Category: Kids

Red Arrow Dinah and Dorr’s Pond Park, Manchester, NH

Day Trips, Diners, Hikes, Kids, New Hampshire

This week the diner we chose was the Red Arrow Diner in Manchester, NH.  It is rich in history as many presidential candidates have eaten here while campaigning, so we were grateful to come outside of the political season.  The Diner, or “Dinah” is clearly very popular, as there was a line (albeit short) the whole time we were there.  Lydia ordered the “Queen Dinah” breakfast, which was served on two plates.  The food was absolutely delicious, perfect and fresh and generous.  The girls preferred the atmosphere of Miss Flo’s last week, but honestly the food here was better, and perhaps if we had visited at 3pm instead of 11am it might have been quieter!

As usual, we looked for a short hike or activity, and found the nearby Dorr’s Pond Park.  A short 1 mile hike felt much longer as the first 1/3 mile was a complete sheet of ice.  Pretty nevertheless, and I’m sure it is even prettier in any month other than January!

 

Plymouth Jetty

Day Trips, Hikes, Kids, Massachusetts

So often I have time to explore with Lydia, but today it was just me and Lieren!!  She wanted to go to Plymouth, and was even willing to walk the full Jetty, which is something I have not been able to convince either of the girls to do in the past.  It was high noon, so sun was bright.  The day was about portraits and seagulls!

Halloween Parties

Halloween, Kids, Massachusetts

This post isn’t so much about an actual destination but about finding your Halloween wherever you are.  As someone who has hated this holiday for years (clowns jumping out aren’t really festive, if you ask me), I do enjoy a controlled party!

Franklin Park Zoo

Day Trips, Kids, Massachusetts

It’s been awhile since we’ve gone to the zoo, since the girls were rather impatient when they were younger.  Now that they are teenagers though, they are much happier strolling through the zoo.  We bought a season pass so we can enjoy up with Zoo Lights in the winter months!!  We spent just as much time chasing butterflies and bees as we did with the larger animals!

Jamestown

Day Trips, Hikes, Kids, Lighthouses, Rhode Island

It’s always nice to visit some local haunts off-season, before the crowds!  We traveled to Beavertail State Park and then Fort Wetherill in Jamestown, Rhode Island.  I imagine this is a very busy place during the “in-season”.  The water was beautiful, the green almost looking like the Caribbean!

Meg’s Shower

Kids

Well, it’s been tough with all the snow and cold BRRRR…., so after a short hiatus we are back in business.  This weekend was not so much about where we traveled but who we traveled to see.  My nephew Jason is the first of his generation to become engaged, and we attended a lovely wedding shower in Arlington.  It was lovely to see so many family and friends.  Photos were taken by both me and Lydia, she has a great eye!

Clam Pass Beach, Naples

Day Trips, Kids, Vacation

It was our final beach day, and there was no parking at Lowdermilk Beach, our first choice, so we went to Clam Pass Beach instead.  It wasn’t my mother’s first choice as there was an $8 parking fee, but it was well worth it, and I now have a new favorite beach in Naples.  It was very crowded, but the water was beautiful, the food for lunch was great, and the ride over on the tram was very efficient.  Many people were walking to the beach on the boardwalk (I’m guessing maybe a kilometer?), but I can’t recommend this as there were spiders and spiderwebs EVERY where.  Look up, look right, look left, the whole ride out to the beach was through a maze of webs covered with spiders.  I was grateful for the roof on the tram ride.

Fakahatchee Strand, The Everglades

Day Trips, Hikes, Kids, Vacation

We hiked the short boardwalk through the Fakahatchee Strand.  My kids had done this hike before and were not as captivated on the second trip through as they had been in the past.  It was also not a very handicap-friendly walk, at least not the first quarter mile or so which was on rocks and sand before reaching the boardwalk!