Camping Fever + Other Summer Events

To say this summer was a whirlwind is an understatement. We really broke in our camper and spent a lot of time on the road. We also had some other fun events this summer that were noteworthy. Tim and I tend to be penny pinchers in a lot of ways but he has told me many times that one of the best things he's ever spent money on was 1) my engagement ring 2) our camper. I'm a fan of these investments of his as well :) Here's some of the quick trips we made this summer!

• Moving Crew: We spent a couple days moving my brother, sister-in-law, niece, and nephew to Arkansas. Though we were sad to see them go, my brother is doing his residency at a hospital in Little Rock so we were also excited for them! Tim came for 2 days then flew out for work while I stayed a little longer with my family to help with the process. There were a lot of boxes to move and unpack, as well as a lot of organizing, wall paper stripping, and painting to be done. We also took some time and explored the area with them so we knew where they'd be!A couple memories that stand out from the trip...

Driving a large diesel truck with 2 fish tanks, 2 dogs, and a UHaul to Arkansas - Tim and I got this job. I was too scared to drive so Tim drove and I was just moral support :) Our passengers were cute atleast! Though they did roll the window down and try to jump out once...on the interstate. 😅

Our car ride companions

Playing with these cuties! They were so excited to show us their new house.

The cutest people in the moving crew

All the wall paper. My little brother Nate and I removed a lot of the wall paper and and my-oh-my. We were starting to get a little loopy toward the end of the process. But it sure looked pretty after! 

Our stop on our way home....Lambert's! Too bad I was still on Whole 30 at the time when we stopped 😢

Standing in front of Lambert's

• Prophetstown State Park: We went here for the weekend with another couple we know from UIndy. We had never been but really liked it! It was very hot because the park is primarily tall grassy areas, so we all agreed it might be a better park for spring or fall. However, it was still really fun! We walked around some of the trails through the grass, hiked to a recreation of an Indian village, explored a working 1920's farm, went to the site for the Battle of Tippecanoe, played cards, and sat around the campfire. We are definitely adding this to the list for next year...though maybe in the fall instead :)

The view of the prairie by our campsite

• Clifty Falls State Park: We went here with another couple from UIndy as well as Tim's parents. This is one of my favorite places to go! I always spend some time in downtown Madison. It has a cute downtown area with shops, restaurants, old homes, etc. This time we walked around the shops, had lunch, and toured the 1st ever Grand Mason Lodge. We also hiked one of my favorite trails - a trail that goes through a tunnel! Ali and I loved this...Tim was not so fond. Our friends also brought their 2 pups so Ali had a blast with all the puppy play time!

The pups all worn out

• Indiana Dunes: We spent a weekend here in late August with Tim's parents. This is one of Tim's favorite places to go! I think he likes it so much because you don't have to drive far yet you feel like you are in Florida at the beach :) We spent most of our time at the beach but we also walked down to the train station, went to Michigan City and it's lighthouse, and went to see the "World Fair" homes - these are 5 futuristic homes that were in an old World's Fair that you can now drive by and see. We both agreed next time we will have to give ourselves enough time to go into Chicago by train too.

• Brown County: We spent a weekend here with friends in September. We thought we would have more trees changing and fall weather, but it was actually warm and everything was still green! Crazy Indiana weather :) We hiked around both of the lakes in the park, sat around the campfire, and spent one afternoon going into downtown Nashville! We got coffee at my favorite - The Chocolate Moose. The boys sat with Ali and hung out on a bench while the girls went in a few stores then we got pizza at Tim's favorite - Big Woods Brewery. All around a great weekend! 

• Springfield, IL: We spent a weekend here for our anniversary and it was one of my favorite trips to date! We camped in a campground about 20 minutes from downtown Springfield. We loved getting to learn all about Lincoln while we were there! We went to his home and the surrounding "village" and got to tour his home and walk around all the houses. We also walked around downtown Springfield, exploring the old courthouse, his law office, the train station he left from for Washington, his tomb, etc. We also went to the Lincoln Library and Museum. Much of what we did was free - the only thing we paid for was the museum - but the museum was worth it we both thought! Afterward we both were obsessed with learning all we could about Lincoln! 

Coffee in the village before exploring

Lincoln's Home

Train Depot where he left for Washington

Exploring the older part of downtown

Lincoln's Tomb

• Summer Visits: We were lucky to get a couple visits with our niece, nephew, brother, and sister-in-law even though they had moved into their new home! Kinsie (our niece) came home for a week and stayed with my parents a couple weeks after we had moved them in. She helped us work in the garden, decorated the chalkboard at Tim and I's house, and went to the county fair with us while she was here! Later, over Labor Day weekend, Tim and I both went to see them in Arkansas! We loved having them all to ourselves and got plenty of playtime and Disney movie watching in. We also got to explore a couple parks, go to the farmers market downtown, and go to the Little Rock Zoo with them! Kara, Brax, and Kins also returned in late September for 2 weeks around Kinsie's birthday. They spent lots of time hanging out with family and before they returned Ryan came for a day and we threw Kinsie a birthday party with the whole family! 

