We are just finishing up our Young Author books, and Braden decided to write about his most impactful hiking experience.

Even though he is extremely athletic and loves sports, to our dismay, this boy does not like to hike. However, once that boy gets to the turnaround point, his attitude does the same, so as long as we can get him out there, we know we can get him back with no issues at all 😉  (In fact, here is a picture of that same boy on this particular day, running back).

 

When we were in Glacier National Park in 2014, we decided to take a ranger guided hike to several waterfalls and back in the Two Medicine area.

We were with another family that we had met the day before, the Day family, and we couldn’t wait to hike with them. We figured if we neglected to tell the kids the hike was 9 miles, they would ‘forget’ they were actually ‘hiking.’  Besides, there were fun things to look forward to along the way like this cool suspension bridge!

Four and a half miles in, we had reached Rockwell Falls,

 

our destination at the end of our trail.  Braden discovered the most beautiful feather I have ever seen.

Normally, when our kids find one of their ‘treasures,’ I secretly hope they will disappear, which is surprisingly common given the number of unmentionables in our van upon returning. This one was different though – fluffy and white, with beautiful dark spots, almost certainly the snowy owl feather Braden claimed it to be. As I told him that we would have to keep his feather safe, I was whisked away by the girls’ pleas to ‘pee in the woods’ for the first time ever.

Minutes later, Braden (the boy who always seemed to get the raw end of the deal) reported that he had put his feather in his pocket, but that it had disappeared. We looked all over for his feather to no avail.   We continued on our way until my heartbroken middle man began to cry.

I turned around once again, with no intent to move forward until his treasure was found. Once again, we did not find it.

I promised to give Braden the first feather I found, knowing full well it was likely that the next one would be one of the common ugly feathers that disgusted me so. For three miles, I walked with my head down instead of watching for bears like I should while hiking in grizzly country,

searching frantically for a feather to bring my poor guy out of his sorrow. After stopping at another waterfall, we continued on the last mile of our hike. I realized I would not find Braden’s replacement that day.

 

Almost instantaneously, I glanced up to see a look of pure joy spread across my son’s face as a gorgeous, white, spotted feather twirled down from above and he caught it as it neared his head. (I think Braden captured it perfectly in his book illustration).

Had I not witnessed the whole event, I have to admit I would not have believed it myself. Our entire family stopped to ask him how this special feather had twirled down from the sky, a perfect and miraculous replacement, and Braden responded, “I prayed for it when I lost my feather and God answered my prayer.”

Unbelievable and truly amazing. Not once, but twice in one week (I will share the other occasion another time), our family’s prayers were immediately and beautifully answered. I feel so blessed to have witnessed these faith-building events, and know without a doubt, that these journeys and experiences will be a part of us for the rest of our lives and are molding us into the people we are becoming.  So often, we want  questions answered on our timeline, but in the long run, it all makes more sense and works out even better than we hope when we wait to hear God’s response.  This one was loud and clear.  Sometimes, we look down and keep trekking, when all we really have to do is look up!

“If you believe,

you will receive

whatever you ask

for in prayer.”

                Matthew 21:22

  

The boys have been working so hard on their Young Author books for school, and I couldn’t have been prouder when they told me they wanted to write about two of my favorite camping stories. Young minds are so impressionable, and it means the world to me that the experiences we have are what they choose to write about and share with their classrooms. It will be so fun to look back on these treasures years from now. Since it’s a rainy spring morning, we will start with Gavin’s story about the flash flood, one of the craziest experiences of all time for the Hoff family.

It was the 4th of July 2015, and we were camping at Hyde Memorial State Park in Santa Fe with some of our favorite travel buddies, the Davids. We were meeting their son Luke for the first time, and they were busy adapting to their first camping trip with a baby.

As we drove further away from Santa Fe, we noticed storm clouds in the distance, but were thankful we were in the clear so far.

We arrived at the Bandelier National Monument Visitor Center and learned that we would need to take a bus back to the other visitor center inside the park and walk to the cliff dwellings. More national parks are moving towards no cars in the parks, and offer free shuttle buses to see the sites. We packed up everything we would need for the day in our backpacks and jumped on the next shuttle. Upon arriving at the next visitor center, we heard thunder in the distance, and crossed our fingers we could make it out to the dwellings and back before getting drenched.

Chasing our 5 kiddos from dwelling to dwelling separated us from the Davids, so we doubled back to check on them.

