adventure and travel to discover the unknown and uncommon…with kids
We had driven by the park many many times; flying by the exit on our way up north. The sign, beckoning visitors to stop, faded more and more as the years passed. Finally, one warm May day we decide to stop and look around. We turned in to the large parking lot, now covered with potholes and weeds, and drove down a rutted road; heading back in time. Continue reading “abandoned places: frontier town”
Can you still remember that feeling? It was the main topic of conversation at school all day. You actually watched the evening news so you could see the weather report. Homework was more difficult than usual to focus on because you were sure that it wasn’t going to matter because, rumor had it, that the next day would be a snow day! Continue reading “snow day”
Going skiing seemed like a great idea at the time. There were two snowfalls within a week and all of the local resorts were finally open. It sounded great on December 30th anyway when we made plans with friends to go skiing on New Year’s Day. It was another story on January 1st.
After not getting to bed until 2am on New Year’s Eve, morning came all too quickly. We groaned as the winter sun began to filter into our bedroom and wondered if skiing really was such a good idea. But, we were meeting friends, so we were committed.
We headed 15 minutes down the road to Mountain Creek in Vernon, NJ. Yes, I said New Jersey. Please don’t laugh. There really are mountains in New Jersey…kind of.
Pinterest. Every once in a while I enjoy going on the site and checking out all the new pins. So many amazing craft and recipe ideas. The problem is, I’m not crafty nor do I enjoy to cook …at all! So I look, admiring all the beautiful creations, knowing it will never be me. I pin sometimes too, thinking just maybe I can actually create it. I get sucked in by the pictures, everything looks so beautiful and, well, easy.
Then I actually make the item that I have pinned. The result: Pinterest fail! Why? Because I still am not crafty and I still do not enjoy to cook! Continue reading “this cookie party brought to you by Pinterest”
Today’s generation of kids is called the hyper-parented generation. Like never before, parents today attempt to do everything they can to protect their children. In today’s world safety is a god.
I recently read a parody of the book Goodnight Moon in The New Yorker. It is very funny! You can read it here. The last lines in the poem state:
Goodnight wipes warmer and yoga mat, HEPA filter and sun hat,
Sunscreen, sunglasses, sleep sack, outlet cap, sleep coach, G &T , star charts, consumer reports,
Vitamin D, anything with Omega-3, French au pair, filtered air and—
Goodnight alpha parents everywhere.
Satire? Maybe, but reality is not too far off. Continue reading “are your kids too clean?”
It’s one of the biggest controversies of the Christmas season. Real tree vs artificial tree. Everyone has an opinion. And then there are sub-controversies. If you go real, do you cut it down at a tree farm of pick up a pre-cut tree from a road side stand? If you go artificial then do you get the tree pre-lit or add the lights yourself? It’s a lot of decisions to make at such a busy time of year! Continue reading “real or fake? a Christmas controversy”
I’ll admit it, I’m slightly obsessed with caves. It’s the adventure of it. Traveling deep into the earth, not knowing what you will find. Often these caves are hidden in plain sight. Exploring them is like being let in on a secret not known by many. So, when a friend of ours offered to take us to one of these hidden caves we jumped at the chance.
My family met up with our friend and his son, jumped in a car together, and drove the short distance to a pull off along the road. It’s a busy road, connecting two major roads in our county. I drive on the road quite often, zipping past homes, lakes, restaurants, and a school never realizing there is a large cave just out of sight. The trees are dense here, but this time of year, with the leaves all long gone you can peer back into the woods and spot tall cliffs. In front of the cliffs the ground heaves up creating small berms and rocky rolling hills. These berms hide the secret of what lays beyond the road and forest. Continue reading “hidden places”
I live in New Jersey. Now I know what you’re picturing when you hear “New Jersey”: big cities, lots and lots of people, gangs, the Thruway, garbage, the mafia, etc. This is not the New Jersey I live in. I live in rural New Jersey. No, this is not an oxymoron, it really exists! Way up in the Northwest corner of the state is farmland and mountains and lakes and…people without teeth!?? You see, while the rest of the country laughs at New Jersey, New Jersians laugh at us! According to them, my county has more cows than people, family trees that don’t fork, and the dirt roads are full of lifted pick-ups with gun racks and dead deer hanging out the back. In other words, we are a bunch of rednecks! Continue reading “where the family tree don’t fork”
Today I drove down a road that cut through a large section of pine trees. At least 75% of the trees lay on the ground, snapped by the winds from Hurricane Sandy. Electrical wires were everywhere, entwined in the branches. It was a very strong reminder that we have a long way to go. “Normal” is a long way off.
Snow covers the ground today. Snow! A Nor’easter a week after a hurricane. I heard someone joke that next week is the plague of locust. It can feel that way. Many many people still do not have power. Gas lines are still long. Schools are still closed. Yet I have witnessed a lot more positive than negative. Continue reading “hurricane…nor’easter….what’s next… locust?”
Hurricane Sandy and I now have a one week relationship. It started last Wednesday down in the Dominican Republic. We were touring a school that the mission I was down there with ran when the rains came. Monsoon like white sheets of driving rain. The noise was deafening on the metal roof and the streets were almost instantly flooded. We spent the next day and a half trapped in our hotel due to flooding, wind, downed trees, and overflowing septics. Continue reading “life after sandy”
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