Our Hiking Adventures

Our family really enjoys hiking. We have found it to be healthy, educational, stress-relieving, and lots of fun. We have been truly blessed that in addition to our family hikes, we have a great group of homeschooling friends who hike with us twice a month.

We choose different trails from a rotation of about ten local trails for a hike, and whoever is available meets up. Sometimes we just walk, and the children play and talk; sometimes, we do scavenger hunts, bark rubbings, or other activities; and recently, we have begun adding in a few ranger-guided hikes at local state parks.

Benefits of Family Hiking

I want my children to enjoy and appreciate nature, and I have found that the more time we spend in nature, the more they enjoy it. I work to balance times when we are actively learning and engaged in an activity with times when they are just playing and enjoying nature.

The physical activity tends to increase on those hikes where we just let them play. In places where it is appropriate (some trails and parks have rules about staying on the trail, and we obey those), they often find logs to balance and walk on, creeks to splash in, rocks to ‘climb,’ and even one log that works like a giant see-saw.

They think they are just having fun (which is important), but they are also working on those gross motor skills. If you are interested in the research into the importance of time in nature, I recommend Last Child in the Woods, Richard Louv.

Learning-Centered Hikes

When we want to do a more learning-centered hike, we have a variety of options to choose from. Sometimes we simply take one of our field guides and choose to try to identify as many items as we can, picking from flowers, trees, mammals, insects, etc. Other times, they bring their nature journals and simply choose to draw and write about something they find interesting.

Our science studies from Apologia often have ideas for nature studies or projects we can do as well. We may take a guided hike where the ranger or other expert discusses specific aspects of what we are seeing on the trail.  We have taken pencils and paper and done bark rubbings for tree identification or collected leaves to preserve in their nature journals.

Hiking Resources

I have included a simple fall printable scavenger hunt, including things to collect (please remember to only collect on trails that allow for leaf collection, etc), do, and find in our free resource library.  This is a great way to get started using your hikes as a nature study. Sign up for access to all of our free resources at the link at the bottom of the post.

Common Hiking Misconceptions

There are a few common reasons that people are concerned about hiking that I’d like to address.  One of the most common that I hear is that people don’t feel that they are physically fit enough to hike.

However, barring physical conditions or problems that you may need to speak to your doctor about, most people can hike. You may need to start out on easier trails and shorter distances. You can take a quarter-mile loop on an even gravel trail and work your way up to longer trails or more difficult terrain.

Another common one is a question about how well small children will do on hikes. I have found that there are several solutions to this depending on the child and the trail and that most small children get a lot from the experience of hiking. For babies, baby-wearing is a great option, and how I normally choose to hike with little ones.

A good wrap or soft structured carrier like an Ergo can allow mom and baby a safe and comfortable hike. Some folks prefer a stroller, and on some trails, this is a great way to hike. You do have to make sure that the trail is stroller-friendly, but there are many trails that utilize gravel or boardwalks that can be great options for strollers.

If the child is walking and moving but is still very young, you can either choose shorter hikes or a combination of them walking and then, when they get tired, use a carrier or stroller.

Fun Treats

As a part of our hiking and traveling the area, our group has found another wonderful benefit to hiking: cupcakes! I know you are probably thinking, how do cupcakes relate to hiking?  We enjoy the exercise and time outside, and then near several of our trails, we have found wonderful, delicious bakeries to get fun, sweet treats after our hike and continue the conversations and good times.

If you are local or semi-local, two of our favorite stops are Rachel K’s Bakery in Washington, NC, and HappyCakes in Morehead City, NC.  We enjoy our trips as times of nature study, exercise, and fellowship!

Inspiration and Ideas

I hope that you are inspired to go outside, hike, and enjoy nature. If you are looking for trails in your area try your local government site for municipal and county parks, your state parks (these are great for guided group hikes and extra activities) or our National Park Service.

Whether you go with just your family or a group of friends, there is much to learn and a great deal of fun waiting on the trail. What do you like most about hiking, or what concerns do you have about getting started? Share in the comments.

Educational Tools for Your Hiking Packs

• Wild Edible Food Cards
• Peterson’s First Guides
• Journal or Sketch pad
• Colored Pencils
• Magnifying Glass
• Binoculars

Emergency Supplies for Your Hiking Packs

What you would want to take will obviously depend on where you are and what type of hike you are taking. You won’t need the same things for a .5-mile loop on a paved trail that you would for a 10-mile hike in new territory. I do recommend always taking water, insect repellent (or applying it before you leave), and a small first aid kit with an emergency blanket.

• Water Bottles (We like this set because it is colored-coded by person, and the silicone sleeves protect the bottle from accidental breakage.)
• Fire Starter or matches (Obviously only for children who are responsible and trained in the use of these items).
• Emergency Blanket
• Cliff bars (or other easy-to-transport food)
• First Aid Kit  or for more advanced First Aid
• Compass
• Insect Repellent

When you sign up for our free resource library you will get a link and password to the library, we are adding to the library each month with new items. You will also get a bi-weekly newsletter email to keep you up to date on what we have going on.