  

Luke was due to eat, so we decided they would head back to the visitor center from Long House and wait for us while we hiked out further to explore Alcove House. We zigzagged across a small creek several times before arriving at the massive dwelling. Alcove House is accessible only by climbing 140 feet of ladders, a harrowing experience for sure!

  

Cliff dwellings are so impressive – the kids loved exploring the ancient home.

We were almost afraid to go back down the ladders, but we finally took the plunge and started heading down.

After going down two of the ladders, we stopped to look down before the last stretch. Suddenly, we heard a load roar like we have never heard before. In awe, we saw a giant wall of muddy water going to what used to be a small stream.

(Unfortunately, we were in total awe and unable to capture the giant wave on camera).

We yelled, “Flash Flood!” to the people crossing the creek below, only to see they were oblivious to the water racing towards them. We watched as they began to scramble up the hill, and the water continued to rise higher and higher. So thankful for our perch above the flood, we watched as the wall continued to wash away every bridge and hope of returning to the visitor center.

The water continued to rise. What once was a creek was now a raging river.

We were stunned that this actually happened. Fascinated by flash floods and unable to imagine what one looked like, we had heard lots about them, and have abandoned several hikes in the past, in fear of potential rain above. You see, what we were in was certainly not a slot canyon, and barely qualified as a canyon if at all. The side the dwelling was on was steep, but the other side of the creek was a slow rising hill. We thought, “How could this happen? It wasn’t even raining.” But it was certainly raining somewhere, as the signs had indicated earlier…

After watching the river’s water level for awhile, we were finally convinced it was no longer rising. We continued down the last ladder and watched, as several other stranded hikers crossed a giant tree that was lodged over the raging river.

With 5 children in tow, we knew this was not an option for us. Too dangerous. Close to lunchtime and with nowhere to go, we sat down to eat lunch. Thankfully, we had packed plenty of water, snacks, and rain gear in case it started to downpour. Others stranded with us made decisions about whether to cross the tree, or wait for the water to recede. One old couple chose to continue further out on a trail that led to some sort of campground, in hopes it connected with the road. Somewhere, a ranger spoke over some sort of speaker not to attempt to cross the river. In the distance, we thought we heard him say they would attempt a rescue when it was safe. We waited, and waited. The kids played on the downed trees, and expressed their concern about getting back to the visitor center.

Hours went by. Surely, the Davids would be worried. With no cell reception, we had no way to contact them.

Chuck started carrying downed trees and collecting them near the widest part of the river, in hopes of building our own bridge.

During this process, the ranger arrived via the ‘dangerous’ tree. After telling him about the old couple who had hiked further down the trail, he raced after them. The campground they were attempting to get to was only a backcountry site miles and miles away, certainly not near any road. After waiting nearly another hour for him to bring them back, the river had finally receded enough to construct our bridge. The ranger and Chuck threw the trees across the smaller sections of creek. At last, we had a way out.

After helping the kids across, we discussed how we would get back. The many crossings would pose a problem, so we decided to hike up the hilly side and bushwhack back to the visitor center with no trail.

At last, we made it! No surprise, the Davids were nowhere in sight, so we waited for the next shuttle so we could get back to our car and cell reception. After arriving, we called and left them a message, and within minutes, they returned to us. We shared our story and headed back to our campsite near Santa Fe, thankful to have experienced a flash flood from the safety of an ancient cliff dwelling. We couldn’t have planned it better. The kids spent several weeks after recreating flash floods in our campsites. This experience will be engrained in our memories forever!

  

As the weather warms up, who isn’t excited to go outside and/or camp?! Living in Chicagoland is not exactly ideal for an outdoor/camping-loving family, but there are plenty of places to get out there and really enjoy the beauty around us for some great camping! These are a few of our favorite camping areas within a 3 hour drive, easily doable for a weekend or even longer.

1) Indiana Dunes State Park (Chesterton, IN) – There are several campgrounds at the Dunes (including the National Lakeshore campground and even Warren Dunes just over the Michigan border), but our favorite is Indiana Dunes State Park, which is less than an hour from home. I grew up having summer family campouts at the Dunes every year, and these are some of my best childhood memories.

Camping with my cousins has even continued into adulthood with a few of them.

 

Indiana Dunes State Park is a great place for hiking, with miles and miles of trails, hanging out on the beach, or digging and running down the dunes.   The campground is really nice, with level pads,

electric, nice bathrooms, a great playground, lots of shade, and right along the dunes, with a short trail to the beach. The nature center is a short walk from the campground, and there is a park store if you forgot some essentials, or just want an ice cream treat for the kids.

