Category: Kid-Friendly Trips
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...]
One Sweet Stop…
December 15, 2011 by Dana Ticknor · 3 Comments
One of the reasons that we love to fulltime RV is that it gives us the chance to visit all sorts of places that we wouldn’t be able to see if we were just on a 2 week vacation. One of the places that we visited last week, here in northern California, was the Jelly Belly factory. I loved the Jelly Belly factory!!! Not because I love jelly beans, because, to be honest, I don’t much care for them – I’m an organic chocolate kind of girl . But, I am more than happy to buy all sorts of jelly beans for my family, who does love them, because they are made right here, in the US, from start to finish, and I love to support American Made (and I will admit to picking out a few pineapple ones for myself ! When we checked into our last campground, they gave us a flyer that highlighted local area attractions. One of those attractions was the Jelly Belly factory in Fairfield, CA – it’s address, for future GPS reference, is 1 Jelly Belly Lane . ... [Read more...]
Patti’s Saga of an RV Rookie: West Glacier, Montana’s KOA; it’s not Glacier Park, but it’s cool!
September 25, 2011 by Patti F. · 4 Comments
We northwestern Montanans are privileged to claim Glacier National Park as our personal backyard. Read more about Montana campgrounds and things to do in Montana. And the more boorish among us are pretty quick to let the entire world in on that…hence, this blog from your resident Woodall’s boor. A couple of weeks ago the Brazil Nut (a/k/a “my husband”) and I were heading up to Glacier and decided to swing through the KOA just outside the Park .Search for a national park. We stopped on a whim: I mean, how could a KOA compare with anything in Glacier Park? What could a KOA have to offer that the many lovely campsites at Glacier don’t already have? Turns out, plenty…especially if you like a resort atmosphere, enough going on for young and older kids to keep whining at bay, and a good restaurant if you (or your family) are burned out on making dinner after traipsing around all day. We couldn’t stay overnight, but I can share how beautiful and clean everything was, and what... [Read more...]
DO NOT visit Washington D.C…………..
September 14, 2011 by Professor95 · 9 Comments
… Unless you have a week or more to spend touring all of the museums and facilities. Seriously! We drove up to DC last week to meet three of our friends from out-of-town. Fran was from New York, Paul from southern California and Selena recently arrived in the USA from China. None of the three had ever visited our Nation’s Capitol. They were totally blown away by the sights – especially Selena! Cherry Hill Campground Office Entrance Nancy, Oscar and I parked the RV just north of the Capitol at Cherry Hill Park in Maryland. Our friends checked into a nearby motel. The best way for visitors to get into DC is to use the Metro system. DO NOT even think about trying to drive into the city. To board the Metro from Cherry Hill Park all you do is walk up to the bus stop in front of the park office. There you catch a bus for a very short ride to the College Park Metro Train Station on the green line. You should purchase your fare tickets at the campground office... [Read more...]
Consider The Lodge Cast Iron Biscuit Pan!
August 27, 2011 by Melissa A. Trainer · 3 Comments
We have a vast collection of cast iron cookware. We find it priceless for campground cookery. We have multiple Dutch ovens, an array of skillets, basic griddles, and a biscuit pan. I have purchased many of these items at thrift stores and garage sales over the years. Last year, right before we left for our family camping trip to Yellowstone National Park, I found a Lodge cast iron biscuit pan at the thrift store. I think I paid about $3 for it. While we were camping at the Madison Campground in Yellowstone, I spontaneously decided to use the pan for some mini pizzas. I had some Pillsbury biscuit dough that I separated into layers and placed in the greased pan. I then added some tomato sauce and cheese and placed the pan on the grill rack over a moderate campfire. I don’t recall how long they cooked, but I do remember that they were fabulous–smokey with a nicely browned bottom. My children loved them and they were a wonderfully simple snack food to serve around the campfire... [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...]
On the road with kids in tow…
July 27, 2011 by Dana Ticknor · 1 Comment
I LOVE to travel with elementary aged kids – they are so involved, and are great travel companions! Since they are also generally quite opinionated at this age, and making certain decisions for themselves, we will skip the ‘dress’ and ‘food’ ideas , and get straight to the ‘things to do in the car’ ideas! I’m going to steer clear of electronic gadgets (specifically gaming stuff) because either you have them and allow them, or you don’t (we don’t). One of the best things that you can do on any trip, with any children, is to get them involved! For this age, it is a great time to have them be involved starting in the planning stages. Let them help look through state planners, camping idea books/mags, or destination brochures (if you help them, the internet can be a great place to find site specific destination ideas also). The kids will be more invested in the trip if they feel that they have a part... [Read more...]
Patti’s Saga of an RV Rookie: Whitefish, Montana: Come Now!
July 11, 2011 by Patti F. · 2 Comments
Whitefish, Montana. Even Hollywood stars love it, “discovering” it in the early ‘90’s, with most eventually moving on to wilder pastures. Tom Cruise came to our front door at the family’s Whitefish lake house, looking for Emilio Estevez’ place near by. Ask me how thrilled we were and how very cool we acted, like we didn’t know who he was or anything. I was the Queen of Casual. Oh…that grin…I’m sure Tom was equally impressed with us. Whitefish, where Julia Roberts dumped Kiefer Sutherland three days before they were to marry, while Sutherland was building their home-to-be in Whitefish. We sat next to Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgwick more than once at a local Whitefish café. Again, we exhausted ourselves projecting disdainful cool. Tons more famous people called Whitefish their second (or third, for fourth, or fifth) home back then, but I can’t remember the names…oh yea, something about Steve McQueen getting kicked out of town on his motorcycle a long,... [Read more...]
Mountain Monograms
July 6, 2011 by Traveler8343 · 2 Comments
While driving eastward on I-70 through southern Utah, we noticed something interesting. Giant letters. One letter at a time, on one mountain at a time, all along the interstate. Why? Who? What? When? Alien guideposts, left behind by ancient navigators? Could they be easily seen markers for little green tourists to follow: “Turn left at mountain ‘M,’ proceed 1.7 glicks SSE to mountain ‘U,’ bear right for .04 glicks to Wooly Mammoth Intergalactic Amusement Park entrance, follow entrance ramp past visitors’ center. You have arrived at your destination: Starbucks.” Hmmm, maybe… But maybe the monograms were left by Paleolithic frat boys… Actually and, more realistically, we’re getting close. It seems that the giant letters began being constructed in the early 1900s by college and high school students as a way to bring fame to their schools and sidetrack any testosterone-fed interschool rivalries that had led to violence in the past. See the “Deuce of Clubs” website’s... [Read more...]
On the road with a preschooler…
June 29, 2011 by Dana Ticknor · Leave a Comment
I LOVE the preschool stage!!! Kids this age tend to be gung-ho for just about anything! And a road trip is right up their alley (at least it was until they had been in the car for 15 minutes!). There are so many things that preschoolers can do (I’m thinking mainly of ages 2 to 5ish): Clothing: Choose outfits based on comfort. Dressing up the princess in frilly, scratchy finery for the usual ‘tourist’ photos along the way may just backfire if you can’t get anything but a pout out of her because she’s had a long, uncomfortable ride. One thing that my younger kids LOVE to do while we are traveling, is to wear clothing that signifies where we are going (or have been); but, I’m way too cheap to buy them in the overpriced gift stores once we get there (unless they have a great clearance rack!). We let others pay the high prices, their kids wear them once, and then we get a practically new memento for a fraction of the cost with a... [Read more...]
