Why the car camper?

I understand that camping is not for everybody. And a dream of living in a camper van/RV one day may seem completely nuts to some. Something I want might seem awful to you. Something you want might be an anxious nightmare for me. It's actually quite fascinating how different one person is from another. But that's not the point of this post.
Today I wanted to share the main reasons we as a family converted our car into a camper and are aiming at having a van/trailer/RV someday.
 

What should you do if someone is having a panic attack

I've had a fair share of my panic attacks in public places and have seen all kinds of reactions. I know seeing a person in such a distressed state is not pleasant. It can be scary, it's most definitely awkward and can feel pretty bad if you don't know what to do. Today I wanted to tell you what are the best most appropriate reactions that I've gotten from people and what I would generally advise you to do if you face such a situation.
Every panic attack is a unique experience and it's very different for someone who knows what they are and have had them before and someone who has never experienced anything like this before. We'll talk about them both.

What we ate on our Mexican road trip

When it comes to parenthood, food is one of the things that causes me the most amount of stress. I won't get into it since this is not the point of this post. Let's just say that getting meal ideas from the internet has helped me a lot at a certain point in my life and I want to contribute to this simple, but such an important topic.
Travelling and camping have their restrictions when it comes to cooking. You can't always manage to make the same things you make at home. You can't eat as much and as often as you could in the comfort of your house. Also, if you are like us and you like exploring other countries, you might find yourself in a place that doesn't sell all of the things that you're used to eating.
Today I wanted to give you some ideas on what you can do with food specifically in Mexico (cause that's where we went on our last camping trip).

We'll divide this into three categories: cooking, snacking and restaurant food.
Keep in mind that I often aim at calorie-dense meals, especially when it comes to restaurants, so if you're trying to lose weight, not all of the things here are going to suit you. By all means, adjust it to your liking.

Small things you can do today to battle climate change

Climate change is a very serious thing that, unfortunately, has to deal with a lot of denial these days. Don't doubt, it's a real issue and the consequences of it are only getting worse each year. Learning about the scope of this problem can be overwhelming and trying to help is a daunting task.
Today I wanted to offer you a few ideas of little things you can do today that'll help reduce your carbon footprint and bring a deeper awareness of products that surround you.
Let's get into that.

Teach your kid how to properly interact with animals

Spending quality time with animals can do wonders for kid's development. I've seen the impact it made on my daughter and I will continue to seek opportunities for these interactions.
However, children are still learning right from wrong, and I've seen so many situations when adults don't provide any guidelines when it comes to playing with pets. This can jeopardise the integrity of the animal and the child.
Here I've compiled a few things you should keep in mind when you allow your kid to interact with animals.

Let me start by clarifying exactly where my experience comes from. We have two dogs at home, so we had to teach our daughter from very early on how to have a safe and healthy relationship with them. My mom grows chickens in her house in Russia, so Sofia had the opportunity to observe and care for them when we visited my family about a year ago. She has also interacted with cats, goats, horses, pigs and camels either on our camping trips or in Mexican/American zoos. All of my advice comes from observing my daughter and mistakes she sometimes makes and trying to correct them so that both my daughter and the animal are safe and comfortable.

So, there you go. I'm no expert, I'm just a mom. You've been warned. If you feel like I'm doing something wrong, please feel free to point that out in the comments. I appreciate any feedback.

Things I didn't know about panic disorders

I've been battling anxiety and panic attacks for more than half of my conscious life and yet I still manage to discover some new things that are related to my panic disorder.
Learning more about my anxiety has significantly improved my mental health. If you are reading this because you struggle with similar issues, I hope this article will be of some help. If you are reading this in the hope of understanding someone else that might be going through this, thank you for your effort, you are making an impact even by being aware of those issues.

The most effective ways to decrease your anxiety

If your anxiety is interfering with your everyday life, making you feel isolated and completely defeated, you need to seek professional help. I'm not going to trick you into believing that there is some miracle cure. There are situations in life when you need the help of another person. Mental illness is a very serious issue and it shouldn't be ignored.
However, if your anxiety is not life-threatening and seems manageable, I do have a few pieces of advice on how you can decrease anxiety not in the moment, but in the long run. I have lived with intense social anxiety for as long as I can remember and for the first time I actually think I'm succeeding at battling it. I really hope this article can help you too.

