Get out and go...

Start a series. 

I wrote this post a couple years ago during one of my attempts at starting this blog. I have known since I had the idea of starting a blog I would share my travels. I have been going through the handfuls of posts that are still drafts and found this. The story on how we decided to see as many of our national parks as we can and when I came up the Get Out and Go idea for my blog. This was written in early 2012.

This past October (2011), we had some friends getting married in Las Vegas. Eric was all set to go and I was planning on staying home because we had a three month old baby. As we got closer to October, I was really comfortable with the idea of tagging along with the baby and hanging out while he went to the wedding. The only things I asked to do was to go to the Hoover Dam, the Grand Canyon and the Welcome to Las Vegas sign. I knew that those places were easy trips to make so, I was not asking for too much.

Eric agreed to those things and started looking into it how to get there, where to get a car, and where we should stay. As he was figuring out those details he started looking at other parks near by and what else we could see and if adding more days before the wedding or after the wedding would be better.  That's when he came up with the idea to fly out early rent a car and go to Zion, Bryce and Grand Canyon National Parks. I was like awesome, lets do this but we will only do little hikes because we have a three month old and I will have to feed him and that might be hard to do and no camping.

We flew to Vegas, got in a car and drove for what seemed like forever to get to Zion and when we got there we were blown away. We found an easy hike up a side of a mountain and set out on our first family hike.

After we hiked the short hike and shuttled to a few points of interest we went to the lodge area to hang out on the lawn, have some lunch, and feed the baby.  During that time, we talked about going to more parks because we bought a park pass and I said why not go see more before the pass expires.  That, ladies and gentlemen, is how it all started.  We bought a park pass that was good for a year and I wanted to get our moneys worth. I might have been a little drunk on the view and the moment when I suggested that.

The great lawn.

So, I think Zion National Park, a park I did not know existed until a few weeks before our trip, was the catalyst for wanting to go to as many national parks as we can. Look at that view, that prefect blue sky, the red rocks of those mountains and if you could feel the warmth of the sun and the smell of fall in the air, you would totally get it.

Here is a little back ground, so you can see that this idea wasn't completely off of our radar. When I met Eric, he was preparing to go on a camping trip to Glacier, Tetons and Yellowstone National Parks with some college friends. I had been to the Smokey Mountains, Blue Ridge Trail and Rock Mountain National Parks. So, going to the parks is something that both of us had done without the other. I grew up camping and hiking. He is a boy and like most boys, loves doing outdoor things like that.

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That was where I had ended the story, before.

We went on to see several other places, then to Arizona and a short stay in Flagstaff before heading back to see the Hoover Dam, the Las Vegas sign and our friends get married.

That was when our family trips started. This story was the reason why I wanted to write my Get Out and Go series. We love traveling together, since we started dating we have covered many miles and over half of the states. With each trip, I journaled and photographed everything. I wanted to share our travels beyond those journals to encourage others to get out and go and see these places that our great country has to offer. Like Zion, a place I didn't know until shortly before the trip. As well as, showing that these trips can be done with kids of any age.

My goal with writing this series is to share our stories from our smallest of journeys to the biggest. Exploring our own backyard is just as important as traveling far, so I will share our favorite walking paths and parks to playing in our very own back yard with our boys. Getting out of our house and being active is what get out and go is all about.

This Week...

Somewhere in the middle of Montana. This is what my mind pictures the west to look like.

This is a big week for us. We are preparing for a big adventure and the beginning of the school year.

The beginning of the school year came up fast. We had two full months of summer break. The first month was kind of a bummer because it rained almost everyday. This last month has been better and the past two weeks have felt like summer was finally here. We have tried to camp as much as we could, swim as much as we could, play in the sandbox as much as we could, and ride our bikes as much as we could. We have  had a really great summer!

This week I plan to go through the boys cloths and figure out what still looks good and fits well. Then plan out school cloths shopping, find backpacks and lunch boxes. Lastly, go to our school open house to meet our teachers and let them all know we will be missing the first week of school.

