Share the Adventure: Our 1061 hours outside in 2021

(This is a super long post. It's a documentation of our 1061 hours outside during 2021. Here's a reflection of some of the highlights and what I learned).

1/1/21 - I’ve been an outdoors wannabe. I like it until it gets too cold. Or too hot. Or when it’s too difficult to get all 4 boys out the door. COVID helped us spend more time outside than ever before. I’ve decided to take on a challenge this year to let (and sometimes make) the boys play more outside. Today was an easy day with sunshine and 60 degree weather. 2 hours down, 998 to go...

Here's a link to the website with some of the rationale of why 1000 hours outside.

I'm keeping track on here to keep myself accountable (and to have a record to look back on)

JANUARY - 51 hours (51/1000 total)

1/1 - 1 hour ABC walk, 1 hour yard
1/2 - 1 hour yard, 2 hours Dogwood Park

1/3 - 1 hour forest
1/4 - 1 hour yard/forest (HS), 2 hours Mary Todd Park

1/5 - 1 hour Shillito Park, 1/2 hour Hill-n-Dale

1/6 - 1 hour yard (HS)
1/7 - 1 1/2 hours yard/forest, 1 1/2 hours Harrods Hill
1/8 - 1 hour yard/forest
1/9 - 2 1/2 hours Yuko-En, Suffoleta
1/10 - 2 1/2 hours Stonewall Park, Crank and Boom
1/11 - 1/2 hour yard, 1 1/2 hours Lansdowne-Merrick
1/12 - 2 hours Raven Run

1/13 - 1 hour yard (HS), 2 1/2 hours Burley, Duncan Parks
1/14 - 3 hours Masterson Parks (Hills, Station)

1/15 - 1 1/2 hours Belleau Woods, Gainesway Parks
1/16 - 1/4 hour walk around street
1/17 - 0
1/18 - 1 hour yard/forest (HS), 1 1/2 hours Jacobson Park
1/19 - 3 hours Southland, Lou Johnson, Elizabeth Street Parks
1/20 - 1/2 hour yard

1/21 - 2 1/4 hours Kenawood, Dixie, Eastland Parks
1/22 - 2 1/2 hours yard, Kirklevington, Meadowbrook Parks
1/23 - 1 hour yard
1/24 - 1 hour yard

1/25 - 0
1/26 - 1 hour Beaumont Preserve/Rosa Parks, 1 1/2 hours Preston Springs
1/27 - 0
1/28 - 1/2 hour yard
1/29 - 1 hour yard/forest
1/30 - 3/4 hour Thoroughbred, Northeastern Parks
1/31 - 3/4 hour Woodhill, Johnson Heights Parks

FEBRUARY - 38 hours (89/1000 total) This month was brutal. We had three winter storms in a week and a half's time, and the temperatures were often very cold. We're trying to learn to embrace the outdoors in all seasons, so we went to parks and played outside even in the ice and snow. This was also the month when we finished our Lexington Parks challenge -- visiting all 87 parks in a Covid year. Because of this, we hit up a lot of parks, many of them small where we didn't spend much time.

2/1 - 1/2 hour Tandy, Phoenix Parks

2/2 - 1 1/2 hours Green Acres, Martin Luther King, Marlboro Parks

2/3 - 1 1/2 hours Armstrong Mill, Gainesway Parks

2/4 - 1 hour walk (Mamaw and Papaw's neighborhood)

2/5 - 1 1/2 hours yard/forest

2/6 - 1/2 hour yard

2/7 - 2 1/2 hours yard, back neighborhood

2/8 - 1 hour Coolavin and Elkhorn Parks

2/9 - 1 hour yard, 2 hours Oakwood, Highlands, Southend Parks

2/10 - 1/4 hour yard

2/11 1 hour yard

2/12 - 1 hour yard

2/13 - 1 hour Waverly Park

2/14 - 3/4 hour Mapleleaf Park (ice picnic!)

2/15 - 0 (ice and cold)

2/16 - 1 hour yard (snow)

2/17 - 1 hour yard/forest

2/18 - 1 hour yard, school (more snow)

2/19 - 1/2 hour yard

2/20 - 1 3/4 hours sledding in Memaw's backyard

2/21 - 2 1/4 hours Gratz, Charles Young, Isaac Murphy Parks

2/22 - 1/2 hour Douglass and Brucetown Parks

2/23 - 3 hours with Daddy

2/24 - 3 hours Speigle, Thompson Road, Cardinal Run North Parks and McConnell Springs

2/25 - 1 1/2 hours Kenwick, Clay's Spring, Lakeview Parks

2/26 - 2 1/2 hours Hisle Farm Park (LAST ONE!!!)

