So I am asking for my readers’ help.  Leave a comment in this blog with all of your free and cheap Orlando activity favorites!

The last time we were in St. Augustine , my husband and I had only been married for a few years and we were sans kids.  Since then, we have been to Jacksonville many times but haven’t made that extra thirty or forty minute drive to St. Augustine.  My husband and I will be celebrating our ten year anniversary this summer and while our big anniversary trip is planned for October, we are heading to St. Augustine in July for a quick weekend to celebrate.  It is perfect for us because we can be there in less than six hours and we can drop the kids off with family in Panama City on the way there!

Because we are not the Bed and Breakfast type couple (but there are some amazing ones right in the middle of the historic district), we would love to stay in an oceanfront room at the Ponte Vedra Beach Resorts. 

After a morning walk on the beach with our coffee in hand, we would get ready to explore the sites.  For my history buff husband, we would first head to the Castillo de San Marcos and the oldest wooden schoolhouse in the USA.  After exploring this area, I would want to find somewhere to eat lunch.  One thing I remember most about my trip is that we had the best bread pudding at this amazing restaurant.  The BEST bread pudding.  Ever.  I can’t remember the name of the restaurant but can vaguely remember a bit about it.  We were seated on the second floor and it was off of a main square.  I hope to locate this restaurant and engorge myself on the bread pudding. 

After lunch, we will head to Flagler College to wander the campus and take pictures.  I have been reading about architecture photography and I would like to put some of my newly acquired skills to use.   Before nightfall, I would want to head to the St. Augustine Lighthouse to take some pictures of the sun setting around it!

(photo by Dave in the Triad)

Have you been to St. Augustine?  Please leave a comment in this post if you have because I would love any recommendations of things that we should do or see!  Plan your own St. Augustine romantic weekend away.

Stop by DeliciousBaby for Photo Friday.

Today I am dreaming of the Type-A Mom Conference, a blogging conference where men and women join together to learn more about the business of blogging and all that goes into it.  This will be my first conference and I am very excited to attend.  It is a smaller conference than some of the others available so I think it will be a good place to start.  I am hoping to expand this blog a bit and even more so with my Pensacola with Kids blog.  I am excited about all of the things that I will learn.  I am most looking forward to meeting some of the amazing men and women who I look up to in the blogging world. 

I am also thrilled that this conference is held in Asheville, North Carolina.  We spent a long weekend in Asheville about 6 years ago.  It was the last glorious weekend that my husband and I spent together on our very own.  About a month later we discovered that we were going to be parents!    We have fond memories of hiking Whiteside Mountain, exploring the many waterfalls, and sampling the wine at the Biltmore. 

For now, Type-A Mom will be the blogging conference I am dreaming of.  I had hoped to attend TBEX and Blogher as well, but they are off the table due to the timing and the fact that we have had a transmission blow up in a less than 3yo car, a water heater die a slow painful death, and a significant shortage in our escrow account all in the same month.  YUCK!  I am also looking into attending the The Travel Bloggers Show and The Trade Show in Orlando two weeks before Type-A Mom if it works out.  The registration is cheap (only $25!) and it is less than a day to drive to Orlando from my house. 

Are you attending a conference in the near future?  Which one?  Why did you pick it? 

This post is part of Monday Dreaming with Mara at Mother of all Trips.  Stop by to see what others are dreaming of today!

Eden State Gardens is a beautiful state park located about 30-40 minutes from Panama City Beach.  Eden State Gardens has a rich history in lumber.  It was the home to the Wesley Family.  The beautiful home, painted a brilliant white, has a gorgeous wrap around porch that will make you want to invest in one of those Cracker Barrel rocking chairs!  Can you believe this beautiful home and 10.5 acres was purchased in 1960 for only 12,500 dollars?! 

She then put in another million dollars to convert the home to an antebellum home.  She wanted the home for her extensive collection of Louis XVI antiques.  After 5 years and failing health, she gave her home and antique collection to the state of Florida. 

While visiting, we wandered around the grounds for awhile.  It was a nice walk to Tucker Bayou.  The kids loved to walk the pier.