We are missing the first week of school to go on a big adventure cross country to one of our most favorite national parks, Glacier National Park. We were not planning on doing a trip this big this year, we wanted to just camp our way through our state parks. An oppurtunity came along that neither of us could pass up. I guess daydreaming can come to fruition.

This week I am packing for a ten day road trip, meal planning for the 28 hour drive out, four days in a hotel, three days of camping and being off the grid and a 24 hour drive home. Then, I will pack up the car, prepare a plethora of activities for the boys, and make sure I have enough snacks and drinks to meet the boys demands. Lastly, I will go to a concert with friends before leaving in the night on our big adventure. 

What a way to finish out our summer vacation with a road trip!

The best part, even though our summer vacation is down to just a few more days we get an extension and we still have the rest of the summer season and fall to camp through the rest of the state parks.

Glacier National Park

Get out and go...

As I have been daydreaming about getting out and going far, I have been thinking about how I can use this same idea everyday or just once a week to fulfill my need for wanderlust.

I don't believe you have to go far to explore and start to understand the world.

I came up with a list that would remind me to see what is in my town. First, get out of the house. Second, know my block. Third, walk down my street and around my neighborhood. Forth, go to the shops around the square. Last, set a goal- walk all the streets of my town. 

You must first get out of your house. Spend time in your yard, watch the day go by laying in the grass. If your scared to lay in the yard, find a chair. 

Second, get to know your block. Talk with your neighbors, be friendly. Relationships will develope and a stronger sense of comradery will be formed. 

Third, take a walk down your street and then your neighborhood. You can find so many interesting things, people and ideas. Your world also becomes bigger at this point. 

Forth, if there are business, go to them! Support them, shop them, eat at them, use them. I love errand days where I can put the kids in the stroller and walk around our town. 

Last, set a goal. See every street, ally, neighborhood, shop, business, park, walking path or civic area within your town. Do this all by foot! We miss things when we get in our cars and start moving faster.

Getting out and going doesn't have to be anymore than a destination across town. The point is to explore and grow.

Get out and go...

Camping with friends.

This past weekend we went camping with friends to Chain O'Lakes State Park near Albion, Indiana. We had such a great time hanging out with some of our friends. Our main goal was to relax, enjoy our campsite and swim. We managed to get all those in and then some.

We typically camp on our own but after posting about our last camping adventure a couple friends asked to join us sometime. So, when we started planning this trip, I messaged them and told them that we wanted to do an easy camping trip with little to no hiking, more water activities, hanging out at our campsite and we were thinking about Chain O'Lakes. I was thrilled when they all said, "Yes, but what do we need?"

Here's the thing, most of them had not camped as family units and some had never camped at all. They needed almost all of the basic gear for camping. Like tents, air mattresses and cooking items. Now, one of the guys could be considered "The Great Outdoorsman" and they had everything but his wife wasn't really into camping, so they had never gone.

The best part, they all took to camping like ducks to swimming. I was beyond thrilled when we were all having a great time and our kids all got along and it was so easy going.

All packed up and ready to go. The picture that caused all the problems.

Friday morning we packed everything into the car and had enough room to bring Emerson's bike and Rhys's big wheel. I sent this picture out as we were taking Sydney, the dog, to doggie day care. Quickly, I was asked about the helmets and if we brought the bikes. I said yes, last minute add because we had room. One other family decided to bring theirs.

We got to our campsite to be greeted by two of the families already relaxing and enjoying their time. We made camp and got all settled and gave the kids play-doh to keep them occupied for a bit.

The last family arrived, set up camp and the bikes became a big hit. They all were riding the bikes while dinner was being made. The littlest guy was getting restless and I decided to walk him around the park in his stroller to get him to maybe fall asleep. Several of the kids came along with me either on bikes or walking and then taking turns with the bike.  As we came back to our camping area, there was a lot of commotion. One girl had gone off on her own with a bike and had an accident. Thankfully, there were people around to make sure she got back to her parents. She had broken her arm. 

