You have probably noticed that I have published a little less than usual during the past few weeks, and I want to share what I've been up to. I have been working very hard on some upcoming stories and features that I hope will be really great.
- Travel Safety
On Monday I will run my first "investigative" story. It's an update to our story on Advantage Rental Car's Unsafe Car Seats and you won't want to miss it.
- Travel Photo Friday
Beginning this Friday, along with my weekly photo posts, there will be a list of other travel photos published online this week. They can range from photos from other moms to exotic destinations and solo trips. If you have photo you want to share, there will be an easy way for you to add a link to it on your own blog or website. It will take just a moment, and you don't have to ask permission or arrange anything with me in advance. I think this will be a fun way for us to share our experiences (and of course it's a great way to share "link love"). If you want to join in, click here to learn more about Photo Fridays here
- Trip To New Mexico
I have been busy planning for a family trip to New Mexico. We'll visit Santa Fe, Taos and Albuquerque. If you have tips about what we should see or do, please comment on this article or send me email.
0 comments |
Posted on July 26, 2008 |
Save to del.icio.us
Here in Seattle, our local art museum makes a fun outing for the kids. There's an amazing installation in the lobby that my kids love, and a sunny and fun kids play area inside the permanent collection. We visit those two things, and if the kids are in the mood, we view a few sculptures or paintings on our way. My hope is that long term, the kids interest in the art they pass on the way to the toys will grow (and to some extent it has).
It's easy for me to be patient when we're at home, I have lots of time to work my way through the collection, and I can always make a quick trip to the museum when the babysitter is here. When we travel, it's a different story. My husband and I are more intent on seeing what we came to see, but we need to balance that against what the kids need, and our desire not to burn them out on art. That's when we really need good strategies for helping the kids enjoy the museum.
In Barcelona's Miro Museum we challenged E to tell us the names of the imaginary animals Miro had painted. That kept him busy for a while, but with our upcoming trip to New Mexico, we need some new ideas!
What have you tried? How well did it work out? Please tell me in Comments.
7 comments |
Posted on July 25, 2008 |
Save to del.icio.us
This is a picture from E's first international trip. When he was six months old, we spent one month (my huband's paternity leave) in
Paris. Being out of our home and our day-to-day routines made it easier for us to connect as a family since we weren't getting pulled into chores around the house.
Share Your Own Travel Pictures!
Beginning next week, I'll add a way for you to include links to a travel photo you post on your own blog! The feature will run every Friday, and I think it will be a fun way for us to share our experiences. You don't need to be a travel blogger and you don't need to have kids to participate, just post a travel picture on your blog next Friday and submit it using the form that will appear on my site. I'll share more details (and instructions) next week.
Filed Under:
photo-friday
2 comments |
Posted on July 23, 2008 |
Save to del.icio.us
After my son was born, I started looking around for information about traveling with babies and young kids. I was surprised at how little practical advice was available. Most advice focused on things like staying at expensive hotels with childcare programs or buying lots of travel toys. The detailed, practical advice I needed (for example how to lug a carseat through the airport) was passed around mostly by word of mouth.
After I started this blog, I was disappointed that it was so difficult was to find other women who were writing about similar experiences. Most of the big travel blogs seemed to be written by young single men, and while they had wonderful stories to tell, there is an element that is missing for me. That lack of female voices and stories is surprising given that women make over 80% of household spending decisions and, according to Forbes are also "the prime movers in American travel, driving 70 percent of all leisure travel spending and 80 percent of corporate travel bookings"
At BlogHer, I met other women who blog about travel topics that impact them, topics like girl getaways, female business travel, solo travel as a woman, food related travel, and more. I also met people from bigger sites, like Uptake and sponsors like Disney, SeaWorld and HIlton, who were looking for a community of women travel bloggers and having a tough time finding it. As a starting place, I agreed to pull together a list of women who blog about travel. I hope we'll do more in the coming months to build a tighter knit community.
I hope my readers will enjoy this list too. It's a great place to find out about new writers who just might be blogging about something that really speaks to you!
Women Travel Bloggers
General Travel
-
Wendy Perrin's blog at Conde Nast Traveler The Perrin Post is always a great resource for travelers want straightforward, pragmatic advice. Because Wendy has two kids, many of her blog posts feature her best advice for traveling with kids.
