We sure did manage to live it up for these 7ish weeks, though 😉 Here’s a bit of what we got up to after heading back from Down Under.
Camps!
I feel like we really hit our stride with camps this year. Rather than sticking to the same exact one, we switched it up.
Two weeks at the Arvada Center — for four camps total — was just the right amount of time. Even Emmy got to join in on the fun!Horse/riding camp at the Community Farm was a huge hit! The girls loved farm life, were obsessed with all the animals and, according to their instructor, were amazing at riding. The big girls did a week-long bike camp with Pedalheads. Lotte improved on her skills, went on road and trail rides, rode to the park and the library and just generally had an amazing time.And Grace finally learned how to ride! Turns out, with the proper instruction, she picked it up super quick 😉The big girls finished out their camp excursions with some awesome visitors <3 They attended “Muddy Buddies” camp at the Majestic View Nature Center and TKTKTKTKT. Which brings us to ….These cuties <3<3<3<3
Visitors!
We love our summer visitors. This time we were SO LUCKY because we had Grandpa and Mojo, Aunt Stephie and Ro, and our New York friends Carla, Fiona & Jake (who did camp with the girls). We sure do have the best time showing our loves around our Colorado home.
I love when my sister is here <3Steph & Ro & Gpa were here for Lotte’s birthday, which was so. much. fun!On Lotte’s birthday, one of her friends from school was having a birthday party at a local pool that Lotte wanted to go to. That made it super easy on us!Ro & Em got some quality time alone when the girls were in camp. It was predictably adorable.We went to Big Soda Lake one day, which was SO HOT, but also lots of fun!Sister <3We had lunch at the aquarium restaurant the day before Steph & Ro flew out.And walked through the downtown aquarium itself as well!Having a dog in the house — Grandpa’s Mojo — was a lot of fun, too!Besides going to camp together, we showed Fiona & Jake some of our favorite spots. That included, of course, the Butterfly Pavilion.
Miscellaneous
When we weren’t camping it up or entertaining guests, we managed to have a lot of other fun, too.
Grace’s first concert, and Lotte’s second, was BILLY JOEL at Coors Field!! How cool/fun is that?!We had so much fun with these cuties <3We spent a weekend at Auntie Moe’s where we rode the Buckhorn Northern Railroad train and visited that quintessential summer institution … Dairy Queen 😉Dad had a date with Lotte at Meow Wolf!Dad had a date with Grace … at Meow Wolf 😉Mom & Emmy celebrated her last day of camp with a date at McDonald’s 😉We had neighbors over for the sweetest little birthday celebration for Lotte <3We continued our annual tradition of testing books for the Good Housekeeping Kids’ Books Awards. So many great ones this year!I took Emilia to what was likely her last-ever toddler story time. She was pretty over it. That is absolutely the end of an era for me. I CAN’T EVEN!Tie-dying tees was a huge success!Who doesn’t love an outdoor/backyard summer movie night situation?!
And now, we welcome the next season of this year. So far, it’s been a pretty great one, and I have a pretty good feeling about this school year, as well. We still have quite a few fun adventures planned before we say goodbye to 2024, but until then … bis bald, friends.
I mean, I know it wasn’t. I have the memories, photos, and credit card bills to prove it 😉
We headed back to Sydney on Wednesday, but not before leaving Brisbane with a spectacular send-off.
How good is a rooftop pool, though?Love you guys! See you soon!Off to yet another airport! Flight No. 6 of this trip!Look carefully and you’ll see the Harbour Bridge and the Sydney Opera House off to the right.Thursday was so special. We took a short drive out to Cronulla Beach, which was beautiful. But we also went to meet up with …MY BESTIE SINCE SECOND GRADE! If you’ll recall, the last time Mina and I caught up was last August, when she and I and two other old friends met up in Savannah to celebrate our 40th birthdays.Mina’s Mom — who was basically a second Mom to me growing up — was there, too, which was EVEN MORE SPECIAL.I hit the SIL jackpot ….I mean … look at these cuties!We were able to meet up with another couple of old friends — and their kiddos! — on Friday night, and it was such a fun catch-up.Leaving sure will be hard …
I cannot believe it’s come to an end, but I’m so grateful that it all has happened.
We hit the air again on Sunday to head from Hamilton Island over to Brisbane to meet up with some friends and check out Bluey’s hometown. (Had to do it, obviously!) Our last morning on Hamilton was pretty special, though.
We hit up the Hamilton Island Wildlife Cafe for some coffee and koala watching!Chris and I had come here when we at Hamilton Island for our honeymoon, so it was very special to head back with our girls.Far and away my fave Aussie animal. Come on nowwwwww!We headed back to the beach for a bit, but they weren’t allowing snorkeling because of the waves.So we hit up the pool instead!Happiest in the water <3And then we were off again!Thanks for being amazing, Hamilton Island. We will be back!
We arrived late to our Airbnb on Sunday and were pretty exhausted, but not too exhausted to meet up with our crew for dinner!
Chris and Anton have been friends since college, and now our girls are becoming friends. Nothing makes me happier than when our kids become friends with our friends’ kids <3
On Monday we hit the town!
Le Bon Choix Bakery goodies are no joke. OMG how much was this gluten-full goodie worth it!The Wheel of Brisbane was so much fun! If you’ll recall from our Seattle trip, Grace in particular is a huge fan 😉Delight!Loved out little adventure with this group <3We even saw a water dragon when we came off the ferris wheel!The South Bank swimming area was so great for kids! It was too cold for us to get in when we were there, but I loved how they had life guards and the swimming depths were clearly marked. Plus, it was such a beautiful setting!A beautiful setting with birds that want to kill you, obviously. This IS Australia, after all 😉The kids got ice cream, so naturally we couldn’t help but reenact one of our fave Bluey episodes!The adults skipped ice cream in favor of beers.Endless entertainment provided by the pretty Brisbane sign down by the water.Dinner was a delicious cheese board, seafood and sausages on our Airbnb rooftop.Yummo!While these girls played <3And with this view.Album cover.The Queensland Museum was so cool! And most of it was free, which was a super-nice change of pace at this point in our trip 😉Then we caught the (also free) water ferry over to the other side of the river to head to Felons Brewing, which was a very cool spot on the water. They had the coolest playground area for the kiddos to hang out in while the adults did their adulting.The food and drinks were super tasty, too!There are so very many tired faces in this photo, but it was so lovely catching up with some other friends of ours who moved from Denver to Australia. We met up at Julius for dinner, and it was phenomenal food and a fun atmosphere. Just a really fun time all around.
Tomorrow we’re back to Sydney before flying home on Sunday. As our trip starts to come to a close, I’m so forever grateful that we were able to take the time and have this experience. I am also very much looking forward to getting back to my house, my neighborhood, our regular routine.
And I’d be lying if I said I didn’t miss my bed.
But for now … Sydney’s up next. Until then, bis bald, friends!
We hopped the ferry from Airlie Beach around noon on Friday and headed over to Hamilton Island. The last time Chris and I had been was for our honeymoon back in 2013, so we were super excited for this leg of our trip!
We stayed at Chris’ aunt’s and uncle’s place for two nights, which was beyond what we could have imagined. The place was gorgeous. The beach was so much fun. The sunsets were unbelievable. There were wallabies everywhere.
In other words, it was pretty much paradise.
Cranky faces here, but the ferry was a super fun experience!Everyone rides buggies around the island, which is quite the adventure. You can only have four people in a buggie at a time, though, so we did something we’ve never done before on this trip … leave Lotte alone for a couple minutes! She did amazing under the instruction of no food or showers while we were gone. She’s basically ready for college now.Look at this insane view! Lotte said it was one of her best days <3<3<3<3These girls had the BEST time on the beach!WE EVEN SWAM NEXT TO STING RAYS AND SHARKS! How that was okay, I’ll never know.Burying each other in sand was also a ton of fun, naturally.Watching the sunset at One Tree Hill is a must when in Hamilton Island.
We only had one full day in Hamilton, sadly, so we made the most of the beach on Saturday. Chris took the girls out on a paddle board, we went back to snorkel around the area again, we made sand castles, had a beach picnic and just generally relaxed the day away.
For kids who never see the beach, these girlies sure knew how to make the most of the experience.Gathering seashells and burying ourselves in sand were high on the list of fave activities.The girls loved paddle boarding, too!Fun and exhausting, was Chris’ assessment.Thanks for an awesome time, Hammo! We sure hope to be back.
Tomorrow we leave for Brisbane, where we’ll be until Wednesday. Then we head back to Sydney for a couple of days before flying home in exactly one week. This has absolutely been the trip of a lifetime. We’re the luckiest to have been able to go on it.
Hi friends! Welcome to installment four of our Aussie Summer Adventures! (Sydney, Canberra & Melbourne were the first three.)
We woke up 4 a.m. on Tuesday to head to the airport for our 7 a.m. flight to Proserpine, which was about a 20-minute drive to our Airbnb in Airlie Beach.
