photo friday: window shopping in nyc
After skating and breakfast at Rockefeller Center and then at various times during the day, we had a hour or two to spend. We spent it window shopping. Some time in the Nintendo store playing. Some time at American Girl reminiscing. Some time at the Lego store adding to the wish list. And time at
photo friday: skating at rockefeller center
While planning our Thanksgiving week in New York City, I thought it might be fun for the girls to get a chance to skate at Rockefeller Center. The idea of standing in a line to do so was not attractive to me, so instead I signed us up for the Perfect Start. The pakcage included
photo friday: coney island
After our afternoon at Prospect Park, we hoped on the subway to the beach. The subway to the beach! Though it was dark and chilly, we walked down to the water at Coney Island just to look out over the dark horizon. Hungry, we stopped in at Nathan’s for our helping of fried food. A
photo friday: prospect park
After an earlier morning flight from ATL to LGA and a short taxi ride to Prospect Heights, we dropped our bags at our home away from home for the next few days. As it wasn’t quite ready for us, I managed to drag the family right back out for our first adventure. Being a lovely
photo friday: national zoo
It is rare that we make a trip to DC and skip the zoo, not even for bad weather. In the past few years, we’ve certainly been there more often than our own zoo here in Atlanta. I think Chloe’s favorite place on earth is the reptile house at the National Zoo; I can’t tell
photo friday: u.s. capitol
Since we haven’t been to the Capitol for years, not since before the opening of the new Visitor’s Center, I though we’d squeeze in a Capitol tour as well. While the same aide that got us tickets to the White House got us tickets to the Capitol, he reserved them before we knew when the
photo friday: white house tour
Back when I was a kid, taking a tour of the White House was no more complicated than taking a tour of any other historic site. These days, planning ahead and being flexible are a must for a tour. Six months to 21-days before your trip (earlier is always better as tours fill up) you
photo friday: washington monument
Despite our quite numerous extended trips up to DC, especially the year that Rob had an apartment there, we never made it to the Washington Monument. To correct this neglectfulness, as soon as I arranged to hopefully have a White House tour, I booked tickets at the Washington Monument. And not a moment too soon.
photo friday: univesral studios
Although we spent the vast majority of our time on our short September break trip to Universal at Diagon Alley and our Cabana Bay Resort Hotel, we did visit the rest of the two Universal theme parks.
photo friday: diagon alley
Having loved our visits to Hogsmeade at Universal, the moment we heard about Diagon Alley opening, we put a trip on our plans. As with our past trips, we decided to go during the girls’ September break. The parks are at their least crowded since most of the rest of the country is just back
photo friday: universal’s cabana bay
While planning our September break trip to Diagon Alley, I went back and forth about staying at the off-property hotel that we’ve stayed at twice in the past and an on-property hotel. While the benefits of staying on property are many, the cost is significant. Was it worth it to pay that much more? I’m
photo friday: fun in panama city beach
Once we parked the car at the hotel in PCB, I vowed to not use it again until it was time to leave. Between the hotel pool and the nearby activities, that was not a problem. We walked next door to play mini-golf. We walked across the street for ice cream and pizza. We “shopped”
photo friday: panama city beach
Of course, our main reason for visiting Panama City Beach is the beach! The sand is soft and the water lovely. Unfortunately, the gulf had a lot of seaweed, so we did most of our swimming in the pool. In any case, we love walking on the beach, hearing the waves, and relishing the beauty
photo friday: holiday inn panama city beach
Looking at photos from trip that we took almost four months ago brings some warmth into this chilly day. This past summer, I wanted to get to the beach at least once, so I took the easy route – returning to the Holiday Inn Resort at Panama City Beach, a place we had visited a
photo friday: buildings in amsterdam
And for the final Photo Friday from Amsterdam — now over six months since we returned from our trip — I focus on the the tall, narrow buildings that line the streets and canals. While most have a similar form, each is unique. The result is a lovely one!
photo friday: canals in amsterdam
It’s so hard to envision the canals of Amsterdam if you’ve never seen them for yourself. The idea that bikes, boats, cars and pedestrians can navigate the city and that people live in boats is a bit hard to really get a good feeling for from afar!
photo friday: bikes in amsterdam
What do you think of when you think of Amsterdam? For me, the second thing after canals is bikes. Bikes, bikes, bikes. And after our short visit, my girls now think the same. “Look at all the bikes…just like Amsterdam!” (in reference to bike commuting in DC which, while, growing does not rival Amsterdam).
photo friday: amsterdam signs
Visiting a foreign place where another language is spoken, the signs are always a source of amusement. What do they mean? What are we supposed to learn to do or not do? And even the ones in English can be fun to look at when they are so different from what we are used to
photo friday: anne frank house
On a conference call, so long ago, a coworker mentioned that airlines will allow for a lyover of less than 24 hours without added cost. As we worked to use our miles to book tickets to Greece, this fact crept into my mind. Where would we connect through (Delta doesn’t fly direct to Athens). Paris?
photo friday: santorini buses
Santorini, while small, is too big to get around on foot, so we learned quickly how to use the buses. From what we could tell, all routes ran through the main town, Thira. To get from one city to another, the general route was to take a bus to Thira and then a second bus
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