Yes, well I feel very fortunate to say that camping has been a part of my life forever really. Growing up, our parents would take us camping all the time. I would say camping is what most of my childhood memories are made up of. I still remember as a kid going to sleep in our own beds on a Friday night, to then waking up at a campground hours from home the next morning. *magic*. I realise now (since having a kid) how much of a logistical nightmare that must have been for my parents but huge kudos to them for figuring it out! An inspiration.

I don’t feel like I’ll be alone in saying this but being outside just simply feels GOOD! There’s honestly nothing better. We spend way too much inside in my opinion and I feel like when we’re outside, we’re calmer, happier, less distracted and nourished. I always feel energised after even a few days of camping. It honestly feels like I’ve been on a retreat. The sound of the kookaburras in the morning (the best sounds possibly ever) , the thump of a kangaroo skipping past your tent during the night, my camp fire infused hair, simple yummy camp meals, going to bed and waking up with the sun in a boiling hot tent. All the things. I know camping ain’t for everyone but I love it, and these are just some of the things that keep bringing me back.

I find it quite hard to feel relaxed at home. I think this is common right? At home I find myself constantly cleaning, fussing, dwelling, sorting, scrolling…but when you’re camping there’s none of that. You can truly be at peace knowing that there’s nothing to do, except cook, read, nap and maybe go for a walk or a swim to break up the day. If there’s no reception, even better. Yes you have your luxuries at home like your own bathroom, your comfy mattress, heating and cooling, a fridge! But the trade-off is so much better than those things in my opinion, and tbh, camping makes you appreciate all of those small creature comforts all the more when you’re back at home so it’s really a full circle moment.

Also, it gives you the time and space to reconnect with yourself, and whoever you’re with. Be it friends, family, partner, kids - there’s no screen to distract you, no ‘home duties’ to fulfil, but instead plenty of time to kick back, sink a few beers and chat, or not! Maybe you sit in silence and stare into the fire. It beats sitting at home on the couch watching MAFS which is what I am currently doing.

I guess our choice of location depends on the time of year. We try to avoid the dry bush in the warmer months and instead head somewhere coastal like Jamison Creek Campground which is so beautiful, I cannot wait to go back there! Or Tarra Valley where you can camp pretty much on the river and nestled amongst ferns and forest. We do find ourselves returning to The Grampians the most though. There’s plenty of campsites around there. I find the landscape to be just absolutely stunning, the waterholes, waterfalls and the bush walks are the best in Victoria I’d say! So we’re definitely most familiar with that area for camping for sure. It’s also where my family has been going every Easter since I was born, so it is a very special place to me.

It is so different now with a little one as you’re at the mercy of nap schedules and short wake windows. It’s not necessarily a bad thing though, it just slows you down even more. Which I kind of love. Admittedly, we didn’t take our daughter camping when she was crawling, she had her first camping trip when she was 4 months old and we hired a caravan which was a nice luxury. She was a little blob at 4 months so it was actually quite easy! It’s much harder when they’re on the move.

When she started to crawl (and eating dirt) we didn’t really go camping BUT now she’s walking it has been great! Much easier with an upright child that’s for sure. A typical day:

7:00am: When we camp with Ava, she sleeps between us on a big mattress which she loves. So she does tend to sleep in a little longer than she would at home. Extra morning cuddles = dream scenario. So I’d say we wake up at around 7ish and start our day. Pop the hot water on, make her/us a simple breakfast and a cuppa and slowly ease into the morning.

10:00am: It’s always good to leave the campsite for a moment, even if it’s just a short walk down the road, or a jump in the car to explore the nearest waterfall for a swim or hike up to a lookout point. So we’ll often try and do something like this in the front part of the day before Ava’s nap.

12:00pm: Dream scenario is we all have a nice nap in the tent together with the flaps open (fly zipped up so we don’t get any bugs). Heavennnnnnn. OR let Ava sleep, while Simon and I sit outside on our luxurious reclining camp chairs with a cuppa or a beer and read an actual book with actual pages which is something we literally never get to do anymore. Sacred!

1:30pm: Start putting together a little snack plate for a light lunch. We tend to keep camping lunches simple and snacky. So maybe some cheeses, olives, hams, sliced raw veggies, tomatoes, dips and some pitta, that kinda vibe.

3:00 - 5:00pm: Gather your firewood (must be done as a group activity) and set up your camp for the night. Give our campsite a little once over, maybe a sweep. Pop on some tunes, have a wine, dance a little, sing a little, play a little. This is just nice fun free time as the sun starts to get low and the shadows long. Probably my favourite time of day when it comes to camping!

5:00 - 7:00pm: One of us cooks dinner, while someone else lights the campfire. Eat our food on our laps in front of the fire and settle in for the night! At some point in this window, someone is putting Ava to bed, and someone will do the dishes.