I do love a good window view.
We couldn’t check into our Airbnb for a couple of hours since we arrived early, so we stopped at Whitsunday Gold Coffee (a haven of delicious food and coffee, fun animals and a huge play area for the kiddos, even if you do have to pay $10/kid to play) and then found an amazing (free) playground by the beach that was literally one minute from where we stayed.
Delicious ice cream with a delightful Macaw as a chatting mate.Playground of our dreams.
We took it slow Wednesday morning, then headed out to explore in the afternoon.
The Airlie Beach Lagoon was such a hit! The depths of the water were so clearly marked and sectioned off that I felt totally safe letting the girls run around … PLUS there were lifeguards!Of course nothing beats the actual beach <3We spent a good few hours here, just exploring, collecting seashells and chatting with other beach-lovers.Such a gorgeous day.Chris was dying to see some crocodiles, but the actual tour would have cost us more than $500 for the five of us, plus it would have taken all day. Instead, we headed over to The (Real) Crocodile Lookout (thank goodness for Google) and did get to spot one!
Thursday was some kind of special. We booked the Northern Exposure Tour with the Ocean Rafting company, and it was AMAZING. The tour met up at 8 a.m., rafted out for about an hour and a half, and included two snorkeling adventures, a small “bush walk” to a gorgeous view, lunch on the beach at Whitehaven and then the ride back.
The crew was spectacular. They made me feel comfortable enough leaving Lotte and Emilia back on the boat for a bit when they got cold (Grace, however, rocked it, and absolutely adored snorkeling!), and they catered wonderfully to all of our dietary needs with lunches that were so super tasty.
This was a day that I know I’ll never forget. Hopefully our girls won’t, either.
Ready for fun!This girl has found her calling. Snorkeled for probably over an hour and saw a sea turtle, a bunch of Nemo fish, tons of other fish and amazing coral. It was a spectacular experience to witness.I cannot say it enough … these girls are up for anything, and I am so in love with their sense of adventure and fun.Such spectacular views.Beach love <3We spent about 40 minutes on the beach, which was meant to include lunch. Of course the girls had no interest in eating when the ocean was calling!Thanks for just an amazing experience, Ocean Rafting crew!
And that was it, friends. On Friday we packed up to ferry it over to Hamilton Island, our FIFTH DESTINATION!
After one final morning with Kate & Tom in Canberra, our little fam loaded up for the hour-long flight from Canberra to Melbourne.
As a side note, the Canberra airport was a dream!
We landed around 3 p.m. on Wednesday and checked into our Airbnb (which had THE MOST spectacular view!), checked out the neighborhood a bit (this is such a great spot!) and grabbed sushi dinner from Sushi Jiro (which was phenomenal). Not a bad way to start the third leg of the trip.
How amazing is this view?? One of the tall buildings in the corner even put on a light show every half hour in the evening. Spectacular!Sushi with a view!There’s street art down every Melbourne alley, and it’s so much fun to spot!I won’t post every photo I took because, as you can imagine, it was quite a few. BUT HOW FUN?!Some of my Mom’s fam met up with us at the Queen Victoria Market, which was a lot of fun. I love this family <3Just look at these cutie kiddos!It just goes to show that distance can’t keep family apart.We had the sweetest first full day in Melbourne!I sure do love my sweet travel buddies <3<3<3Riding the City Circle Loop (the free tourist tram) was a real hoot.Federation Square was a very cool spot for artwork, food, drinks and to check out the Yarra River.
Friend meet-up in Torquay!Torquay was about an hour from downtown Melbourne, and such a fantastic first stop on our trip!Poppa!We saw the most insane competition at Lorne between elite search & rescue teams. It was seriously impressive.And got our toes wet on the beach, of course <3Look at this gorgeous drive!Apollo Bay was cold but so, so beautiful.So. Beautiful.After about four hours of driving, we made it to the 12 Apostles!What a gorgeous view.Two cuties <3<3This was the idyllic view from the deck of our cabin in Port Campbell.The Bay of Martyrs was our first stop on Sunday morning.The London Bridge was also so. cool. Part of it fell several years ago — the part that connected the two rock formations — so it was pretty special to see what’s still up.The Grotto was my favorite, I think. What an insanely cool spot!Gorgeous.Then it was back to the 12 Apostles beach area for a bit more sandy toed fun.
After spending a few more hours on the Great Ocean Road, we headed back to Melbourne, and had dinner with my Mom’s amazing family. I hadn’t seen them in over 10 years, but it was as if I see them every day.
My cutie Italian Melbourne fam <3But how cute are all these kiddos, though?!My grandfather passed away years ago, but what an absolute treasure to spend time with his 94-year-old sister, Rosina.On our last full day the girls wore ALL THE SWAG they got from my wonderful family the day before <3We stopped at the Caldermeade Farm and Cafe on our way to see the fairy penguins at Phillip Island, and it was so much fun! Cute farm animals. A fun playground. Watching an assembly line of cows getting milked. What’s not to love?!Grace and Lotte’s abilities to sit through photos really started to wane about now. Fair enough. These kids have been AMAZING!We made it to the Phillip Island Fairy Penguin Parade! Phillip Island is about two hours from our Airbnb, and totally worth the drive! The penguins make the trek every evening around sunset from the ocean to their resting nests, and it is absolutely one of the best things I’ve seen in my life!You’re not supposed to take photos of the penguins or the march after sunset, but just trust me when I say that it’s incredible and well worth a visit.We <3 penguins!The penguin count for the day!
Grace’ face in that last photo says it all. Melbourne — we’ve done so much! It has been amazing in every possible way. And now we’re onto the tropical part of our trip. Airlie Beach, here we come! Until then … bis bald, my friends!
Welcome back to a recap of our Aussie Adventures! (The first round of fun in Sydney can be found here.) We fly out of Canberra today to head to Melbourne, but Canberra has been an absolute blast! After finally recovering from a round of stomach bug that knocked us all for a loop, we were able to fully and properly celebrate Aunt Kate & Uncle Tom in their home town, and to show the kids a bit of what Canberra has to offer. This is one of the spots they had never been before, so seeing it for the first time through their eyes was so magical.
Here’s a bit of what we got up to!
Our first couple days were stomach-bug rough, so it certainly was nice having THREE grandparents around to help out with the kiddos!Cockington Green Gardens was a nice way to spend a beautiful day outside, and the kids loved running around the tiny building set-ups.Tiny Aussie things.Cousinssssss!!!!We <3 you Poppa!And you, Auntie Sarah!Saturday was WEDDING PARTY DAY! The girls were super pumped to get their hair done.#teambride in full effectThanks for throwing a stellar party, Aunt Kate & Uncle Tom!Grandpa was here, too!My cutie MIL & SIL. I sure got lucky <3Can’t remember the last time Chris & I dressed up for a night out on the town. Love ya, hubs!Never not smiling when we’re with Nan & Poppa 😉A trip to the Australian War Memorial was both beautiful and sobering. Remembering those who gave their lives …The Questacon science center was so cool! Everything was so hands-on and the girls had the best time!We spent the better half of four hours here on a rainy Tuesday. So good.Adults had fun, too.We’re wiped, Canberra, but thanks for being a pure blast!
And now we’re off to Melbourne to visit my own Aussie family. I am so excited for the girls to finally meet my Mom’s family and to see that side of Australia. Until then … BIS BALD, FRIENDS!
Happy June, friends, and welcome to the first installment of our Aussie June!
We arrived in Sydney early on Sunday morning and have spent the past couple days showing my stepdad around. We drove to Canberra yesterday for my sister-in-law’s wedding party, and although a gnarly stomach bug has taken pretty much every single one of our gang down over the past few days, we’re hoping to be on the other side of it finally.
Here’s a bit of what we’ve been up to in Sydney so far!
No one does an Aussie airport arrival quite like the Connors <3We waited months for this moment!The treats started flowing immediately.Fam-bam party [with a super-special “for Chris” hand gesture … it’s an inside joke, don’t ask ;)]It was chilly and windy at Bald Hill Lookout, but so, so beautiful!These cuties are having the best time … minus the vomiting :/We are very intrigued by the Cockatoos.Cutie cousins taking a lil’ beach walk.<3 x 5!The Simbio Wildlife Park was the perfect way for us to say hey to some Aussie animals.Smiles all around!Koalas!Kangaroos!Feeding the kangaroos is always an absolute highlight of any Aussie trip <3On Tuesday, Lotte, Cath, Robert and I headed to the Vivid Sydney light show at the Opera House, Harbour Bridge and downtown area. It was so gorgeous!Dinner and drinks at the Opera Bar!Pretty hard to beat that view <3We’ve got a lot to cheers to.So gorgeous!Thanks for the fantastic time, Sydney
And now we’re in Canberra ready to celebrate Auntie Kate & Uncle Tom. Until the next entry … bis bald, friends!
Chris took the big girls on a trip to New York back in April to visit one of his bucket list places … LEGOLAND! Here’s what he had to say about their adventures.
