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Duke Gardens with Friends
At the end of March, the kids had a day off school for a teacher workday. After seeing an Instagram post about a “Bloom Walk” in Duke Gardens, I gave the boys a heads up that we would be making a trip, and I tagged my friend Erika on the post, hoping she would see it and hadn’t already booked her day. Friday morning she messaged me and we made plans to pack snacks and hit the road at about…
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A Hike in William B Umstead State Park
Our Hike, marked in Red Crayon On New Year’s Day the weather was amazing, so we took an impromptu hike with friends in William B. Umstead State Park. We forged our own path and traveled along Sal’s Branch for awhile before cutting down through the woods, across the power lines and down to the rim of Big Lake. We worked our way down to the boat ramp, across the junction between the two lakes, and then back into the woods beside Sycamore…
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Wild Spaces at The North Carolina Arboretum in Asheville
Back in August I traveled to Asheville, NC for the EcoStream Conference. I first dropped off my boys with my parents in Whitetop, VA, then drove down a little early so I could explore the North Carolina Arboretum. I’m pretty sure I went to a workshop at the arboretum over a decade ago when I was just barely pregnant with my first, but back then I hadn’t been bitten by the gardening bug. If anything I was too nauseous and…
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Doughton Park Camping 2018
How nearly every Blue Ridge Parkway adventure begins and ends: a stone arch We planned this trip three weeks out when we were looking to camp in Hanging Rock during an October weekend. Every single reservable campsite was booked for every single weekend in October. When I relayed this information to my friend Sarah, who had felt me out on whether we would want to try a joint family trip, she suggested checking out Doughton Park, which I had never…
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Milburnie Dam Demolition Part 2
Saturday morning, we opted to skip the Christmas parade, and Joe and the kids played video games instead. By 10:30 am, I was chomping at the bit to get out and enjoy the beautiful weather. Joe had not yet seen the Milburnie Dam demolition, so we went out for a hike. I love being in the woods with Joe, because he always finds new things to explore. We went around the dam to the side I had not yet ventured…
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Sunday Stroll at Lake Johnson
Shortly after we unloaded the car from church, I demanded everyone pack up a snack because we were going on a hike. Joe picked the place, Lake Johnson, which was strategically half way to his favorite pizza place, Michelangelo’s in Apex. Lake Johnson was a spot we discovered in college. We once drove there with my Camry packed to the brim with friends to watch the meteor showers. We also used to take Scoops there when he was a toddler…