-
Pam Mandel is the Travel Editor for Blog Her and also has her own blog, Nerds Eye View. She is a freelance writer and a guide book author. She's also a great person to follow if you are more interested in down-to-earth travel and deeply connecting with your destination than in luxury hotels. She just started the Nerds Eye View Travelblogger's Forum to give us all a place to connect! Pam also wants you to know that she is really interested in talking with other travelbloggers about their work and always reachable via her website.
-
Liz Lewis blogs on Write To Travel about travel writing and and Traveling The Green Way about green travel. She is also a contributor to the Perceptive Travel Blog
- MaryJo is a Flight Attendant who gives her advice at TheFlyAwayCafe and The Seattle Traveler
- Fiona Ashley and others started TravelMuse, a new site that offers travel inspiration, planning and booking. You can also check out the Travel Muse Blog
-
Kelly Goodman shares her travel addiction and beautiful pictures on Travellious
Family Travel
-
Debbie Dubrow (me) writes at DeliciousBaby about traveling with young kids. Twitter @deliciousbaby
-
Sheila Scarborough writes about Family Travel at BootsnAll. I always enjoy reading her ideas for fun and interesting things that families can do together in different destinations and enjoy following her on Twitter @sheilas
-
Gudrun and Pat blog for Uptake and also want travel writers to know that they can add their tweets to the Twitter Travel List (the T-List) on Join The Travel Twitterati, and add their blogs to a Travel RSS feed on TravelBlogUpdates. You can add your blog to Uptake's Travel Blog Search by sending email to gudrunATuptakeDOTcom and patATuptakeDOTcom
- Jamie at TravelSavvyMom shares her tips and ideas for traveling with kids both in the US and internationally.
- Amber is a former adventure travel writer who blogs at CrazyBloggingCanuck and MileHighMamas. I love her humorous take on family travel
- "Jeanne D'Arc" writes (and posts video) at SoulTravelers3 about her ongoing around-the-world adventure with her husband and young daughter.
-
Rachel and Fran are the lead editors and writers of TravelsWithChild a group travel blog about local, long-distance, and international travel with kids.
Women's Travel
-
Beth Whitman, author of Wanderlust and Lipstick blogs at Wanderlust and Lipstick and The Seattle PI Her site also
hosts blogs by many other women travelers
- Kim Mance and Katy Quissell recently launched an online travel magazine for women called Galavanting. The magazine also has a blog called A View from a Broad.
-
Beth (DesertMama) and her friends blog at TravelingMamas about family travel, solo travel, and girl getaways.
- Erica Rogers Dublin of SeeJaneFly blogs about, and provide city guides for women business travelers. Twitter @janeflys
- Hope Schmid and Ann Fritz of The Jet Set Girls blog about "Girl Getaways" and plan to launch a set of travel guides that will help you plan your own getaway. Twitter: @jetsetgirls
- "k.a.t.calvin" writes a travel blog for women and especially African-American women at BAPworld.com
Destinations
-
Karen Bryan blogs on Europe a la Carte about seeing the real Europe on a budget.
- Jessica Spiegel writes for the Italy Logue on BootsnAll and is also a photographer
- Nancy Brown blogs on What A Trip about her travels around Northern California. She is also a contributor to Uptake. Twitter: @NancydBrown
-
Anna's blog at MommyPoppins is the unpretentious parents' guide to getting more out of NYC with kids
-
Jacy blogs on B5 Media's EuropeString about traveling Europe on a budget
- Shane blogs about the city of Tokyo at
The Tokyo Traveler
- "Minnemom" at Travels With Children blogs about her own trips in the midwest with her four kids.
- Christine's South Africa Travel Blog includes (among other things) a section on family friendly things to do.
- Dominique's new blog MidwestGuest is about things to do in the Midwest
- JamJama, which means "Gibberish" in Egyptian is about one woman's year as a student in Alexandria, Egypt
- Adventures in Cascadia, written by Suzanne Johnson, is about food, travel, and family life the Pacific Northwest
Budget Travel
Green Travel
Food Travel
-
Kristain of londonelicious provides London restaurant recommendations from an American girl who likes food. And London. But not cooking. She also covers other international cities as her wallet permits. Twitter @kristainlondon
-
Sara Rosso blogs at Ms Adventures In Italy about her stomach and the world. She includes food, recipes and travel in and out of the Bel Paese
- Kristin Amico blogs at Offbeat Eating blogs about eating in different cities (and at home) Twitter: @offbeat_eating
-
Lynda Balslev of Taste Food blogs about traveling, cooking, and eating
Accessibility
-
Candy Harrington of Barrier-Free Travel blogs about accessible travel -- travel for people with mobility disabilities, from slow walkers to wheelchair-users.