When Dad is a huge LEGO nerd, and you have family that only lives 15 minutes from the new LEGOLAND in New York, you make a special trip to “take your kids” to LEGOLAND! This is how it went down:
While we were visiting for Grandpa’s surprise 60th last year, it dawned on me that I had never taken my oldest ladies (Lotte and Grace) on a trip by themselves. They are six and seven now, so traveling is A LOT easier with both of them … and I had always wanted an excuse to visit the new LEGOLAND theme park. So I put two and two together, and we found a Friday that Lotte and Grace didn’t have school, and booked the trip!
As we were planning our adventure, our team of three LEGOLAND enthusiasts snowballed into a crew of 13 covering three generations, including grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins and best friends. When visiting a theme park, the more, the merrier! We had such a blast with everyone.
The girls got a little treat by getting out of school early the Thursday before and we took an afternoon flight to New York. To say it was fun traveling with my two adventurers was an understatement. It also felt like a wonderful parenting transition — away from the stressful, exhausting travel with young kids into a new type of travel that felt so much more free and easy. It was truly one of those moments like losing a first tooth or seeing your kid ride a bike for the first time. I highly encourage it. I felt closer and more connected with both of them after we got home.
We landed around 9:30 pm ET, but were able to get into our rental car by 10:15 and got to my sister and brother-in-law’s just before midnight. The girls slept in the car and fortunately settled right back down to get a decent night’s sleep.
We intentionally picked a Friday early in the season for both better weather and lesser crowds. The weather was spectacular — 55 F and sunny — a perfect day to spend outside. The crowds were really light as well. Getting there right as it opened at 10 a.m. helped. We waited maybe a combined 30 minutes for all of the rides we went on. I am glad we chose the day we did to check it out.
The park itself is a blast! It is certainly geared towards younger LEGO fans, but I (a 40-year-old man-child) had just as much fun, both watching them experience it and also getting to experience it myself. Grace’s highlight was the Dragon Rollercoaster, and Lotte loved the pirate ship. My personal favorite was the Mini-land, which had realistic recreations of so many beloved U.S. landmarks. The detail and interactivity were incredible. New York and the singing Mt Rushmore really stood out.
It isn’t a huge park, and you can certainly cover it all in a single day. But there are a lot of stairs and hills, so the energy was starting to lag after lunchtime. We made one more loop on the rollercoaster, built custom mini-figures, and called it a day around 3:30 pm.
After some pizza and playing with their cousins, our ladies crashed for the evening. We then went to watch our cousin play soccer on Saturday and headed back to LGA for an early evening flight home. LGA is so fantastic now that it has been updated. The girls even wanted to get there early to play at the playground and see the fountain.
We got home around 9:30 pm on Saturday with two busted-but-happy little ladies. It was a short but very sweet trip and something I will certainly repeat in the future.
Who loved LEGOLAND more? Hard to say 😉What’s not to love about water features?!Kid-sized LEGO figures throughout the park were a real treat.So were the LEGO bumper cars!Empire State Building LEGO!This is by far Mom’s favorite picture from the trip. Grace’s face is priceless.I am so glad that some of our Manhattan besties got to join us!Happy and headed home …
I’m going to just put this out there … moving to the neighborhood that we currently live in changed our lives.
I was unhappy when we first moved to Denver. I expected it to be exactly like Manhattan. I missed my friends and family back in New York. I didn’t work in an office, have colleagues to chat with or feel particularly like joining any clubs or activities. I was lonely and depressed, and I didn’t know how — at the ripe old age of 32 — I would ever make friends again.
Wah wahhhhh!
Cut to the next year, when Chris & I bought our first house in a Denver suburb. We lived on a small street in a house that we loved, and we quickly made friends with our neighbors across the way. It wasn’t until our move into our second and current home, though, that we found our tribe.
I’m talking about those people you can text to ask, “please pick my kids up at the bus stop, I can’t make it!” or “please come to my house because my daughter got a pea stuck in her nose and I can’t get it out!” or “could you please come stay with my child while I bring my other child to the emergency room?” The women in the above photo — my neighbors — have sent all of those texts/calls to each other and then some. They have become my very good friends, my in-a-pinch-sitters … my backup family.
In other words, I adore them.
So when our one neighbor — whose husband works for the luxury travel company Inspirato — suggested that we book one of their properties for a girlfriends’ getaway, we were all too happy to jump at the chance. We picked a gorgeous place in Breckenridge (with a hot tub, obviously), and spent Friday through Monday of this past weekend having just the best time. I had one of the best meals of my life at the Blue River Bistro (so delicious, and so gluten-free friendly!), we never stopped chatting, went shopping, had margaritas at Rita’s and checked out the Breckenridge Troll.
You don’t usually know how your neighbors will be when you move into a new home, and it’s always a gamble.
I had spent months planning for this trip. I researched the best, kid-friendly Airbnb’s close to all the best markets. I made sure our rental car would be big enough for our group and rugged enough for potential wintery terrain. I compiled every possible detail into a Google document that I shared with family so they would always know where we were on a given day (and, let’s be honest, could provide information to the cops if we were kidnapped).
When it came to research and preparedness, I left no stone unturned. Yet, for a good month leading up to our trip, my anxiety was getting the best of me. I’d sit up at night paralyzed by the “what ifs.” Strep was swirling around my girls’ school in the weeks before we flew out. My youngest daughter has food allergies. We didn’t speak any of the languages in the countries we would be visiting. Our itinerary included a lot of driving, and all three of our girls have been known to suffer from car sickness. The holiday markets would be crowded, and let’s just say a fear of crowds is common these days.
Holiday stress — whether it’s centered around illness or something else — is common. According to a poll from Ohio State University’s Wexner Medical Center and College of Medicine, 53% of Americans were stressed from increased cases of flu, COVID and other respiratory illnesses heading into the 2023 holiday season, while another 44% were stressed from memories of holiday travel meltdowns from the year before.
“Many parents experience travel anxiety, and it’s completely normal,” said Dr. Ari Aal, a psychiatrist with Delos Psychiatry in Boulder, CO. “The mix of excitement, detailed planning, and the inherently unpredictable aspects of traveling with kids often leads to stress. This is especially true during holiday seasons, when there’s extra pressure to make everything perfect for the family.”
As you all know by now, our Grand European Holiday Adventure went off without a hitch. Still, it sure would have been nice to enjoy it with less emotional baggage. To that end, I tapped Dr. Aal for some tips that might help alleviate that anxiety for our next big adventure.
Learn some mindfulness techniques
It’s beneficial for parents to practice mindfulness with their children, says Dr. Aal. “Simple activities like breathing exercises or guided visualizations can be really effective in calming nerves for both adults and kids.” The Headspace and Calm apps offer great guided ones for beginners.
Practice smart use of technology
Embrace apps that make travel fun and interactive, like those that turn travel into a game or provide engaging itineraries. “This keeps the kids occupied and can help parents stay organized,” said Dr. Aal. Something like Roadtrip Bingo — a scavenger hunt for road trips — would have been great on our recent driving heavy trip, for example.
Establish a travel ritual
Creating a family tradition — like hunting down a souvenir in each spot you visit to put in a special place when you get home — can transform the journey into something enjoyable and less daunting. Plus, it becomes a comforting, familiar activity that everyone in the family can look forward to, said Dr. Aal. It can also provide a great distraction during times of stress while traveling.
Learn to love a checklist
Using checklists for everything from what needs to be packed to what needs to happen the day of travel helps get rid of the feeling that you may be missing something, says Dr. Aal. “In his book “The Checklist Manifesto,” Atul Gawande explores how the use of checklists has decreased errors in diverse tasks from surgery to engineering,” he said. “Most importantly, it lowers anxiety during the travel experience.”
Set boundaries
Even on a long trip, remember that you can’t do every activity that is available to you … you also need time to relax and recharge. “Set clear boundaries on how much you will commit to on the trip and how much downtime you need,” says Dr. Aal. “When you are clear with everyone on what your limits are, there is less of a chance that they will be crossed.”
Now, as our next trip gets ready to unfold — a big ole’ adventure Down Under — I’ll be keeping those expert tips in mind. (And, perhaps, making room in our travel planning this year for a less stressful staycation in the near future, as well.)
Happy Monday, loves! Our little family just got back from a quick press trip to Steamboat Springs. While I can’t share all the details of the trip until the story comes out, what I can say is that we love Steamboat. We hadn’t been in years, and never with our own kids who could ski, so this was a real delight. Here’s a bit of what we got up to …
Drinks by the mountain just taste better.I highly recommend visiting after spring break, when the town is nice and quiet but still oh-so-cute!This snow-covered ice rink was a big hit!Joy <3More joy <3It snowed such beautiful snow while we were there!We will be back, Steamboat .. thanks for being so fun!
