Now that my son is a bit older…Big S is 4.5…and my daughter is at an age where she loves the Disney Channel…Little S is a little over 2…the Daddy J and I have been thinking about DisneyWorld Orlando. The last time we went to Disney was in 2005. We went twice in one year…once for a wedding and once for a family trip with the in-laws. Both times, During the trip pictured, Big S was only 12 months old and Little S wasn’t even a twinkle in our eye! It poured the entire afternoon but we were able to make the best of it by protecting ourselves in restaurants, rides and under the monorail. Oh, we also bought those really cheesy ponchos with a big Mickey head on the back! We are getting excited about the prospect of going to Disney, but Holy Tickets Batman! Has anyone noticed that Disney’s ticket prices are at 75 bucks now? Despite the price, I think we might try to make the trip in March or April for a long weekend. If you have any great budget tips for Disneyworld, let me know!
Disney Dreamin’…Dreaming of blue skies and a bright sun!
Big D and Big S and Big me…64 lbs ago…
This is the great park that was down the way from our hotel room…we spent a lot of time there!
Thanks to Delicious Baby for hosting Photo Friday. Check out other great travel Photos here.
So Twitter is not very new, but it is definitely new to me. I am still trying to figure it all out! @twokidsandamap has been featured alongside other travel twitter users and bloggers in a comprehensive list called TravelTweet Directory at Travel Notes. Check us out under TravelTweeters/United States/Florida tweeters and make sure you stop by some of our fellow twitter users and bloggers!
Kim Mance, of Galavanting, has been quite busy the past week or two! Not only does she keep up with the fantastic Galavanting website, but she is also the founder of Travel Blog Exchange. The Travel Blog Exchange is really the first of its kind. It is a meeting place for all things travel! There are message boards and places to blog. Even though it has only been up and running for a short time, the membership has grown exponentially! I was member number 145 on the 2nd or 3rd day! When I became a member, she took the time out of her day to drop me (and all the other new members!) a welcome message that was personalized. Kim Mance also writes for several other places on the Internet — Marie Claire and the Huffington Post. She is co-host of the Travel Blog Exchange 09 Meetupin Chicago later this year…hopefully I will be able to attend! Some of my favorite articles…
Great US Destinations for a Romantic Weekend — I was thrilled to see New Orleans on this list. My hubby and I honeymooned there and we return every year or two with the kids. Since Hurricane Katrina, the rebuilding is still continuing but the spirit of New Orleans is still very much alive. Historic Christmas Markets–Colmar, France — This destination was on our Europe vacation list, but unfortunately we didn’t have the time to go. It was great being able to see the markets via the blog instead!
Today was one of those typical gloomy days…rainy, cloudy, and just downright depressing! We decided that we had to get the kids out of the house but we didn’t want to spend another day at the mall or Target. We decided to head to the National Naval Aviation Museum on Pensacola NAS. This is a great museum and we have been to it several times. Big S was cracking us up because he kept telling us that he wanted to get in the planes. He remembered the last trip where he got to climb inside the planes.
The AirMuseum is great for all ages. There are so many exhibits, an IMAX theater that shows several movies a day, a small restaurant, a flight simulator, and lots of hands-on activities!
We started out the morning by snapping some pictures of the huge “jet plane” out front. Once inside the museum, we were given a schedule of the IMAX movies and then headed to the Cockpit Trainers. This is our favorite section of the museum! Little kids and big adults alike are encouraged to climb into the cockpits of helicopters and planes. The levers and switches still move! While you are pretending to be a pilot, you can hear sounds of fighter jets and cockpit radio transmissions played over a loud speaker. Today, you could also hear my kids counting down, yelling “BLAST OFF” and “bombs away”!
We watched the flight simulator twist and turn. We chose not to pay the extra money to try it out but the kids loved to see it move around.
If you get hungry, the museum has a restaurant called the Cubi Bar. We decided to just run through McDonald’s on our way home, but you should still drop in and see the Cubi Bar. The Cubi Bar was a bar in the Philippines. Now the plaques and pictures hang in the museum as not only a restaurant, but also another exhibit.
Free guided tours of the museum and the flight line are offered several times a day. When the Blue Angels are at home, you can go out to the museum early in the morning to watch their amazing morning practice.
