2012 has been a year of mother-child trips in our house; in April, I took kid #2 on a big adventure over the pond. This last weekend, I took our oldest to Yosemite National Park for a hike up Half Dome. Both adventures were outstanding, and my children amazed me in different ways, and we [...]
We needed a good, multi-generational family trip this December, one that would satisfy grandparents who want to hang out with their grandkids, parents who like to see interesting sites and eat good food, and a location that was easily accessible from the East and West coasts. As a rule, we also like to travel in the off-season, [...]
Last year, I took a significant birthday trip to Paris with several female friends. We had a great trip and spent lots of time focussed on food, shopping and seeing the sites. Here is the itinerary from our trip. Day 1: Depart for Paris on Air Tahiti Nui Did you know that Air Tahiti Nui [...]
One night at the lake, the kids were the designated chefs. Seven kids, ranging from 5 to 15, made a sumptuous feast. Some of us talked about having the kids cook every night, it was that good. Cleanup was left to the adults, much to our dismay.
At least once during our Minnesota lake vacation, cousin Matt frys what we have caught on our daily forays out into the lake (aboard the pontoon, no less). This year he brought his Coleman stove and cast iron pan and cooked outside – made a huge difference in the air quality inside our cabins. And [...]
My brother-in-law is of Italian descent, and during our Minnesota lake vacations, he has been known to put together an Italian-themed menu a time or two. This vacation was no exception! If you are looking for a similar menu for your next family gathering, I put together an Italian feast with [...]
Last month we spent two weeks visiting South Dakota, including Mt Rushmore, the Badlands and Jewel Cave, and Minnesota, mostly in Park Rapids, a vacation destination in the north west part of the state. Three awesome things happened in this vacation: 1. We rented a stand up paddle (SUP) board from Lake Surf in Fargo, ND. [...]
Before this trip gets too far out of my memory, I thought I would jot down notes about our itinerary and what worked and what could be improved upon. We took the family to Utah for Spring Break this year, with the idea to sweep across the southern part of the state and visit National [...]
Lately when we travel, we like to stay in short-term rental apartments. We like the extra space and the flexibility of having our meals in, rather than out at restaurants. We have stayed in fabulous vacation rentals in London, Paris, Healdsburg and Lake Tahoe. Our recent vacation to Donner Lake reminded me that there are [...]
Hanging Table Seriously? And I thought texting and driving was a bad idea.
After reading My Life in France, by Julia Child, and to a lesser degree, The Sharper Your Knife, The Less you Cry, by Kathleen Flinn, I became very interested in taking a class at the Cordon Bleu in Paris. Not a full regimen of courses to become a certified chef, just a class to see [...]
Hidden Kitchen Table Sunday night, March 21st, we were fortunate enough to join a Hidden Kitchen dinner. The Hidden Kitchen is a private supper club in the 1st arrondissement of Paris, offering 10-course, prix fixe dinners four to five times a month for up to 16 guests. All in the comfort of their own living [...]