The rest of the night is really all about getting a little tipsy in front of the fire, looking up at the night sky, mistaking shooting stars for satellites, playing cards, roasting marshmallows, eating chocolate, and actually having a nice long conversation with your partner which is ALSO something we never get to do at home!

As mentioned earlier, every single Easter since I was born, our family (including aunties, uncles, cousins, etc) have gone to the grampians to camp. Specifically Roses Gap. The campground is basically a huge field in the middle of the bush where we plonk our caravans, tents, swags and rooftop tents in a big circle around the central camp fire. There’s usually about 30 of us there at a time at least. The core group stays the same year to year but the fly-ins often change. Everyone is welcome. The entire 4 days are focused around food…food…and more food. It’s wild.

Here’s the roster:

Friday night: PASTA NIGHT

Everyone cooks their own pasta sauce and gathers them in big pots on a central table, which is accompanied with the naked cooked pasta for your picking. It's a free for all! I like to load my plate up with a bit of spaghetti, some gnocchi and some rigatoni, and then spoon on 3 different sauces to match. It’s heavveeennn and possibly my favourite night! (You can see this pasta feast in this video!)

Saturday night: STEAK NIGHT

All meat is cooked on a very hot campfire that’s been carefully tended to all day! Sausages, steaks, kebabs - all the things. With this everyone will make a salad. Again it all goes on the communal table, where all 30 of us will grab a plate, and circle our way around the table like a smorgasbord board and load her up, once, twice, maybe three times.

Sunday night: POT-LUCK

This is probably my second favourite night since this is usually a mix of everything. It’s basically everyone’s specialty dish. We have mum's schnitzels, aunty Fran’s baked (in the fire) snapper. Aunty Teresa’s noodle salad, Aunty Paula’s pork spare ribs (also cooked on the fire), my cousin Elise’s grain salad, we literally have it all. We’re fortunate to have so many good cooks in our family too!

We have our go-to meals UNLESS we’re in an area which is known for something, ie lobster or clams. In which case, we can’t help but dedicate a meal to that. South Australia was fun for that. We fished for our own pipis on Goolwa beach to make our own clam pasta back at our campsite and BOY it was good!

I often cook a bolognese at some point, sausages and salad is always an easy one, a chicken curry or a dream bowl. They’re our go-to’s. For breakfast we keep it super simple. Usually granola, some fruit and a cuppa tea. Lunch is usually a snack plate of some description. Nothing too crazy. However, once I made lobster pasta on a road trip back from South Australia and it was insane.

Our camp kitchen is super basic. We have a Stanley cook set which has all of the essentials, and packs down nice and small. I bring a wooden chopping board. With this we have a Guzzini picnic ball which is actually the BEST thing for camping and has enough plates/cups/bowls for a family of 5! My cousin got us a vintage orange one but you can also buy them new. Excellent for camping! Our stove is just a basic two burner coleman gas stove. We always bring one good sharp knife, and Simon brings his 1 serve Alessi espresso maker and that’s it in terms of gear!

This basic setup definitely encourages you to cook more simply. One pot meals which don’t require extra utensils like graters and peelers. I think that’s why I mainly cook the same meals on repeat, because I have all the ingredients and equipment down pat. In saying that, you can still do SO much with so little. I would like to experiment more with cooking on the fire (baked fish, jacket potatoes, damper, etc). I think that’s going to be my next goal. Stay tuned!

At home cooking and eating is such a non-event. During the week, often one of us cooks dinner while the other races around cleaning, getting the house in order, and putting the child to bed. Then we sit in front of the telly side by side, scoff the food down while we watch some trash, chuck everything in the dishwasher and pretty well go to bed. But when you’re camping, eating and cooking and even cleaning is woven into your day as a group activity. Instead of standing at the counter chopping up your veggies on your own, you’ll sit at the table by the fire and chop them amongst the group while you all talk about all sorts. You cook together, eat across from one another, the conversations are longer and fuller. Then you wash the dishes together. From start to end it’s a group activity and I really value that part of the camping experience.

Keep it simple! Don’t get sucked in by designer camping gear (although the new HAY x Jasper Morrison Range is SO GOOOOD - really trying to hold back on this). Also, don’t try to recreate your living room,or whole house really, for the outdoors. Stick to the absolute essentials (and maybe 1 or 2 luxuries if you must) but that’s it! It’s so easy to get carried away with all the bells and whistles that will inevitably filter through your instagram algorithm once you start looking for gear. Don’t be tempted, keep it simple, you’ll enjoy it so much more.

If you’re new to camping, try and go with someone who is a seasoned pro. They will have all the essentials that you might not know you needed or forgotten. (salt, pepper, paper towels, toilet paper etc). Someone who knows how to light a fire, put up a tent and change a tire.. Don’t try and figure it out on your own for the first time, you’ll hate it. And we don’t want that, because camping can be the absolute best. It can be better than an overseas trip!