Travel Stories
-
Natalie shares her travel stories and tips at Travelgrrl34
-
Claudine blogs at vacation-tip and hosts a blog carnival called Destinations
-
Shaula is sharing stories and tips from her open-ended, indefinite US cross country road trip at Mileometer
- Rebecca shares stories about her life as a flight attendant at Gezginim-Gezginim
Filed Under:
blogging
63 comments |
Posted on July 22, 2008 |
Save to del.icio.us
This is a guest post from "Minnemom" at Travels With Children. Minnemom blogs about her roadtrips around the midwest with her four kids (ages 7, 5, 4, and 2). I always enjoy her travel stories, and her site is a great place to research kid friendly ideas in destinations like Iowa, Minnesota, Illinois, North Dakota and South Dakota.
I also want to thank Minnemom for sharing her travel recommendations in our Kid Friendly City Guides. Each one links back to her website where you can get even more information. We are headed to Chicago this fall, and I can't wait to check out these great recommendations with my own kids!
Traveling with four children isn't always easy, but we enjoy spending time together and exploring beyond the borders of our little world. For a one-week vacation, Chicago fit the bill. We had only one travel day on each end, and five days to see all we could of the Windy City. We visited a lot of interesting places and came away with some lasting memories. Here are some of our favorites:
Riding a real, "double-decker" commuter train was a huge event for our boys. They especially liked the return trip when they rode on the upper level. For me, the memories of very nearly missing the train on the way into the city and the kind couple who helped us unload two strollers, four sleeping children, and a day's worth of baby gear on the return trip outweigh the train ride itself.
The
Museum of Science and Industry has been one of my favorites for many years. I loved, however, that the kids remembered a trip there from two years previous, and wanted badly to go back. While we enjoyed so much of the museum, the Idea Factory was the biggest hit with the kids. This hands-on area science discovery area is a lot of fun. With gears, balls, water, pulleys, and more, it's a kid's museum dream-come-true. A toddler area, separated by a low wall, provides a safe play area for the little ones.
As a former Iowan, Grant Wood's artwork has a special place in my heart. We introduced the kids to Grant Wood's American Gothic before going to the
Art Institute, and they were so excited to see it in person. (They had seen spoofs of it but hadn't realized it was an important piece of art.) In the family area of the Kraft Education Center at the Art Institute, we put together an American Gothic puzzle before heading out to the museum to find it as our "I Spy" painting. Several months later, while in Iowa, they asked to go to the
Cedar Rapids Museum of Art to see more of Grant Wood's work. It's fun to see them making connections between different places we've visited.
The Graue Mill is a real piece of history, a working gristmill and formerly a stop on the Underground Railroad. My husband was very interested in the Underground Railroad aspect, and the kids love learning about the "old days." A scavenger hunt in the mill added more interest for the kids, and our oldest even got to help run the mill. It was so peaceful and quiet there, right in the midst of Chicagoland, and the kids really enjoyed it even though it isn't big or glitzy. I love watching their appreciation for history develop.
Minnemom’s Tips for Traveling with Young Children
-
Have a plan in place in case you are separated from your children. I had ID bracelets engraved with our cell phone numbers for each of the kids.
-
Plan ahead if you’re requesting travel information by mail. I requested things a month before our trip, but some didn’t arrive until after we were home again. Here are some other resources for finding Travel Information
- Make a list of all the places you might want to visit. Include location, hours, prices, and contact information, and organize by general locale. Then you can be flexible with your days by looking at a list of nearby attractions and judging what will be best, depending on the needs of your family. We weathered some unexpected changes in plans without any trouble because we had plenty of backups mapped out.
- Do a trial run in your hometown if possible. We went to nearby Minneapolis, parked the car, and took the train downtown to a museum and restaurant. We learned that we needed to remember snacks and sippy cups, as well as what our stroller needs would be for our trip.