Resource Library

This post may contain affiliate or referral links. As always I will never recommend a product that I don’t believe in and you will never be charged more for purchasing through our links. It does help pay for the costs associated with the blog.

Friday’s Deals and Freebies

Apologia is running a free shipping special and other sales throughout the month.

Diabetes Quick Study Freebie

Give Your Child The World: Raising Globally Minded Kids One Book at a Time (On sale for $2.99 at time of posting, Amazon can change prices at any time.)

The Green Ember is only $2.99 on Kindle or Free with a KindleUnlimited Trial

Check out the new Bible art course and from You Are an Artist.

Two Free Audio Books with an Audible Trial and if you aren’t sure what to start with I’d suggest checking out the Green Ember or The Penderwicks for good family choices.

Check out this fun idea for using Salt Trays for Writing Practice: https://blog.allaboutlearningpress.com/salt-trays/…
These are from All About Learning who created the Awesome spelling program that was a game-changer for us, All About Spelling

$10 Sign-Up Bonus for Ibotta and they are doing some major savings and rebates starting today. Great way to save money on the things you are already buying.

“We must be intentional to guide, discuss, and celebrate the dependable rhythms of life.” Sally Clarkson (Pg. 87)

Her discussion of Sunday mornings being a time where we feel, “rushed, urgent, and -dare we admit it?- a slight bit annoyed.” really hit home for me. We have spent more Sunday mornings than I care to think about rushing everyone out the door, fussing because we couldn’t find shoes, someone’s hair wasn’t brushed, and we were going to be late. This sets a bad tone for our day and our time of worship. We have been working on doing things to intentionally plan and prepare to make Sunday smoother. We now meal plan for Sunday (and the rest of the week but for a long time I only planned Monday through Friday). I’m working on a creating a list of breakfasts that I can either prepare ahead or are simple to prepare on Sunday morning but can still feel like a feast. We also are trying to be more intentional about getting clothes ready, lessons printed, etc on Saturday evening to reduce Sunday morning stress.

“But I strongly believe that we need traditions like these because they give us necessary anchors in our lives — our days and weeks and months and years.  Anchors are the moments when, no matter what, you stop, breathe, enjoy, rest, and check in with the Lord.” (pg. 90)

I want my children to love the Lord and to serve them all of their lives. While going to church is part of what we do as a family, I don’t want them to see it as a chore that must be checked off the list. I want them to go because they love worshiping the Lord and serving Him. I am thankful that unlike some of the congregations that she described in this chapter, our church is not a sober and sad place. It is a place of worship and joy. My son had a low grade fever a couple of weeks ago and had to stay home with my husband while I took the older children to church and taught the preschool class. I hated that he was sick but it also did my heart good to see that he was genuinely sad that he couldn’t go to church. He is only three and does not understand everything at church but he knows it is a place where he gets to sing, praise and learn about God.

“When we model to our children that pleasure, delight, laughter, and food are not God’s afterthoughts, but His generous gifts to us all, we do them a great favor. For the good of our souls and the souls of our children, we must learn to celebrate the glory of God.” (pg. 92)

While God is just and hates sin, he is also loving and kind. He wants us to enjoy his creation and have lives filled with joy and beauty.  I want my children to see all of the gifts and blessing of the Lord. The flowers in the field and on the table, the yummy and nutritious food that He provides (we could be eating manna every day but instead he has given us a wonderful bounty), the warm home we live in, the sun rise each morning, and the sunset each evening are all blessings for a loving God.

Once when I was working with a children’s program in Mexico I was blessed to be able to be a part of getting them a donation or art supplies for the children to use. When the gifts were given to the children they were not told they were from other people, but that they were gifts from God. I loved the truth and beauty of that lesson. While it is true that people donated the money for those supplies, they donated it in the name of the Lord and they had been blessed by the Lord with those resources to give. The goal of those missionaries was for the children to understand that all good things come from the Lord. I pray that I also teach my children the same lesson. We need to be thankful to Him for everything.

Sally spends the next part of the chapter discussing their Sunday morning conversations. I love the concept of setting aside that time for learning and discussing what they were learning about the Lord. As I look at our own family and stage of life, I think that set aside time and conversation may work better at our Sunday lunch table. To some extent, we are already doing this in that we normally discuss what each person learned or took away from the church service that morning. Lunch is a more relaxed time for us and gives us more opportunity for discussion. She says, “I saw these Sunday morning conversations not just as a duty to be fulfilled, but as an important opportunity for my children”. When I approach things as a duty, I can begin to resent them or grow weary. However, by looking at it as an opportunity is is easier to be grateful for the chance and more excited about making it an anchor or routine in our lives.

She finished the chapter talking about how sometime we shy away from the difficult conversations that come as our children grow older. They often begin to question what they believe and what they are taught. However, instead of shying away from these conversations it is important that we prepare for them and engage in those conversations. Those conversations are one of the ways that our children will come to have a faith that is their own, it is through these struggles that they will grow and learn. Jesus spent time answering his disciples hard questions and preparing them for what was to come. It is our responsibility to do the same for our children.

