Before we launched Cub Adventurer, our monthly dose of the Cub lifestyle, we were on the lookout for some keen campers who could really add to our Cub community. We stumbled across Nicole Maguire from Simple Home Edit and were instantly intrigued by her simple, quick and affordable recipes. We were thrilled to learn that Nic and her family were also keen campers!
Nic has recently launched her first (and best selling) cookbook, The Simple Dinner Edit and over the last 4 years has built up an online community of nearly 3 million followers across Instagram, TikTok and more recently YouTube. To date Nic’s content has mainly been filmed in her home kitchen, with the odd mainstream TV appearance. Recently, Nic and her husband decided it was time to give her audience an insight into their family life, as more and more people look for easy and affordable getaways.
Nic’s two biggest fans watching their mum backstage at Channel 7 recently
Camping. The Early Years
From her first memory of family holidays, Nic recalls camping being a part of any trip away. It was affordable and enabled herself, her brother and parents to stay away for longer and to see more of our beautiful east coast. Her parents would load the car up with their big, heavy canvas tent, along with all of her dad’s fishing gear and they would set off on an adventure. Her dad would get the camp setup to withstand a monsoon (without a bad weather day insight) and her mum would serve European style meals. Nic recalls the meals were such a special part of their trips. They would come together as a family to eat, chat and dream up what they would do in the coming days. To Nic’s amazement, her mum always made dinner preparations look effortless. Nic now realises that the key to her mum’s camp meals was the effort she put in before they left home.
Fast forward to Nic meeting her now husband at Uni, this camping tradition continued. Her husband is a keen four wheel driver and their adventures spanned up and down the coast also. It was rough and ready in their trusty pop up tent, but they both loved escaping to recharge their 9 to 5 jobs. When their son (9) and daughter (7) joined the family, they upgraded to a larger tent and more practical dual cab ute. Needless to say, the kids absolutely love camping too!
The Maguire’s camp setup (before Cub), Burleigh Heads QLD
Nic’s Style of Camping now
Nic and her family aim to go camping at least once a month. Their typical trip involves picking up the kids from school on a Friday afternoon and then heading off to explore until coming home on Sunday. They keep the travel to a max of 3 hrs one way, to maximise their time at their destination. Nic and her husband have created a flexible working schedule which also means they can have extended trips away over the school holiday periods, which they live for.
What drew Nic to Cub?
Both Nic and her husband have aspired to get a camper trailer for the last five or so years. They loved the idea of feeling like you are in a tent, with the convenience and luxury that a camper trailer provides. The dream of hitching up and taking off with minimal fuss on a Friday afternoon has always been something they were keen to try out.
After a fair bit of research, watching review videos and the like, Nic and her husband were keen to try out a Cub Camper. So, to dip their toes in the water, they hired a Cub Drifter through Camplify for a long weekend earlier this year. The family set off to Seal Rocks, to see if the camper was everything they had hoped for. Needless to say, they were hooked from the first moment.
Nic’s Chicken Adobo, a Maguire family favourite!
When we asked Nic what she enjoyed most about the Drifter, she couldn’t get past the speed of setup and pack down. Typically her husband would set up their 6 person tent, gazebo, camp furniture, lighting etc., and then they would use the canopy on their ute as their kitchen. This took a solid hour and they were content, but, for the short trips, it could get a ‘bit much’. Not to mention when it rained, the whole process needed to be repeated at home to dry everything out.
The first night in their hired Drifter, it was bucketing down, to the extent that the campsite was flooded in areas. Nic remembers looking across at the kids, who were fast asleep and listening to the rain hitting the canvas, which was dry and reasonably still considering the winds that were rolling through. Both Nic and her husband giggled with amazement at just how warm, dry and comfortable they were. They were hooked.
Nic finishing off her Penne Bolognese in the Cub Camper Drifter kitchen
Why the Drifter?
When Nic reached out to Cub about a camper trailer, we were thrilled to say the least. We were excited to invite the Maguire family out to our North Rocks HQ and to show them our range of Camper Trailers and Caravans. They were both already sold on the Drifter. The Frontier was a very close second, but the allure of having the kids bed made up permanently ultimately meant they chose the Drifter.
You can ask them specifically why they chose Cub and Drifter on their socials, but Nic and her husband tell us it was the speed of setup, the lower weight compared to others and the fact that the campers are Australian made, right here in North Rocks, Sydney. The layout and storage suits their family perfectly and after comparing many other camper trailers to Cub, they all fell short. A win-win for Cub and the Maguires we say!
So what can you expect from Simple Home Edit?
Buckle up for a multi part series of camping content. Nic will be showing you how they have set up their Drifter, in particular the kitchen and cooking related items. Nic will also be creating, cooking and filming a series of recipes that are simple, affordable and very achievable in a Cub kitchen, or even a little butane powered stove or campfire. Nic lives by the mantra of keeping it simple and when it comes to camping, to just get out there, with any equipment you can get your hands on. Her recipes are uncomplicated, no fuss and super delicious, you can check them out on the simplehomeedit.com website in the meantime. We will be sharing some of Nic’s favourite recipes in our Cub Adventurer Newsletter as well.
We encourage you to follow both Cub Campers and Simple Home Edit on Instagram and TikTok so that you don’t miss any of the amazing content to come!
Nic at her happy place, a beach (anywhere, anytime) with her family.