2/27 - 2 hours front yard

2/28 - 1 hour yard (rain)

MARCH - 65 hours (154/1000 total) . This was when tracking our hours got a little tricky and cumbersome. In the winter, we usually go out together for one block of time. Now that it's warmer, though, different combinations of people are in and out all day. Some of these are approximations. We also had finished our challenge of visiting all 88 parks in Lexington, so I was lacking motivation from not having something to work towards. Oh, and we had our first campout of the season! We waited for a dry, warm-ish night. Carter, Calvin, and I bundled up to sleep in the tent. The last time we tried sleeping in the backyard, we didn't make it all night. I counted half of the hours we were asleep.

3/1 - 2 hours yard

3/2 - 2 hours yard

3/3 - 2.5 hours Veterans Park, 1 hour yard

3/4 - 1 hour yard

3/5 - 1 hour yard

3/6 - 1 hour yard

3/7 - 0.5 hour yard

3/8 - 1 hour yard

3/9 - 2 hours yard

3/10 - 4.5 hours yard, 2 hours (tent)

3/11 - 3 hours (tent), 1.5 hours yard

3/12 - 2 hours yard

3/13 - 2 hours (Jon)

3/14 - 1 hour

3/15 - 1 hour yard

3/16 - 3.75 hours Castlewood

3/17 - 3.25 hours Southland

3/18 - 2 hours Shillito and Harrods Hill, 1 hour yard (rain)

3/19 - 2 hours yard

3/20 - 2 hours

3/21 - 2 hours

3/22 - 2 hours

3/23 - 1 hour

3/24 - 2 hours

3/25 - 2.5 hours

3/26 - 3.5 hours

3/27 - 2 hours Sally Brown Nature Preserve

3/28 - 1 hour Lexington Cemetery

3/29 - 1 hour

3/30 - 2.5 hours yard, Riley

3/31 - 0.5 hours Parker

APRIL - 67 hours (221/1000 total). This was a fun month! We spent a week in New Castle at the beginning of the month. We had a long weekend at an AirBNB in McKee near Flat Lick Falls. We had a big day in Frankfort, KY at a sculpture park, the capitol, and Cove Spring Park. And we cashed in our membership at the Cincinnati Zoo and went for the first time.

4/1 - 1 hour Baker

4/2 - 1 hour (Indiana)

4/3 - 3 hours Memorial Park, campfire

4/4 - 3 hours yard, Westwood

4/5 - 3 hours Arts Park, Baker

4/6 - 1 hour yard

4/7 - 1 hour

4/8 - 1 hour

4/9 - 1.5 hours Harrods Hill

4/10 - 0.5 hour

4/11 - 0.5 hour

4/12 - 2 hours Wolf Run, Addison

4/13 - 3.5 hours NorthEast, Kenawood

4/14 - 0

4/15 - 4 hours Frankfort (Sculpture Park, Capitol, Cove Spring)

4/16 - 5.5 hours Cincinnati Zoo

4/17 - 2.5 hours Stonewall

4/18 - 3.5 hours Clays Mill, Hill n Dale

4/19 - 2.5 hours Pleasant Ridge, 2.5 hours Sondra

4/20 - 3.5 hours Daddy

4/21 - 0.75 hour Shillito (snow)

4/22 - 2 hours Jacobson

4/23 - 1.5 hours Lexington Children's Theatre - Alice in Wonderland

4/24 - 0.5 hours McKee AirBNB yard

4/25 - 4 hours Gray Hawk Park, AirBNB

4/26 - 4 hours Flat Lick Falls

4/27 - 3 hours cows, playground, yard

4/28 - 4 hours McConnell

4/29 - 1 hour yard

4/30 - 3 hours Meadowbrook

MAY - 90 hours (311/1000 total). Another great month! Two more trips to the zoo. A couple extended outdoor times in Mamaw and Papaw's backyard. I had a 5-night solitude retreat, so I don't have good records of what the boys did outside on those days. We also got a family membership to Evans Orchard and went several times. I realized that although we've been outside more than usual this year, we're way behind in our goal of 1000 hours. Hopefully, we can rack up more in the summer with vacation, camp, and sunny weather. Some limiting factors -- hassle of sunscreen and fear of ticks, snakes, and poison ivy.