- Pack more snacks than you think you’ll need. If restaurants are hard to find or not kid-friendly, snacks like raisins, breakfast bars, juice boxes, can sustain kids for quite a while.
- Follow your kids’ cues. My husband and I would have liked to spend more time at some of the museums, but we left before the kids reached their breaking points. A well-timed car ride can offer some down time for the kids to rejuvenate.
- Consider purchasing memberships at local museums that have nation-wide reciprocity. Our memberships, combined with free days at some museums, meant that we only paid admission at two of the ten attractions we visited. Here are some of my other tips for Family Adventures on a Budget
-
If possible, we stay in one motel for several nights. It seems that the kids are always wound up the first night, but calm down on subsequent nights in the same place. Of course, we also like to stick with a place that has a room big enough for the six of us. Accommodations for Larger Families has more on the subject of finding lodging for larger families.
-
Be sure your kids are traveling safely in appropriate carseats for their age and size. Our easy-to-understand carseat information has links will help navigate the tangle of seat choices and proper installation and use.
- Have fun wherever you end up! A location doesn’t have to be big or popular in order to make great family memories.
Related Links
Kid Friendly City Guide: Chicago With Kids
3 comments |
Posted on July 22, 2008 |
Save to del.icio.us
This was a particularly great week for family travel articles, so this is a longer list than usual, but well worth reading to the end!
I thought we had packing lists covered, but I absolutely LOVED HouseOnHillRoad's idea for creating a visual packing list that even young kids can use to pull together what they need for a trip.
Cruise Lines and Airlines all have policies about traveling while pregnant. Once I was noticeably pregnant, I always got a doctor's note before I traveled, just to avoid any difficulties (and yes, an airline did as for it once). It is important to make sure that you know the airline or cruise line's policy, as this women found out Check the website for details when you book and print a copy to bring with you in case there are any questions or issues on site.
The Orange Country Register has a great article about Tips for Traveling with Children There's some great advice, but what I loved was that it was secretly an article on why you should travel with your kids (beyond just Disney and the beaches) in the first place. If you need inspiration to get started, this is the article you should read.
Are you dreaming of visiting the Egyptian Pyramids in Giza? It's no secret that kids love exactly the type of exploring you get to do on a trip to Egypt. Here is a fun article about a family who visited with their toddler son: Pharoahs, and Pyramids, and Mummies! Oh, My!. My advice? Hire a guide to take you out to the pyramids. Local salaries are low, so although you don't pay much, this is a well paying job for a local. In our experience, a well trained guide made all the difference when we were trying to understand what we were looking at, the sites (especially at Luxor) are so vast that it can be tough to figure out where to look first (or to match up what you are looking at with your guidebook. It can be time consuming to find a good guide once you are in Egypt, and it is worthwhile to reserve in advance through a company that uses only trained guides with a degree in Egyptology.
I'm a huge fan of factory tours, so I liked this story at Gadling about "exclusive" tours of the factory floor at the Jelly Belly Candy Company in Fairfield California (about one hour north of San Francisco and 20 minutes from Napa). They are not cheap, but if you are worried about how your kids will deal with large crowds, want a scheduled start time, or want a more flexible pace than a large tour would allow, this might be a good option. Not so interested in an expensive, exclusive tour? Free 40 minute Jelly Belly Factory Tours are still available too.
Does summer travel make you uncomfortable? There is a great article at CNN about preventing car sickness and an article on Beating JetLag at Consumerist.
Over at Family Travel Sheila Scarborough writes about a visit to the Children's Museum of Houston. We seem to hit a children's museum or science museum on almost every trip we take lately. They are often centrally located, and it's a great way to give the kids some unstructured time to play in a safe environment. That's an especially welcome relief when the weather outside is too uncomfortable for a visit to a playground.
Thanks
Thank You to Fabulous Mommy and Home Based Holidays who both wrote a glowing reviews of DeliciousBaby!
Tipnut linked to our article about why you should pack duct tape when you travel
1 comment |
Posted on July 20, 2008 |
Save to del.icio.us
This is the third in a series of articles with advice for traveling with severe food allergies. The first article contained practical advice from real parents about traveling with food allergies. The second article was about Cruise Travel with Food Allergies.