After our Grand Canyon adventures, we loaded up to head to another new National Park for our list: Bryce Canyon. Grandpa had been here before, but Chris and I hadn’t, so we were really excited to be hitting up this park on our ride back home. We were surprised how much snow was on the ground when we arrived, but luckily it was just enough to slightly cover the hoodoos (the amazing rock formations you’ll find in Bryce Canyon), but not to cover them completely.
Before we arrived in Bryce, though, we stopped off at Horseshoe Bend, which was only about two miles total to walk there and back, and was totally worth the stop.
Look at that beauty!Hello, Horseshoe!Just the cutest little adventurers! Also, Chris found these shoes for Emilia in a secondhand store in Moab and, to be honest, they were one of many MVPs of the trip 😉
Horseshoe bend was about 2.5 hours from our hotel in Williams, Arizona, and we had another 2.5 hours to go before we arrived in Bryce. It had taken us longer to get out of the hotel that morning than we originally planned, and the stop took longer, too, so we decided to rearrange our planned hikes. This turned out to be necessary anyway when we arrived and saw how much snow was on the ground!
Our original hike in Bryce — the Navajo Loop and Queen’s Garden — was going to take about 1.5 hours to complete, so we figured we would get to it the following morning. Of course, that was before we did the Sunset Point to Sunrise Point walk and came upon the (very muddy, very steep) entrance for the Navajo Loop. We quickly realized that wouldn’t be happening for us, particularly with the three littles and the muddy/icy conditions. What we ended up doing was great, but I do hope to get back to do the Navajo Loop at some point, since it seems beautiful.
For our tired, hungry group of travelers, though, the (mostly chill, not too steep, but yes still muddy) Sunset to Sunrise Point walk was just perfect.
Don’t mind if we do!The first time you see the hoodoos it takes your breath away.Insane.Did I take 1,000 photos of them? You know I did.
After our walk, a check of the general store and dinner, we were about ready to crash. It was the perfect dip of our toes into this gorgeous National Park.
When we realized the Navajo Loop wouldn’t work for us, we stopped into the visitor center Thursday and asked a ranger for a suggestion. Turns out, the Southern Scenic Drive was perfect. It would take us to Rainbow Point (the highest point in the park) and past the Natural Bridge.
Rainbow Point sits at 9,100 feet. So yes, it’s high … but not so high for these Colorado mountain lovers!These signs cracked me up. As if I wasn’t anxious enough already, thank you very much!The Natural Bridge was SO BEAUTIFUL.
And that drive took us through to the end of our Bryce Canyon adventure. We headed back to Grand Junction, Colorado that day, but not before stopping at our fourth (if you don’t count Monument Valley, which is technically a Navajo Tribal Park) and final National Park.
Considering that I had never heard of Capitol Reef, I wasn’t sure what to expect. But holy crap was this park gorgeous! It wasn’t small, either — it took us quite a while to drive from end to end. The hike we attempted — the Hickman Bridge Trail — would have been gorgeous had we finished it, I’m sure, but it was pretty steep and rocky, and a storm was setting in. Plus, we were just ding dang exhausted after nearly a full week of travel! Still, we were able to get out of the car and stretch our legs a bit, which was all we really needed.
Just keep hiking. Just keep hiking 😉Such a trooper <3
And then, just like that … we were back in Colorado!
One brief stay in Grand Junction and lunch in Frisco later, and we were … home!
Phew! Thanks for coming along that journey. It was a great trip from start to finish, thanks largely to awesome planning (the writer takes a bow), amazing weather and the best company a gal could ask for.
Until next time … BIS BALD, FRIENDS! And happy spring!
We spent the morning exploring the grounds a bit more, having breakfast back at the restaurant and, naturally, buying 10,000 gorgeous Navajo momentos.
Hope Gpa didn’t think this was a REAL vacation!What a view!Thanks for the mems, Monument Valley <3
Afterwards we loaded our trusty Heidi the Highlander back up again and hit the road. This time we made sure to stop at the Arizona sign.
Hey there, Arizona!
The ride from Monument Valley to our hotel near the Grand Canyon was a little over three hours, so we broke it up with two stops.
The Navajo National Monument was a short and beautiful walk to a beautiful, historical spot.Not gonna lie, we were a bit skeptical of these dinosaur tracks at first, but everything we’ve read about them seems to be legit!Besides being insanely cool, it gave the girls a chance to run around and get their wiggles out 😉
After a few hours and a few adventures, we finally made it to our hotel!
Woop, woop … a new hotel awaits!
Here are some of the details of our stay.
Monday & Tuesday
Where we stayed: Grand Canyon Railway and Hotel Where we ate: We opted for the buffet restaurant at the hotel for two dinners and two breakfasts while we were there. That, and the train ride from the hotel to the Grand Canyon, could all be purchased for a 10% discount if you bought them together with your rooms. Where we hiked: The South Rim Trail
After resting up a bit on Monday night, we were ready to hit the train on Tuesday! The train ride includes a very cute “shoot-out showdown” before you board, and the ride itself is about 2.5 hours. There’s a cafe car and entertainers and tour guides onboard to answer all your questions. It was honestly the absolute best way to do the Canyon with three littles and for our first time. We barely had to figure anything out for ourselves (they even took care of our park entrance tickets!), and we got to relax and take in the scenery. If we ever make it back we’ll probably stay in the park, but for this adventure, this option was magic.
I’d like to take an additional second here to thank … THE WEATHER! We’ve gone places for our kids’ “spring break” before, and it’s been less-than-springlike. This time was so wonderful. Besides one random snow squall while we were driving, we had such delightful weather. Breezy and cool, with sun and … NO CROWDS. I don’t know how. I don’t know why. But the National Park Gods shined down on us this trip, and we were HERE FOR IT.Absolutely insane.Incredibly gorgeous.Not to be believed.Emilia, you won’t remember this. But hopefully these photos will help <3Thank you, train, for being amazing <3
Having two nights in one spot was much-appreciated by this point in the trip, so we were all too happy to head back to the hotel after our train ride, straight back to the buffet, to the swimming pool for a bit and then to bed. The next day was on to Bryce Canyon. Until then … bis bald, friends!
Happy Friday, friends! Welcome back to the Grand Canyon Road Trip Heard Round the World, and our Day 2 Adventures. On Sunday we were already in Moab, so we hit up Arches National Park (National Park No. 1 of this trip!), then drove to Monument Valley, which is a Navajo National Park.
Along the way we also hit up the Mexican Hat and had some fun at Forrest Gump Point, the point in the movie where Forrest is running, running, running and then, suddenly, decides to stop.
Here we go!
Sunday
Where we stayed: A premium cabin at The View Hotel Where we ate: The gorgeous (with mediocre food) restaurant at The View Hotel Where we hiked: Arches! Plus we did the 17-mile Monument Valley Scenic Loop
Rock scrambles and terrifying cliff drops got nothing on these girls! (Despite Emilia’s face looking otherwise!)
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again … my girls continue to shock and aww me. The Delicate Arch trail in Arches National Park is a “moderate,” 3.2-mile out and back trail that covers scrambling rock and terrifying cliffs. When I say that these girls rocked it, I very and truly mean it. I remember my first time doing this hike, and how difficult it was for me to complete, and I’m just so impressed with the way these girls handled it like pros.
Rock album cover.Totally worth the hike. I mean …We even dragged out kids out even further on the hike, so that we could take this precarious photo under the arch. I told Chris later that I had visions of never seeing them again the whole time we walked over … but when in Rome????Cute hat twins <3Another pair of cuties.
So, so proud of these loves. (You too, Grandpa!)
After our hike it was back into the car and on over to Arizona (new state No. 2 for the girls!) and Monument Valley. On the way we saw a few other cool things.
Mexican Hat!The Forrest Gump Point! You just KNOW Chris had fun with this one 😉
Then it was on to Monument Valley. I’m not going to lie — I didn’t know quite what to expect here. But man oh man was I blown away. This is such an insanely gorgeous spot in the world, and staying in the cabins overlooking the monuments themselves was an amazing experience.
The 17-mile loop is driven, so that makes it easy to check out all the gorgeous spots. A lot of the reviews say it doesn’t matter what type of car you have, but I would beg to differ. An all-wheel drive that’s not directly on the ground is, I would say, optimal. She bumpy!Couldn’t have asked for a cuter crew <3I would allow for about two hours to drive the loop, depending on how often you want to stop and get out.This was the view from the porch on our cabin. Absolute perfection.
That was Sunday in a nutshell, fam! The night included an incredible sunset and star-gazing. More cabin pics to come in the next post. Until then … bis bald, friends!
Hello friends — happy Thursday! Here I am, blogging from the road of our epic Spring Break Road Trip from our home in Arvada, CO to the Grand Canyon and then back. I can’t even remember the last time I’ve blogged from the road. Maybe … never??
