Kiser Lake State Park

Kiser Lake State Park was very cool and much to my boys happiness COVERED IN SNOW! We didn't get very much at home, so he was disappointed until we went a little farther north. We had plenty of snow to play with here at the park.

One of their favorite activities we played today was making snowballs and having snowball fights. The boys didn't care where we were on the trail if they saw a good pile of snow it was made into a ball and POOF into someones face! They had a lot of fun!

Let me begin by saying, yes this is an expensive carrier. The brand LÍLLÉbaby is on Amazon. I happened to have been searching and researching for one during black Friday so I mine for 50% off, but if you didn't want to wait until then I promise you the price is worth it. 

This carrier is receiving FIVE GOLD STARS from me because carrying my two-year-old was a piece of cake.

The weight is distributing perfectly and my back was unaffected. It has cooling material so I don't get hot (although this feature I haven't really experienced due to our hiking weather.) Here is the official website: lillebaby.com. This specific one is made for toddlers so the weight limit is 20-60 pounds.

Activity Idea: Make your own ANIMAL tracks

We hypothesize all day about what animal and use these tracking cards to figure out what we think it may have been made by, but we are taking it to the next level.

Next, using CARDBOARD, use these cards to trace out or you can "eyeball" the pattern and cut it out of the card board. 

Finally, using yarn or string poke a small hole in each side of your animal tracks and tie the string into each side so the kids can slip them feet into them. Now, try them out! 

Go outside and make your own tracks! I found the idea for the animal tracks for kids here and here the website for the tracks, they have a ton of other great resources as well.

Merrell REVIEW... actually I bought them from Cabela's, but not every city has one of those. They are related to stores like Bass-Pro and Field and Stream. You can also get them on amazon.

My boots are called: Merrell Siren Traveller 3 Mid Waterproof Hiking Boots For Ladies and they receive FIVE AMAZING GOLD STARS.

I have worn them in MUD, PUDDLES, SNOW and they have stayed warm and dry. I love these shoes.

Here are more animal prints that we found along our trail. This post was full of craft ideas and shout outs to amazing hiking equipment so whether you read for fun, information, or just entertainment I hope you enjoyed all of the things that we are using on our hikes. I am excited to continue to learn and start hiking in warmer weather soon. Not so many layers will be involved!!

According to OhioDNR, "The wetlands at Kiser are in the form of fen and wet meadow habitat. These areas were formed when blocks of ice broke away from the glacier and became covered by sand and gravel. As the climate warmed, the ice melted and left a depression filled with water surrounded by glacial deposits. These areas are filled with many intriguing plants including pitcher plant, sundew, tamarack and spruce." We definitely need to come back in the spring time! 

Gotta love our #guentheradventures