If you need a little more civilization, the town of Chesterton is a 5 minute drive, with all the amenities. Another highlight is the Michigan City Outlet Mall, which is about 10 miles away. Also in Michigan City, Mt Baldy is a huge dune that we loved taking a day trip to, and if you have pets, they are even allowed on the beach there.

2) Starved Rock State Park (Oglesby, IL) – It’s hard to believe once you get there, but Starved Rock is also less than an hour from home. The windy road through tall trees takes you into a little haven in the woods. Miles of trails take you past sandstone cliffs and waterfalls,

and when you are ready for a break, you can head over to the river to look for eagles or the beautiful lodge for a delicious dinner.

If camping isn’t your thing, they even have cabins or lodge rooms for you to stay, or you could head out a little further to the Grand Bear Resort for some water park fun. The only down side to Starved Rock is the campground is not well kept. Fortunately, there are private campgrounds nearby for a cleaner stay 😉

Right around the corner from Starved Rock is it’s best kept secret, Matthiessen State Park. There are no campgrounds here, but if we have a chance for a day trip out to Oglesby, this is our destination of choice. There are less visitors, and the state park allows you full access to the canyon, for a hands on hiking experience.

The kids love crossing back and forth over the creek, and they forget they are hiking, leaving us with few complaints as we play along the way through the canyon to the falls. (we recommend Keens or water shoes and swim suits or a change of clothes for the full experience).

A little tangent- it’s been years since we have done it, but there is a great 70 mile bike trail along the I&M Canal from Rockdale to LaSalle, near Starved Rock. One of our favorite stops after hiking or biking is the Country Cupboard, a cute little ice cream shop in Utica.   We can’t wait to ride the trail someday soon, as the boys get old enough!

3) Yogi Bear Jellystone Park (Millbrook, IL) – Little did we know this destination was also less than an hour away, but last fall was the first time we have been there. With many of our favorite camping friends,

it was far from a secluded weekend getaway in the woods, but it was a super fun, social camping party!

They have plenty to do in the summer too, but they have three weekends solely devoted to fall festivities,

including trick-or-treating,

hay rides,

a haunted forest, a costume contest (which our friends the McDermotts seem to dominate!),

movies, and more.  We even got to see our favorite magician and balloon artist, Magic Matt.

The kids also enjoyed the miniature golf course (which is free if you bring your own ball)

and bingo (free with candy bar donation).

We enjoyed closing out the camping season with this fun celebration, and have already booked this fall’s reservation, and will soon book 2017, as the campground fills quickly for big rigs like our new one!

4) Turkey Run State Park (Marshall, IN) – Since it’s a three hour drive, it has been awhile since we have been here, which only makes us want to go more. Turkey Run is a much bigger version of Starved Rock. The canyons are deeper, with longer trails, and more access than Starved Rock allows these days.

I remember swinging on vines in the campground as a kid,

and loved going up and down all the ladders on the trails. There is a beautiful river to go canoeing in also.

 

While my aunt and uncle lived near here for several years, Turkey Run is kind of in the middle of nowhere. The visitor center and lodge are very nice, and the pool there is nice and affordable for a change of pace if you visit in the summer.

5) Devil’s Lake State Park (Baraboo, WI) – This gem is also a little over 3 hours from home, but well worth it.

Devil’s Lake is a beautiful small lake surrounded by mountains of boulders to play in.

There are trails all the way around the lake, and beaches on both sides, with swimming, boat rentals, and concessions.

There is also some great fishing.

The state campground can be difficult to get a spot in unless you are ready to plan your trip when the system opens the first of the year. However, there are also great private campgrounds here, with nicer bathrooms, and some with pools. The one we frequent is Nordic Pines, which is very affordable and right across from the state park, so we always have easy access. The kids really loved our last campsites there because both had awesome trees in them.

While cell reception is limited, the town of Baraboo is nearby, with a local farm and fleet, Walmart, and the infamous circus museum. The last time we were there, our trip got rained out, and luckily, Wisconsin Dells is a short drive north, and Madison is just south, allowing us to visit the awesome children’s museum on the way out. We love getting a museum membership and using reciprocity to visit others on our travels!

The beautiful warm weather makes me want to camp sooo badly! We have so many memories from these great spots, and more. Let us know where your favorite local spots are, and what your favorite memories are! When is your next camping trip? It’s definitely time!

 

We arrived in Washington DC late Wednesday night and crashed the Paquin crew in their 4 story DC home near the Navy Yard.