All I wanted to do was sit on this bench.  All. Day. Long!

The gardens are absolutely beautiful and although many plants and flowers have not bloomed, the Camellias are out in full force.  According to the state park site, the Camellia peak bloom is in March so we timed our trip beautifully!

There is a nature trail…

and it is a beautiful setting for a wedding.  My daughter spent fifteen minutes watching the “princess”!

For other suggestions on things to do near or around Panama City, visit me at Traveling Mom or explore my other posts here on Two Kids and a Map.

Stop by Delicious Baby to see where others are traveling this week!

We rang in the year, 2009, in Europe where we spent three weeks exploring Germany, Austria and cold weather…colder than we have ever felt before.  Ever.  It. was. freezing!

We headed to the Happiest Place on Earth and spent a fun filled day at Disneyworld Magic Kingdom. 

We revisited our favorite southern city, New Orleans and explored the Insectarium for the first time.

  We spent some time visiting friends and family in Jacksonville, FL…

And Panama City, Florida…

We did some family camping…

and even more nature walks…

We spent some of the summer helping my sister and her family move to Virginia.  In between the tears and sadness of leaving her behind, we had many great adventures as a family.  We saw the Virginia Aquarium, the ships in the Navy Yard, explored the Mayfield Dairy, and traveled over 1000 miles and through nine states.

We only live a few minutes from the beautiful Gulf Coast but work and life sometimes gets in the way of the beach trips.  That being said, we made a resolution to spend more time at the beach during 2009.  We spent many days at the beach… 

And many nights…

We saw the leaves change in Washington DC and spent time with my dad and stepmom when they flew in from Europe…

We also learned the value and rejuvenating effects of solo trips as well.  Daddy J went hiking on the Appalachian Trail several times…

and got a Guy’s Trip to Brazil…yes, you read that correctly…Brazil…

and I headed to Washington DC for a solo trip…

and to Destin for a girl’s weekend…there are no pictures of that trip!

We decided that we wanted to share our explorations of the Pensacola area as well and started Pensacola with Kids, a website about exploring Pensacola with your family.  We have had a great time getting out there and exploring areas of our gorgeous city that we hadn’t had a chance to explore yet.  We have met some great new friends and seen fabulous things!

So as we say goodbye to 2009…

we bring wonderful memories with us into 2010.  We are also bringing our travel journal!  We have been using this downtime in the month of December to plan some travel for 2010!  In January, we are heading back to the Happiest Place on Earth for a short weekend.  In February, I am going to spend two weeks exploring Suffolk, Virginia and the surrounding areas.  We have a road trip up the East Coast and are still exploring options for that trip.  Hopefully we will make it to NYC and I would love to stop in the Outer Banks!  We are also hoping to head to Italy and Germany to visit family in the summertime and in October, my husband and I are going to take our first serious vacation without the kids.  We are going to Hawaii to celebrate our ten year anniversary! 

We can’t wait to read all about your travel adventures and I look forward to the continuing interaction with all of you…maybe I will even be able to meet some of you this year!

Be sure to stop by Debbie’s at DeliciousBaby to check out all the Photo Friday participants!

Last year we were sledding down mountains of real snow in Germany.  It snowed on Christmas morning, the kids went sledding every day and my husband was able to ski as often as he wished.  This year, we are staying in sunny Florida where yesterday it was 78 degrees and I turned on the air conditioner.  Seriously…the air conditioner.  Today it did drop down to the 50’s so the air went off but we have no hope of seeing snow this year although I do have to admit we had little snowflakes fall a few years ago…they just didn’t hit the ground! 

Last weekend we headed to Foley, Alabama to check out Fish River Tree Christmas Farm and see snow at the annual Let it Snow event.  Yes…in the deep south we got to see snow.  It was man-made snow…more like ice chunks, but it was great big fun for the kids!  There was a children’s village, food, and performers.  The kids thought it was fantastic and we enjoyed seeing them play in the snow.  This is what snow in the south looks like!

Stop by DeliciousBaby to see the photos that other travelers are sharing!

