Category: RV Home School
How it’s Made – A Guitar is Born
January 27, 2012 by Canadianladybug · 2 Comments
Did you know that in the state of Pennsylvania there is a town called Nazareth? And in this town, you can have the opportunity of visiting…..; C.F. Martin & Co. For over 150 years, The Martin Guitar Company has been producing instruments that are recognized all around the world. These instruments are in the highest quality and their construction is very precise. We had the opportunity to visit the factory back a few years ago and we really enjoyed it. In 2008, we embarked on our first ever trip with our RV and we experience many interesting things. Visiting a guitar factory was one of our highlights in our trip. We had planned the field trip with the kids before arriving in PA because I had purchased the book Watch It Made In The U.S.A. As a visitor on the factory tour, you will be shown how the guitars come to life through the hands of the people working at C.F. Martin & Co. Tours are done regularly between 11am and 2:30pm Monday to Friday. There is... [Read more...]
Death Valley National Park…
January 25, 2012 by Dana Ticknor · 3 Comments
One of the National Parks that has surprised me the most was Death Valley. I expected it to be a vast valley with nothing but barren sand dunes for miles and miles. I didn’t give it much thought, but just figured that it was worthy of it’s National Park status due to the fact that it is deemed the hottest spot in the United States. And to be honest, the only reason that we gave it a day’s worth of our time was because we are on a mission to collect Jr. Ranger badges from every National Park that offers them! view from the Furnace Creek visitor's center Since the park covers 3 million acres of land, there is plenty of park to explore! We drove in through Death Valley Junction from Pahrump. We left with enough fuel to last the day, and that is one tip that I would highly recommend for anyone driving the park – it’s a big park! While there is fuel at Stovepipe Wells, it is about $1.50 more per gallon than if you just fill up before leaving... [Read more...]
Discovering Kazoos
January 6, 2012 by Canadianladybug · 1 Comment
While travelling with the kids, we always try to visit “educational” places like museums and factories where we can tour the place. Our family loves to discover how things are made either via the internet or while visiting places. While being in the area of Niagara Falls, we also crossed the border to visit Buffalo as well as drive to a place called Eden in New York State. In this particular town, you can find the Kazoo Factory, Museum and Gift Shop. As the name suggests you can learn more about the fabrication of Kazoos. To go in the museum and have a tour, you need to go through the gift shop. The visit is worth it as you learn quite a bit about Kazoo. The tour is completely free but it you feel like making you won kazoo – actually putting together parts already prepared for you – you will have to pay a small fee. While you learn more about making Kazoos you discover an item that is still the same after more than 100 years. Kazoos are still made the same... [Read more...]
Clamming on The Oregon Coast with Kids
August 17, 2011 by Melissa A. Trainer · Leave a Comment
Have you taken your children clamming, fishing, or foraging lately? If not, seriously consider it on your next camping trip. It can be delightfully and deliciously rewarding. Ever since our children were little, we have taken them fishing, foraging, and exploring. They still love poking through tide pools at low tide. And, the thrill of catching a wild salmon never seems to subside. Last spring, my husband took our two sons down to the Oregon Coast for spring break. While staying with friends at a beachfront cottage, it occurred to the boys that clams might lurk on the beach below. Indeed, there were lots of clams. Hence, a spontaneous clamming adventure evolved that week. I reaped the rewards when my husband brought home some clam chowder, cooked clam meat, and a baggie full of empty clam shells. I was so excited by their adventure that I wrote an article about it for The Oregonian’s FOODday section. Published in May, it is a comprehensive article that gives links, tips,... [Read more...]
Grant Kohrs Ranch, Deer Lodge, MT…
August 4, 2011 by Dana Ticknor · Leave a Comment
We have found a fun, relaxing National Park, that is much different than any others that we have been to. Fortunately for us, it is located in Deer Lodge, MT, which is a little known town only about an hour from where we currently spend our summers. The National Park is called the Grant-Kohrs Ranch, and is approx. 60 miles from the capital city of Helena. Each summer, the ranch has what they affectionately call ‘Ranch Days’, which is a weekend where the park offers lots of activities in addition to the many ranger programs that they already offer. We were able to go last weekend, and we all enjoyed our visit very much. During Ranch Days, it’s important to pick up a schedule of activities for the weekend as you won’t want to miss any of the special programs, like period music around the campfire, chuck wagon demonstrations, wagon rides, haying demonstrations using a beaverslide, and even an old fashioned cattle drive culminating in branding of the calves. ... [Read more...]
