Lindsey Wilson

I'm not the kind of Mom who's content to stay home all day; which could kind of be a problem for someone whose primary job title is stay-at-home-mom. Instead of hanging around the house, my kids and I venture into the outdoors quite a bit. One of our favorite activities is hiking; it's accessible, affordable and just plain awesome. I have 3 kids ranging in ages from 0-5. We rarely make it more than a mile or two down the trail, but then again distance isn’t really my primary objective these days. I'm more interested in being outside. I welcome the distractions my kids stumble upon: a rock to climb, a bug to catch, birds to watch, ant hill to observe, a stick that looks like a chainsaw, monsters that need to be taken care of… The goal is just being outside. In order to make getting three kids out of the house and onto the trail as quick and easy as possible I keep my backpack stocked at all times. Here's a list of items I'd recommend keeping in your pack for a potential outing