Camping with kids

Kids can be tricky at times. As a parent, you might be hesitant to go camping, road-tripping or doing any kind of travelling with your kid. Staying at home is always comfortable and safe. It's so easy to convince yourself that you're fine just where you are. But. If you love camping with all your heart and the only thing that stops you from going is your kid, give me a chance to convince you that prolonged travelling and/or camping with kids is very doable and absolutely not scary.

In this post, you'll find a few suggestions to what to consider when camping with kids and how to make it enjoyable for everybody.

Flying with anxiety

Flying triggers anxiety for many people. Airports and airplanes are stressful environments where you have to rely on others, be cautious and organized, follow a set of strict, but not always clear rules and trust others with your life and safety. Even the most resilient of us might feel nervous in places like this.

 

A big part of my anxiety is triggered by transport. Cars, subway, buses, boats, planes – you name it. I’ve had panic attacks in them all. However, I am a wandering soul, I love to travel, see the diversity of our world and the richness of different cultures. Avoiding transport is simply not an option. In fact, I strongly recommend you to face your triggers as much as possible and not let them influence the choices you make.

I can’t cure your anxiety or rid you of your fears but I hope the information I’ll share with you today will make flying easier for you.

How to pack for a camping trip

There are a lot of things to consider when preparing for a camping trip. It can feel overwhelming and stressful. That's the reason so many of us leave it to the last minute and then end up making all kinds of mistakes. In this post, I've compiled a list of things that'll help you pack more efficiently and hopefully make it less stressful.

First Aid Kit

Here is a short list of things we have in our first aid kit. Hopefully, it'll help you make yours more complete. If we forgot something that you consider a 'must', please let us know.

La Bufadora | Baja trip | Day 9

Initially, we were planning on camping for one more night. However, we were nearly home and in desperate need of decent shower and pizza, so this marks the end of our little Baja trip for now.

The road went by La Bufadora, a very famous spot where the oh-so-beautiful ocean meets the land in just the right way. It was worth seeing. So we did.

The perfect camping spot | Baja trip | Day 8

The first day of 2019 brought many great memories. Vacations were almost over, so we turned towards home. And managed to find an amazing camping spot that we will definitely revisit in the near future.

Guerrero Negro | Baja trip | Day 7

Continuing the rant about this restaurant. Don't hope that I'll ever shut up about it. That's not going to happen. I have fallen in love with the family that owns it and we'll be visiting them again this spring and any other time we happen to be in Guerrero Negro.
Ojo de Liebre can be found on iOverlander, Google Maps and Facebook. 😉

Bahía de Los Angeles - Guerrero Negro | Baja trip | Day 6

Guerrero Negro has always been on the list of places we must visit at some point. It offers a number of unique experiences, and I strongly recommend you to consider this place if you are going to Baja.

Bahía de Los Angeles #2 | Baja trip | Day 5

One of the most relaxing days on that trip. It involved the beach and nothing but the beach. If you want to convince yourself to go to Bahía de Los Angeles, keep reading.

Bahía de Los Angeles | Baja trip | Day 4

From stuck to Bahía de Los Angeles | Baja trip | Day 3

The previous day ended with no success at getting out of the sand. As you can imagine, our car didn't unstuck itself while we were sleeping, so we woke up to this:

Here is what happened after.

San Felipe - Bufeo (sort of) | Baja trip | Day 2

This is probably one of my favourite days from that trip. It's dynamic, ironic, beautiful and "dream-crushing" all at once. Like a beautiful sunrise with a sudden slap of reality. Everything that might or might not happen is entirely our fault, so let's approach it as a learning opportunity.
Here is the first picture of the day, let's make it a cover. A mixture of excitement and fuss. I'm sure any parent will relate.
Also, don't you just love how weird people's faces look upon waking up? Like you've been poorly impersonated by an alien.

Tijuana - San Felipe | Baja trip | Day 1

It's finally time to talk about our first serious camping vacation. I'm talking about a week (give or take) of camping. No visas, no schedule, no hurrying. Camping for the sake of camping, basically.