We have come a long way since our college dorm and housing days at MTU, where the three of us went to school to become engineers (which ironically, none of us are currently)! Tom and Heather live just minutes from the river, metro, Nationals Park, and the Capital building. Talk about an awesome location, right in the middle of all the action. I admit, I am not much of a city girl, but I like our kids to learn about and see how much DC has to offer. Plus, T & H had the perfect upper level “suite” for our crew with a great view of the city,

and…. we love catching up with these guys! Just several years ago, prior to having their two kiddos, they lived overseas, and followed it up by hiking the Appalachian Trail from end to end, giving them a unique perspective on life that I really admire.
We have travelled with a stroller for the last 10+ years. This was our first trip without it- it was both scary and liberating at the same time. In each location, we had occasions when the girls were really sick of walking, or just plain tired after nearly 10 miles of sightseeing, but we did it! Once in awhile, we (or the boys) piggy backed or carried them, but not much.

  

It was so nice not to have to worry about finding the elevators in the metro and museums, or have to find room for it in the car.   We even got to ride a super cool escalator from the metro!

Excited to see all the sites, our first full day was a marathon of activities. We started off with an exciting metro ride (if nothing else, this amazing commuter system is reason enough to visit DC!)

to the National Zoo, where the kids loved seeing the pandas and other animals.  One of the best things about DC is that the zoo, museums, and other activities are FREE, so we made sure f squeeze in as many as we could!

After the zoo, we headed back to the metro, and on our way, tried out the super cool capital bikes (that are free for the first half hour!) to see if they would work for a bike excursion later that day- they were just a bit too big for the boys 😉

  

From there, we continued on our way to Arlington Cemetery,

where we saw the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, and the changing of the guard ceremony.

Through the last week of touring so many areas rich in American history, we have had some interesting conversations with the kids about war, military, and death, and I was proud that they all came out of Arlington with a new and greater respect for those who defend our country. We took the metro back to the Paquins for a delicious home cooked meal (we definitely need that baked spaghetti recipe Heather), and got the bikes ready for an evening monument cruise. The weather looked rainy for our next two days, so we wanted to squeeze in as many outdoor activities as possible during the beautifully sunny and 75 degree day. Seeing the monuments all lit up at sunset and after was amazing… Definitely my highlight of the DC part of the trip- what a great idea guys!!

 

We are so thankful for neighbors who share their bikes and Tom’s amazing electric assist commuter bike that carried 4 of the 7 kids – I want one ;).

I still can’t believe the kids hung in there all day, but they loved it!  I think my favorite monuments are still Vietnam and the Korean Memorials.  Nothing can prepare you seeing that many names on the Vietnam Memorial, and the Korean eerily makes you feel like you were right there with our soldiers.

The next day was another story, as we had to wake everybody up early for our tour of the Capital building at 8am Eastern time ? We arrived early only to discover we couldn’t bring any food in as we suspected, so we quickly downed all our afternoon treats before going in.

We enjoyed the tour, but it was much abbreviated from the tours both Chuck and I have taken with our school groups in the past, and the rotunda was under major repair.

One tour guide showed us the one statue in the Capital that could be touched… Helen Keller, because there was braille on it.

We took the tunnel to the Library of Congress, which totally mystified the kids by the time we took the old elevator down and exited, looking back at how far the Capital was from us.

 

The Library was so ornate- the kids loved playing a fun scavenger hunt for animal sculptures.

  

From there, we walked down the mall area, enjoying the now 80 degree sunny day, hitting the Botanical Garden (where we met and heard the author read his book ‘The Bee Tree,’),

  

American Indian Museum, Air and Space,

and American History Museum.   The girls loved getting to see Dorothy’s red slippers.

We really wanted to get to the Holocaust Museum, but by now, everybody was exhausted, and despite the fact that the harder stuff is barricaded so little ones can’t see, we decided this wasn’t our year for it.  Since everyone was wiped out, we headed back to the Paquins for dinner and ice cream.  After getting off the metro, we discovered all the fountains were on by their house, and of course the temp was in the 80s, so the kids had some fun.

 

My guess is this may be one of their top memories from the visit (spontaneity certainly has its benefits).  After an ice cream social dished up city style (to ours and then a dozen or so neigbors, which was a good lesson in sharing for our suburb kids),

we were able to get everybody to bed early enough to enjoy learning a new game, Splendor, which I see being added to the Hoff game collection in the near future.
Saturday started out rainy, so we were able to get workouts in while the kids had some downtime.  DC doesn’t seem to wake up when other cities wake up, so Chuck likes to take a morning landmark run there, where he often gets a semi- or private White House and memorial viewings, so if you are an early riser, plan to do the same when you head to DC!

