Making a Summer Adventure Bucket List

Here in Northeast Ohio we are lucky enough to have thousands of miles of trails to enjoy. Everything including: all purpose paved trails, towpaths, rugged trails, mountain biking trails, bridle trails, and so on. As a nature loving family, we love it! Yesterday we visited Brandywine Falls (again) and hiked a moderate trail. Hubby straps Little Bitty to his back and off we go. If you asked hubby or I why we hike, you'd get two different responses. I would tell you that we enjoy nature, being active, and exposing our little bitty to nature. Hubby has some crazy idea stuck in his head that we are training to "thru-hike" the Appalacian Trail. He is obviously delusional but we love him anyway. :-)

I snapped this pic before tightening the wrap, little bitty was sitting a little low but you get the idea. For now, the easiest way for us to cover a lot of ground is to wear our toddler. 

[Brandywine Falls]

With our love of nature I thought that we should make a Summer Hiking Bucket List. So Hubby & I have created a list of awesome hiking areas to try this summer and fall. All of our locations are a reasonable drive from our home in NE Ohio. Here is our top 10 places to hike this summer. (The following summaries of the trails are pulled from various websites which will be listed at the bottom)

   1.) Squires Castle

Squire's Castle at North Chagrin is a 5.2 mile loop trail located near Cleveland, Ohio that features beautiful wild flowers and is rated as moderate. 

2.) Mill Creek Park

Mill Creek Park has at least fourteen good hiking trails that will make you think that you were not in Ohio. The topography in Mill Creek Park seems to come from another state out West. Mill Creek park covers 2,530 acres and includes 21 miles of scenic drives and 15 miles of foot trails, and a rare collection of gardens, streams, lakes, woodlands, meadows and wildlife for all to enjoy. 

3.) Happy Days, Ledges and Pines

How can you not feel happy and relaxed with a trail named Happy Days, Ledges and Pines? Wind through the sanctuary of stone, trees and moss and enter a trail of enchantment. Happy Days trail offers three trails that are approximately 4.3 looped miles that are moderate to difficult. 

4.) Prairie Oaks Trails

Prairie Oaks features nearly 500 acres of lush prairies and grasslands. In late summer and early fall, visitors can see fields of beautifully flowering ashy sunflower, royal catchfly and purple coneflower against a backdrop of big and little bluestem and Indian grasses.

5.) Clear Creek

Clear Creek Valley is one of the most pristine and secluded natural areas in Central Ohio. Variations of land surfaces, soils and climates have produced a medley of habitats that harbor more than 800 plant species and 150 species of birds, many of them rare. You may catch a glimpse of turkey, deer, ruffed grouse, coyote, black vultures or even see the traces of the elusive bobcat along the park's 12 miles of trails.

6.) Nelson's Ledges

Nelson's Ledges State Park is a 2 mile loop trail located near Garrettsville, Ohio and is rated as difficult. The trail is primarily used for mountain biking and is accessible year-round.

7.) Little Miami River Loop and Spur Trail

Little Miami River Loop and Spur Trail is a 9 mile loop trail located near Yellow Springs, Ohio and is rated as moderate. The trail is primarily used for hiking and is accessible from April until October.

8.) Deer Lick Cave Loop Trail

Deer Lick Cave Loop Trail - Brecksville Reservation is a 4 mile loop trail located near Brecksville, Ohio that features a river. The trail is rated as difficult and primarily used for hiking, trail running & walking. 

9.) Mohican Trails

Mohican Trails include 13 miles of trails take you to the more interesting areas of the park and forest. Lyons Falls trail follows Clear Fork Gorge and features two waterfalls. The Hemlock trail leads to the scenic covered bridge, and Pleasant Hill trail follows the shoreline and offers beautiful views of the lake. 

10.) Hocking Hills - Old Man's Cave

The most popular of all the Hocking areas is Old Man's Cave, located on State Route 664. Here at the Upper Falls, the Grandma Gatewood Trail begins its six-mile course connecting three of the park's areas: Old Man's Cave to Cedar Falls to Ash Cave. This same trail has been designated as part of Ohio's Buckeye Trail as well as part of two national systems - the North Country Scenic Trail and America's Discovery Trail.

So that about wraps it up. For more info on these locations I provided the links for my sources below.

