family travel seattle

Nashville Parthenon in February 2023

When you find a life size replica Parthenon in Nashville when you least expect it

July 6, 2023

It almost felt like we conjured up a Parthenon in Nashville when we visited for midwinter break. We had just booked our trip to Greece and the kids and I had a handful of days to explore Nashville for mid-winter break while my husband was at a conference. We hadn’t done a lot of research […]

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Seattle mariners stadium in the stadium district one of our cool Seattle neighborhoods

Things to do in Seattle in July

July 3, 2023

It’s summertime in Seattle which means a whole different feel to the city than we have from November through May. Summer is one of the best times to be in Seattle and there are a million things to do in Seattle in July. This is when we experience some of our best weather-often seemingly endless […]

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free things to do in seattle in summer

Free things to do in Seattle in summer

June 29, 2023

Hello Summer, it feels like we’ve waited so long for you and every year you are so fleeting. Summer can also be tres expensive and I’m always looking for fun and free things to do in Seattle and close by. Seattle in summer feels pretty perfect. Free Waterfront Shuttle The Free Seattle Waterfront Shuttle is […]

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metropolitan museum of art in New York and the fountain outside in May

Visiting the Metropolitan Museum of Art for Free in New York thanks to the Seattle Art Museum

June 20, 2023

My family didn’t pay anything to see the Karl Lagerfeld exhibit (it’s there until July 16) or the recently opened Van Gogh exhibit (on display until late August) at the Metropolitan Museum of Art when we visited a few weeks ago. We have a Patron Membership at our Seattle Art Museum and they have a […]

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Guinness Storehouse in Dublin Ireland on a really rainy November day

When your kids choose the Guinness Storehouse over seeing the book of Kells in Ireland and you really don’t blame them

June 15, 2023

I don’t know about you but sometimes when we travel we get a bit museumed out. We can only see so many things in a short period of time before all the sites start to overwhelm our brains. So when we were on a 5 day trip to Ireland I gave my kids the choice […]

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Athenian Residences in Athens Greece a great hotel for families with teenagers

Staying at the Athenian Residences in Athens for the first part of our trip from Seattle to Greece with our teens in April

June 14, 2023

A trip to Greece was one of my family’s dream trips and we finally made it happen this year. It’s a place that does not have a direct flight from Seattle so it is a more difficult type of place to plan a trip from where we live especially if it’s a trip where time […]

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Pike place market in one of our favorite Seattle places if not everyone's

All the Seattle places we like to visit from May to maybe October

June 5, 2023

Why on earth is this Seattle list only for May to October? Is it the weather? Is it school holidays? Or is it because this is the time when all the cruise ships come to our city? From May to October in Seattle, our city feels like we get a little more packed. And I […]

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Olive and Sinclair one of the Nashville Chocolate factories we visited with a tour

Nashville Chocolate Factories you might want to visit if you love seeing how chocolate is made

June 4, 2023

Somehow we’ve made chocolate touring part of our daily adventures and travels. In Seattle we are lucky enough to have at least a handful of incredible chocolate factories near enough to visit. And we’ve looked for chocolate factories in Ireland, in Hawaii (it seems like every coffee farm in Hawaii is growing chocolate now!) and […]

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nashville hot chicken

A Nashville hot chicken tour with my twin teenagers for mid-winter break

May 31, 2023

Timing and life doesn’t always give you what you want, and my husband had a work conference during our mid-winter break in Nashville. Nashville?!! My twin teenagers were not the most enthusiastic about this trip. Being from Seattle, February usually has us dreaming of somewhere warm like Hawaii. And mid-winter break can be a longer […]

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Oia on Santorini for one night on our Greece Trip

A 10 day family Greece trip Itinerary from Seattle with teenagers

May 22, 2023

I wish I could take more credit for this itinerary but I planned very little of this 10 day Greece trip. I didn’t think I’d actually get to go because I was diagnosed with a rare autoimmune disease at the end of last year and I’ve been undergoing treatments. So I didn’t want to plan […]

