Homemade Campfire Starter

 

I've been making my own Campfire Starter for at least the last 15 years.  Somewhere along the way, someone shared this idea with me, and I've done it ever since.  Not only is it made out of recycled materials, but it works really well to start a campfire! 

Dryer lint



 All year long, I collect all of my dryer lint and dryer sheets in a ziplock bag I keep by my dryer.  Then before we go camping, I get that bag out to make the fire starters.

I always have all kinds of egg cartons around.  Most people know we have laying hens, so they save their egg cartons for us.  I fill a bunch of them with all that lint and sheets.   There's no science to this, just stuff it in there.

 Shut the cartons and voila!  You've got your fire starter ready.

I pack a few of these egg into a Rubbermaid along with a bunch of extra lint. just in case.  Once I get to the campground and we are trying to start the fire, I cut the egg cartons with a scissors into halves or thirds.  You can light the egg carton or part of the insides with a lighter and your fire will start right up!   Because of the egg carton, it keeps burning for a while, so your wood has time to start up.  So cheap, but so necessary for campfires! 

College Survival Kit

I am very proud to say, I have two kids that are headed to full-time college this fall, at two different colleges, and both of them are on college teams!  One of the joys of having a college athlete, is that they head to college an entire month early to begin training for their sports!  It's a rough time for this Mom, who's heart is breaking, but for you, it's great, because I'm going to share what I did to pack them each a College Survival Kit to take with them to school before you're getting your college students ready

I got so carried away with my purchases that I couldn't fit it all in, but if it's microwave popcorn, it doesn't really count, does it?

First side of College Survival Kit

 



Second Side of College Survival Kit

 

First, I ordered a container to give them all the goodies!  I wanted it to be cute and functional for my kids once they emptied out all their gifts.  I got the Double Duty Caddy in Charcoal Links to match my daughter's dorm room and in Digital Camo for my son's dorm room.  (I really love the Digital Camo!!) I love this container because it has two big pockets on either side of the handle, as well as 4 mesh pockets on the ends.  (Works great on the desk, in the bathroom and in the camper for all those paper plates, etc.)

Then, I made a huge list of all the things that I thought might be helpful to them that they wouldn't think to get until it was too late!  Here's my list:

• Snacks (my daughter said that she couldn't live without animal crackers, so that's what they got!)
• Chapstick
• Sewing Kit
• First Aid Kit
• 3m Hangers
• Tool Kit
• Thermometer
• AA & AAA batteries
• Lint Roller
• Stain stick
• Pain & Cold meds
• Duct Tape
• Charging cord
• Cough drops
• Cold Medicine
• Ibuprofin
• Aced
• Nail clippers
• Tweezers
• Hand sanitizer
• Band aids
• Neosporin
• Microwave popcorn
• Gum
• Tic Tacs
• Birthday candles
• Lighter
• Ear Plugs
• Febreeze
• Post-It Notes
• Flip-Flops
• Journal
• Pencils
• Pencil Sharpener
• Erasers
• White Out
• Food Container (I got a set of 2 at Dollar Tree, so they can put left overs in the frig)

Of course, I didn't get everything on this list, but as I was shopping, I had something to jog my memory for things to get.  Most of my items I got from the Dollar Tree and Staples. 

One of the items I'm most excited and proud of is a pill box I adapted.  I found these 7 day pill dispensers at the Dollar Tree.  I've seen people put fancy pictures of the pill boxes on each day, but I was worried that my kids wouldn't know what each was used for and how many to take. 

I put the ailment: pain, vitamins, menstrual pain (my son didn't get this, although it works great for back pain), migraines, cold medicine, allergy stomach and pain & fever.  I then put the dosage and how many to take.  In the Cold medicine box, I put a pre-packed pm cold pill and daytime cold pill, as well as a cough drop.  I wanted to give them a week's worth, but at least they know what to get themselves if they get sick.  I printed these up on white address labels and then just cut them to fit. 



I may not want to say good-bye soon to my kids, but at least I've been able to give them a practical and meaningful gift to take with them.  I know that every time they go to grab an item from this kit, they'll know that I love them and thought of them ahead of time!

I am an Independent Thirty-One Gifts Consultant, so I do make a commission from all sales from my website.  I do not in anyway receive any sort of compensation from Dollar Tree or Staples.