Exit Glacier At Kenai Fjords National Park in Alaska
July 30, 2011 by Melissa A. Trainer · 1 Comment
Exit Glacier If you are lucky enough to find yourself in Alaska this summer, seriously consider visiting Exit Glacier at Kenai Fjords National Park. We hiked to this glacier five years ago when we lived in Anchorage and we were fortunate enough to visit the glacier again early in July of this year. We had taken a day trip from Anchorage to Seward and spontaneously decided to visit the glacier after leaving Seward. Glaciers abound in Alaska. Thankfully this glacier can be easily (and affordably!) enjoyed by taking a short hike. Unlike other glaciers around the state, there’s no need for a boat or a helicopter to view the glacier. You just need some good supportive shoes, a bottle of water, and a little extra energy. On the midweek day that we visited, the park wasn’t terribly busy. The sun was shining and the views were amazing. We took a different trail on this trip and, to be perfectly honest, we were quite shocked to see how far the glacier had receded since we were... [Read more...]
Using Audubon apps in your expeditions
July 25, 2011 by Canadianladybug · Leave a Comment
Audubon Guides – A Field Guide to Birds, Mammals, Wildflowers, and Trees From Green Mountain Digital I am quite impressed with the Audubon apps so far. This particular app contains four apps in one – so you can save a bit of money when you purchase it. I am quite impressed with the quality of the app and the flexibility of using it. Being the type of person who loves to identify the species I encounter in my outdoor activities, I was very curious to explore the apps and see if I could identify something I didn’t know before. The Audubon Guides app will help you identify birds, mammals, wildflowers, and trees. All guides feature professional color photographs, in-depth descriptions of each species, fast and easy navigation, state-of-the-art search functions, real time availability, life lists, sightings and photo albums. Audubon Birds – A Field Guide to the Birds of North America features over 750 species of North American Birds, from Chickadees to Condors... [Read more...]
Goldenrod Kisses
June 27, 2011 by Canadianladybug · Leave a Comment
Ah! The memories… Three years ago, in 2008, I was able to share something from my youth with my own kids. I can’t believe it has been three years already and we are way overdue to go back there for the delicious Salt Water Taffy that the Goldenrod makes in York Beach – Maine. When I was younger, my parents would travel to Maine to camp. We would also go shopping in the outlets around the area. But my favorite place was the Goldenrod. I would watch through the windows them making the taffy with a watering mouth. And when we were driving from Pennsylvania to Prince-Edward Island in 2008, we were able to stop and visit the Goldenrod, and share that experience with our kids. The Goldenrod is a restaurant, homemade ice cream shop and (you guessed) a candy store. It has been located next to Short Sands Beach since 1896. When you go there, you can stand for a long time, observing the candy maker doing the salt water taffy from beginning to the end. Seeing the... [Read more...]
Bird’s Eye View on the American robin.
June 3, 2011 by Canadianladybug · 2 Comments
Have you observed birds lately? Let’s take a bird’s eye view on a popular bird that can be found everywhere in Canada and the US. Robins are well known birds in our city. No matter where you go you will find one on a branch or trying to grab a worm… But what do they look like at the various stages of their life? This year, I was blessed to see some fresh robin’s eggs in a nest on my neighbour ‘s Japanese Lilac. I wish the robins had build their nest in mine, but I am glad I can access it with a small ladder. I saw mama bird building the nest over the past couple of weeks. Last week, she was still at it. Putting mud and other things together. Gently building it. I thought I would wait a few days and go take a peek to see if there were some eggs. *grin* I never saw a robin’s egg before. Seen it in pictures, yes, but seeing it in the outdoors would be simply amazing… So this morning, I took the little ladder out of the furnace room in... [Read more...]
Dinosaurs. Real Close And Nearly Alive In Seattle!
May 15, 2011 by Melissa A. Trainer · 1 Comment
Seattle has many wonderful destinations for children. There are waterfront parks, a wooden boat center, dozens of playgrounds, a fabulous market, and many healthy kid friendly restaurants. If you find yourself traveling through the Emerald City this summer, seriously consider a trip to the city’s Woodland Park Zoo. I visit this zoo often with my youngest son, and we absolutely love strolling through the zoo and exploring all the animals. Some of our favorite spots are the Family Farm and the Raptor Center. Both offer great opportunities for learning because there are usually zoo educators or volunteers in the area who are willing to answer lots of questions and share their knowledge. There is one temporary exhibit right now that looks super cool. It’s the “Dinosaurs. Real Close.” exhibit and it will run through September 5. I haven’t been to the animatronic exhibit of enormous North American species of dinosaurs just yet, but my son and... [Read more...]
