Lest we forget what it means for the *entire* family to be together on an important occasion. . . including the kids.
Happy one year anniversary Sheila and Jason!
Related Links
Why We Travel (Part 1)
Why we Travel (Part 2)
Reasons to Travel with Kids
What is 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, and make it big enough to see well!
- 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'm heading down to San Francisco today for my dad's memorial service (my parents lived in the Bay Area since 1978 and had moved up to Seattle for my father's cancer treatment just recently, so it makes sense to celebrate his life with his close friends and co-workers nearer to their home). This is going to be an emotional trip for sure, so I thought I'd steel myself by sharing a picture of happier times.
Here's a shot from the last trip we took with the whole family (my parents, my family, and my brother's family). A tree at the resort we visited was strung with Turkish amulets against the evil eye. It was beautiful and slightly magical feeling. A wonderful discovery as we explored the territory. Looking at this picture now helps bring back the calm and ease I felt during that trip.
Do you ever return to your travel pictures to cheer you up in difficult times?
What is 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, and make it big enough to see well!
- 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've been unwinding in the evenings by watching the Olympics, have you? All the London scenery brings back fond memories of our last trip to London. It was an unplanned trip, we were stranded by an ash cloud for 10 days, but instead of pining away for home we made the most of our time. Here we are relaxing in the sunshine at Princess Diana Memorial park. I just love how happy we all look to be together on a sunny day. True, we could be anywhere in the world, but every time I see pictures of London it brings back this memory for me.
Related Links
London with Kids City Guide
What is 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, and make it big enough to see well!
- 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.
My father passed away on July 11th after a very long fight with lung cancer. I've been thinking about him a lot, and about what he tried to teach me, and what I learned from him. I know I'll come back to writing on my blog soon, and I hope you'll stick with me until then. It feels a little surreal to think of writing about the fun we've had in the world now that my family has lost an important member.
This week, instead of a picture about a destination, I wanted to post a picture of the last time all the Dubrows were together. Sometimes in all the excitement of planning a trip, scheduling the experiences, dreaming about the food and taking in the magic of a new place it's easy to forget why we do it all... for the pure joy that comes from experiencing it all with the people you love most in the world. At its root, this is what family travel means to me.
What is 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, and make it big enough to see well!
- 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.
It looks urban and otherworldly at the same time. Who can tell me where Everest is running in this picture?
What is 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, and make it big enough to see well!
- 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.
It's one of my favorite road trip hacks - the Pet Shop Pit Stop. They're open early, and close late. Almost every town has one, and the kids get a chance to stretch their legs and look at something interesting without pestering me to buy a thing.
Related Links
Finding Something to Do Where There Are No Big Attractions
What is 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, and make it big enough to see well!
- 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.
We've all heard the "expert" advice for Disneyland, arrive early, bring a stroller, plan to wait in line. I thought it would be fun to ask travel bloggers who've visited with their own kids for advice that goes against the conventional wisdom.
End the Summer at Disneyland
Summer is one of the busiest times at Disneyland BUT the week before Labor Day Weekend is slow and not crowded. Parent-tested 3 years in a row. We just walked onto most rides over and over again.
Kristi Marcelle,
Ciao Bambino
Park Hop When Extra Magic Hours End
"Don't go to the specified park for Extra Magic Hours, UNLESS you plan to leave it to park hop after the hour is over. If you stay all day, the regular visitors arrive on top of the resort guests, making it the more crowded park."
Amy Hagstrom Whitley,
Pitstops for Kids
You Don't Have to Do it All
Linda Wolfgram Kramer It is possible to have a very enjoyable Disneyland experience without doing any of the following: character meet & greet/autographs, pin trading, Princess Fantasy Faire, parades, World of Color. Plus, if you're not standing in line waiting for all of these things, you'll have a lot more time to go on all the rides. I think this is especially true for first-time visitors.
Linda Wolfgram Kramer,
Travels With Children
Get a great seat at the parade
I would think the average person who wants to get a good spot during the parade would line up on the curbs quite early (At least that is what I see every time I visit the park). My advice: "Wait until the very last second to join the parade crowd and head over to where people have been waiting on benches, avoiding Main Street. Everyone scoots up closer to the curb as the parade is coming by, leaving plenty of room to sneak under the rope and within close view of all the action.
Sharlene Armstrong Earnshaw,
Trekaroo
Skip Naptime
Everyone says you should go back to your hotel midday to swim or nap. My advice--be there before the gates open and stay as late as your kids can make it. Why waste time at the hotel when you've paid to be at the happiest place on earth?
Linda Wolfgram Kramer,
Travels With Children
Hit the Small Rides First
We found it was better to do Dumbo and some other Fantasyland rides early instead of going straight to Space Mtn, Splash Mtn, etc. Both get more crowded as the day goes on but the bigger rides have the FastPass.
Kristen Stewart
Be Sure You're Ready for Soarin'' Over California?
Linda Wolfgram Kramer Contrary to popular belief, not everyone loves Soarin' Over California. If IMAX movies give you trouble, Soarin' may as well. I speak from experience.
