Congratulations to the following winners who won these awesome prizes from our Hike it Baby prize sponsors
BlackRapid and
Roadrunner Sports! Just by registering for the HiB30 Challenge they were entered into our prize drawing at the end of each Challenge. It's easy as that and so much fun! See what they had to say about their September Challenge experience!
What prize did you win? What will you do with it once you receive it?
April Stipe Powers hiked with Anna - 2yo and Colin - 6yo and says, "I'm excited to see what it's like and get rid of the less-than-stellar regular strap that I have now!"
Brianna Dannen hiked with Owen 3.5 and Kaiya 1.5.
Heather Osoy hiked with her son, KJ- 16 months old and says, "Now I won't drop my camera on trail anymore, and resort to anymore toddler-carrying squats! Hooray!"
Jessica Vanasse hiked with Hendrik, 7 months and says "Already planning an outdoor outing with photos!"
Lori Maculo hiked with Lydia, 14 months, and says, "I am excited to use it since I have a wonderful camera I often forget to bring with me."
A lucky HiB Member who can't wait to go running after she has her baby!
Tell us how the HiB30 Challenge "challenged" you to get outdoors and get those miles!
April: I loved having the motivation of counting our miles every time we were outdoors! It was fun to see just how far we walk sometimes. Made me super proud of my 6yo too! He really covered some distance!
Brianna: The HiB30 Challenge really inspired us to get out the door this month. In the past we have only hiked on weekends because we both work full time. By the time we get home from work and make dinner it's time for our bed time routine. During the challenge we were inspired to get outside in the evenings even if it was only to walk around the neighborhood or down to the park. This challenge made us see that it is possible, and worth it to get out even if it's only for 30 minutes.
Heather: Getting out wasn't the hard part. My real challenge was finding new ways for my toddler to explore, and exercising patience. I can't use the stroller and carrier for long, before he wants to walk. This month's HIB30 was more for him.
Jessica: This pushed me to work on managing our big dog at the same time as carrying or pushing our little one. It really helped when my husband came along and we discovered the joy of family walks. Another tough thing was timing. Sometimes Hendrik was ready for bed just when I was ready to get outside.
Lori: This was such a different challenge from the June one. In June, Lydia was just learning to walk so she was content in the stroller or being carried. We racked up more than 60 miles in our first challenge! At 14 months (and now running) mileage was a huge challenge for us. I had to reframe my thinking on this one. I decided to do more toddler led hikes and stop worrying about miles. This was not a high mileage month for us; however we got outside everyday, explored new trails and parks, and baby girl walked most of those miles on her own!
Were you surprised at the miles you achieved?
April: Unfortunately, I got really sick in the middle of the month and we didn't get as many miles as I hoped, but the ones we did get were wonderful and benefited us all. :-)
Brianna: I was surprised that we made it to 30 miles. With our 3.5 year old walking most of the time now, and our 1.5 year old wanting to walk too our hikes can be pretty slow going. Toward the end of the challenge we went on a hike with HIB and made it 5.5 miles. We were very surprised we made it that far. Now that we know it can happen we will start pushing for longer hikes again.
Heather: I was! I hit almost 60 miles in 30 days- which is pretty spectacular, considering that most of them were toddler-led.
Jessica: I was surprised at how quickly the miles added up with daily evening walks.
Lori: I am surprised at the number of toddler miles we did. This girl loves to walk!
Did you learn any tips/tricks for getting little ones out from the other participants in the Challenge?
April: Not exactly tips for getting outside (my kiddos LOVE going out and walking!), but I saw a lovely idea about a "flower walk" where you leave flowers for others along your walk as random acts of kindness. I loved it and decided to do the same on 9/11 to brighten our spirits - and hopefully others' as well!
Brianna: 1) FOOD! Our kids love to eat even more than they love to hike, and they know that hiking means snacks. We try to keep it somewhat healthy with apple slices, granola bars, and animal crackers, but M & M's can get you a long ways too.
2) Having other kids around can really keep your kids moving.
3) Don't be afraid to sing or play games (tag, timing them with a stopwatch to get to that next tree, etc).
Heather: "Monkey see, monkey do." We naturally want to participate in what we see others doing- especially little ones, and especially when we're having a fun time!
Lori: Other participants motivated me to just get outside with Lydia. I loved seeing pictures of everyone outside and I've mastered the back carry thanks to HIB!
Thanks again to our awesome prize sponsors for supplying Hike it Baby with amazing prizes to share with our winners! Join in the next HiB30 Challenge for your chance to win!!
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