All I ever want for Mother’s Day is to go camping.
We bought our travel trailer in early March of 2020, so our first Mother’s Day weekend as RVers was spent in Covid-19 quarantine. Regardless, we enjoyed our first campout ever in our new RV on Mother’s Day weekend. In our driveway. It was fabulous.
For Mother’s Day 2021 and 2022 we traveled to somewhat close campgrounds. We spent the 2021 Mother’s Day weekend camping at the Bath/Hammondsport KOA in upstate New York. The campground held activities for the kid campers to create gifts for mom and a yummy pancake breakfast. We enjoyed the weekend exploring the Finger Lakes trail that is accessible from the campground, and touring around Keuka Lake. It was relaxing, we got a lot of fresh air, I had time to run and read for leisure, and I spent the whole weekend with my favorite people.
It was everything that Mother’s Day, and camping in general, should be.
Last year we spent Mother’s Day 2022 at our closest local campground. We had to stay close due to baseball schedules for two boys.
Lucky for us, staying at our closest campground doesn’t require making any concessions. We live just 15 minutes from Pine Cradle Lake Campground in Rome, Pa, and if you haven’t been there, you should put it on your bucket list asap!
Pine Cradle hosted a paint and sip that weekend that my mom and sister came and joined me for, Bingo games both nights of our stay, and a muffins with mom event on Sunday morning. And we were only a few miles away from the baseball games on our schedule for the weekend.
One of Pine Cradle’s greatest features is their pool and splash pad which weren’t open for the season yet, but we still enjoyed our trip so much. We got in lots of running, biking, hiking, reading, fishing, and bocce ball. And we were just minutes away from the baseball games on our weekend schedule.
We haven’t booked a reservation for Mother’s Day 2023 yet (yikes!), but once again, going camping is all I want for Mother’s Day. My boys are sweet and always gift me something over the weekend in addition to our camping. So, if you have a special lady in your life who loves RVing, I promise you that the following RV Mother’s Day gift ideas will not disappoint!
The Comfy. My boys each got a youth size Comfy for Easter last year. By bedtime Easter night I had already asked for a Comfy in my size AND to go camping for Mother’s Day. Best. Gift. Ever. Which is why I am listing it first.
This Comfy is a staple of my wardrobe for early spring and fall camping trips, and I’ve also worn it to soccer games, baseball games, bmx races, on chilly fishing mornings, and I even packed it to wear on my walk back to the car after the Binghamton Parade Day Mile race. (I may or may not have been heckled by college students for this fashion choice. I owned it. This thing is awesome. And my age leaves me confident they were just jealous. Because I will tell you what is NOT “comfy” on a damp, blustery, 40 degree day, and that is a belly shirt my friends. Happy Mother’s Day to all of you who get it.)
A Portable, Rechargeable Blender. I know, I know. Gifting a mom an appliance is taboo. But if the RVing mom in your life enjoys smoothies like I do, she will LOVE this gift. I got mine (a blendjet) as a Christmas gift from my mom, and it stays in my camper. It charges with the universal charger my cell phone uses, and I can blend while charging. Awesome!
Yeti Wine Tumbler. My boys got me this for Mother’s Day 2021. Like my rechargeable blender and the Yeti Coffee Mug that’s up next, it lives in my camper and is very well used. I have sipped from it by many a fireside and nary a stray ash debris has floated in my wine thanks to the secure top. It keeps my wine nice and cold and keeps out bugs and other nature stuff. (I love nature stuff, just not floating in my wine so much). A great gift for a wine loving RVing mom.
Yet Coffee Mug. I love a morning campfire. I love coffee by the campfire. Coffee in a mug gets REALLY cold REALLY quickly on a chilly morning by a campfire. But not in this mug. I love mine. Your mom will too.
Wall Mount Hair Dryer. My step mom really won a white elephant gift exchange a couple of years ago when she brought a wall mount hair dryer as her gift. I was the lucky recipient. It is mounted on the wall of our camper bathroom, and it is a lifesaver. Moms rarely think of themselves first. The hair dryer has got to be one of the last appliances RVers buy a second version of to keep in the camper. Nothing makes me grumpier than spending 2/3 of a day camping with wet hair because I forgot to pack the hair dryer….again. Again, it IS an appliance. But it’s a good one.
