It’s springtime in East Tennessee and all the flowering trees are in full bloom! This is my favorite time of year to take the kids on a garden tour. Though we love exploring the gardens year-round, there is truly something magical about a flowering garden in the springtime. It’s a great way to spend an afternoon with the kids out in nature. These are also some of my favorite spots to snap some spring photos of our family. Here are my favorite gardens to explore in Knoxville including a hidden gem only open to the public one a year in April!
Best Hiking Trails with Kids at Frozen Head State Park
Frozen Head State Park has several very family friendly trails that we love making this a place we frequent often! I especially love visiting Frozen Head in the spring when the many wildflowers along the trail are in bloom and the water level is up for the falls. But we also love visiting in the summer for refreshing creek play and in the fall for the beautiful foliage. Here are our favorite kid-friendly trails in the park.
Top Places to Explore with Kids in all 50 States
With big travel plans put on hold, many families are turning to staycations and exploring locally to fill their vacation calendars. After a big 2019, our plans for 2020 have always been to lay low. Thankful we live in the foothills of the Great Smoky and Blue Ridge Mountains and have lots to explore. But if there is one thing I learned on our road trip, itโs that there is beauty and wonder everywhere you look. Yes, every state has its gems! I did a lot of researching and asking around in planning for our 50-state road trip on the top must-see attractions in every state, especially with young kids, and on a budget. There were so many amazing options all over the country! I definitely made an ultimate bucket list. Here is a list of my top things to explore with kids in each state!
6 RITZ Cracker Snacks You Can Make in 5 Minutes
I am so excited to be sharing this super simple snack recipe round up with you all as part of the RITX Lunch Goes On Campaign! Here are 6 simple snack ideas that take 5 minutes or less to make and 6 reasons to run out to your local Walmart and stock up on RITZ Family Size Original Crackers. There’s 6 stacks of crackers; one for each recipe I’m sharing. And for every RITZ product purchased at Walmart in the month of March, Ritz will be donating $.10 to Feeding America to help support children who depend on school lunches as one of their main meals of the day!! So let’s stock up for a great cause ya’ll!
Van Build Mistakes | 5 Things We are Doing Differently in Van Conversion 2.0
Now don’t get me wrong, we loved our last van; a budget family van conversion that fit our family of five! It served us well on our three-month road trip to all 50 US states. But, there were definite lessons learned along the way not only in the build itself, but also when we actually doing van life. Now that we are starting van build 2.0 (you can follow along on my Instagram or YouTube), there are five things we will be doing differently this time around.
10 Board Games / Card Games You’ll Actually Enjoy Playing with your Preschooler
Every parent: your kid turns 3 and you break out Candy Land and realize it’s a mind-numbingly boring game. Now what? Well we did a ton of research and testing and have a list of 10 board and card games you’ll actually enjoy playing with your preschooler (3-5 years old)!