Trekaroo’s growing community of families from all across the country have pitched in with their votes for the most kid-friendly stops in Washington D.C. Here’s the line up for 2009!

Best Kid-friendly Hotels in Washington, D.C. – voted by parents

Best Activities for Kids in Washington, D.C. – voted by parents

Some of DC’s top blogging moms and dads have jumped on board the KidsMobile, playing the role of local tour guide.  They are taking us into their fold by sharing with us their inside scoop about what’s fun for kids in their hometown.

Jennifer, a mom who loves the outdoors shares a fabulous list of The Best Kid-friendly Hiking Trails in DC.  Jennifer’s passion as an environmental educator led her to start Hiking Along – a super cool educational program where she leads groups of children, preschool to high school, on hikes and allows them to participate in hands-on science activities to learn about their natural surroundings. She also keeps a blog about hiking with kids.

Dave, better known as SuburbanDaddy, knows that cold weather is just around the corner and any parent of a young child will be eager for his list of The Best Indoor Places for Toddlers Around Washington DC.  He is the creator of Kidburst, an activities guide written by local parents about the Washington DC area with in-depth coverage of kids activities from summer camps to sporting facilities and classes.

Jennifers, tell us about 8 Things (Under $5) to Do in Washington DC with Toddlers. She is an adventurous mom of a 2 and 4 year old who has not allowed having kids to slow her down.  Although she’s based in Florida, Washington DC is one of her favorite vacation spots. She writes in depth about their family’s exciting adventures on Two Kids and A Map

Sujatha is mom to a 9 year old (boy) and 3 year old (girl) and brings us Fun Washington, D.C. Activities that get Kids Fired Up.  This list has some great ideas of places beyond the usual tour of Capitol Hill that will really get kids to perk up.  She writes candidly and casually about their travels as a family and about her adventures in parenting on her blog:  Blogpourri

Amy is a mom who sees everything as a teaching moment and traveling is no exception.  As a local DC mom, she’s got some her favorite Day Trips with Kids From Washington DC.  As a literacy consultant and former high school teacher her blog – teachmama – is full of wonderful ideas about how to weave education into holiday traditions, travel, games and more.

Jill, brings us her list of Must See Attractions in DC with Preteens and Teens.  She is the mom behind her prolific blog Musings From Me that covers a wide range of topics including parenting, travel and reviews of cool products.  Jill has been on the go all her life, living in England, Italy, and America but currently calls Maryland home.

Ms Twixt, brings us a list of What to do with Tweens in Washington D.C. As a mom to 3 tweens girls and a toddler boy, she is an expert on everything Tween.  Her Blog Twixt and Between provides helpful insights on topics that are current for tween girls and their parents. She even has a store in Georgetown Park with adorable age-appropriate clothing, shoes, gifts and accessories for Tween Girls.

Other Resources for Washington DC:

• All 100 Activities for kids in the Washington DC Metro Area
• Kid-friendly hotels in and around Washington DC

Next stop, Sunny  San Diego, CA

The Trekaroo KidsMobile is a blog carnival with a twist.  It’s designed to provide a unique opportunity for mom and dad bloggers to be featured on Trekaroo while

1) expressing their unique point of view

2) getting a web of link exchanges.

Join us for one of our next stopovers.

Today I am dreaming of New Orleans…again!  Only a short three hour drive away, New Orleans makes a fantastic destination for an overnight getaway.  Yesterday I saw a commercial for Miracle on Fulton Street.  Fulton and Poydras Streets in downtown New Orleans turns into a winter wonderland from November 27 to January 3.  It snows!  In New Orleans!  There is live entertainment, falling snow, a canopy of lights, movie nights and so much more.  We visit New Orleans on a regular basis but haven’t made it over for Miracle on Fulton Street.  Hopefully I will be able to talk my husband into the quick trip over!  Some of the things I am dreaming about doing while we are there.

And of course we will make some time for several stops at the Cafe du Monde to indulge in beignets!

See what other are dreaming about over at Mother of All Trips, host of Mondays are for Dreaming.