5/1 - Thoroughbred and NE Parks, Derby party at Mamaw and Papaw's

5/2 - 2 hours Wellington

5/3 - 6.5 hours Zoo

5/4 - 2.5 hours yard

5/5 - 3.5 hours Evans Orchard

5/6 - 1 hour

5/7 - 1 hour

5/8 - 1 hour

5/9 - 1 hour

5/10 - 1 hour

5/11 - 4 hours yard, Wolf Run

5/12 - 3.5 hours Evans, yard

5/13 - 3 hours yard

5/14 - 2 hours yard

5/15 - 1 hour yard

5/16 - 1 hour Lansdowne

5/17 - 3.5 hours yard

5/18 - 4.5 hours Evans, yard

5/19 - 3.5 hours Bernheim Forest

5/20 - 4 hours yard, flower planting

5/21 - 3 hours Veterans

5/22 - 4 hours Mamaw and Papaw's house

5/23 - 2 hours walk to donut shop

5/24 - 3 hours McConnell

5/25 - 2 hours front yard

5/26 - 3 hours Evans

5/27 - 3 hours yard, pool

5/28 - 5.5 hours Zoo (rain)

5/29 - 2 hours yard (chilly)

5/30 - 1 hour verse recitation, Shillito picnic

5/31 - 6 hours Waveland, Southpoint, walk to snow cones

JUNE - 189 hours (500/1000 total).

This was a big month of outdoor adventures, big and small! I really wanted to get caught up and reach half of our goal at the halfway point of the year. And we did it! We discovered an awesome park in Winchester with a tall turf slide/hill that the boys LOVED. Since we're still avoiding crowds, I purposely picked a rainy day. We spent a week in Indiana with my parents and spent lots of time in the yard, on walks, and at parks. I had asked Lucas how many nights we would need to spend in our 2-3 person tent to justify purchasing a bigger one. He said 7, so that became our goal. We spent a night in the backyard at Mimi and Pa's, one at the Cornerstone campground (so fun!), and a couple in our backyard, including a solo night for Carter. I started counting all our sleeping hours outside, too, partly out of desperation for more hours and partly because it really is different than sleeping indoors. At the end of the month, we headed to Georgia for a VRBO vacation with Mamaw and Papaw, Dan and Megan and the cousins! The house had a pool in the backyard and a nature preserve across the street, so we got lots of outside time there.

6/1 - 3 hours Wolf Run, vegetable stand

6/2 - 4.25 hours Legacy Grove

6/3 - 4 hours yard, walk (rain)

6/4 - 4 hours Asbury trails, Centennial

6/5 - 5 hours Mamaw and Papaw's house (dinner), Wendy's

6/6 - 2 hours Colson party

6/7 - 4.5 hours front yard

6/8 - 3 hours Hill n Dale walk, rain van

6/9 - 3 hours Baker, Riley

6/10 - 6 hours Susan's farm, bubbles, sprinkler, Sunnyside, DQ

6/11 - 5 hours Summit Lake

6/12 - 4.5 hours yard, airplane, Baker Park, splash pad

6/13 - 13 hours 3 meals outside, Arts Park, tent

6/14 - 10 hours tent, Memorial Park, yard

6/15 - 11 hours tent Cornerstone Campground

6/16 - 18.75 hours Cornerstone

6/17 - 4 hours Rushville, yard

6/18 - 6 hours yard, reading

6/19 - 1 hour pool rain (Georgia vacation)

6/20 - 6 hours pool, nature preserve

6/21 - 6 hours pool, nature preserve

6/22 - 7.5 hours pool, nature preserve

6/23 - 7 hours pool, nature preserve

6/24 - 2.5 hours drive back from Georgia

6/25 - 6 hours High Bridge

6/26 - 6 hours tent

6/27 - 10.5 hours tent a.m., read, Wellington, ice cream

6/28 - 10 hours Carter tent, Pleasant Ridge, tree down

6/29 - 9 tent with Calvin, reading front

6/30 - 6 hours Evans Orchard

JULY - 129 hours (629/1000 total).

Another fun month! We kicked off the month by stomping in the rain at Shillito (we've only gone there on bad weather days). The little boys stayed with Daddy while I road-tripped with the big boys to Scripture Memory camp in Louisiana (my 41st state!). We ate our meals outside, canoed on the lake, rode the zipline, and learned how to play carpet ball! We also spent the night in Arkansas on the way there and back and even climbed a mountain! We used our new tent for the first time (Camp Nelson RV Park) and enjoyed (well, most of us!) a sunflower field. We finished the month with a family Olympics competition.

7/1 - 1 hours Shillito (rain)

7/2 - 4 hours Southpoint, Waveland, Shillito

7/3 - 2 hours yard

7/4 - 3.5 hours Jubilee AirBNB (Arkansas!)