Our dear little friend was ok, with just a buckle break and was able to finish her first camping trip. We were able to all enjoy our evening around the campfire with s'mores, drinks and stories.

The next morning started early. Surprisingly, everyone was up and going by 8. We all made our breakfasts, took a short walk with the stroller and bikes, and then packed up our things to head out on the water. Our kids love to play in the car when we are camping. We found out that all kids love to play in the car when we are camping.

We decided to rent a row boat, because our boys had not been in a boat like this, only a ski boat. I thought this way if they stood up they were not going to tip the boat. At first its was nerve racking. I could see my monkeys, well one of my monkeys, thinking it was ok to just jump in. Really, they both did great. It took Eric a minute to get the hang of the oars. I did try it, so I know how hard it is.

We decided to take this channel from Sand Lake to the connecting lake. At first Eric was doing all the rowing and then he asked if I could help him out and take an oar. Best idea ever. We started moving and made it to the lake to have lunch and hang out for a bit. While we were in the lake we picked up two of the kids in a canoe that didn't like the unsteadiness of that vessel and Emerson quickly jumped at the idea to ride in a canoe. The ride down the channel was beautiful. Wish I had more pictures.

We made it back to shore as the littlest guy was dozing off. He took a great nap in the shade while being attended to by these great little helpers. We played in the water for a bit, ate some food, drank some drinks, and sat around talking. Then I decided I was done and the boys were wanting to head back to camp. So, we loaded up all the kids and took them back so the other parents could have some time to relax kid free.

We went to the park, played with play-doh and face painted.

Rhys became best buddies with this cutie and whenever he sees her picture he starts yelling her name.

Dinner time. For the first time, we decided to do some cooking over the fire. You would think that we would pick something easy. We choose pizza. Emerson got tired of waiting and asked for a hotdog, mostly because he wanted to roast it. To be honest, I am not sure how much he ate this past weekend. Everything I offered him I found half eaten laying on a table. The pizzas turned out great and we have decided to add those into our meal planning for camping.

After dinner, the moms and kids decided to go for a short hike. A couple of kids were on the bikes and I had the stroller. The bigger kids said that they they had been on the trail several times and riding their bikes would be just fine. Well, it wasn't. The second bike accident happened to one of the boys. (not my boys) His poor chin and inside of his mouth took a beating. He was in a lot of pain. He is doing fine now. This was when my picture that I had sent with my boys wearing their helmets came back up and I was blamed for the whole idea of bringing bikes, jokingly. I will take the blame, but not for the accidents!

As the sky began to grow dark we were all around the campsite hanging out listening to music and just having a great time. We danced and talked and laughed. Then we all prepared for rain to hit us sometime in the night. We were pretty lucky the the rain was just showers through out the night and while we packed up to head home.

Eric and I are very lucky to have such good friends. We had a great time with all of them and would go camping with any of them again. Thanks for wanting to come along with us sometime.

Get Out and Go...

Camping!

A couple weekends ago we decided to head to McCormick's Creek State Park. We were hesitant because the forecast called for rain all weekend and when not raining it would be hot and humid. I finally said, let's do it! Let's see how we manage camping in the rain. 

I am so glad we did it! Seriously, it rained after we got everything set up. So, we played in the tent for a while. When it let up we had to head to town to get some supplies for cooking. Again, it rained while we were in the store, making us wait it out in the store. 

We were able to make it back to camp, make dinner, play for a while outside, try building a fire, put the kids to bed and then hang out until after midnight before it rained again. Thankfully, we had added extra tarps on top of the tent. We all stayed dry!

When we got up, we planned out day. There was a art fair taking place in the park with a food vendor, live music and lots of different kinds of art. That was the first thing we were going to do, second was to check out the nature center and last hike the trails to the major attractions. 

The art fair was great. Emerson loved playing in the nature center. The hiking was awesome. 

We hiked around for about seven miles with the kids on our backs. We went up and down and up and down. The last time we went down we walked down steps. I kept thinking, eventually we will have to go back up to get out of here. Boy, was I right! I counted the steps that basically went straight up. 150! 150! 150 steps back to the road to get to the campsite.

