One of the best purchases I have made in the last year has been clear plastic condiment bottles with a sealable top that I bought at WalMart for less than a dollar each.

While most people I know use them for ketchup and mustard, I put canola oil and olive oil in mine and use them at home and at camping.

It is so much handier than having the whole big bottle of oil out plus it eliminates any worry about dropping and breaking a glass olive oil bottle, especially at a campground where some campers like to go barefoot.

When I need a squirt of olive oil for cooking or a squirt of canola oil for giving my dutch oven and other cast iron cookware a light coating, I grab one of my plastic bottles, pop the top, and give it a squeeze.

This picture is of my bottles and yes, it’s almost time to refill them. The background may look a little bizarre but I took the picture at home and decided to set them on my deck railing, hence the field and woods in the background.

I also use the bottles as dispensers for homemade salad dressing. They’re especially nice for vinaigrettes, and I always take one with thousand island dressing in it for making reuben sandwiches and one with Parmesan peppercorn or ranch dressing.

To make sure everyone in the family knows what is in each bottle, use self stick labels such as mailing labels or; if you don’t mind having the writing on the bottle forever, use a Sharpie marker.

If you cannot find them at WalMart, check with a local restaurant supply store.

Camper refrigerators can get pretty stinky and stale smelling because they aren’t in constant use. Plus, if they aren’t completely dry before closing the door and storing the camper until the next trip, the dampness can cause mold to develop or rust to form on any exposed metal.

I have always kept a container of baking soda inside my pop-up camper’s fridge to keep it smelling fresh and really like Arm and Hammer’s boxes specially designed for the fridge and freezer because now I don’t have to worry about it tipping over and spilling; but it didn’t help if we closed the fridge up after cleaning and hadn’t made sure it was 100% completely dry inside.

Now we keep crumpled brown paper bags inside our camper fridge when we’re not using it. The bags absorb odors and dampness, keeping the fridge dry and clean in between uses.

I don’t know how it works, but I got the tip from a fellow camper who said it worked great for her so I decided to try it too.

When we get to the campground and put our camper up, I take out the crumpled bags in the fridge and set them aside to use when we start our campfires or when we start charcoal in our chimney starter for dutch oven cooking.

When I clean the camper after the camping trip, I crumple new bags and put them in the fridge until the next time.

It’s pretty much “no fuss, no muss.”

As thousands (and maybe even you) head to campgrounds for this Fourth of July, I wanted to give you a few tips to make sure that your Fourth of July doesn’t end up with a trip to the emergency room to get treated for third degree burns or to get a limb reattached.

I think we’ve all heard stories of people who’ve been horsing around with fireworks and have been seriously maimed by them. One thing to keep in mind is that fireworks aren’t perfectly safe even when used properly. Even professional displays have fireworks that blow up on the ground or when they’re not supposed to which is why the pros always wear fire suits.

So even if you’re not camping, and just want to celebrate with some fireworks, then here are some tips for using fireworks.

• Read and follow and instructions and warnings.
• Sorry kids, fireworks are for adults only. Sprinklers are okay for the young ones
• Fireworks don’t belong in the woods, and in dry areas can ignite forest fires – better to go see a professional display in the area than use them in a wooded campsite.
• Only light fireworks on smooth, flat surfaces away from houses, leaves, and flammable materials.
• Be prepared. Keep a bucket of water handy and a first aid kid just in case.
• If you have a dud, never try to relight it. Douse it with water or bury it with dirt to prevent it from going off unexpectedly and dispose of it later.
• Fireworks are for outdoor use only
• Never throw fireworks or handle fireworks after they’ve been lit (I have a friend who got third degree burns all over his arm when the fuse burned faster than expected and went off in his hand.)
• Follow all local laws and ordinances regarding fireworks
• Only light one at a time.
• Be cautious during windy conditions. Be sure that no spectators are downwind of your display.
• Wear safety glasses if you’re lighting the fireworks or if you’re going to be in close proximity to the display.