Living in a house of all boys, summer weekends easily turn into family campouts. Dirt, bugs and smelling like campfire aren’t my favorite aspects of camping but I do love spending time with my kiddos and the beauty of the great outdoors. Then only thing that makes these trips better is when I find a practical use for everyday house hold items that make my camping trips a little bit easier.

Camp fire starters can be handy when your trying to get a fire up and going for four anxious boys. These cotton ball fire starters are easy to prepare before a camp out and just as easy to pack. After they are ready simply toss them in a plastic bag and pack them with your camping supplies. As you prepare for a camp fire toss a couple under the logs with a bit of kindling and light them up.

These DIY camp fire starters are made with only two items and will burn about two minutes each. This should be plenty of time to get the camp fire up and running. Using these camp fire starters will limit the amount of kindling needed and the amount of time spent finding kindling to prepare for a camp fire.

DIY Cotton Ball Fire Starter Instructions:

Items needed:

Cotton Balls
Petroleum Jelly (Vaseline)
Sandwich Size Plastic Bags
Rag or paper towel for clean up

Directions
1.Take a small scoop of petroleum jelly, about two finger tips full.
2. Spread the jelly around the cotton ball making sure to leave a small portion of the cotton ball uncovered. (I would suggest that you don’t dunk the cotton ball into the container of petroleum jelly. It will stick and quickly tear apart as you try to remove it.)
3. Place them in a row in the bottom of a plastic bag and then seal it shut.
4. Make as many as needed and use them at your next camp out.

These are simple camp fire starters to make and a great activity to keep the kids busy.