All told we spent approximately 23 hours in the car and drove approximately 1,420 miles. We stayed in 6 hotels, visited 4 National Parks and 4 other places of interest. I am so proud of how these girls handled this trip. They were rockstars on our (pretty difficult!) hikes, and they handled the car rides like a pro. We planned the trip so that we were never in the car for longer than 4.5 hours a day, and on those days we planned decent stops halfway through. Our legs included:
Friday: Driving from Arvada to Glenwood Springs, CO Saturday: Driving from Glenwood Springs, CO to Moab, Utah Sunday: Driving from Moab, Utah to Monument Valley, Utah Monday: Driving from Monument Valley, Utah to Williams, Arizona/the Grand Canyon (we stayed here for two nights) Tuesday: Visiting the Grand Canyon! Wednesday: Driving from Williams to Bryce Canyon, Utah Thursday: Driving from Bryce Canyon, Utah to Grand Junction, CO Friday: Driving from Grand Junction home!
It was a trek, to be sure … but I wouldn’t have done one single thing differently. Here’s what we got up to on Saturday!
Entering Utah, a new state for the girls to scratch off their maps when we get home!The Corona Arch Trail was so much fun, but definitely not for the faint of heart!
The drive from Glenwood Springs to Moab was about three hours, and we headed straight to lunch at The Trailhead Public House and Eatery when we arrived. This cutie restaurant is right in the center of town and super close to a bunch of hikes. Plus the food was really good. I would highly recommend it if you’re in the area!
From lunch we headed straight to our first hike of the trip — Corona Arch! This trail is about 2.3 miles out and back, and definitely includes some rock scrambling and pretty steep climbing. The girls did so amazing, though, and had the best time! You don’t have to hike the full trail to get a view of the arch, either, so it’s definitely worth it even if you can’t do the full trail.
These cuties came ready to hike!Emilia spent the majority of this trip on Dad’s shoulders, which was A-Ok in Mom’s book 😉The two big girls ended up climbing a very treacherous rope with Dad to make it a little bit farther up the trail. I was simultaneously terrified and incredibly proud.Corona Arch … worth the hike!Moab, you are a pure delight <3
That was our first day in a nutshell, friends! Sunday was Arches National Park in the morning and then onto Monument Valley. Until then … bis bald, friends!
Happy Friday, friends! I’m way late to this post because honestly … life. Phew.
But I’m here now to share a bit about our fabulous Fort Collins staycation from last weekend. While Chris was off snowboarding for a couple days with a friend at Copper and A-Basin, the girls and I used it as an excuse to catch up with my best friend from high school — Auntie Moe. We hadn’t seen her since Thanksgiving (!), and hadn’t been to her place in even longer, so a girls’ weekend was way overdue.
We love our Auntie Moe so much, and she planned the sweetest time for us all, including birthday and Christmas presents (no visit with Auntie Moe is ever complete without presents. She spoils us.), a trip to the very cool Twin Silo Park, dinner at Totally 80’s Pizza, ice cream sundaes and a Trolls movie viewing, then a pancake breakfast before we headed home Sunday morning.
If you must pull single-parent duty for a weekend, recruit a bestie to do it with you, I say 😉
Emilia spent pretty much the entire time at the playground right here, being pushed by Auntie Moe <3I’m not going to lie, this playground intimidated me at first. There are lots of things for kids to do that require them being out of your eyesight. The girls had THE BEST time, though, and once we were there for a while and I realized they could handle it, I came to enjoy it as much as they did <3 I mean, look at that joy!Such intrepid explorers!Lotte has been working on her monkey bars, and it’s really paying off!We love ya lots, Auntie Moe. Sure are lucky to have you in our lives.Next up was Totally 80’s Pizza, which was such a trip! There was SO MUCH 80’s memorabilia and they played 80’s music and hi, I could live here!Moe’s sister, sister’s partner and nephew all met us for dinner. It’s always so much fun to see this crew and watch the kids hang and bond.I meannnnn … does it get any cuter?!Any time ice cream is involved, we’re on-board.
We’re sure glad Chris had fun on his snowboard trip …
But we’re also super glad we got to use it as an excuse for a ladies’ weekend full o’ fun.
Bis bald, friends! Next up … our Great Grand Canyon Spring Break Road Trip, taking place the week after next! See ya soon!
Happy Tuesday, friends! Lotte, Grace & I got back last night from a long-weekend whisk away to New York, where we surprised my niece, Rosalie, for her 5th birthday. This trip was full of Mom/Big Daughter bonding, cousin cuddles, family fun and lots more. The girls had the sweetest time together trashing houses, playing with puppies, and just generally eating way too much sugar and staying up way too late. Birthday treats galore! Movie nights galore!
What’s not to love about that 😉
We’re backkkkkk! G had an ear infection earlier in the week last week, so I wasn’t sure this trip would happen. I’m glad we ended up decided to go, though. It was pure delight, as per usual <3Grandpa picked us up at the airport and we stayed with him for the first night. The bond between this man and my girls makes me very happy.Our surprise visit was a hit! Rosalie had no idea we were coming, and she was so excited to see her cousins. Lotte & Grace loved being the objects of a big surprise, too. It was off-the-charts adorable.Cousins <3<3<3On Friday night the girls went to a movie/pizza/dance party night at Rosalie’s preschool. They wore pjs and watched Trolls and had a great time!Meanwhile, Steph & I got to have some one-on-one sister time while they were preoccupied. It was a win-win.The twins are getting so incredibly big! They were both working real hard on their first steps while we were there.On Saturday we headed out to The Castle Fun Center, which was a HUGE flashback to my youth!These cuties had a blast!Grandpa came, too, and Steph & I got to hang with him for a bit while Uncle Bri mucked around with the big kids.Angel baby.Angel baby No. 2.These two are SO ALIKE. Sometimes … that causes problems. Hah. But mostly, they’re so super cute together I just can’t stand it.Aunt Stephie, we love you so.Grandpa pile on!I cannot believe Rosalie is five! Kindergarten, here we come!We spent the last day building forts, having movie nights, snuggles and playing tag.Cat snuggles were included, as well.We REALLY hate saying goodbye :/ But you know we’ll be back soon.
And that was our trip in a nutshell! Next up: Spring Break Road Trip to the Grand Canyon! I am so excited. Until then … bis bald, friends!
Happy Monday, friends! This past Sunday was the final ski lesson of the season for all three girls. So we decided to stay up in the mountains and make a weekend out of it, like we did for their first lesson. Since we would be leaving right after their lesson on Sunday, it made sense to stay closer to A-Basin, rather than halfway between our house and the mountain like we did before.
We picked this Airbnb in Dillon. Although it’s less than 20 minutes to get to the mountain from the Airbnb in normal traffic, a big storm blew in on Saturday (we were staying for the weekend, so of course it did), and the mountain traffic was heavy. It ended up taking us about 45 minutes to get there on Sunday. Still, we were so grateful we didn’t have to drive all the way from Arvada, which would have been a nightmare. Mountain traffic. It’s a thing 😉
The Airbnb was the perfect size for us, and we had outdoor access to a little backyard that the girls played in for a bit while we finished packing up to leave on Sunday.
You sure are gorgeous, mountains!This snowman was there when we arrived. The girls had a lot of fun “fixing” him up.Look, I’m not going to lie. It’s not always fun and games when we go away with the girls. There is always a lot of bickering, a certain level of who will sleep with whom, who’s waking up in the middle of the night (Emilia) and requiring one of us to sleep with them, etc., etc. BUT, at the end of the day, we will always come out the other side with only the fondest of memories. Everything else tends to … fade away 😉
On Saturday a fairly hectic snowstorm blew in, but we knew if we didn’t get out of the house we would all go crazy. Chris had been snow tubing with visiting family at Frisco Adventure Park a few years prior, and he knew the girls would love it. The short 20-minute (less when it wasn’t storming out!) drive away was also appealing.
I’ll be honest — I had my doubts! It was freezing and windy and I didn’t know how long the girls would last. And at $32/hour/person, I didn’t want to waste that kind of money on one run.
My girls, as usual, surprised me. And although yes, there was some complaining about the wind/cold (who could blame them?!), they did great. Even Emilia! All three of them loved it. Lotte even went by herself once, because apparently I have a daredevil on my hands.
Ready to tube!Dad did a lot of heavy lifting on this particular adventure 😉 Getting to the runway to head up the tubing hill was only a short walk, but doing that short walk through inches of snow with teeny, tiny legs proved burdensome for some. Emilia was so confused, but she had the best time!Thanks for a fun time, Frisco! We’ll definitely be back … perhaps when the weather is a bit more balmy 😉
The thing that I love about the mountains is that you go hard on all these activities — skiing, snowboarding, tubing, what have you — and then you crash hard. We all ended up taking naps at the same time after we had lunch when we got home. I mean … AMAZING. That never happens.
