by Pam | Jan 15, 2020 | Disney, Everyday Adventures, travel
It may be cold and snowy where you are right now, but Spring Break will be here before you know it. If you haven’t started thinking about Spring Break yet, now is the time to do so – the one year I put off Spring Break planning until February was the year we ended up not going anywhere exciting – it was just too late to book what we wanted. So to help you out, here are 5 GREAT spring Break ideas for families: Go for Warm Hit the beach. After a long, bitterly cold winter, there is something extra special about a sunny beach. Living in the Midwest we tend to visit Florida beaches often. Vero Beach, Daytona Beach, Pompano and Clearwater are all favorites. If you are closer to the west coast, consider the San Diego area. Even if it’s not warm enough for the adults to play in the ocean, I bet the kids will brave the cool waters. If you head far enough south, it will definitely be perfect for being outside and swimming in a heated pool. If you do decide to plan a trip to the beach, check out this post on Beach Essentials to make sure you bring everything you need for a perfect beach vacation. Theme Parks. Walt Disney World is an all-time favorite for my family. Even if we take a beach vacation, we often tack on a few days at Disney to help break up the drive (and get our money’s worth out of those annual passes)! If Disney isn’t your thing, how about Universal Studios or Busch Gardens?...
by Pam | Jan 8, 2020 | Everyday Adventures, Indiana, travel
Do you read poetry? I don’t read it often, but that doesn’t mean I don’t appreciate good literature. My latest Explore Indiana adventure took me to the hometown of one of Indiana’s most famous poets – James Whitcomb Riley. Visiting Greenfield, IN in Hancock county definitely made me curious about this poet as I love learning while I’m exploring. He’s best known for his dialect and children’s poems. Once he began regularly selling his poems he also started traveling around the country (mainly the Midwest and East Coast) giving performances and lectures. These did quite well for him and he was able to enjoy some success during his life, unlike that of many other poets. His most famous poems include “The Raggedy Man” and “Little Orphant Annie.” Just a few miles away from Fortville (remember all those delicious restaurants located there?), Greenfield is a typical Indiana town set up as a square around a beautiful courthouse. (I’ve seen so many gorgeous courthouses as a part of this challenge that I feel like I totally need to do a post just on them!). I was pleased to discover that Greenfield’s town square is one of the more vibrant areas I’ve discovered. It always makes me happy to see local downtown’s thriving. We visited Greenfield on a crazy, blustery day. In fact, it was so bitterly cold that we couldn’t stay outside long. Our first stop (to help alleviate the cold weather) was the local coffee shop. Thanks to my daughter’s search on Yelp, we discovered The Greenfield Grind. What a perfect place to sit down with a laptop and get...
by Pam | Jan 1, 2020 | Everyday Adventures, Goals, Indiana, travel
How can it be 2020 already? Somehow it snuck up on us, so now is the time to decide how we want the new year to look like. That means setting my 2020 travel blog goals. Last year, I created a pretty lofty list of goals and I’m happy to report I completed most of them – I’ve updated the post with my final results, so if you are curious you can check the post out here. Now that I’ve been travel blogging for about a year and a half, I have a much better feel for what’s important to me and how I’d like this blog to grow. So, although I have fewer goals this year, I think they more focused (and probably overall more work). I’ve found that sharing my goals helps me to remember them AND to follow through, so here goes: Grow my email list to 1000. I’ve not had much success in the past growing my email list, so this is a BIG stretch for me, but I feel that it’s critical to take my blog to the next level.Grow pageviews to 30K per month. Another really big stretch goal, but I’d like to apply for Mediavine and so this one is a must. Hopefully, the first two goals here will go hand in hand.Visit 24 Indiana counties. As part of my Explore Indiana project, I need to keep exploring Indiana! I don’t foresee any issues with this once the weather warms up, but judging by this year, the winter months may be tough. And that’s it! Since my goals are so big (for...
by Pam | Dec 25, 2019 | Everyday Adventures, Food, Relaxation, restaurant, travel
I’m sure you’ve heard of winery trails and brewery trails. They seem to be everywhere these days. However, recently I’ve started hearing about donut trails. Since we don’t have an official one near us, I thought it would be fun to create my own. So grab your travel mug of coffee and join me to create your own donut trail. Donut shops seem to be popping up left and right in our area. I think it’s because it’s a fun and affordable treat, and who doesn’t like a good donut, right? We have quite a few new ones nearby so if you like donuts, this would be the perfect way to spend a free day. Rebellion Doughnuts The first stop is Rebellion Doughnuts. It’s been on my radar as a place to check out since it opened less than a year ago. The restaurant is quite close to our house so it’s an ideal place to start this adventure. The interior has a funky industrial feel and in addition to fresh coffee, they have kombucha on tap. It’s perfect if you like a fizzy drink with your doughnuts. All the doughnuts are made fresh each morning and the flavors are interesting and unique. My son tried a bubble gum flavor (it really did taste like bubble gum and he loved the piece of gum to enjoy afterward) and I loved the lemon filled. Not only are the doughnuts delicious, but they are also pretty too – which is always a nice touch. I can easily see this becoming an addition to our weekly breakfast date. Jack’s Donuts Jack’s Donuts...
by Pam | Dec 18, 2019 | Disney, Everyday Adventures, restaurant, travel
When we visit Walt Disney World, we’ve found that the best way to enjoy our time at the park is to pause in the middle of the day for a leisurely table service meal. It gives us a chance to rest and regroup. If it’s hot we can cool off, and we don’t have to worry about anyone getting hangry. We’ve tried almost every restaurant, so here are what we consider the best table service restaurant at each Walt Disney World Park. Insider Tip: Disney often offers FREE dining when you stay on-site. To be alerted of when it’s available, sign up for my Disney Fun Newsletter. Every month you’ll get notice of the BEST deals for your Disney vacation – including when FREE dining is offered. The Magic Kingdom I used to think there wasn’t anything good to eat at the Magic Kingdom, but with a bit of experimenting, I have changed my tune. It started when we took an afternoon break at Tony’s Town Square Restaurant with a fresh salad and wine. Then we discovered we could watch the parade from the patio. Magic Kingdom food started to feel quite a bit better! Last year, however, we discovered one of our favorite overall Disney restaurants and it’s IN the Magic Kingdom. The Jungle Navigation Co. LTD Skipper Canteen. The place is a little bit hidden in Adventureland, but it’s quite near the Jungle Cruise and The Swiss Family Robinson. The decor is similar in feel to the old Adventurer’s Club (anyone remember that?), and the staff is well versed in hokey jokes and one-liners. The first time...