This is an interview with Dr Brad Weselman of the Kids Health First Pediatric Alliance, a coalition of 34 of the leading independent pediatric practices in Atlanta, with more than 180 participating pediatricians. It includes his helpful advice about traveling with severe food allergies. You can learn more about his practice and more safety tips for caring for children at KidsHealthFirst.com
What advice do you give parents who plan to travel with a child who has severe food allergies?
Plan well in advance and allow time to negotiate with the airline. Book by phone to allow you to convey how serious the child’s allergy is, and find out specifics of the possible carrier's policies regarding peanut-free snacks or a “peanut-free” buffer zone etc.
Choose the first flight of the morning when the plane is the cleanest.
Reconfirm your request multiple times with multiple airline representatives (reservation agents and supervisors, airline caterers and/or the food services department, gate agents, and flight attendants) to make sure items that cause a reaction are not present on the flight or near your seat.
Regardless of the assurances you receive from staff – do not eat airline meals or snacks.
Do you ever recommend that a child not be allowed to fly? How do you make that determination?
Travel is a wonderful experience for a child – whether sight-seeing in exotic locations or just visiting out-of-town relatives. Recommendations restricting airline travel would be on a case-by-case basis and would depend on the how bad the past reactions were, whether they were the result of eating the food, or simply touching or inhaling it. How well and how fast the child responds to their medication is also very important.
Unfortunately, no airline can guarantee an area is completely free of a substance a child is allergic to since it cannot control what passengers bring on flights. Children who have an inhalation-based allergy, one that is "set off" by the child breathing in a very small amount of the substance they are allergic to, might need to be restricted from flying. Thankfully such reactions are relatively rare. The key is to talk with your child’s pediatrician or allergist. Parents need to be comfortable giving their children medication and should be prepared to handle a reaction anytime since they can occur anywhere.
What should parents bring with them on a trip?
Obtain proper documentation of the allergy to be on your person at all times. Bring a note written on your physician’s stationery, documenting the specific food allergy and the need to avoid it.
The information I look for in a patient’s medical records include:
-
The type of allergic reaction (i.e. True anaphylaxis – which means difficulty breathing or swallowing or skin rashes – like hives or urticaria)
- The cause of the reaction (Eating the food or simply touching or inhaling it)
- The treatment prescribed for the reaction (e.g. Benadryl or Atarax by mouth; Injectable epinephrine (Epipen or Epipen JR.))
- The response to the medications and how long the reaction lasted (this allows the physician to know what to expect and how long they will need medication)
- Make sure you have all of your child’s medications and are comfortable administering them. Know the appropriate dosage of your child’s antihistamine—which might be Benadryl or Atarax, depending upon your child’s weight--and be sure the medication has not expired. Check the expiration date of your epinephrine injection and carry at least 4 separate syringes in 2 locations (two on your person – not in the overhead compartment – which you may not be able to get to during a flight) to ensure they are available if needed. Make sure current TSA regulations allow you to carry on these medications and that you have documentation that they are needed.
How do you recommend that parents carry their medical records?
While a zip or thumb drive for a computer with your records may be helpful remember that in an emergency there may not be access to a computer or time to access this information so always have it on paper.
I also recommend a medic alert bracelet documenting the allergy in case you are not with your child and a reaction occurs. This is also recommended for older children.
Most resources recommend that parents arrive at their destination with the name of a pediatric allergist. How do you recommend that families find a good doctor at their destination?
You can obtain recommendations from your local pediatrician or from friends or relatives in the area to which you are traveling if they have a clear idea of your needs. You can also contact local medical schools or societies like the American Academy of Pediatrics to find reputable specialists. You should have the name of a general pediatrician, a pediatric allergist and a pediatric hospital/emergency room. Pediatric specialists and facilities are important because they know the specific doses necessary for children at each weight and have appropriate sized equipment such as IV needles and intubation equipment to assist with breathing if necessary.
What recommendations do you have for eating out in a foreign country?
Call restaurants ahead of time and see if they can meet your needs – if English is not the main language, make sure you have a good interpreter. American based hotels or resort chain restaurants in these areas may be better able to accommodate you than local restaurants.
Once you have arrived at the restaurant, tell the server about the allergy. Ask about ingredients including where and how the food was prepared (for example a pan used previously for shellfish may still have enough in it to cause a reaction) – the kitchen needs to cook with fresh, clean pots, work surfaces and dishes.
