The weekend is finally here, and for us it is day one of Spring Break.  The kids are beyond excited, and secretly not so secretly, I am too.

Friday Night, we are starting off with a camp in.

We did this for the first time a few years ago, when our camping plans were rained out. We had everything ready to go, so we just called an audible and moved it to our family room.  The kids were over the moon as it combined all of their favorite things; games, food, forts and blankets.  I was smitten, because it was climate controlled and bugless.

This year to kick off our camp in we:

Set up our smallest tent in the Family Room. Equipped with all the blankets and stuffed animals it could handle and a camping lantern.  I usually keep glow bracelets on hand, and now is the perfect time to break those out.

We prepared Hobo Dinner’s.  It’s not camping unless you are eating out of tinfoil.  We make our Hobo Dinners just like you would to go on a camp fire, but put them in the oven to cook.  We serve them in the tinfoil, on paper plates.  I am going to say so it is more like authentic camping, but what I mean is that it is Friday and dishes are a drag.

 We break out the games.  The ones that don’t require electronics.  Our favorites are Bananagrams, Spot it, Uno, and Hedbanz.

Then it is S’more time, the sweetest thing camping has to offer.  We found a fun skillet recipe that makes this super easy, and less messy indoors.  You treat it like you would chips and salsa.  In a skillet, you combine the chocolate and marshmallows, and use the graham cracker as the dipper.  Remember, I said less messy not mess free.  Someone is bound to have a little marshmallow evidence smeared across their face, but oh what a happy face it will be.

Finally, with everyone in PJ’s, snuggled in their blankets with the lineup of all the stuffed animals they can’t seem to sleep without.  We read.

This was our Spring Break kick off.  What is yours?