We loved our very short weekend camping trip to McCormick's Creek State Park. Camping in the rain wasn't so bad. We always have a great time and enjoy a break from our reality. Plus, for all of us, being in nature is revitalizing and balancing.


"I go to nature to be soothed and healed, and to have my senses put in order."- John Burroughs

If you are looking for places to go and things to do here is a great list of places to camp.

Check out this article from The Indianapolis Star: 10 Glorious Places to Pitch a Tent in Indiana. I have been to most of them. They also are great places to visit for the day. So, pick one and get out and go!

A Walk in the Woods...

We were the only ones walking around on the paths through the woods. It was peaceful. It was grand. It was renewing. It was reflective. 

Things that I love...

Summer Events.

The Summer Concert Series. 

We are pretty lucky with our great parks system within our city and neighboring cities and on the county level, also. Each summer our city and the cities around us have a summer concert series. You can pick a free concert every weekday evening. Usually, local cover bands that have a good following and very family friendly. 

The Baseball Park. 

We love going to minor league games at Victory Field for the Indianapolis Indians. My favorite place, the lawns in the outfield. The boys can run around and make friends with everyone around us. 

The Pool. 

Since forever, I have loved spending my summer days at the pool. We are fortunate that our YMCA has a great outdoor pool and splash pad. 

Here's the thing, I often wonder if we are doing too much with our kids? I remember many a days spent at home doing nothing but riding bikes, playing in the sand pile or playing some type of sporting game. Seriously, my brothers would play baseball catch and we would play a game called "Run Down". I was always a permanent runner, it was basically a game to work on getting the runner out. My catching skills were not that great and my running skills not that much better. 

Not to mention, the hours we spent taking care of our family's garden and then harvesting it. Somehow, my mom would manage to can and freeze enough veggies, tomatoes and fruits to make it from the end of summer to the beginning of summer each year. 

I think that I just have many fond memories from my elementary school age-self that revolve around our home and I hold them very near and I want those same type of memories for my boys. 

So, are we doing too much? No, we are creating our own family memories that bring along bits and pieces of our childhoods. I am totally going to play Run Down with my boys and only sometimes be the runner!

Peaceful.

Our Memorial Day weekend was spent camping in Lincoln State Park in southern Indiana. We enjoyed a great few days of hiking, swimming and playing.  

We are very thankful for the soldiers whom have given their lives for our freedom. 

Get Out and Go...

Camping!

We spent our Memorial Day weekend camping in Lincoln State Park in southern Indiana. It was a great time! The boys loved being outside, sleeping in tents and hiking around the forest. Not to mention, we loved it too!

We spent our days hiking around the state park and the national memorial, Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial. 

The state park has a cool fire tower you can climb up, a Great Lake to swim, fish and canoe in, and very kid friendly nature center.  

The national memorial is where the boyhood home of President Lincoln was. There is a living museum with a cabin, wood working shop and farm. As well as, a great memorial/museum building. Plus, it's a great place to get your kids first Jr. Ranger badge. 

To become a Jr. Ranger, each kid has to complete the number of pages, in a workbook they provide, for their age. Emerson did a great job of completing his three pages of the workbook. There are several things in the booklet age appropriate for three year olds. Then we just let Rhys scribble on a word search page, which worked! Rhys was asleep on my back when they had to take the oath and receive their badges. They both are now Jr. Rangers at Lincoln Boyhood! 

Not gonna lie, I was a pretty proud mama!

One of the best parts of our weekend was getting to spend the evening with my brother, sister-in-law, nephew and niece. Emerson and Rhys adore their older cousins and were so happy to have visitors to our campsite. 

Eric and I both love going camping with the boys. It's easy at times, non-stop work most of the time and  constant awareness all the time. There are times, several a day, where I want to throw in the towel. Pack it all up and head home. Somehow, we manage through. Pretty sure, the campsites near us get several good laughs, which I am ok with.  Most of the time, it's just figure out how to make everyone happy. We have learned to just roll the windows down and let the kids play in the car!