Sunday was the girls’ last ski lesson of the season, and Chris and I hung back and had a leisurely, boozy (for me, the non-driver, at least) breakfast at the restaurant. It was so wonderful. Even if the girls learned nothing in their lessons — which they did! — having that non-kid time for four Sundays in a row would have been worth the price tag alone 😉
By Sunday the snow had stopped and the temps warmed up, making for a seriously gorgeous drive!The cutest little skiers! Em did more snow-eating than actual skiing, but that’s okay! She got used to having skis on and she’ll be even more prepared next go-round. Grace did amazing and is ready to move on up to hill riding, too!This one, though … holy moly! She’s riding lifts by herself, flinging herself expertly down blues. She really came a long way this season. Even her instructor said it seems to have all clicked <3So, so proud of her!Meanwhile, back at the lodge … 😉Thanks for an amazing time, A-basin! We’ll be back!
That was our mountain weekend in a nutshell, friends! Now that the girls are finished with their lessons, we can go up to the mountains and ride with them whenever we want, which will be so. much. fun! Hope you guys are making the most of the season, whatever weather that brings you 😉
Heading into downtown Denver for the show brought me right back to my days attending events as a junior editor at different magazines in New York. Ah, to be young again.
Happy Monday, friends! When I got an email the other day about the upcoming Denver Travel & Adventure Show, I knew I would be attending. I hadn’t been to an Expo like this in years, and I was looking forward to the excitement of being around hundreds of other people who share the same interests.
I skipped most of the booths (not my thing), but did take in three talks. They were:
Pushing the Envelope: The Secrets of Becoming – A Road Warrior, given by Peter Greenberg
The Ultimate Guide for Better Travel in 2024, given by Angel Castellanos
With my trusty computer at my fingertips ( I really was reliving my older reporting days!), I gathered a couple of tips from each talk that I’ll share here. Hopefully they’ll help you when planning your next getaway.
Some good roadtrip resources include: AAA (for all your basics, included printed maps … remember those!?); Roadside America (for odd tourist attractions along your route); Atlas Obscura (more hidden wonders to hit!); Historical Marker Project (if that’s your kind of thing); Roadtrippers (you’ll need a membership for this one, but it helps you plan our your entire trip); tollguru and tollsmart (to avoid ’em and plan for ’em); gasbuddy (cheap gas!)
When it comes to travel insurance, never buy it without reading the fine print, and without checking what coverage you have with your credit card, first. Third party options — like travel insurance companies — often offer more full coverage options than what you would get from the airline or hotel itself. If you travel often enough, you might also consider researching a yearly option that you pay an annual fee for, but that covers you in any instance. For example, Greenberg mentioned being on the lookout for “medical evacuation and repatriation insurance.” It’s not fun to think about, but this covers you in the case that you get sick or injured overseas and need to be stabilized at the original location and then flown somewhere else. In that case, you’d be allowed to pick the hospital and doctor of your choice.
If you’re planning on a day trip from one location to another (like when my sister and I took the train from Rome to Florence for a day, for example, or when we drove from Germany to France for a day on our recent European adventure), be sure that the place you’re visiting doesn’t charge a fee to enter for the day if you don’t have a hotel reservation to stay overnight. Apparently some places — like Venice — are doing this now in an attempt to cut back on over-tourism.
Quite a few countries have signed on to the Working Holiday Visa program, which allows Americans to travel for up to a year, in some cases, and work while visiting a country. Age and other stipulations apply, so be sure to check with the specific country you’re interested in visiting.
E-gates! These electronic gates are automated passport control systems that use biometric technology to authenticate traveler information. Find out if the country you’re visiting has these, because it can save you from standing in long lines in customs when you arrive.
CLEAR also uses biometric data that allows you to get to the front of TSA or pre-check.
Make sure you visit the specific websites for places that you’re visiting. This obviously helps with hours and closures and ticketing, but it’ll also provide a list of thing you can and can’t bring in. (No backpacks are allowed in Mets Stadium, for example, and the Vatican has limited tickets for 2024, and strict clothing policies.)
Be sure to use a VPN to mask your online identity when using public Wi-Fi. I had my data stolen at YMCA of the Rockies and it was not fun.
Some helpful travel apps include: Tripit (for help organizing); MyTSA (for all the TSA information you could possibly want); FlightAware (for up-to-date flight status); App in the Air (for help planning, booking and tracking travel); Mobile Passport Control (submit travel documentation ahead of time through the app to skip the line and reduce passport inspection time)
Always check for sightseeing passes in the places you’re visiting. Ask your Airbnb owner (the owner of our Airbnb in Switzerland hooked us up with a BaselCard, which got us free local transportation and a discount at museums), the hotel concierge, or hire a guide. One of my favorite Peloton instructor’s swears by this travel company, which helps you plan trips based off recommendations of local guides. Airbnb has a similar option for suggestions locals.
If you must check a bag, throw an Apple Air Tag in there so you’ll be able to track it in real time if it gets lost. (I also used Apple Air Tags to track my own children when were in Disney. They’re great for peace of mind in crowded places.)
Eagle Creek luggage offers at “no matter what” luggage warranty. Just sayin’ ….
And that’s it, friends! I had fun boppin’ around at the Expo, so I’ll definitely be on the lookout for similar opportunities in the future. Until then … bis bald, friends!
Happy Monday, friends! I’m comin’ at ya from the arctic tundra of the Mountain West. Weather.com currently says that our temp feels like -6 degrees.
That’s cold.
All three girls started their ski school lessons this past weekend (there are four total), and when we learned that it was going to be warmer in the mountains (by a whole 20 degrees, almost), Chris and I made a last-minute decision to book a house in Georgetown for a Saturday and Sunday stay. Georgetown is about halfway between our home and Arapahoe Basin, where the girls would be skiing. A winter storm dropped about seven inches of snow in the mountains heading into Sunday (with more falling throughout the day), so the drive to and from lessons — and even more so the drive home on Monday morning — were a bit scary. But we did it! And staying over the Sunday night after lessons was clutch, since everyone was tired!
Now we just need to figure out what we’ll do for the next three Sunday ski lessons 😉
Bis bald, friends!
We did a little helmet practice in the days leading up to Em’s first lesson. Girl does not like headgear! But she approved of the helmet! The other gear was a different story.Ready to rip! Actually, Em didn’t even get her skis on for her first lesson. It was all about prep this lesson (which I could have skipped paying the astronomical fee for, if I’m being honest). Next lessons, they’ll be strapping in.On the road again! I sure do love my little adventurers. They are up for anything.We stayed in a little 2-beddy in Georgetown, which was perfect for us. It even meant that ….All three girls slept together for the first time! After some initial kerfuffles, they did great 😉Lotte did so great! She’s starting off on greens, and I can’t wait to see where she lands when ski school is over!Grace is working hard on the basics. She’s desperate to do the chairlift, so hopefully she’ll get there after her lessons this season.Thumbs up!Is there ANYTHING cuter than a 3-year-old in ski gear?! I think not. Emilia was NOT into her lessons to start, and we definitely questioned how it was going to go for three hours. Her instructor had all the patience in the world, though, and I think she’ll do great things over the next three lessons!The cheeks. The lips. The vacant “what the heck is happening” stare. It’s all too much.Exhausted but happy 😉Red face, happy heart <3 (I promise they were warm enough. Dad had them in allllll the gear!)
It was an awesome little last-minute get-away for a snow-filled, holiday ski weekend. Chris got in a few runs, too, which he said was awesome. I need exceptional conditions for snowboarding … inches and inches of falling snow isn’t my thing. But I will get on my board before their lessons out!
Bis bald, friends! Hope you’re staying warm, happy and healthy!
Not a bad way to spend the beginning of October <3
Another one bites the dust, my friends! So here we are, with 2023 in the rear view mirror, and what a year it was. Travelwise, it was simply stellar. Things in the world, of course, continue to throw me (and everyone paying attention) off kilter. With that always in my mind, I continue to be forever grateful for the opportunities I have with my family to explore and enjoy what’s beautiful about this great big earthwe all live on.
So, without further adieu, here’s what we got up to in 2023!
January
Celebrating 10 years married (!) in New Zealand!
At the beginning of the year our family was still on the other side of the world. Chris and I rang in the New Year (ahead of everyone we know!) on our anniversary trip in New Zealand, then finished up our Australia visit with a trip to Chris’ families’ favorite beach, Forster. The girls got to check out the Sydney Harbor area for the first time, too!
Views from Skyline Queenstown dinner!Love you, boo!The girls and dad at the Sydney Harbor Bridge.Forster with the fam. We love you Auntie Sare-Bear!What a cute crew!
Once we were back in the states, Emilia and I packed our bags (again) and turned around fairly quickly for a trip back east to meet my new twin baby niece and nephew!
We do love ya, NY!There is literally nothing better.
We love you, Miles & Stella!The Butterfly Pavilion always hits!We also checked out Meow Wolf, which was so trippy!Meow Wolf Denver
March
My three cuties <3
In March we celebrated “spring break” with SO MUCH SNOW at Grand Lake! We stayed in a tiny cabin, walked on a lake, rode sleds off our roof and traipsed through Rocky Mountain National Park up to our knees in fluffy powder. It was a delightful (if somewhat cold) time!