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http://www.hockinghills.com/old_mans_cave.html

http://www.discovermohican.com/activities-mohican2.html

http://www.metroparks.net/parksprairieoaks.aspx

http://ohventures.blogspot.com/2011/08/10-great-ohio-hiking-spots.html?m=1

http://cleveland.cbslocal.com/top-lists/best-hiking-trails-in-cleveland/

http://hikingohioparks.com/south-chagrin-reservation-hiking-ohio-parks.html

http://alltrails.com/trail/us/ohio/nelsons-ledges-state-park

Raised Bed Gardening Video

The garden is in and growing but I thought I'd share our first weekly garden video blog. Eeeek... So exciting! Enjoy :D

http://youtu.be/ykYzsCb6s-I

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Raised Bed Gardening in Northern Ohio

Well I have been mostly MIA since the weather here in NE Ohio turned beautiful. We have been playing with the chickens, planning for our cow, and creating our garden. 

The garden began with my husband building three large beds. Then the chickens worked on scratching up the grass. Little by little our fruit & veggie garden began to take shape.

We tilled in some peat moss to make the soil nice and light for our plants. We are very fortunate to have extremely fertile soil, we have hundreds of earthworms as proof, ;)

[A hard at work hubby]

We had to install fencing around the garden since we have all kinds of critters living near by. Our wildlife (pesky a-holes) include: rabbits, geese, ducks, wild turkeys, raccoons, a fox, cats, deer (otherwise known as overgrown rats), ground hogs, squirrels, and mice. All of those are just what I've seen. The fence won't keep them all out but hopefully it'll deter them from trying to hard!

We are using straw in the beds as our mulch and also on the ground to keep the grass down (we need more still).

This first bed has carrots, onions, potatoes, brussel sprouts, and beefy tomatoes. The second has watermelons, eggplants, acron & spaghetti squashes. The third has green & red peppers, cherry & Roma tomatoes, and brussel sprouts. Once I get the spacing figured out, I'll plant my basil and cilantro seeds.

We are so excited to see what works and how well everything does and I'll keep you updated as the summer progresses.

What are your gardens looking like this summer?

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DIY Little Mermaid Apron

Naptime crafting is the best! I have been wanting to make a dress-up apron for a long time now. Today's craft is a little mermaid inspired dress-up apron. 

The whole project cost me about five dollars in materials. I have been buying fabric from Joann's for forever but someone recently told me that walmart has fabric in store. Holy cow! Can we say bargain!? The selection is minimal and since I don't shop there, it was an added trip, but the price was great. I paid 1/3 of the prices at Joann's!

The whole project took me about 2 hours  since I had to do a lot of pinning. It was easy and a fun play accessory for my toddler. When I showed it to her she squealed and said, "mermaid". I call that a win! ;)

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Sew Your Own Queen Elsa Dress from Frozen

So if you have a daughter then it's likely you know all about Frozen. As the mother of a two year old, I sure do. I call it Frozen Fever, it's highly contagious and causes symptoms of: desperate merchandise shopping, panic attacks, 4 hour disney store line waits, and lack of merch induced depression. Luckily, my toddler is still so young that I don't have to run around collecting the character plushes just yet (even though I'd like to).

I did make my daughter Elsa's dress, or at least something similar. Here are some more pictures of it. It cost about $25 in supplies.

The cape is made of the same sheer fabric as the sleeves. I also went through and hot glued gems onto the cape in the shape of a snow flake toward the bottom. I put gems all over the cape at random as well. 

I love how it turned out and for my first dress with sleeves, I kind of impressed myself! LoL

What has Frozen done to all of you?

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Dear Men, Do This!

Can we say candlelit dinner for two please?!

I can't help but to gush over my husband. He still takes my breath away. Thursday night he arranged such a sweet surprise dinner on our back patio. He planned it and set it up as I put our toddler to bed.

Steak, salads, wine, (beer for Mr. Caveman) and a candle to top it off. When I asked him why he said, "just because". The plates didn't match, the silverware was in the wrong place, and the wine glass was all wrong... but none of that mattered, I was on (a very giggly) cloud 9.

So guys out there: it doesn't matter if you've been married for 4 weeks, 4 years (like us), or 4 decades, making your wife feel special and loved is the most wonderful thing that you can do! And yes, of course he got some, LOL!

Do this! You're welcome men!

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Bunny Notes, Basket, and Trails... Oh my!

Happy Easter Everyone!

I'll make this short and sweet since it's waaaay past this bunny's bedtime. Here is my set up for my 2 year old's Easter morning!

A note that is now on E's door.

And the trail to her basket begins!

Follow the bunny tracks...

To find a basket under the table :)

The basket contains: a kite, magnetic alphabet letters, wooden alphabet puzzle, princess bubbles, bead necklaces, pjs, books, and Frozen stickers that are not in the photo.

Tell me about your Easter morning!

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