Here's what E at through much of our trip to Turkey
I'd complain, except that his willingness to consistently slather a little sunbutter and jam on the local bread freed us up to eat pretty much anywhere.
About Photo Friday:
You are invited to join us for Photo Friday! It's a great way to get to know other bloggers and to help them get to know you. Just post a "Photo Friday" picture on your own blog, and link directly to your post from the linky below (If your url is longer than 100 characters, you will need to use a url shortening service, like bit.ly)
What's Photo Friday?
- Post a travel photo on your site. It can be about any topic, as long as it is G-rated.
- The focus of the post should be on your photo.
- You don't need to be a professional photographer (I'm not), but do showcase your best work
- It's nice to include a few sentences about the photo, but it is not required.
- Link back here so that your readers can see all the other great Photo Friday posts.
One thing I try to always carry in my daypack is an inflatable Gertie Ball
. It packs down small once the air is released, is easy to blow up, and durable enough to withstand a lot of abuse.
Carrying a Gertie Ball makes any town square or piazza into a playground. Could the kids look any happier? On our best days, local kids end up joining them and often, even a passing adult will get in on the action.
Related Links
Favorite Travel Toys
Favorite Travel Gear
Filed Under:
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travel-tips
3 comments |
Posted on July 28, 2010 |
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Baby Eilan is in what I consider the hardest age for traveling with children - the 6 months between age one and 18 months. He is mobile enough to want to get into everything, has little or no judgment about what is safe, and needs a new toy approximately every three minutes.
When we travel together, I'm constantly on the lookout for everyday objects that can serve as travel toys, and then be discarded. Guess what the smash hit toy was on our flight home from Puerto Rico this weekend?
That's right, a travel sized can of Pringles purchased on board our air flight. Why? The lid is soft, and fun to pull off. The can is big enough to fill with other, smaller toys, and best of all the metal bottom makes a satisfying "clang" sound when you put something hard in the can. When you get tired of all that, the can makes a nice hat for your mom.
Readers: What's your favorite "found" travel toy?
PS. I have no relationship with Pringles, and don't even buy this brand of chips normally.
Related Links
Favorite Travel Toys
Ten Tips for Keeping a Toddler Busy on a Plane
Ten Great Travel Toys You Already Have at Home
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9 comments |
Posted on July 27, 2010 |
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I accepted a discounted "media rate" at the Loews Regency. I received no other compensation beyond a lovely cheese and fruit plate, and the hotel did not request that I express a particular point of view.
A few weeks ago I visited New York to speak at the Travel Blog Exchange conference. It was my first solo trip in 16 months (but who is counting) and I dreamed of lounging in bed in the mornings, working on my computer at night with the lights fully on, and enjoying amazing meals.
The Loews Regency seemed like a great choice, and while I was in town, I wanted to also check out how well it would suit traveling families.
The hotel is located on Park Avenue, not far from Bloomingdales and Central Park, yet removed from the exhausting crowds around Times Square and the noise of 5th Avenue. There are three different subway stations within a 3 block radius.
My "Luxury King" room was lovely, with a comfortable bed and even a small breakfast table. The decor was restful, and my room was extra quiet (a gift in New York), making it easy to drift off to sleep at night. The hotel also has several suites, including one and two bedroom suites. While this is by no means a budget hotel, the prices are competitive for New York (about $350/night for a "Superior King" room, and about $850 for a two bedroom suite with a food credit to spend at the hotel). Loews is currently running a Family Fun Package in which the second room is 50% off and kids dine for free.
Speaking of dining, the Loews Regency restaurants are a bit too fancy for most parents to feel comfortable dining with kids. In fact, the hotel is famous for its "Power Breakfast" with busy executives arranging their breakfast meetings at the hotel weeks in advance. There's free Starbucks coffee in the lobby in the mornings (and a coffee maker in the room), and a nice room service menu. Entrees on the kids room service menu run about $15 each, and adult entrees are even more expensive, so plan ahead if budget is a concern.
It's worth noting that while I didn't have the kids along on this stay, Loews hotels greet kids with a Fisher Price toy, and offer other treats like cookies and milk at bedtime and babyproofing packages, strollers and more. We did experience the kids package on our previous stay at the Loews Santa Monica, and truth be told, my kids still fall asleep many nights with the lullaby CD they were given at that hotel.
Related Links
Family Friendly Hotels in New York
Filed Under:
hotel-review
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Posted on July 26, 2010 |
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This picture just cracks me up. Doesn't little D look like she's about to give her broker a very serious talking to - just after she finishes her power breakfast.
For bonus points, can anyone guess where this was taken?
About Photo Friday:
You are invited to join us for Photo Friday! It's a great way to get to know other bloggers and to help them get to know you. Just post a "Photo Friday" picture on your own blog, and link directly to your post from the linky below (If your url is longer than 100 characters, you will need to use a url shortening service, like bit.ly)
What's Photo Friday?