When we were in Innsbruck, we climbed the Stadtturm (148 steps if I remember correctly!) to see the view of the city. As we walked around the outside of the entire tower, I snapped a bunch of pictures of the city. I was excited about how cool some of them turned out when I was reviewing them at home! The rooftops are absolutely beautiful. Some have gardens on them. Many of them are a gorgeous rust red color.
My favorite rooftop picture!
I spotted our hotel–it is the bright pink looking one!
Big things are happening in my hometown! Pensacola is celebrating 450 years! Pensacola was actually America’s first European settlement, settled in 1559 by Spanish sailor Don Tristan De Luna. Unfortunately, a hurricane wiped out the settlement so it is not considered the longest constant settlement. To celebrate 450 years, the celebration is big! Everyone has been gearing up for this year long celebration! The highlight of this celebration is a visit from the King and Queen of Spain! They will be visiting February 18 and 19th and there will be several opportunities to see them. Stay tuned!
Also, according to this article, Pensacola was named one of the top ten family friendly vacation spots by Trip Advisor. I tried to locate the actual Trip Advisor article, but was unable to find it. If anyone finds it, please send me the link or post it in comments!
Travels with Children is written by a woman who has plenty of experience…she travels regularly with four children! She writes often about her travels through Minnesota. On Fridays, she writes an article called “Finding More Fun” where she includes links to other articles about family travel. On her holiday road trip, she kept a journal that I tried to tune into on a daily basis even though I was on my own vacation! Some of my favorite articles include: Hotel Rooms for Big Families — I only have two children so I don’t have this problem. However, I often think about what it would be like if we had another child. Where would we put him/her and how could we afford to continue to travel? This article reviews the website SixSuitcaseTravel.
This weekend I was in a dear friend’s wedding.We had a blast spending the entire weekend preparing for the special day.As I watched M and C walk down the aisle, I reminisced about my fantastic wedding day…it is hard to believe that it was almost nine years ago!M and C’s wedding was absolutely perfect and I am so happy for them.The bridesmaid dresses were a gorgeous color, M’s dress was just right, and the men looked great in their tuxes.
M and C at the rehearsal
Josh and I at the wedding
Bridesmaids all dolled up and ready to walk down the aisle!
Even though you might not be traveling for your wedding, many of your friends and family are spending a lot of money to travel to you!Most of the time, your friends and family will spend more than just the day of your wedding in your hometown. You will be busy with your own plans…let’s admit…it is one of the few times that you can be self-absorbed!Create a visitor goody bag for all everyone who is traveling from out of town.
The first tip I have is to start collecting the below items and information early.Some places limit the number of items you can pick up at one time.Other places might not have enough for you at the time you stop by.By beginning early, you can ensure that you will have a goody bag for everyone.
A month or two before the wedding go to your local tourism office and pick up whatever free items they have!Get lots!Our beach office gives away free plastic bags with the city name on them as well as these little bags to go collect the gorgeous white sand that characterizes our beaches.Use these bags and other items to put together a little goody bag that you can give your guests as they arrive in town.If they offer city maps for free, pick up a bunch of those as well.
Drive around your city and make some stops at the hot tourist spots.Go to museums, amusement parks, bars, restaurants, and malls…all those places that will help entertain your guests while you are busy.Pick up pamphlets at each stop so that you can throw them in the goody bags.
Make a list titled “Top Ten Things to Do in (your city here)”Include a brief description of each place, cost, and the amount of time they might spend.Make a special note of kid-friendly places to visit.
If you live within an hour of some other great tourist spots, make a note of that.
Create a list of emergency numbers.Include the local hospitals and urgent care offices.Decide who will be the contact person for your guests.Make sure that cell and home numbers are included.The contact person should be someone who will not be incredibly busy all weekend (leave the bride’s mother off of this list!).Do you have a close friend who might be willing to be this person?
Include an itinerary of the wedding weekend with a note of who is expected to be at each event.For example, if out of town guests are invited to the rehearsal dinner make a note of that.
If the budget allows, include an already stamped postcard so that your guests can send a little note home.
Purchase or print off a city map (or see number 2!).Make notes on it highlighting the spots that you have told them about.Photocopy a map for everyone.
Plan a few outings that people can sign up for…you are the director of this cruise ship!Meet in a central location and show everyone a little bit of your town!
Disney Dreamin’…Dreaming of blue skies and a bright sun!
This is the great park that was down the way from our hotel room…we spent a lot of time there!
