“When I was 5 years old my mother always told me that happiness was the key to life. When I went to school they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up and I wrote down happy. They told me I didn’t understand the assignment and I told them they didn’t understand life. ” – John Lennon
Gosh it’s that the truth? What makes you happy? There are many things that make a person happy and I believe having a balance between the things we need to do and want to do is key. I learned this from my incredible husband who always finds balance between work and play. When we first got married I clearly did not understand this concept. I was a workaholic. I wanted to work all day and I did during the beginning of our marriage which resulted in conflict. I was so bad. After I had made a meal I would eat and as soon as I was done eating I would start cleaning the kitchen cabinets while hubby was still trying to finish eating. I have grown and changed a lot since our first year of marriage. I have also learned that focusing on one thing will cause a burn out and what you once thought brought you happiness will soon do the opposite.
I love spending time with my loved ones, nature, traveling, planning unit studies for my children, collecting nature finds, learning new things, and writing to my penpals. I don’t particularly enjoy cleaning, cooking, or working out. My children and I do almost everything together. We do the things we like to do and the things we would rather not do. I have noticed that balance makes us all happy because too much work or play makes a person despise it over a long period of time. I could be wrong but this is what I have found to be true. What are your thoughts on happiness and balance?
Purisima Creek Redwoods
We explored the North Ridge Trail in this preserve which was a 4.3 mile trail. In all honestly I hardly ever am sore after a trail but after this trail I was sore the next two days because it was pretty steep. We were so proud of Eve for walking this trail without complaining. She’s getting better and better with every trail we hike. She watched a gentleman stretch before we hit the trail so she took many stops along the way to stretch. Maybe that helped her not to complain. The trail was wide and mostly shady. There was also lots of poison oak so we had to be extra careful when we passed narrow paths.
You first desend into a Redwood Grove with mighty trees throughout the trail. Then you get to see amazing vistas of hills and mountains in the distance. We loved that we were able to see the trail from the distance and seeing how the trail follows through the mountains was pretty neat. We would not do the North Ridge Trail all the way because the payoff at the end of the trail was a bit disappointing. Next time we would take a different trail.
My shirt is from Hiking is Magical. I love how light is and the logo on the shirt is so true. Use the code HOMEGROWN to receive 20% off your purchase.
Eve’s outfit is from Bellas Party Designs.
Edgewood County Park and Natural Preserve
The hills are now Gold in California but that never stops us from exploring and hitting the trails. We try to hit the trails early in the morning so that we are finished by the time it becomes too hot. There is less complaining this way.
We did over 3.1 miles. We were able to eat lunch with the views of San Francisco Bay, Mt. Diablo, Mt. Hamilton, and Santa Cruz Mountain skyline ridge. There are benches here, lots of open grasslands, and oak woodland.
Located at : 10 Old Stage Coach Road, Redwood City, Ca Park Headquarters.
Elizabeth’s dress is from The Princess and the Frock.
My shorts are from Effie’s Heart.
For us wandering on paths we’ve never set foot on makes us happy. I know we write about how incredible hiking is and that’s because we honestly believe that hiking is magical. We are always drawn to nature and the possibility of actually covering more ground with our feet because our feet weren’t meant for us to stay put, makes me happy.
Thank you for reading our post.
Cynthia
Props to the kids for walking that far! I know at that age, I would have been tired and bored out of my mind…
I used to be super focused on academics, and didn’t have much of a social life until a few years back, when I finally embraced trying new things. This created a balance in my life (work+play) and I can say I don’t think I’ve ever been happier!
Angela Tolsma
I love that quote, finding your happy place is so important! It’s great that you have a place to take your kids and create some awesome memories
Akim
Another great family adventure found in this lovely blog. Your activities make me feel excited to check your new posts. LOVE IT!
Cindy Ingalls
What a lovely family outing! At least the trail is wide enough for more than one person!
Nancy Johnson Horn
This looks like an amazing family day. We love to explore nature with our kids and appreciate the little things.
Brandi with BigFitFam.com
This reminds me that I really need to take my kids hiking more, we live right next tot he rockies so i dn’t know why we don’t spend more time in the mountains! Your pictures are great and your family looks like they had fantastic time!
Amber Nelson
What great fun! You sure are making some great memories!
Jennifer
That hike looks like a lot of family fun. Such a pretty area and great for seeing nature. I want to strap on my hiking boots and head out.
MJ
Trail walking is a great family activity. I think our family would benefit from exploring trails together and getting some much needed outdoor time together. I love that Lennon quote. People don’t realize how happiness is not always tied to money and success.
Heather
Stunning photos! Our youngest daughter is two years old and not quite old enough to make it through long hikes without being carried yet. I look forward to our fall season when it’s a little cooler here in Arizona and she’s a little more grown to walk farther on her own.
Joanna @ Everyday Made Fresh
I love seeing all the adventures your family goes on. You are creating some amazing memories with them! I wished that we had trails to hike like this around where we live. Our trails are all flat ground,with no views other than pine trees.
Cecilia C. Cannon
looks like it was an amazing family hike. what a nice place! we have to drive far from the city to find such places.
Kaity | With Kids and Coffee
Gah, this makes me miss living in California. The access to gorgeous hiking there is amazing–and this hike looks just beautiful!
Lara
Love that quotation! Agree. So important to find that balance – and so tricky, too. So many great photos of you and your family. Our little one isn’t old enough for this, but really look forward to the day that we can take him hiking!
Toughcookiemommy
I think we should all strive to be happy in our lives. We used to take long hikes with my aunt when I lived in Spain and I have fond memories from those days.
Brittany
I don’t know what it is about hiking but I love it. It’s so peaceful and relaxing. I love taking my kids for a fun hike and seeing where we end up.