Parks + Picnics 2025

Are you ready for summer? I love spring, but now that I’ve got the Parks + Picnics tour laid out and organized, I’m looking forward to summer more and more! This has become a fun summer tradition for my family, and my kiddos love going on Parks + Picnics adventures throughout the summer. It’s a big hit, and I look forward to seeing you on the tour!

Join the private facebook group for all stop details (I intentionally do not share a ton of information on the stops themselves publicly).

The Parks + Picnics tour began as a way for me to build community with other rural moms. This will be the third year doing a tour, and I’m so excited to visit a few new places. I hope to introduce new faces to new places, too. The idea is simple (on purpose) – I provide the date, time, and location and you all show up! By taking the guess work and mental energy out of your hands trying to figure out what to do (and when and where?!) this summer, you can simply pack a picnic and show up.

It’s easy, free, and a great way to connect with other moms while the kids connect and burn off some energy and explore a new space.

New for 2025 Parks + Picnics

I’m excited to bring a few of new features to the tour this year! First, it’s important to know that I’ve broken out the tour into four different categories:

Local Wednesdays

This is what we’ve done the past couple of years. These stops are more local (within 1/2 hour driving) and tend to be your typical city park style location. My goal with these stops is to highlight more hidden gems/less traveled/small town parks.

Learning Thursdays

I have two or three Thursdays throughout the summer dedicated to Learning Thursdays. I’m excited to work with my friend, Keisha, who runs Warren County’s Ag in the Classroom, for a couple of stops. I’m also hoping to connect with the Madison County Conservation team to visit their new Conservation building! These dates will have a brief learning experience, plus lots of time for free play, and of course, a picnic!

Day Trip Fridays

There are three Fridays throughout the summer dedicated to Day Trip Fridays. I am SO pumped to check out these three stops with you all! These are stops that take a bit longer to get to (1-2 hours), but will be so fun to explore in the company of other adventurers! These are geared more towards a hiking/stream stomping/nature exploring experience, as opposed to a city playground.

LADIES Parks + Picnics

I am so excited to start a ladies-only tour! This is going to be so fun. One Sunday each month (June, July, August), we’ll have a stop just for us – women, moms, caregivers! We’ll meet on Sundays from 5pm – 7pm. We’ll enjoy hiking/walking at each location (specifically geared toward this), and then we’ll have a grown-up picnic, just for us! This will be a great way to wind down the week (and prepare for a new one) with connection, nature, and food – three of my favorite things!

We’ll see how this format works for everyone this year; I’m looking forward to getting your feedback. I know my family probably won’t be able to get to every single one, but I hope to get to the great majority of them (obviously). Summer gets busy, and I know there are a ton of options out there for family adventures, so I appreciate when you show up for Parks + Picnics stops!

Parks + Picnics Interactive Map

I’ve created an interactive map this year! This is a great way to visually see the different locations we will visit throughout the summer. As you can see, we tour central Iowa, with a heavy presence in Madison and Warren County. I have color-coded the different categories of stops, so you can visually see that, too. Coral: Local Wednesdays, Purple: Learning Thursdays, Green: Day Trip Fridays, and Tangerine: LADIES Parks + Picnics. You can click on each one to learn more.

I hope this is helpful for you! Again, for full details for each stop, you’ll need to join the private facebook group – PARKS + PICNICS.

Oh! If you want help getting organized (in a visually appealing way) for summer, the ordering window for the Big Picture Calendar is now open for Summer 2025! Learn more and order here.

I’ll catch you on the tour! Reach out if you have any questions in the meantime.