Hi, Britney and Jason here. We are happy that you visited our site!
We are a mid-western couple that enjoys vacationing, especially in our National Parks! We fell in love at the Smoky Mountains, honeymooned while park-hopping in Florida, and are continually brought closer together while experiencing the beauty and history of the US National Parks together. When we’re not on the road to our next destination, we enjoy spending time with our family, friends and pet children (three dogs named Duke, Duchess and Daisy) and binge watching episodes of shows that we missed.
It is an ongoing joke within our family (thanks Missy!) that we are going to get “Stamp Cramp” when we announce an upcoming trip. Stamp Cramp evolved from our enthusiastic quest to collect stamps through the National Park Passport program, a program where you can get cancellation stamps on your official passport at a number of park units that are managed by the National Park Service (read more about our Stamp Cramp addiction here).
With each destination that we travel to, we make an effort to plan our routes to spend time at the parks
We keep learning lessons about life from our time traveling together. Three thoughts are shared below.
- Life is short – live with intention. Tomorrow is not promised. Take time to pause and enjoy the things that truly matter (i.e. family and friends, new experiences, etc.). What better way to spend time than by traveling with a loved one and making memories that will last a lifetime?
- Travel and make meaningful visits! We know how easy it is to get caught up in the daily grind. That is why we believe that taking a break and enjoying the beauty of the world around us is not only fun but also a key component of balance. Even if you can’t get away for long periods of time, finding time to “sharpen the saw” and take time for yourself can be super rewarding for your mind, body and soul. Visiting our parks does not have to be super-extravagant or expensive, and we’re finding that you don’t even have to go far from your home to create great experiences. While you can certainly indulge in luxuries to your hearts content, the parks are there for everyone – to be experienced, cared for and loved.
- Plan, but leave some space for the unexpected. This is how we live our lives. In general, we plan and live purposefully. That being said, we also acknowledge that growth and adventure can be best experienced in the moments that happen by chance. We have found that some of the coolest people and places lie just off the road that we didn’t even plan on visiting. Being flexible also leaves more time to play and explore!
We want to build a community that values experiences, time and purposeful fun!
Feel free to leave us a comment below and join in the conversations on our social media sites.
We ultimately hope that this blog will transform you into an empowered and informed explorer! Let’s inspire and share with each other!
We share itineraries for the places we’ve been. Check them out here ==> Places we’ve been.
Other places that we’ve been featured around the interwebs:
- Our #FallParksChallenge was picked up by our local news station and featured on the Columbus Metro Parks Blog.