TRAVEL

things to make with kids out of cardboard

So I built a bridge today, what did you do?

April 12, 2013

Okay so maybe the bridge was built out of cardboard. And it started out with a road we made. After some awesome cardboard pirate ships (or Narnia ships. I love the Ikatbag blog!) I thought I would try to make, but just ended up going simple. After a pancake breakfast that little hands helped make. […]

Art Appreciation at Seattle Restaurant Week

April 11, 2013

The other day the hubby had time to meet for lunch so I scanned some Seattle Restaurant Week offerings that were in the neighborhood. Usually I call ahead to see if a restaurant has a kids’ meal (to find out if it’s kid-friendly or not) and I forgot to this time, but Cuoco has one […]

Gardening with the Littles

April 10, 2013

I love springtime with my guys. They are always finding something new in the garden for us to explore. We recently planted carrots, zucchini,pumpkins, peas and beans and we noticed the other day that the little carrots are starting to grow. We also decided to work on another project. My Camelia bush in the backyard […]

A lovely day for a Blizzard

Normally I wouldn’t welcome a blizzard. I’m not even a total fan of the ones at Dairy Queen, even though they can be quite delightful. But last week we had an especially blustery day and all the cherry blossoms in the neighborhood came down like snow. The boys and I went for a walk […]

Pastry Face (Ken’s Artisan Bakery, Portland)

April 6, 2013

This is the look of a kid who knows a good pain au chocolat at a delicious bakery. Oh and here’s his brother who has also been well-schooled. As a family of world travelers we don’t know all the famous paintings, we don’t often read those exhibit signs at museums or zoos, we sometimes miss […]

Portland with kids Revisited

April 4, 2013

It’s hard to go too long without a visit to one of our favorite Northwest cities: Portland. This city is so fabulously kid-friendly and so fantastically coffee-addict/foodie/site-seeing friendly that we can’t help but adore traveling to Portland with kids. This time we added a couple new stops and I’ll have to remember how fun Easter […]

great membership deal at seattle aquarium with kids

Lovely books to read before you go to the aquarium

April 2, 2013

Oh how much do I love this new book that recently arrived in the mail? Sea Star Wishes: Poems from the Coast has the most delightful poems. They are short and sweet about little things in the ocean like limpets and sea cucumbers and ginormous things like ferries and waves. The neat thing about it […]

Egg-citement

March 28, 2013

A few weeks ago, I couldn’t figure out what a whole line-up of people was lined up for at the market. The line-up was longer than the line-up for Bastille and that one was wrapped around the door! It turns out it was eggs. EGGS! These eggs are so popular at the Ballard Farmers […]

little things getting me through monday

March 25, 2013

Oh Monday morning. Today when I heard the pitter-patter of little feet, I didn’t want to get up so I threw the covers over my head and played a game called “Mommy’s hiding” until the littles gave up trying to find me and started a new game instead. And then I came up with the […]

Maplewood Farm (North Vancouver, BC)

March 23, 2013

A little while ago, we revisited this farm I used to go with my family as a child-it’s very close to downtown Vancouver, maybe about a 20 minute drive. It’s on the way to Mount Seymour too. The day we went the animals were all out and about and there are so many things for […]

While you all head out to American Girl and do your princess-y tea party things

March 20, 2013

Don’t think I’m the least bit envious. See this and realize that this is what my life with two boys looks like: This is the bottom of the actual envelope that’s staring me down from my kitchen table right now. I’m a little scared to open it. Does open immediately mean right now or is […]

How to make a giant gold pull-string pinata

March 19, 2013

There is a steady stream of boxes that arrives at my door each week and I always love finding things I can make with them. Sometimes we make cars. Or forts. Or airplanes. Or little swim goggles for our animal friends. Last week I decided that my parents needed a giant pull-string pinata for their […]

places to find yummy macarons in seattle

Home Sweet Home (60th birthday party in Steveston BC)

March 15, 2013

Technically this is a travel post. My parents turned 60 a little while ago and my sis and I decided to throw a fun 60th birthday party to celebrate. We threw the party at my sister’s home in Steveston British Columbia, Canada. If you’ve never been to Steveston it’s not far from Vancouver and it’s […]

Better than those quarter rides, an adventure at Crossroads mall

March 13, 2013

Quarter rides are great, especially if you go to a place like Crossroads Mall in Bellevue (yes, it’s the same mall where you’ll find the famous Wiggleworks and if you haven’t been to that mall in a while, it’s definitely worth re-visiting) where they’re interspersed through the mall so you can shop, do a ride, […]

Best kids’ bathrooms in Seattle

March 12, 2013

As much as I want to know about where to eat, where to sleep and what to do when we go on vacation, I totally also need to know where to take the kids when they need to go! We were in the midst of toilet-training when we first took the boys to Asia and […]

Leodas Kitchen and Pie Shop (Lahaina, Maui)

March 11, 2013

Maybe this should be called the day I wanted pie so badly I talked up the petroglyphs behind the pie store to get it. (Thank goodness for these petroglyphs!) We passed Leoda’s on the way to Lahaina from Kihei and I saw people lined up outside as we whizzed by to another destination so I […]

Eating pupus with preschoolers in Maui

March 5, 2013

“Check out these pupus!” I told my husband. “They look pretty yummy and they’re so reasonable!” POOPOOS! The duo cheered. Oh dear. Not the kind of pupus I was talking about. But really, I should have cheered too. Happy hour is the way to go in Maui. And actually, in so many places we travel […]

Road to Hana with two active boys (Maui with kids)

February 27, 2013

For some reason the Road to Hana is like some holy Grail in Maui. Can you drive it with kids? Should you drive the road if you’re in Maui with kids? What are the best Road to Hana stops? Is it going to be a day of fun, or a day full of whining, screaming, […]

Before I ward off Winter Completely (Granville Island, BC)

February 23, 2013

One of my fondest memories as a kid was getting hot chocolate at Blue Parrot Coffee with my family at Granville Island in Vancouver. They put the best dollop of chocolate-y whip cream on top of their drinks and on a chilly day there is nothing more delightful than a warm drink in a warm […]

Most Romantic Resort with kids in Maui (Napili Kai Beach Resort, Maui)

February 22, 2013

Last summer I went to a Maui tourism event and I was intrigued by a resort called Napili Kai. They were really proud of the fact that they didn’t nickel and dime their guests with hidden costs like resort or parking fees. When you stayed with them, you were supposed to feel like family. Fast […]