7/5 - 3.5 hours (Scripture Memory Camp - Louisiana)

7/6 - 6.5 (Scripture Memory Camp - Louisiana)

7/7 - 8 hours (Scripture Memory Camp - Louisiana)

7/8 - 7 hours (Scripture Memory Camp - Louisiana)

7/9 - 1 hour camp, 2.5 hours Pinnacle hike, 1 hour park/hot tub

7/10 - 0.25 (long drive)

7/11 - 4 hours yard, Stonewall

7/12 - 4 hours yard

7/13 - 3 hours yard

7/14 - 6 hours walk to Papaw's, yard, tent

7/15 - 7 hours Calvin tent

7/16 - 1.5 Riney B, 1.5 backyard

7/17 - 1.5 hours

7/18 - 3 hours walk to donut shop

7/19 - 3 hours Kenawood

7/20 - 5.5 hours yard, back neighborhood

7/21 - 3 hours Arboretum, front yard

7/22 - 3.5 hours downtown parks

7/23 - 1.5 hours reading

7/24 - 12.5 Camp Nelson tent and pool

7/25 - 13 Camp Nelson tent and pool

7/26 - 3.5 hours yard, deck pool

7/27 - 5.25 hours yard, pool, Wendy's

7/28 - 3.5 hours

7/29 - 3 hours sunflowers, Paris

7/30 - 3 hours yard, Lansdowne-Merrick

7/31 - 1.75 hours yard, Olympics

AUGUST - 122 hours (751/1000 total).

We spent over a week in Indiana while Daddy finished up his magazine. We played at Summit Lake and the local parks and then we camped at Cornerstone, nabbing our first 24 hour day outside! We also stopped at the Cincy Zoo on the way home.

8/1 - 1 hour yard

8/2 - 4.5 hours walk to Southland

8/3 - 3 hours

8/4 - 3.5 hours yard, Rushville park (Indiana)

8/5 - 5.5 hours yard, Arts Park, Riley

8/6 - 5 hours Summit Lake

8/7 - 11.5 Cornerstone camping

8/8 - 24 hours Cornerstone camping

8/9 - 14 hours Cornerstone camping

8/10 - 3.5 hours Baker, yard

8/11 - 4 hours Memorial Park

8/12 - 4 hours (w/ Mimi)

8/13 - 4 hours (w/ Mimi)

8/14 - 5 hours (w/ Mimi)

8/15 - 4 hours Cincinnati Zoo

8/16 - 1.25 hours yard

8/17 - 2.5 hours yard

8/18 - 3 hours yard

8/19 - 3 hours yard (rain)

8/20 - 3 hours Evans Orchard, Memaw

8/21 - 2 hours yard, deck

8/22 - 1 hour Mamaw and Papaw's

8/23 - 1 hour yard

8/24 - 1.5 hours yard

8/25 - 1 hour yard (HOT)

8/26 - 1 hour yard (HOT)

8/27 - 2.5 hours Jacobson, Hill n Dale

8/28 - 1 hour

8/29 - 0.25 hour

8/30 - 0.5 hour

8/31 - 1 hour yard (rain)

SEPTEMBER - 101 hours (852/1000 total).

We took some walks this month, to Wellington and to Wendy's and enjoyed the orchard. We camped for two nights at Summer Shoals Retreat on the Cumberland River. It was primitive camping with only a (clean!) porta-potty, but the land and the price were unparalleled! We also took Mamaw to the Louisville Zoo for her birthday.

9/1 - 1 hour yard

9/2 - 4 hours front/back yard, Wellington, bike

9/3 - 3 hours Yuko-En, Evans Orchard

9/4 - 1 hour yard

9/5 - 1.5 hours yard

9/6 - 1.5 hours yard, forest

9/7 - 2 hours yard

9/8 - 0.5 hour yard

9/9 - 0.5 hour yard

9/10 - 10.5 Summer Shoals camping

9/11 - 24 hours Summer Shoals camping

9/12 - 12.5 hours Summer Shoals, waterfall

9/13 - 1 hour yard

9/14 - 2.5 hours yard

9/15 - 1.5 hours Charles Young Park

9/16 - 1.5 hours yard

9/17 - 1.5 hours (Lucas took them)

9/18 - 0.5 hour Shaker Village

9/19 - 0.5 hour

9/20 - 0.5 hour

9/21 - 0.5 hour

9/22 - 0.5 hour (rainy, chilly)