- Post a travel photo on your site. It can be about any topic, as long as it is G-rated.
- The focus of the post should be on your photo.
- You don't need to be a professional photographer (I'm not), but do showcase your best work
- It's nice to include a few sentences about the photo, but it is not required.
- Link back here so that your readers can see all the other great Photo Friday posts.
I write about my favorite travel-related kids books every other week. Most books are from my personal collection, or checked out from the library, but whenever I do accept a book for review from a publisher, I will always let you know. If you buy the book using the Amazon link at the end of the post, I earn a small commission, and that income helps me keep the site going.
One of the best ways to get kids to do what you want, the research says, is to have them role-play. Kids will stay still longer if you ask them to pretend they're tin soldiers than with a threat or a bribe.
I'm no educator, but when it comes to getting my own kids to enjoy museums (or at least behave), that's certainly true. That's why I love books about kids in museums, artists, or historical fiction set in a period we'll be exploring in a museum. We can lift the characters right out of the book and pretend to be them instead of us.
Museum Trip
, by Barbara Lehman is one of E's favorite books, and he has come back to it often over the past two years. In this wordless story a young boy gets separated from the other students on a class field trip, and finds himself in a secret room full of mazes. E loves to solve the mazes (at first he did them with help, now he does them on his own) and to imagine being in a secret world all his own. And believe me, we look for the secret door to the maze room on every single museum trip.
Right now, this books is bargain Priced on Amazon at $6 for hardback Museum Trip
Related Links:
Favorite Children's Books, Toys and References about Art Museums
Filed Under:
book-review
3 comments |
Posted on July 21, 2010 |
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In my panic to prepare for each new trip, I often find myself stocking up on activity books and small toys. Those things are fun, and require little prep, but I know well, that it's possible to keep the kids busy on a plane without spending a dime.
Over the years, I've built up a nice list of websites that have free printable activities. Each of these go well beyond simple coloring pages. I hope you'll enjoy them too.
- Printable Paper Dolls. These are adorable, and they're suitable for a boy or a girl.
- Free Papercraft Train Templates (note that TSA allows scissors with blades shorter than four inches in your carryon baggage)
- Printable mini books and topic based learning activities. Perfect if you want activities that are thematic with your destination.
- Nicely illustrated mazes, word scrambles, matching games and other printable games
- Step by Step Drawing Lessons
Related Links
My Favorite Travel Toys
Ten Tips for Keeping a Child Busy on a Plane
Ten Great Travel Toys You Already Have at Home
5 comments |
Posted on July 19, 2010 |
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One of the things I love about traveling is that sense that anything might be around the next corner. That's especially true internationally, where things tend to be less controlled than in the US. Here's the relatively quiet street we walked down every morning in Istanbul - all of a sudden there's a film crew, gobs of electrical wiring, and a fleet of juice and tea sellers ready to assist if anyone gets thirsty.
Related Links
City Guide: Istanbul With Kids
About Photo Friday:
You are invited to join us for Photo Friday! It's a great way to get to know other bloggers and to help them get to know you. Just post a "Photo Friday" picture on your own blog, and link directly to your post from the linky below (If your url is longer than 100 characters, you will need to use a url shortening service, like bit.ly)
What's Photo Friday?
- Post a travel photo on your site. It can be about any topic, as long as it is G-rated.
- The focus of the post should be on your photo.
- You don't need to be a professional photographer (I'm not), but do showcase your best work
- It's nice to include a few sentences about the photo, but it is not required.
- Link back here so that your readers can see all the other great Photo Friday posts
E, like many kids his age, has a long standing love affair with trains, busses, boats and planes. Here he is, delighted, because he gets to ride a funicular in Istanbul (he hadn't ridden on one since our trip to Barcelona back in 2007)
I indulge this love in every possible way, sometimes taking public transportation even when we need to go only a few blocks. Why? Nothing makes it easer to get the kids up and out of the apartment in the morning, or off to the next destination than the promise of a really great funicular ride!
Even better, by the time we arrive at our real destination, the kids feel like they've already completed one kid-focused activity, and they're a little more tolerant of our museum going.
Related Links
Istanbul With Kids
3 comments |
Posted on July 14, 2010 |
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For 15% 10% off at Hotels.com, enter the coupon code “DELICIOUSBABY” at checkout. ( Unfortunately, after giving me the go-ahead to post the 15% off discount code, Hotels.com was unable to honor the terms of our agreement. Instead, they are offering 10% off with the same code and extending the dates of the offer. Please accept my sincere apology if you were inconvenienced by this change.)
This code will be live for booking until midnight tonight (Tuesday July 13) July 20th and is good for travel before 8/13.
Hotels.com doesn't typically offer such a big discount (in fact, I've never seen them offer 15% off), so if you are in the midst of planning a trip, you'll want to take advantage of this.
Readers: Feel free to share this post with friends and family.
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Posted on July 13, 2010 |
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