Linda Wolfgram Kramer,
Travels With Children
Take it Slow
As a season pass-holder, my advice would be to take the park slowly. My favorite memories are of visiting the park with my toddler son and just crusing around Main Street. The flowers were gorgeous, I soaked up the sun while he toddled around and then we watched the Main Street band march down the street. Mickey Mouse came out and found us sitting on a bench and sat by us for a while. We may have made it as far as the carousel that day, but we simply sat in front of it for about 30 minutes while he snacked on his goldfish. It wasn't always easy to be a patient and "slow" mom but those happy days got soaked into my brain and I would love to do them again.
Michelle McCoy,
Trekaroo
Love the Rain
I've experienced Disneyland in the rain. It's incredible as you are forced to discover all the little hideaways to stay dry, And Not busy as the place clears out!
Anne Taylor Hartzel,
HipTravelMama
They're Never too Young
Visit when your kids are really little because you can be the boss of the itinerary. When they get older they start having a say, which can be annoying ;) Also, when they're really little they're too short for all the big rides, so the super long waits attached to them aren't an issue, unless you really want to go on them !
Corinne McDermott,
Have Baby Will Travel
Go to the Left
We did a VIP tour last year and her big advice was to always go left when you enter a park. Human nature is to go right and if you go in when it opens and go left, you'll get some "no line" time. Also don't forget the rider switch with fast passes.
Kim-Marie Evans,
LuxuryTravelMom
More Tips
Taking Pictures of Fireworks
Ten Activities near Disneyland that Kids and Adults will Enjoy
Related Links
Cars Land's Route 66 in Pictures
Orange County and Disneyland with Kids
Cars Land Rides: Radiator Springs Racers
Cars Land Rides: Luigi's Flying Tires
Cars Land Rides: Mater's Junkyard Jamboree
Bravery at Disney's California Adventure
Cars Land Preview: A sneak peek before the Cars Land Grand Opening
Filed Under:
california-adventure
disney
disneyland
9 comments |
Posted on July 9, 2012 |
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Radiator Springs Racers is Cars Land's "E-Ticket" ride, and the one that kids tall enough to ride it will likely be most excited about. It's at the very end of Route 66, so you'll pass Luigi's Flying Tires and Mater's Junkyard Jamboree on the way. My advice is that you pick up your Radiator Springs Racers Fastpass before you visit the other rides (at this writing, fastpasses are selling out early in the morning and many people line up when the park opens.)
Radiator Springs Racers was, without a doubt, my favorite ride in Cars Land. It's an exhilarating ride through the New Mexico inspired rockworks that envelops Cars Land. My son Everest (age 7) loved it too. Darya (age 5) enjoyed parts of it, but thought it was a little too fast and decided not to ride it a second time. Eilan is far to young for the ride, but just loved watching from the sidelines. You can overlook the track during lunch at Flo's V-8 Cafe or walk along in front of the race track and watch as the cars speed by.
As with everything else in Cars Land, the details here are incredible, and I met people who were riding again and again, hoping to take it all in. It makes sense, then, that Radiator Springs Racers is the most expensive to be built in the entire Disneyland Resort at an estimated cost of over $200 million. Here are some of the vignettes you'll see as you make your way through the ride line.
After you climb into your 6-person car, you'll have a brief meeting with Doc and Lightning McQueen. Then, suddenly, you are off to the races, competing against another guest car as you wind through and around the landscape. The winner is selected randomly, which ads an extra measure of anticipation to the ride.
And then it's done, the race winner is announced, and you walk at a leisurely pace back through the rockworks to the ride's entrance, where you'll be tempted to do it all over again!
Related Links
Cars Land Rides: Luigi's Flying Tires
Cars Land Rides: Mater's Junkyard Jamboree
Cars Land's Route 66 in Pictures
Orange County and Disneyland with Kids
Bravery at Disney's California Adventure
Cars Land Preview: A sneak peek before the Cars Land Grand Opening
Disney paid for my flight to Orange County, a hotel room at the Grand Californian Hotel, and gave my family advance admission to Disney's California Adventure so that we could check out all the new attractions that have been added over the past few years. They did not ask that I express that any particular point of view.
Filed Under:
california-adventure
cars-land
disney
6 comments |
Posted on July 7, 2012 |
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I want to thank everyone who entered my giveaway to win a Four park passes that can be used at Disneyland or Disney's California Aventure. Thank you to everyone who contributed.
The randomly selected winner was Robert who won by
signing up for my monthly newsletter.
Robert, please send me your mailing address to receive your prize!
Thank you to Tours4Fun who generously sponsored this giveaway and sells Disneyland Park Passes (and other tours and attractions) at discounted prices.
Didn't win this time? Subscribe to DeliciousBaby or "like" DeliciousBaby on Facebook so that you don't miss a thing.
Related Links:
Cars Land Grand Opening
Family Travel City Guides list hotels, restaurants and activities in cities around the world
Filed Under:
giveaways
0 comments |
Posted on July 6, 2012 |
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I'm a total food snob at home, but I'll admit - I love everything about road trip food!
Related Links:
Meals and Snacks on your Family Vacation
How to Find a Kid Friendly Restaurant YOU Will Enjoy
What is 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, and make it big enough to see well!
- 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.