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vancouver aquarium among things to do in Vancouver

Vancouver, Canada and the Places we Like to Go to when we visit

May 17, 2023

I keep getting asked for where we like to go in Vancouver Canada, and I have old lists for Vancouver with kids and Vancouver with my dog, but I realized recently that I didn’t have a centralized list, so this is where I’m going to put the places we like to go and things we […]

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Camano Island trip with pup and grandma

A mom and me (and pup) trip to Camano Island and an idea for Mother’s Day weekend

April 24, 2023

Not much more than an hour’s drive north of Seattle you can get to a place that feels worlds away. My mom and I recently met midway between Vancouver BC (where she lives) and Seattle, WA (where I live) on Camano Island for a mom and me adventure for an early Mother’s Day celebration. My […]

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bunnies at the bunny cafe in Vancouver BC

A bunny cafe in Vancouver BC worth the drive from Seattle

April 22, 2023

Are you somebunny who loves little rabbits? We actually didn’t try the coffee in this cafe, but I took my niece and nephew to the Bunny Cafe in Vancouver BC and there were bunnies galore. The Bunny Cafe is on Commercial drive, a vibrant street full of shops and cafes and I found it when […]

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Robot coffee in Seattle at Artly made by a barista bot

Robot coffee in Seattle, are you ready for this?

March 19, 2023

Last month, Seatac Airport announced its partnership with Costa Coffee and debuted its 24/7 coffee machine. For anyone who has come through the airport early in the morning or late at night this means that there are still warm drinks available and that is a very comforting thing for travelers. When I heard about another […]

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hidden worlds laika films exhibition at mopop Seattle

Hidden Worlds: The Films of LAIKA World Premiere Exhibition at MOPOP in Seattle

March 17, 2023

Even if you haven’t seen any LAIKA films you’ll probably want to stop by and see this new exhibition at Seattle’s MOPOP, especially if you are curious about how stop-motion movies are made. Hidden Worlds: The films of LAIKA is having its world premiere exhibition at the MOPOP and it will be there through summer […]

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zebras at woodland park zoo in Seattle

Why a Woodland Park Zoo membership in Seattle is a very good idea

March 15, 2023

When is the last time you went to Woodland Park Zoo? I grew up in Vancouver BC, and even though Seattle is a three hour drive away, my parents would always get a membership for the zoo so it was a big part of my childhood and now it’s a big part of my kids’ […]

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Star Wars ride at Disneyland in 2022

It is “worth-it” to book a Disneyland VIP tour if you head to California this year

March 4, 2023

Disney is 100 years old this year. My family is not obsessed with Disney by any means but I do feel Disneyland is a historically significant place to visit (how many places and movies have shaped society the way Disney does?) and it can be a lot of fun. Disneyland is also a place where […]

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Santa Barbara on the Central California coast

An easy weekend getaway from Seattle to the Central California Coast

February 17, 2023

My family was recently hosted by Visit California to see three Central California Coast destinations: San Luis Obispo (which locals call SLO), Oxnard and Santa Barbara. We only had four nights to visit all of these destinations but if you have more or less time you can adapt this trip or even visit one or […]

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The Friends Experience in Seattle at Pacific Place Mall

The Friends’ Experience Seattle: yes, the one where it actually comes to our city.

January 30, 2023

Did you ever watch Friends (and did you know it was almost called six of one)? The Friend’s Experience has come to Seattle and it’s a lot cooler than I imagined (I liked the show but I wasn’t obsessed and I bet I’ve missed some episodes) and it’s something I’d go back to again now […]

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Asean Streat Food Hall Hainanese Chicken Rice

Asean Streat in Westlake Center: a unique place to eat in downtown Seattle

January 17, 2023

We have been needing a food hall like this in Seattle forever and thank goodness Asean Streat has manifested itself in the heart of our downtown. Westlake Center is such a perfect spot in the center of our city, attached to Climate Pledge Arena and Seattle Center with the Monorail. But it’s been a bit […]

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