As the weather cleared up, we walked the couple blocks to watch the Nationals play a pre-season game against the Twins.  Can’t beat $5 tickets!

It was an exciting game, and the first professional one for the Hoff kids- our little athlete Braden claimed it was the highlight of our vacation.

He insisted on staying until the end, and the little ones loved the playground in the ballpark near the end.

We walked back along the river park

and spent the afternoon and evening relaxing, playing ball in their yard,

and grilling before gathering our things for the early 11 hour drive the next morning. Thank you Tom, Heather, Avery, and Alexi for the great stay!

Leaving the Smokies was hard, but we knew we had so much to look forward to! I justified bringing the Easter baskets because I knew C would go for food in the new car with the baskets serving as a mini ‘trough.’ He even joined in the fun.

The drive through North Carolina was gorgeous, and we couldn’t wait to see the Pienkowskis in Virginia Beach after our 8 hour drive (we went to high school with John and Patti, and John and Chuck were the best man in each other’s weddings). They were the perfect hosts, with dinner ready for us and the boys giving up a bed and sharing a bedroom with our boys. It’s been way too long since we spent some quality time with them.

One of the biggest reasons we love traveling is holding on and keeping these friendships authentic. The last time we spent more than an hour or two with them was when they honeymooned at our house when we lived in Colorado 17 years ago and a quick visit to California when they had their first baby 15 years ago. It’s hard to believe, but since then, Patti has become a school nurse, and John retired from the navy after serving as the commander of the Mesa Verde, and has joined us in the field of teaching. Their boys are now 15 and 12, and couldn’t have been more welcoming to our family.

E, B, and G had a blast with them talking Star Wars, Minecraft, Hobbit, Legos, and more.

The girls even adopted a perfect camping light that they wouldn’t sleep without.

The next day, the Pienkowskis treated us to Crazy Good Donuts, freshly made and customized to your own liking.

Next, we enjoyed a morning hike to Ben’s Scout eagle project, a bridge he built in a local forest preserve to allow bikers and hikers access further down a trail. The trail certainly needed it.

Our little scouts were so impressed! They are already talking about what they might do to become Eagle Scouts!

The girls and Gav loved flying back to the car like all the butterflies we saw.

After a quick lunch, we raced off to Virginia Beach to enjoy the sunshine and the kids first view of the Atlantic.

In addition to digging human sized holes,

football,

frisbee, and a remote control dune-riding car, we even got to watch a pod of dolphins near the shore.

Seeing the pelicans fly overhead was another special treat.

The girls loved finding ‘treasures’ in the ‘pixie dust’ 😉

We love seeing the world through the eyes of our sweet two four year olds.  Of course, we needed to make sand angels.

In fact, all the kids have crazy imaginations and great ideas.

After dinner at their house, John enthusiastically enlisted our boys in a long battle of ‘The Lord of the Rings’ game, which he purchased on their recent trip to the real Hobbiton in the shire.

Of course, this only encouraged Chuck to continue his extension on our original hobbit house in the yard. The girls loved making homemade ice cream with Patti

and petting their bearded dragon, Cody.

In fact, so did the boys 😉

After another great sleep, John was able to take us on base to the Norfolk Naval Station where he served as Commander of this $3 billion ship, the Mesa Verde.

Talk about impressive! This was definitely the most touching moment of this trip, knowing the sacrifice and dedication John has had to our country over the last 20+ years, and seeing the enthusiasm and devotion he has transferred fully to his family now.  He showed us aircraft carriers, helicopters, and even a submarine too.

He also took us to Oceana, where we checked out old planes

and experienced tons of F-18s flying right overhead. They were so fast… And incredibly loud!

We headed back to the Pienkowskis one last time to pack up and say our goodbyes. We needed to hit the road to get to part III of our trip in DC with the Paquins. The Hampton tunnel was backed up all the way, so we opted for the bridge and under ocean tunnel near Newport News.  How cool is that?!

We made it to colonial Williamsburg for a quick stop to hear the canons and watch a reenactment before continuing on our 4 hour trek to DC.

We reminisced spending our last night in Williamsburg on our 4000 mile bike trip 13 years ago.

We loved getting to see our good friends for a couple days, and are looking forward to visiting more friends in DC tonight!