hike, no matter how tricky or "exhausting," was worth it!

Let's Go Camping!

Oregon State Parks and Play Outdoors help you get started

By Kevin Farron

Are tent poles and tent stakes the same thing? Should I bring firewood or a chainsaw? What the heck are we going to eat and how are we gonna cook it? Do I really need a -10 or 30-degree sleeping bag? And what exactly does poison ivy look like?

Relax. PlayOutdoors.com and Oregon State Parks have got you covered. The park department's Let's Go Camping program offers families who are new to this whole camping thing the opportunity to try-before-they-buy, learn-before-they-burn and know-before-they-go. Providing free gear rentals, ranger-led camping basics, owl prowls, plant identification, fire safety and Dutch oven cooking, Let's Go Camping has something for everyone!

The group camping outings are only $20 per family and include overnight costs, parking fees and all programs. Did we mention they provide sweet gear as well? From stoves to sleeping pads and tents to sleeping bags, they've got you covered. There's no better way to learn to camp, and there's certainly no better deal. Oh, and did we mention, Let's Go Camping provides all the S'mores you can stomach? Sweet!

Check out Let's Go Camping's website for dates, host parks and how to register. Happy camping!

Practice Makes Perfect – Camping with Kids Edition

By Abbie Enlund

Oh, the joys of camping with babies and toddlers. The car packed with more gear than the average adult would need in a week. Meals meaning food spread out across the ground from one end of the campsite to another and not enough food in the child's stomach to last them till breakfast. Campfires that result in stress ulcers for both parents. Bedtime routines thoroughly thrown off and parents trying to get the kids to fall asleep (with the thought that maybe they can sneak back out by the fire after the kids are asleep…HA!).  And the bathroom issues! These are all too familiar scenes for many parents that have taken young children camping. But come on, why haven't you taken your little ones camping? Doesn't that all sound like a blast?

Well, there are certainly joys and happy times in camping too, we all know that. But for some parents the daunting unknowns and stressors they foresee keep them holding off on camping till their kids are old enough to put themselves to sleep, go to the bathroom outside unassisted and carry their own gear (which means they may think twice about packing that third doll!).

Give it a trial run. Test how meal times will work, get your kiddo used to the fire and try out the bedtime routine. Here's how.

S'mores, Revisited – Tasty Twists on the Classic Dessert

By Kevin Farron

Ahh, yes–the S'more. Perhaps the most coveted campfire treat ever created. It's simple, delicious, and oh-so-fun to cook. It can, however, get better. Here's how:

Before you start, think about keeping your young cooks safe. Always pack a trustworthy first-aid kit and stress fire safety before the campfire is lit. Utilizing a safety circle will create a buffer between the red-hot coals and the kids. Another technique is to require that all marshmallow cookers drop to one knee while roasting, lessening the chance of tripping and falling or being bumped accidentally into the coals. Finally, designating burning-marshmallow-blower-outers is a great way to prevent flying, flaming goo from ruining the fun.

First, with their LED headlamps on, send the kids into the woods to find appropriate roasting sticks (nothing alive though–from the ground only). Be sure to pack back-up skewers in case the stick gathering doesn't go as planned. If the sticks require sharpening, leave this up to Mom and Dad–or again, at least make sure your first-aid kit is handy.

The S'more is basically a sweet, sweet sandwich. The graham crackers are the bread; the chocolate the sweet; and the marshmallow the dressing. The three parts are essential, but can be altered.

The Bread - Try cinnamon or chocolate flavored grahams, cookies or, my favorite, Nilla Wafers.

How to Poop in the Woods

By Heidi Drake

You're out exploring nature's wonders when suddenly it comes a callin'—one of the kids announces, "I have to poop!" And of course it usually happens when there's no outhouse or bathroom nearby.

Hey, it happens. Ever get caught unprepared, or not sure exactly what the proper etiquette is for going #2 al fresco? We're here to clear the air.

• Pack supplies. No matter where you are, you're gonna need something to wipe with and possibly something to carry out with (more on your options below). You're already sporting a backpack full of snacks and water bottles so no big deal to add a couple more things like TP and plastic bags, right?
  
  

• Go off trail. Scope out the situation and make sure you and your offspring don't do your business where others are gonna easily stumble into your makeshift bathroom. But, it's also important to avoid trampling foliage as much as possible.

•  Method #1: Pack it out. If you're truly a Leave No Trace kind of person, arm yourself with TP and plastic bags you can tie in knots (or Ziploc bags) and dispose of when you get back. Think of what you do for your dog and apply it to yourself. Enclose them in a paper bag if you don't want to look at your stuff later!

Family Hiking: Get Ready, Get Set…Go!

By Meredith Russell

Hiking is a wonderful family activity for many reasons, not the least of which is that a good hike can keep everyone "unplugged," at least for a little while.

Preparation is always a great way to increase family fun and minimize meltdowns.

Gather the Gear.  There's a ton of great gear out there for adults and children to make hiking easy and fun.  But remember: whatever gear you pack for the kids, there's a high likelihood you'll be carrying it by the end of the hike! Your child is likely to be psyched to have his own child-sized backpack, but you never know how long the enthusiasm will last. So, you may want to be sure that his backpack fits inside yours, or that you can carry both backpacks.  I'm just saying….

Choose the Hike.  There are some awesome websites that provide current information on hikes appropriate for young children. Be sure to get info on the elevation gain as well as the length, and check whether the hike is good in all seasons. Use your own judgment based on your family. When we first started hiking with our kids, we averaged one mile per hour when we factored in snacks and stops!

Survive Tent Camping with the Kids!

 By Heidi Drake

When Eric and I moved to Central Oregon and started our family, we envisioned cozy family camping trips with six-month-old Elise the summer after she was born. What we did not count on was a screaming baby who hated the rustling sound of the tent in the breeze and was not going to accept a bottle that wasn't warmed up to her specifications in the middle of the night.

Let's just say that first trip was a quick one.

Were we just cursed with a kid who was destined to hate camping? Ask the eight-year-old who now requests that we set up the tent for her and her little sister and chooses it over the heated and/or air-conditioned camp trailer. Go figure.

How did we turn her around? Here are a few survival tips we picked up along the way:

• Go for a test run—in your backyard. Set up the tent and the grill and do your best to ignore the lure of the luxuries in the house… unless your kid totally freaks out. That's why you're doing the test, right? One time Elise was terrified of the quaking tent; a few months later she was fascinated by it.

• Soothe their bellies. People in general are cranky when they're not fed or hydrated, so don't torture your kid! If we'd had a Hydroflask insulated bottle to store pre-heated formula in, Elise wouldn't have ticked off a lot of people in our campground at 2 am.