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At Home Traveling and Adventures

July 17, 2020 /

As you may have noticed, there has not been any pictures of travels apart from our long weekend in Chattanooga, TN this past January. Instead you have seen many pictures of hikes and visit to outdoor spaces such as state parks. You will continue to see more of those and I am so happy to have booked a week right next to the Great Smoky Mountains in North Carolina so I will have a few new pictures and adventures to share. Today I wanted to encourage you to explore the area where you live. You do not have to do a long road trip to have a little fun this summer. I know I canceled my planned one to Missouri as I didn’t want to have to deal with all the different rules and regulations in different states and I also feel better staying closer to home.

Here are some ideas for feeling like you are on vacation even if you are not traveling far or not doing an overnight trip.

  • fruit farm: we didn’t do this this year but I think we will go picking apples. Depending where you live, you might be able to pick strawberries (down here, that is usually in May), blueberries (now) peaches and later in late summer/early fall: apples. This allows you do do something fun outdoors away from other and most likely without the necessity of wearing a mask outdoors. (I don’t mind wearing a mask indoors but if it is required for an outdoor activity I will pass on that activity: too hot and humid here for that)
  • state parks: explore your state parks: if you have a child in the 4th grade you should be able to get a whole year park pass(check this link out, and looks like the date is September 1st to get your pass). If you do not want a pass, state parks admission is usually $5 per car which is very budget friendly.

  • toes in the water: there is nothing like toes in the water whether it is the pool or the river. Depending on the lake, you could dip your toes in a lake too (some lakes’ water is murky and that is not my cup of tea!)

  • night walk: I have taken a couple of late evening walks with my oldest and they are fun: where we live we hear frogs, see some creatures (red fox, rabbits, deer) and it is a twist on a day time walk

 

  • bike rides: you know we invested in bikes this year and it has been great fun going on long bike rides

  • picnics: I love picnics (especially if bugs stay away). There is something about eating outdoors. It is definitely more fun in the spring and fall when the weather is cooler but we still have enjoyed several picnics this summer. I just invested in this cooler packback to make it easier if we want to hike and picnic (we usually just bring snacks and picnic when we return to the car).

TOURIT Cooler Backpack 30 Cans Lightweight Insulated Backpack Cooler Leak-Proof Soft Cooler Bag Large Capacity for Men Women to Picnics, Camping, Hiking, Beach, Park or Day Trips

  • flower farm: I really wanted to visit a sunflower farm and take some pictures this year so I found one that wasn’t too far and affordable. So pretty! More pictures in Monday’s post!

A bientôt!

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17 Comments

  • Grace

    July 17, 2020 at 2:00 pm

    I love this post!! Great tips for having at-home vacations. There’s a state park here in Idaho that I’ve always wanted to visit, but it still hasn’t reopened yet! Picnics and exploring the river are some of my favorites too. Sounds so cool to be able to see foxes and so many animals!

    Miles of smiles,
    Grace

    gracefulrags.com

    • mimifce

      July 17, 2020 at 6:18 pm

      The nice thing about apples is that they usually have different kinds planted so the season is long: a couple months to have a chance to go!

  • Joanne

    July 17, 2020 at 4:35 pm

    Our state charges a small fee on our car registrations so our state parks are free for visiting. While we don’t visit them ALL we do like to try out various ones near us as often as we can.

    • mimifce

      July 17, 2020 at 9:55 pm

      We enjoyed the wildflower fields so much that I really wanted to go the sunflower fields. We once went to some lavender fields but it was unimpressive with few flowers so we haven’t gone back. I have been spoiled with the real thing in France so it is hard to compare.

  • Mica

    July 18, 2020 at 7:24 pm

    It’s great you’ve still been able to get out and be outdoors even if you haven’t travelled far! Our state is open for travelling around in, no restrictions, but we still feel a little better staying close to home for the moment! There are plenty of parks and trails around us we have been taking advantage of!

    Hope that you are having a great weekend 🙂 We had our first birthday party yesterday after the relaxed restrictions and it was so much fun!

    • mimifce

      July 18, 2020 at 9:21 pm

      Our city school finally shared with us how the school year will start. Boys have another month of vacation. Then starting with 2 days of school, 3 days digital learning till labor day. Parents also have the option to go full digital learning from the get go. Looking forward to our week of vacation and new places to hike and enjoy.

    • mimifce

      July 19, 2020 at 2:12 pm

      I have some funny memories of picking cherries growing up: we were in the south of France and had friends who had the goats in the fruit orchard: the little goats with horns kept trying to butt me when I was trying to pick cherries!