It’s been spitting rain and cool temperatures all week, incredibly autumnal for the middle of August. I’ve been itching to get outdoors for days, so when I checked the forecast, I knew we needed to get the kids out for a walk. Less than 20 minutes from our house, Nicky Nook was a perfect circular…
One day last spring I happened upon an article about hammock camping. Thanks, Pinterest. Basically, hammock camping is meant to be amazing. Much more comfortable than sleeping on the ground. Less complicated than a tent. And just more fun in general. After perusing several more articles and websites, I was sold on the idea. I’ve…
I turned 30 last week. As I approached the end of my twenties, I decided I should have some sort of a bucket list of things to do before the big day arrived. Unfortunately, by the time I made this decision, I only had about six weeks left until my birthday. I had time for…
After the fiasco of last week’s un-camping trip, our family didn’t have much excitement left for our actual camping trip. Partly, we had had a pretty busy week, but also there wasn’t much to actually prepare. I had done it all the week before! Still, Friday rolled around, I packed the car and the cooler, and we…
This is my eighth week of blogging at Around the Thicket. I have just begun to explore some of the topics that fascinate me the most: learning in the early years, sibling relationships, and especially outdoor play. While I have shared a few tricks that make my life easier, I don’t have it all figured out. I want…
Last year, I decided on a whim that Carl and I should take our kids camping. I felt desperate to be outside and frustrated that I so often failed to get them outdoors. Camping would make this easy. They would be outside because there wouldn’t be anywhere else to be. I wouldn’t have to juggle naps and pushchairs, and…
In the time it took for me to say hi to my friend at the playground, my 2.5 year old scaled a steep hill and was halfway up a ladder to a climbing structure intended for kids three times his age. (The ladder was a bit like this one, but much taller.) By the time…
Fried chicken and hiking Trail Two at Shades State Park. When my mom asked me and my siblings what we wanted to do for Memorial Day, the decision was quick and unanimous. We’ve been going to Shades as long as I can remember, and it is always a feature of any visit we make to…
I’ve mentioned before that I’m not always the best person at getting outside, despite the many reasons to do so. Part of this is because it is simply inconvenient. Our backyard is the size of a postage stamp. We have a patch of grass that is maybe six by six feet, and that’s being generous. We have…