When our family was young, camping was our holiday of choice. I use "choice" reservedly since with raising a family of boys on one income, it was really the only option open to us. I endured it for years and years for several reasons.
Firstly, because it meant we did get to see some beautiful (and remote) parts of the country (whichever one we happened to be living in at the time); secondly, DH and the boys seemed to really enjoy it; thirdly, DH did the majority - if not all - of the cooking when we were camping; and, lastly, there is hardly any housework to do when camping so I had a break from both housework and cooking (even if only for a few days).
DH tends to be a purist in that if we're "roughing it" then we're going to be truly "roughing it". A solar shower was a very late addition to our camping equipment, and if we were fortuante to have anything other than a long drop (pit latrine) available for our needs, well we counted ourselves very fortunate indeed.
One could be forgiven for assuming that given the fact that our sons are now all grown (and if they choose to engage in such torture as camping that's now their problem) that we had earned the right to a greater degree of comfort and luxury. Especially since on the last two camping occasions I woke in terror in the tent fighting extreme claustrophobia. Which would make one wonder why we are again packing up the tent and sleeping bags and planning to camp.
Family, that's why.
Several family members have planned a weekend away camping and even though not everyone will be able to make it, I decided I couldn't keep hiding behind my anxiety and miss out on family time. However, even just seeing the tent set up has aroused some feelings of anxiety so it will be interesting to see how I go. [DH assures me I'll be okay - but I'm not ruling out the possibility of me sleeping in the car.]
As mentioned above, DH is a purist and a camping 'fridge is not part of our essential supplies. I know from our time in South East Asia that I can live without milk in my tea. I don't like it, but I can do it. And I don't have a problem using powdered milk in my Milo (actually, I prefer it because if first mixed with Milo and cold water, it creates a frothy top once the hot water has been added), but I cannot have powdered milk with my cereal. I just can't.
And so I considered a few ways and means to have my favourite cereal (homemade muesli) without milk and decided to make Oaty Choc Chip Slice. There's no yogurt or blueberries to go with it but it contains dark chocolate chips which is sufficient consolation.
I'm also in the process of making Tea Loaves - a good British standby which can be used as a snack or light breakfast. It's also another way for me to get my daily dose of tea! This time I'm experimenting with less sugar - using just one heaped dessertspoon of golden syrup per loaf after discovering several versions of this tea loaf online that used little to no sugar (maple syrup or honey probably would have worked fine, too, but I thought golden syrup might be more similar in flavour to the brown sugar that I was replacing). Discarding the three-quarters of a cup of sugar that was in the original recipe was daunting, but hopefully will produce a healthier option with just as much flavour. Since the fruit is soaked overnight in tea (what else?) this should not only plump the fruit up and make the loaf moist, but provide the sweetness needed.
If only it could be as easy to find a solution to my terror-ridden aversion to sleeping in a tent. Stay tuned!
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