Camping Journal. If you don’t already own and utilize one, you need one asap. Bonus points if you fill out information from previous trips for mom to read through. Sniffle.
Slippers. I love a morning campfire. I love to drink my coffee by that morning campfire. I would prefer to do that in a pair of slippers. But while camping, not just any house slippers will do on account of the dew. Wet grass + slippers = ewwwww. I have always loved Bog brand shoes. I don’t own these, but I would like to. *wink wink*
Camping Pajamas. Morning campfire. Coffee. Slippers. You know where I’m going with this. The best part about this gift, is that many campground stores sell comfy pajama sets with cute camping theme patterns – which is convenient for last minute shopping.
One of These GREAT Books. For me, all great camping trips include a great book. Here are a few suggestions of books I have loved.
Pachinko by Min Jin Lee. As the story follows a family over the course of four generations, I could not put this book down. I devoured it over a Mother’s Day weekend camping.
Daisy Jones and The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid. Told in the voices of different band members, the novel follows the rise and fame of a 70s rock band. And once mom has finished the book, she can binge watch the Amazon series based on the book!
National Geographic Guide to the National Parks of the United States. If your family tries to visit, or hopes to one day visit, National Parks, this book is a fantastic resource. We spend a lot of time as a family using this book to plan our next adventure.
An Audible Subscription. I love a book in my hands, but I also do a lot of driving and walking and running. Reading a physical book while performing those activities is frowned on. I was really late to the Audible party, but now that I’m there, I’m pretty much their biggest partier.
Ear Buds. If mom doesn’t have a pair yet, she will enjoy her Audible subscription on runs and hikes much more with a good pair of wireless ear buds. I am no expert, but my first pair (which happen to also be my current pair) are a Google product that was sold specifically for my Google Pixel phone. So if you’re not sure where to start, consider taking the model of mom’s phone to a cell store and asking for recommendations.
A Spa Appointment. I also ask to camp for my birthday in September every year. I’m starting to feel very high maintenance typing all this out. Hmm.
Anyway, for my 42nd birthday last fall, we camped at Greek Peak Resort in Marathon New York. We spent a day as a family in their Cascades Indoor Water Park, and before going to dinner, my husband arranged a spa appointment at the Waterfalls Spa in Hope Lake Lodge.
If you’re camping near a spa and can arrange for a massage, facial, pedicure, or manicure, mom would probably really enjoy it. I know I did!
An inflatable lounger. Mom will need somewhere to curl up with her book. Our boys each have one of these Wakepo loungers, but I think I enjoy them the most in our family.
A Great Board Game. I know I’m not alone as a mom when I say that one of the things I really want for Mother’s Day is to be with my kids. I like them a whole lot. And I like board games, and lucky for me they do too! These are a few of our favorites:
Kids Against Maturity. Our older son got it for Christmas and it has offered us endless potty humor induced giggles.
Trekking The National Parks. Again, if your family is into National Park travel, this is a great game.
Unstable Unicorns. It took us a little while to get the hang of this game (I don’t know why…but it did), but we ended up really loving it. And it’s small and compact, so great for camping.
No Meal Prep for 24 Hours. Or dare I suggest even THE ENTIRE WEEKEND?! I know that in many families it is not the mom who does the cooking, or at least not ALL of the cooking. If you’re like our family, though, mom does ALL of the cooking.
And here’s the thing. I LOVE cooking. And baking. And canning. And freezing. And general “puttering” in the kitchen. But it’s super cool to have a few sacred times a year where those responsibilities are taken off of my plate.
If you’re a stellar cook, then this task will be easy. If you’re not, no worries. It can be as easy as pizza delivery for dinner, sandwiches for lunch, and store bought muffins for breakfast.
Of course you know the mom in your life you’re celebrating best, so if you know there is a meal or snack she loves, try to pick it up and add it to the weekend’s menu, without her having to play any part in the prep.
Are you planning to camp for Mother’s Day weekend? Do you have any special Mother’s Day weekend camping traditions or camping-related gift ideas? Please leave a comment and let me know. I’m off to book a site for the weekend of May 13th!
