Archive | TRAVEL AND BOOKS

I love three day weekends, they are just long enough to get away for a few days but not so long that there is a ton of planning, packing, and traveling involved. Over President’s Day weekend, I really wanted to reconnect with my family through a winter camping trip. So, we packed a bag, hooked up the R.V. and started a road trip to Anastasia State Park in St. Augustine, Florida. While we expected that the weekend was going to be chilly – a crisp 65°, I knew that it would be the perfect weather for hiking, the farmer’s market and campfires!

Here is a little photo tour of our weekend:

Day 1: Old City Farmer’s Market + St. Augustine Beach
We were excited to hear that the St. Augustine Farmer’s Market was a nice, forested walk and just outside of the campground. Luckily, we had checked before to see if we could take Noodles (our Pug) because this was the first thing we saw when we entered the Farmer’s Market:

Isn’t that funny? The mister and Eben couldn’t get over it, because that is the face Noodles gives us whenever we tell her no. She stayed in the camper during the farmer’s market and took a nap – which I don’t think she minded. Ha!

I was super impressed with the amount of local and organic farmers and local artisans at the farmer’s market. I will be sharing my favorites in an upcoming post, so check back. Anytime we hit the farmer’s market Eben has to pick up his favorites, homemade cider donuts and fresh lemonade!

After the farmer’s market, we spent the day walking St. Augustine beach. It was cold – we were bundled up and didn’t see many other people. Anastasia State Park is a protected bird sanctuary consisting of 1,700 acres and five miles of sandy beaches. The wind was blowing sand into the foot prints ahead of us, it looks like spirits floating out to sea. Super cool. We sat on the beach, chatted, ate our lunches, admired the sand dunes and walked some more – it was so peaceful and calm.

We finished up the day as usual with a campfire and smores, it was perfect!

Day 2: Castillo de San Marco  + St. Augustine Tour

Castillo de San Marcos National Monument is the oldest masonry fort in the continental United States and is located in St. Augustine. We always enjoy touring historical sites when we camp – remember a couple of years ago when we visited Mesa Verde, Colorado? It is a great way for children to get hands-on experience about subjects they have learned in school. It was neat to hear the different tidbits that Eben knew about the history of the fort and St. Augustine and he even showed me the steps involved in using a cannon. 

After visiting the fort, we decided to do a little exploring of America’s Oldest City – naturally, our first stop was Bon Ami Confections – the sign alone begged me to enter! (I will share more of this sweet little shop in an upcoming post too.) We had to grab a couple of treats for our walk – we really enjoyed the ancient cemeteries, homes, and the history around every corner. 

My only complaint and this is with most old towns that I have visited, this sweet little town has become super commercialized, because of this, we always ask locals where the best places to eat, and the must see places are – and try to avoid any tourist traps. 

That is a little peek at our weekend, you can see more photos on my instagram.
 How did you spend President’s Day weekend?

I am always impressed with the products that I hear are being produced using 3-D printing. One of my favorites so far, is the 3-D printed eco-friendly economy car Jim Kor of Kor Eco Logic is printing – he had 14 orders! 

Kor is an engineer from Winnipeg, Manitoba who has designed a small two-passenger hybrid car known as the Urbee. It has a meal internal combustion engine, electric motor and frame. The Urbee was manufactured using a Stratasys Fortus printer, which prints the Urbee in 50 large blocks.

So far, it looks as though cost is a concern with the Urbee, since printing the whole car takes 2,500 hours, or nearly 3 months. However, pricing should decrease once 3-D printing becomes more mainstream.

What do you think of the Urbee concept? Or the concept of printing cars in general?

via Twin Cities

With the holiday season right around the corner, you may have already started to plan your travel arrangements. And while traveling with children is always fun – it can be challenging if your child becomes bored and restless, especially when it comes to long car trips or flights. As a parent you are fully aware that being prepared for that ever dreaded question “Are we there yet?” is essential, regardless of the age of your children.

I have found that with my own middle schooler Eben, the biggest challenge is finding a way to entertain him that doesn’t include him getting sucked into an iPod, portable DVD player or handheld video game. By doing a little homework ahead of time, I can almost always ensure that getting to our travel destination is one of his favorite parts. I have learned over time that by turning our travel time into part of the vacation experience, he not only doesn’t complain, but he learns something new (I do too!) and he is kept entertained the entire trip. Plus, as an added bonus, these simple tips always double as great bonding activities! Jump over to Inhabitots to learn my tried and true 6 simple, eco-friendly ways to travel with a middle schooler and find that getting there is part of the fun.

photo credit Andrew Currie via Inhabitots