Glorious lake views!Rocky Mountain National Park!Grand Lake, CO
April
Glacier National Park!
April was a big month, what with ME TURNING 40 AND ALL! We celebrated with a tick off my bucket list: A trip to Glacier National Park in Montana. She was all that I could have hoped for and more. So stinkin’ beautiful!
You can’t go wrong with a hot tub in nature!Polebridge Mercantile was an extra-special treat, especially with the puppies we played with outside!Thanks for making my bday extra special, Montana. She was one I’ll never forget <3
June
The Museum of Natural History was such a highlight on our kick-off-the-summer trip to NYC!
Right when the girls got out of school we hit the road! We headed back to one of our favorite spots — New York! — but this time with a twist. We stayed in one of my bestie’s Brooklyn brownstone basement apartments and let our family come to us! We traipsed around the city and took in so many sites (blogged about here, here and here). It was the trip of a lifetime, and so much stinkin’ fun!
Love, love, love this stinkin’ crew!Meeting up with the fam in Cold Spring was a big perk <3We love the Museum of Natural History whale!We had tea at Alice’s Tea Cup!We saw a Mets game!We went to the Color Factory!Dumbo, BrooklynBut really … it was about being with our loves <3
Red Rocks, ColoradoLotte’s first concert at Red Rocks!Grand Colorado on Peak 8, BreckenridgeSecond baseball game for the girls! Seeing the Rockies play in Denver, this time.Rode the gondola up to the mountain resort above our hotel.C Lazy U RanchIt was a memory-filled summer, indeed.
August
Meeting up with my oldest friends from elementary school in Savannah Georgia!
To celebrate the big 4-0 for all of us, three of my besties from elementary school and I met up in Savannah, Georgia, for a weekend filled with fun and walks down memory lane! We had the best time catching up, checking out a new town, and just generally cheers-ing to life!
But how cute are we, though?We took a historic tour and a nighttime haunted stories tour, both of which I would highly recommend!Just love this crew <3
September
Back in NY!
For Labor Day weekend we headed back to New York (as I was fond of saying, New York was needy this year!). My little twinsies were baptized — and Chris & I were the godparents! — and we got to see all our fam again, which is always the best. I even went back to New York at the end of September — all my myself — for my cousin’s adorable and delightful wedding.
Always reminded of how very, incredibly blessed I am <3The three littlest <3<3<3Grandpa and some of his littles.Such a fun time watching my baby cousin get married in such a beautiful place!
October
DIsneyland!Happy 40th, babe!
Oh, October, how delightful were thee! I consider October to have been split into two EPIC events — the first was our trip to Disneyland with Grandpa! and the second was Chris’ 40th birthday adventures with ALL HIS IMMEDIATE FAMILY IN TOWN FROM AUSTRALIA!
Look. The joy I felt in Disney — watching the absolute love on my kids’ faces — was very, very real.Thanks, Grandpa, for joining in on the fun/mayhem!Simply the best!
We were home from Disney for two days before Chris left for a work trip to Disney World, and then his parents arrived two days after that! Little did Chris know, though, that the rest of his siblings — all four of ’em — were also Colorado bound. It was so. much. fun!
Celebrate good times, indeed!Look at this cute crew!Happy birthday babe — thanks for giving us another reason to all be together <3
December
We started our holiday season with a quick trip back to New York (yup, again!) for Grandpa’s surprise 60th and a delightful visit with our besties in the city for some holiday shenanigans!
Happy, happy birthday to the BEST Gpa!The girls saw their first Rockette show!We had lunch with our besties!Bryant Park is a delight during the holidays, even in the rain 😉
To close out our holiday season — and the year! — we took an EPIC European holiday trip to Germany and France, Switzerland, and Iceland with Chris’ parents. We visited Christmas markets, ate delicious food, soaked in a geothermal hot tub and just generally had the time of our lives.
Black Forest, GermanyBaden-Baden, GermanyGengenbach, GermanyStrasbourg, FranceThe Rhine River in Basel, SwitzerlandBasel, Switzerland City HallGlorious Iceland.Northern Lights from the hot tub!So beautiful!Icelandic horses … also beautiful <3
Phew … what a year! And now, blink, it’s 2024. We can’t wait to see what unfolds.
Happy Thursday, loves! My third and final installation in our European Holiday Adventure is brought to you by the frigid, fantastic land called Iceland. (For the record, Chris and I had already been a number of years ago, and our obsession was already grand.)
This time we decided to do things a bit differently, though. We stayed at this Airbnb — rather than right in the city of Reykjavik — which was off-the-beaten path and totally in the Icelandic wilderness.
Can you think of anything more magical?Same view during the daylight. Look at all that awesome isolation!The back of the house led out to a lake, which I’m sure is amazing in the summer.
This log cabin was so glorious, and its geothermal hot tub was even more glorious. We frequented it quite a few times during our two-day, three-night stay.
So. Much. Fun.This was around 10 a.m. on our last full day. It just doesn’t look like it, because the sun doesn’t come up until after 11 a.m.!Final morning family hot tub adventure.Chris and I also hit the hot tub on New Years Eve night — which also happened to be our 11-year wedding, 16-year meeting anniversary — after putting the kids to bed <3We even saw the Northern Lights from it!
Okay, enough about the hot tub. (Even though it was awesome.) Here’s what else we got up to.
Rock ‘n’ Troll!
Frigid but fun, we loved the trolls!
This place has a lot to offer — a hotel, cafe, library, etc. — but the short walk up to the troll statues was why we made the visit.
Emilia ended up with some seriously cold feet, but she enjoyed the visit up until that point!Lotte found another good use for her Christmas Market scarf!
Hot Springs!
Holy gorgeous.
We stopped at the Deildartunguhver Hot Springs — which also had a lot to offer, including a restaurant, hotel, geothermal baths to bathe in, greenhouses during the summer, etc. — but showing the girls some hot springs in Iceland was our main draw.
So stinkin’ (smokin’ ?!) cool!It doesn’t really matter which ones you see, but when in Iceland, you must hot spring it up!
Waterfalls!
When in Iceland, you are often only one step away from imminent — but beautiful — death.
I joke, but seriously, this place is not for the faint of heart. The Glanni Waterfall was glorious and I’m glad that we visited, but I was also super happy to snap a few pics and get my children the hell away from the tiny gate that separated them from a rocky free fall as soon as possible.
So pretty though!
What even are we tiny humans on this vast planet?Emilia got a real kick out of it!Gorgeous girl <3Insane.There is a short walk from the parking lot to the waterfall, which is also beautiful.
A Day & Night in Reykjavik!
Downtown Reykjavik in all its adorable glory.
Nan & Poppa had a super early flight back to Germany on our final day, so they spent the night in a hotel in Reykjavik the night before. That meant that we got to spend the day and some of the evening in the city on New Years Eve. We hit up Fly Over Iceland (an interactive, AI experience that takes you “flying” over all the main attractions of Iceland), Chris and I had an anniversary dinner at the coolest restaurant — Fjallkonan — and the girls got to have dinner delivered to them in bed while they watched a (funnily enough, French) movie at Nan & Poppa’s hotel, Berjaya Reykjavik Marina Hotel.
Nan & Poppa’s hotel was right on the waterfront. So cool!Emilia was too short to ride the Fly Over Iceland attraction, so I hung back with her in the cafe and gift store. This delightful holiday coffee — and the fact that they were still playing holiday music, but in Icelandic — made me more than happy to do so 😉Grace took this photo in the hotel. I just thought it was adorable <3Fish & chips dinner at Nan & Poppa’s place.
And that was Iceland in a nutshell, friends! I do need to take a moment to thank the Icelandic horse — whom I have affectionately named Buddy — who came right up to me when I was taking photos of his group on the side of the road. He seriously made my trip.
Look at this handsome, rockstar of a horse. Love you, Buddy <3
We’ll definitely be back to Iceland again as well, perhaps in the summer to catch more of what this awesome place has to offer in different weather.
Thanks for always being awesome, Icealand!
And thank YOU for following along. Until our next trip — a road trip to the Grand Canyon over the girls’ Spring Break! — bis bald, loves!
Welcome back to my Very Merry Christmas in Europe round-up! First up was Germany and France. Today, we move on to Switzerland!
Basel, Switzerland was about an hour and a half drive from our Airbnb in Germany, and although we only planned for two nights and one full day there, we had the best time! Switzerland was a new country to me, and color me obsessed. The neighborhood of our Airbnb was quiet and residential, but super close to a bunch of fun restaurants, bars and stores, and the train made it very easy to get into the city center. Our Airbnb host even hooked us up with a BaselCard, which got us free transportation and discounts at certain places throughout the city.