Order simple meals without sauces, which can hide foods your child has a reaction to like peanuts or shrimp
If you are uncomfortable with how well your needs can be met, arrange for a room or suite with a kitchenette where you can prepare your own meals.
What steps would a parent take if their child has an allergic reaction on a plane?
Before you travel, make sure you have a clear idea what symptoms you are looking for and speak with your doctor to develop a plan to evaluate and treat the symptoms. Make sure you are very comfortable with the steps and when and how to give a shot of injectable epinephrine. Studies have shown that parents may give this medicine wrong or too late when they are uncomfortable with their use. In an emergency situation a parent’s anxiety level can lead to mistakes. Make sure other adults traveling with you know the plan as well.
Symptoms of a life threatening allergic reaction may include flushing (or turning red), a tickle or tingling in the throat or mouth, an itchy rash, a feeling of the throat closing, difficulty breathing or wheezing, or drooling. If you suspect your child is having a reaction on a plane, have someone notify the flight crew immediately and concentrate on your child who will likely be scared. Give the medications according to your prearranged plan. Have someone else make sure that the flight crew is identifying doctors or nurses on the flight who can help, contacting medical professionals on the ground and/or allowing the pilot to arrange to divert and land the plane if necessary. Do not count on flight attendants to administer the meds as they may not be trained or authorized.
Above all, remain as calm as possible. Concentrate on your child and their welfare and calmly talk to the flight crew. After the situation is controlled and your child is safe and comfortable there will be time to identify how the reaction occurred or to file a complaint if arrangements were not handled appropriately. Be aware that after a reaction has improved, it may come back if the item that caused it has not been found or removed or is still in your child’s system.
What should parents be prepared to do if their child has an allergic reaction at their destination?
On the ground, in addition to the above steps (and the substitution of wait staff or hotel staff for flight crew) activate local Emergency medical systems immediately. If a child has a reaction severe enough to require the administration of epinephrine, they should be evaluated as soon as possible for a persistent reaction requiring further medication and/or hospital observation.
Are any travel immunizations disallowed (or risky) when there is a severe food allergy (e.g. eggs)?
Influenza vaccine (Flu) and Yellow Fever Vaccine (required for travel to Africa and parts of South America) should not be given to patients with severe Egg allergy. Vaccines should not be given if the child had a previous allergic reaction to them or to one of their components. The travel vaccine section of the CDC website can direct you to which vaccines are needed for traveling to specific areas and can advise which vaccines may be safe for your child. As always, talk to your doctor about your plans – in order to be effective, some vaccines or medicines have to be started or given months ahead of time.
Related Links
Tips and Advice for Travel with Severe Food Allergies
Cruising with Food Allergies
Filed Under:
allergies
travel-health
1 comment |
Posted on July 18, 2008 |
Save to del.icio.us
We are headed out on a family trip to New Mexico in a few weeks, and I just realized that this will be the first time E is verbal enough to participate actively in documenting the trip himself. In the past, we have relied on digital pictures, and we often sit down and look at pictures of our trips at the end of a long day.
For this trip, though, I would love to have E take a more active role in deciding what we record. I'm thinking of having him make a little album with favorite pictures after the trip is over, but I'd love to hear what other creative ideas readers have for letting young children record their adventures. Let me know in the comments.
6 comments |
Posted on July 17, 2008 |
Save to del.icio.us
Wondering what you'll sneak out to see and do during BlogHer? Looking for some great neighborhoods to explore, some offbeat experiences, or perhaps the best shopping in town? Here are some of my favorite online resources for planning a trip to San Francisco
Travel Guides
Recent Articles
Kid Friendly
Food
Did I miss one of your favorite Websites, Articles or Blog Posts? Please let me know in the comments!
5 comments |
Posted on July 16, 2008 |
Save to del.icio.us
When it started raining during our planned playground time on our most recent trip to San Francisco, everyone scattered. I took (sleeping) D with me and hit the stores at Union Square while my husband took E to a bowling alley located right in the heart of San Francisco's Yerba Buena Gardens (built on top of Moscone Center).
E, who loves balls as much as any other toddler, was thrilled to practice bowling for the first time, and I love the photos of him in the sweet toddler-sized bowling shoes!
Related Links:
San Francisco With Kids
1 comment |
Posted on July 16, 2008 |
Save to del.icio.us