Playing at the park by the Farmers Market

This little ham is the cutest

Feeding the animals at the petting area at the zoo

Little Rock Zoo Day

Little Rock Zoo

These were our main trips and events this summer though there were more. We loved all the time together exploring but also looked forward to slowing down as fall hit and being home a little more...though not always! Next on the blog...New York City :)  

Take Me South

Tim and I recently got the opportunity to go south to visit some of our (now) favorite cities - Savannah and Charleston. We drove down to Charleston first, where we stayed both with my aunt and uncle and in a sweet little campground on St James Island. We were so grateful for my aunt and uncle's generosity and that they are always willing to take us in...it was much appreciated after the long drive. We were only there 3 or 4 days (as we wanted to get onto Savannah as well), but we packed a lot in! We explored the campground where we stayed part of the time - follow the link to see pictures and get more info on it.

https://www.ccprc.com/1434/Campground

We highly recommend this campground! It was peaceful, quiet, and there way plenty to do. Here's a picture of us in front of our site.

On our first day we went to lunch with my aunt, uncle, and cousin at a yummy farm-to-table restaurant. Then we went downtown and walked the city. We started near the straw market, walked along the bay down to Battery Park, and then walked back through the city to the straw market again. Having been to Charleston before, this is one of my favorite walks!

On our second day, we started out slow and went to Patriot's Point first. This is one of my favorite things to do in Charleston and I was so excited to share this with Tim. Patriot's Point includes a large carrier ship, destroyer, submarine, and recreated Vietnam base. I love walking through these because I can actually get more of an idea of the conditions our servicemen live in and it gives me a greater appreciation of the sacrifices they make for us as a country to protect us. My uncle is a Vietnam Veteran so that is extra special as well. He gave me my first tour of Patriots Point and I only hope I gave Tim one that was half as good as the one he gave me. Here are a few of my favorite pictures from our visit to Patriot's Point:

  We spent part of the next day driving to Savannah and getting set up at our next site - Fort McAlister State Park. This park was even more gorgeous! There was a fun boat ramp, dock, and area you could rent kayaks as well as hiking trails and an old fort to explore. 

Since Savannah was a bit of a drive from our campsite, we decided to stay near the campground and explore it throughout the day on the day we drove there to save up our energy for walking downtown Savannah the next day. On the next day, however, when we did explore Savannah, we went all in exploring as much as we could! We chose to do a "Trolley Tour" and it was so worth it! It was wonderful because we got to see so much that would have been far to walk (and we really didn't need to get out and walk around) but wanted to see at least briefly! We took the tour around once and then went around again (you can go around as many times as you want), hopping off at the sites that peaked our interest the most. We chose to stop at: the Mercer-Williams House, Forsynthe Park, City Market, The Cathedral of St John the Baptist, and River Street. We also just hopped off and walked around some of the squares - we couldn't resist because they were so gorgeous!

The Mercer Williams House was where the story "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil" took place. It was gorgeous to explore. The guide told us when the chandelier in the front left window is on the home is open for tours - but that you must always go back to the carriage house and enter through there to tour the home.

Forsynthe Park has a pretty fountain in the middle of it that is stunning to just sit and watch. The park has gorgeous homes surrounding it and a cute cafe on one side of it as well. Tim and I had gotten coffee there when we briefly stopped through Savannah on our way to Florida one year. We also visited Bonaventure Cemetary when we stopped through that time, though we didn't this time. It is about 20 minutes outside the city but worth the drive.

The City Market has a bunch of little shops around it that are fun to meander through and at times (like when we were walking through) will have street bands! We stopped and got a coffee and macaroon to share here and sat and just enjoyed the atmosphere. We also walked over to the best ice cream shop from here (gotta burn the calories off, right?). It was called Leopold's ice cream - I got banana and Tim got thin mint. I am usually dairy-free as far as my diet but this was worth the dairy!


The Cathedral of St John the Baptist was by far one of the prettiest cathedrals I have ever seen. It was stunning and worth walking in and just sitting awhile.

River Street is where the party is at! It is right along the river (duh, right?) so you can see all the ships coming and going. There are a ton of awesome restaurants and fun shops to walk into. We personally ate at The Cotton Exchange Tavern and Restaurant and loved it! We loved it so much we ate there twice - once for lunch and once for dinner. I got the BLT (green tomato) sandwich for lunch and the Shrimp and Grits for dinner (I promise we usually eat healthy!). The Savannah Candy Company is also down here and has really good sweets.

On our last day in Savannah, we went to the Wormsloe Plantation, Tybee Island and it's light house, and back into downtown Savannah to revisit anything we'd missed as well as take a "Haunted" Trolley Tour - my request on the latter, not Tim's. Wormsloe did not have a house to tour which was a little bit of a disappointment but it did have ruins, pretty grounds, a long beautiful avenue of oaks, and a gorgeous front entrance/gate. There was a home on the grounds that we drove by that was really pretty but was not able to be toured (it's a private residence). They also said the grounds/home were part of some big films, including The Last Song!

Tybee Island was also the site of some of the filming for the movie The Last Song! The pier was very recognizable when we pulled up - it was used in the movie. I'm not surprised - it's a really pretty pier. We ate lunch near the pier, walked the pier, then went over to the lighthouse and toured it. It is a long way to the lighthouse top and very windy, but worth it! They have also restored the lightkeeper's homes' and you can tour them, which I loved a lot more than Tim. :) There is also a battery across the street that is also included in the tour to explore (more Tim's cup of tea).

The last thing we did before we went home was the ghost trolley tour. We got to tour the home Juliette Gordon Low (the founder of the Girl Scouts) lived in at night, as supposedly it is haunted. We then toured a small place on River Street that was frequented by pirates and just drove around downtown Savannah as they told us ghost stories. 

After all this, it was time for the long drive back home. However, we were thankful for some time away - just the two of us - and some time exploring such beautiful cities. This will definitely not be our last time in either of these cities - between the beach, history, and old homes I know we won't be able to stay away!

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