9/23 - 6 hours Wendy's walk, yard

9/24 - 5 hours Louisville Zoo

9/25 - 1 hour

9/26 - 3 hours

9/27 - 4 hours, chalk

9/28 - 4.25 hours yard, photography Waveland

9/29 - 3 hours yard, walk from library to Harrods Hill

9/30 - 2.25 hours

OCTOBER - 68 hours (920/1000 total)

We spent time playing at Bi-Water Farm and Evans Orchard, hiking in the Gorge, and exploring the Kentucky Children's Garden. Carter and I took a quick one-on-one trip to Virginia (so he could mark it off his list). We also went to Indiana for a week, but it was cold and we were unprepared. We bundled up and went to Jacob's Orchard and the Fort Wayne Zoo. We also spent a lot of time outside at Mamaw and Papaw's house on Halloween.

10/1 - 6 hours Bi-Water Farm

10/2 - 2 hours yard, ABC walk

10/3 - 1.5 hours yard, Wellington

10/4 - 2.5 hours yard

10/5 - 3 hours yard

10/6 - 0.5 hour yard (rainy)

10/7 - 0.5 hour yard (reading)

10/8 - 3 hours Gorge hiking

10/9 - 2 hours yard

10/10 - 1.5 hours walk, yard

10/11 - 3 hours yard

10/12 - 1.5 hours yard

10/13 - 1 hour yard

10/14 - 1.5 hours yard

10/15 - 2 hours Evans Orchard, Memaw

10/16 - 3 hours yard

10/17 - 0.5 hour (drive to Virginia)

10/18 - 1 hour (hike Breaks Interstate Park)

10/19 - 1.5 hour yard

10/20 - 4 hours KY Children's Garden

10/21 - 1 hour yard

10/22 - 0 (cold, rainy)

10/23 - 4 hours Lowe's Park, yard, downtown (Indiana)

10/24 - 0

10/25 - 1 hour yard

10/26 - 5.5 hours Jacobs Orchard, Baker Park

10/27 - 5.5 hours Ft. Wayne Zoo, Goggin farm, fire

10/28 - 1 hour yard

10/29 - 1 hour yard

10/30 - 0 (cold, rainy)

10/31 - 3.5 hours Halloween

NOVEMBER - 80 hours (1000/1000 total) .

Carter wanted to visit all of Kentucky's surrounding states before he turned 10. So, as a family, we drove to his last one -- West Virginia. The fall colors were ideal although the weather was not. We went to Evans Orchard on a few days as well as Veterans Park and Legacy Grove. On a particularly cold day, we set up our small tent to huddle inside. We experienced the holiday decorations at the Zoo (although we didn't stay for the evening lights). We dug up a slide in our forest, potty-trained Colson outside on a warm day, and dug a hole for our new mailbox. On the last day of the month, we finished 1000 hours at one of our favorite parks -- Valley Park.

11/1 - 5 hours Veterans Park, yard

11/2 - 0.5 hour (West Virginia - backyard)

11/3 - 0.5 hour (WV)

11/4 - 3 hours yard

11/5 - 2 hours yard

11/6 - 1 yard

11/7 - 1 yard

11/8 - 3 hours yard

11/9 - 5 hours yard, walk to Wendy's

11/10 - 2.5 hours yard

11/11 - 2 hours backyard

11/12 - 4 hours Evans Orchard, walk to Dominos

11/13 - 2 hours forest, backyard

11/14 - 1 hour front yard (cold, drippy)

11/15 - 2.5 hours front yard

11/16 - 6.5 hours yard (potty training)

11/17 - 6 hours yard (potty training)

11/18 - Phil, dig up slide

11/19 - 3 hours Legacy Grove

11/20 - 3 hours front/back yards

11/21 - 0 (cold, rainy)

11/22 - 6 hours Burnet Park, Cincinnati Zoo

11/23 - 3 hours backyard, Stonewall

11/24 - 3 hours Evans Orchard, yard

11/25 - 0

11/26 - 2.5 hours front (snuggle inside tent)

11/27 - 1.5 hours front

11/28 - 1.5 hours front

11/29 - 1.5 hours

11/30 - 2 hours Valley Park

DECEMBER - 61 hours (1061/1000 total) .

I was surprised we got as many hours as we did in December, but for the most part, the weather was very mild. Like always, we had forest time and yard time and park time. We also experienced some night time outside -- fire station lights, Southern Lights at the Horse Park, and a fire and luminaries to celebrate the winter solstice. We used the luminaries in the wood for the boys' first night hike. They didn't really like it!

12/1 - 2 hours walk (Wellington, Crank and Boom)