I know the Internet is bursting with endless camping hacks and up-cycle ideas. Still, I want to share some of my favorite go-to recyclables that are especially useful for road trips and camping trips with babies and toddlers.
You may not have the exact things I mention, but I want you to try to look at things you would otherwise throw away and see if you can reuse it for camping (or any other thing around the house).
REUSE PLASTIC PACKAGING FOR TOY POUCHES
E recently transitioned to underwear. It left me with a decent plastic pouch that works really well for organizing little things. I use it a lot for E’s little Dollar-store farm animals and crayons and paper. It’s perfect for a surprise goodie-bag to fill with pipe cleaners, stickers, mini toys, little books and what not. I keep one in the diaper bag and one in the car.
I've noticed other items often arrive in a zip lock style bag. Any bag like that would work. So would fabric bags from sheets or baby shoes.
Reuse underwear pouch for little toys and crayons for camping with kids
PLASTIC CONTAINERS AS TOY BINS
Convert a plastic pretzel or cookie jar into a toy bin
I similarly keep the big plastic containers from Costco Biscottis (pretzel containers also work well) to use for camping friendly toys. Any plastic jar with a screw lid works. It's especially good around the age of 6-18 months where any colorful object and different textures are interesting.
Stuff it with things that can get wet and dirty and keep the novelty alive by only bringing it out at the camp site. Place it on a blanket with with kids or in the tent for the mornings and they are happy.
It’s worth mentioning that the toys that go into the plastic pouch above or the empty cookie jar, could also be anything upcycled from your household.
You can use old spools from wire or sewing thread (great fir stacking), ribbon, paper cups, happy meal toys, sponges, brushes and more.
A toy doesn’t have to be an actual toy for a baby and a toddler to love it.
NO-SPILL JUICE BOTTLES for road trips
No-spill juice bottles are perfect for roadtrip because it fits perfectly in the cupholder.
A good friend of mine and fellow mom and camper steered me towards these awesome juice bottles that she once served E some water in. They are great for roadtrips because they are no-spill AND slim enough to easily fit in the cup holder of the car.
These are great for the early toddler stage where they still battle with fine motoric to put a water bottle back in the cup holder or opening and remember to close a water bottle.
Be careful to clean is properly with a brush, though, and a boil/steam so no juice is left to mold.
KEEP YOUR MENZIE'S (FROZEN YOGURT) SPOONS FOR THE KIDS
I've kept a few Menzie's plastic spoons for our camping kitchen. It's always nice to have extra spoons for the toddler, for dog food, for dishing up and what not without having to wash one every time and without having to buy more. And it's not heart breaking of one gets lost in the way.
I know it's easy just to bring regular plastic spoons or extra spoons, but this way you are reusing an existing product and not throwing away more plastic. And they take up less room than regular spoons and for kids better.
PROMOTIONAL STRING BAGS FOR THE DOG
We've somehow ended up with a lot of promotional string/gym bags. One is permanently dedicated to dog food, a bowl and treats. Others I use for kids' shoes or for toys (they are great as another surprise toy bag for the car to explore).
Keep one always packed just for roadtrips and camping trips and rotate the toys every few trips of you go often.
(CLINIQUE) MAKE-UP BAGS FOR TOILETRIES
I similarly have a lot of promotional Clinique make-up bags from all the freebies they often give away with a purchase at department stores. I use one as my toiletry bag and one for the kids as well. Believe me, you need very little when camping, so they are big enough.
2020 update: E is now 4 years old and very much I to bags and her own little kits. You can reuse this bag for anything: snacks, camping toys such as flash lights whistles, binoculars etc.. or use it for crayons or little figurines as well.
Promotial Clinique make-up bags are perfect compact toiletry bags for me and the kids.
IKEA SHOE BOXES AS SPACE ORGANIZERS
I had a bunch of cheap IKEA shoe boxes (plastic/fabric ones that collapse) that I no longer use. I've cut them in half for perfect drawer organizers for our car. They would work well in plastic boxes, cooler boxes or food boxes as well, anywhere where you might need a division.
We keep mugs and cozies in one, dish soap, a cloth and a sponge in another. And they are lined up side by side in the drawer in the back of the car.
Black shoe boxes for our cups and dish washing equipment/wipes. Oh, and the 12v slow cooker fits perfectly inside our former bread basket (work as a protective sleeve. It gets hot.)