On our day in the city we got coffee at a local shop, rode the train into the city center, visited the Toy Museum (which was SO MUCH FUN!), walked passed the super cool Tinguely Fountain, saw the gorgeous City Hall all decorated for the holiday, went on a wild goose chase for fondu and ended up with (still delicious!) Italian for lunch, walked over the Rhine River, bought a fancy bauble at a local jewelry store and, after the kids were home, fed and bathed, Chris and I had wine at a neighborhood wine bar.
We sure can pack it into a day.
Here’s what it looked like!
We arrived after the sun went down and our neighborhood was lit up and pretty.We went for a walk when we first arrived to pick up some essentials. We bought cheese, pastries, milk, pouches and local wool socks, and I knew this was a special place 😉Poppa having brekkie with the kiddos in our cute little kitchen.Our neighborhood in the morning.The coffee from that local shop was out of this world!Notorious for their neutrality, the Swiss people had lots of “No War” signs hanging from windows.Riding the local transport, when it was available, was such a highlight for the girls!And off we went!On our way to the Toy Museum we walked through the Christmas Markets being taken down, and we could tell how magical they would have been.The Toy Museum! And I mean … COME ON. Europe is SERIOUS about its holiday decor!This place was great! Our host had told us it wasn’t worth going, but based on some of the details he shared, I have to think they’ve remodeled recently. There are four floors with thousands of toys in intricate scenes behind glass (so no worries about touching!), and they give you an iPad to put around your neck. There are scanning codes throughout the museum and when you point the iPad at them, virtual tour guides pop up and tell stories about what you’re viewing. So much fun!We accidentally hopped off the train one stop early, but that was awesome because we just walked right over the glorious Rhine!Chris did some googling and found an awesome-looking fondu spot that was too awesome for its own good … aka PACKED TO THE GILLS. We eventually found an Italian restaurant that was right on the river and gave us everything we needed.My girl — in the scarf she bought from the Christmas Market in Baden-Baden — exploring the Rhine River. I hope these girls never stop exploring and never lose their curiosity about culture and the world.This City Hall is to-die-for!Inside was even prettier!They had a guest book you could sign, so you know the girls took advantage of that <3Walking back home we came across some street performers playing music. Emilia’ delight was palpable 😉
And that was it for Switzerland, loves! We had to leave super early the next day to get back to the airport to fly to our fourth and final destination … ICELAND! Switzerland, you were an absolute delight, and something tells me we will definitely be back.
Bis bald friends! Until tomorrow, and the last of our European adventures …
Happy New Year, friends! How it’s 2024, I’ll never know.
Okay, full disclosure before I get into this post: It was really hard for me to narrow down photos 😉 Like, harder than it usually is, which is already usually very hard. This European Christmas Trip of ours was EPIC, and it was made even more epic by the fact that we were able to do it all with Chris’ parents. Any time that we and the girls get to spend with them is special. To spend that time on vacation over Christmas in Europe?? I mean. What can I say?
To start, our place. We stayed at this sweet Airbnb in the Black Forest, and it surpassed my wildest dreams. The house itself was huge, with plenty of space for four adults and three kiddos. Plus, it was filled with so many games and toys that even if we never left the house, the kids would have stayed occupied for days. There was also a hike directly accessible from the back of the house that had breathtaking views. It was the perfect spot for us, and the best place to begin our European journey and spend Christmas.
How sweet is this cute little covered outdoor picnic area, too?! Here is poppa, hosting his ladies to a (brief but very sweet!) afternoon tea.The outdoor hut was also the perfect spot for housing some of our Christmas Day necessities 😉Our host even decorated for Christmas, leaving us a live Christmas tree and all her ornaments to adorn it with! It was the sweetest touch on her behalf.Here she is on Christmas Eve, fully decorated and ready for celebrating!Here’s one happy Grace, with a little of the view from our house behind her.Two of my little loves on Christmas Day <3Another two cuties on Christmas DayThe absolute best.Also the absolute best <3Even my mom came to hang for a bit. This was by far one of the most incredible moments of the trip, and trust me, there were many. IYKYK.There were tons of balconies, which made for amazing sunrise/sunset viewings!Cheers to this amazing spot in the world.
Although hanging out in the house would have been enough, I had specifically formulated the plan for this holiday with one goal in mind: CHRISTMAS MARKETS! Europe is known for them, and I wanted in. So … are you ready to market it up? Here’s where we went.
Thursday, December 21: Freiburg, Germany
Lotte looks fairly miserable in this photo, but that was after what was, trust me, a very fun night!
Our first Christmas Market was in Freiburg. Since this was our first one (well, Chris’ parents had already been to a couple by the time we arrived, but it was my first one!), I didn’t realize that the market is actually spread around the city. We kept stumbling on different sections of it as we walked around, which was a really nice surprise.
As a person who thoroughly enjoys holiday decor, these markets were MY JAM.We started in early on the treats, and did not stop.We went on every ride we saw!We drank ALL the Glühwein (hot wine!) we could find!I couldn’t love this holiday hopping crew any more <3
Friday, December 22: Baden-Baden, Germany
As you can see, in Baden-Baden, we weren’t messing around!
Next up was the Baden-Baden market, and the fondu igloo lunch I had booked us weeks before. This felt like the perfect excuse to don the matching Christmas sweaters that Nan had brought for us 😉 The day was chilly and rainy, but snuggled up inside our heated igloo with our fur blankets and tasty treats (you rent the igloo for three hour blocks and are welcome to walk around the market during that time and then go back to the igloo whenever you like) was the perfect way to spend this day and see this particular market.
The coziest!The cutest!Despite the weather — or perhaps because of it — this particular market felt so magical and festive. The girls loved checking out the ornate booths, and Nan loved teaching them how to shop!So much fun!The absolute best.We had the sweetest time! Nan & I have vowed to make a special trip back to Baden-Baden, which means “bath” and is actually known for its amazing spas!
Saturday, December 23: Gengenback, Germany
Such a beautiful spot!
We had a tough decision to make this day: Travel 3.5 hours each way to visit the Nuremberg (where I was born) markets, or head about 25 minutes away, to Gengenbach, to see their world-renowned life-size Advent Calendar. Ultimately we decided to stay local and head to Gengenbach, which I think was the right decision. All the more reason to make another trip back to Germany in the future to hit up my birth spot. Perhaps when we have a little more time.
This was the smallest of the markets that we visited, but it was also the sweetest town with the cutest Advent Calendar Town Hall.Each day leading up to Christmas they perform a short play with live music in front of their beautiful Town Hall building, then they lift the one (hand painted by a different artist each year!) window that corresponds to the day. We were there to see the 24th window get lifted — a fish for the Feast of Seven Fishes! — which felt extra special.Smiles all around <3
Sunday, December 24: Strasbourg, France
Glorious Strasbourg, France!
We classed it up on Christmas Eve and decided to head out to FRANCE. Strasbourg was about 45 minutes away, and it was easy to drive, park, and hop on a quick train to the Christmas markets. This event was sprawling, and so, so beautiful. We were even lucky enough to catch the tree lighting, accompanied with Christmas music, of course.
The markets were gorgeous, but even the buildings in the area were so ornately decorated.More Glühwein! You could get a small refund if you returned the cups that the wine was served in, but you best believe we kept all of them!When a picture says it all.Such a gorgeous area! They say this is the biggest Christmas tree in the world … but you know 😉More gorgeous buildings. I honestly could have spent days here wandering the streets and been quite content.This girl clung to her dad like glue the whole trip, which was super annoying for him but VERY nice for me! I didn’t have to carry her AND I always knew where she was 😉Insanely beautiful …Everywhere you looked …Thank you Strasbourg for a very special, unforgettable Christmas Eve!
Of course there are a very many more Christmas markets in Germany (and France and everywhere else in Europe, really) to visit, but these were centrally located to our house and I had read great things about them. After having now actually been to them, I can agree: There is nothing like Christmas in Europe. It stands alone. Nowhere else compares. The end.
After spending a relaxing Christmas Day and Boxing Day eating, drinking, hanging at our house, watching movies and playing games, we spent our final day in Germany checking out a bit more of the view around our town and heading to Lake Mummelsee, a beautiful lake with a quirky story.
Glorious views (and sun!) on our final day in Germany!Driving through the Black Forest to reach the lake also provided for some gorgeous views! Don’t forget the Dramamine! We’ve arrived!So pretty!Every day in Germany was fabulous, and the last day was no different.
I’ll be honest, friends … I had a lot of anxiety leading up to this trip. I worried someone would get sick or get hurt, and as our friends started dropping like flies to illness as our departure date got closer, I only got more and more nervous. Once we were on our flight to Germany, though, I realized … there’s nothing you can do about that. I could spend the trip worried, or I could relax and enjoy and know that we would handle whatever came our way.
Luckily, I can now say that other than a few coughs here and there, we were all GREAT. No illnesses to note. So see that? All that worrying was for naught. Wouldn’t a crystal ball be great so we could know all ends well ahead of time?
Anyway, that was about it for our Germany (and France!) expedition, friends! I’ll be back tomorrow with the second installment (third country!) of our adventure: SWITZERLAND!