“And I can say with thorough enthusiasm that each flipped pancake was worth it.” (pg. 97) I hope that when my children reach adulthood, I can look back and know that I spent the time necessary to help them to learn and grow in their relationship with the Lord, that I may know that those ‘mundane tasks’ were worth it and valuable in their lives and the Kingdom of God. I’d love to hear your thoughts on chapter six or your favorite Sunday morning breakfast ideas in the comments.

If you haven’t got your copy of the book, check it out here. Also there is a great study guide that goes deeper into scripture related to the life-giving table. Finally, if life is busy right now ans you are having trouble keeping up you might want to check out the audio book on Audible. If you have not tried Audible before you can get a 30 day free trial which includes 2 free books that are yours to keep even if you cancel the trial.

When you sign up for our free resource library you will get a link and password to the library, we are adding to the library each month with new items. You will also get a bi-weekly newsletter email to keep you up to date on what we have going on.

Resource Library

This post may contain affiliate or referral links. As always I will never recommend a product that I don’t believe in and you will never be charged more for purchasing through our links. It does help pay for the costs associated with the blog.

“Creating an environment of beauty, comfort, and acceptance cultivates hearts that are open to your messages.” Sally Clarkson

It is so important that we cultivate the environment of our home and our table. We need to study and understand each of our children and our guests and prepare a place that is beautiful and comfortable for them; in doing so we help cultivate their hearts to be ready to hear the message that we have to speak in their lives. I really love how Sally talks about realizing each child’s individual needs and making time for them.  It can be so simple, it doesn’t have to be a fancy dinner out or a whole afternoon alone, a simple 15 minute tea time to connect. In our house tea is a favorite of one child, but with the other we use chocolate milk or lemonade.  Another trick I’ve used is keeping cookie dough balls frozen and ready to go. I can take out just a few have them ready in a few minutes with minimal mess.  Many different kinds of cookies do well like this but two of our favorites are oatmeal chocolate chip and Earl Gray tea cookies. I will post a printable of the oatmeal chocolate chip cookies in the resources by the end of the week.

At one point in my life when people would talk about decorating or creating beauty I would get overwhelmed.  It seemed like it would be expensive and take precious time that I didn’t feel like I had. I have learned to I can do very simple, inexpensive things and make a big difference. For example, just putting a table cloth on our table makes it seem nicer (most of us already have a few tablecloths and if you don’t you can purchase them from yard sales or thrift stores for about a $1 each) and it makes the table easier to clean up when we are done.  My daughter has taken to using pieces of seasonal fabric to recover plain place-mats to give our table a seasonal feel.  Finally, my favorite trick is to simply buy either a small potted plant or fresh cut flowers for the table. I don’t’ buy the expensive ones, for about $4 I can get a nice bunch that will last me two weeks. Or I recently had a small potted plant for $6 that lasted for months. Every time I walked by my table it makes me smile.

The Table-Discipleship Principle from chapter four was, ” Practicing the rhythms of life regularly with your loved ones creates a secure feeling of belonging-of being welcomed and able to share convictions and faith with a community where one belongs. ”  It is so important that our children find that sense of belonging both in our family and in God’s family. I think that so many of the struggles we see in society today stem from young adults floundering in a world where they are searching for belonging.  Traditions and rhythms don’t have to be complicated elaborate parties and events, and truly I think often the small things make a bigger impact.

In our family one of our favorite traditions is to have potato soup every time it snows. If you happen to live in a more northern climate you may be thinking you would get very tired of potato soup, but here in Eastern NC that is only a couple times a year.  It isn’t a complicated meal but they enjoy that tradition.  Another tradition that they look forward to is ice cream sundaes for lunch on Valentine’s day (don’t worry I add in some fruit to make it more balanced 😉 ).  Sally lists lots of her family’s rhythms on pages 55 and 56.

Sally talks a great deal about Romans chapter 12: 1-2 in this chapter of the book. This also happens to be the verse that we chose as our guiding verse for our homeschool this year. We live in a world where “anything goes” and a culture where morality is very subjective. This verse is a great reminder that we need to be transformed through the power of God and not of this world.  As we guide our children we need to keep pointing them to the Truth of His word. Our tables become a place where we can do that multiple times each day through our love and conversation.

How can create a family identity and culture this week? It looks different for each family. We have one family that is friends of our family and their last name is Reese. They call themselves “Team Reese”. Their family happens to be big sports fans and that is a way in which they communicate with each other and other people that they are part of the same team working together towards the same goals. Our family has taken to talking about how we can work together as a family to accomplish our personal goals and whatever God desires of us.  I’d love to hear in the comments one of your families favorite traditions or one way in which you are working to create a family identity.

If you have not yet gotten this book I encourage you to do so. You can find the book here or you can order it from Audible if you prefer listening to the book.  If you would like to join in our online book study for more discussion please join us here.

This post may contain affiliate or referral links. As always I will never recommend a product that I don’t believe in and you will never be charged more for purchasing through our links. It does help pay for the costs associated with the blog.