we love watching and reading the polar express every year at christmas, and always say that someday we should ride the one of the many polar express themed train rides offered in our neck of the woods. well, our “maybe someday” turned into this year, when our family gift from the grandlidboms was a polar […]
derek
november, randomness.

after a month filled with exciting travel in october, november was pretty chill. even though it’s not quite the same as fall in western new york, it’s still my favorite season in north carolina. cooler temps. pumpkin themed foods. upcoming holidays. falling leaves. fewer bugs. you get the idea. here’s how our november went. we […]
being thankful in batavia.

now that we are (stuck) back in winston-salem, we are back to figuring out how to spend various holidays. i was determined to spend christmas in the stupid new house, because the ONLY time i ever missed having a house while we were on the road was christmastime. so, that made thanksgiving a perfect time […]
forty three.

in november, i turned 43. sounds very old when i say it out loud or see it in writing. like a grownup, even. anyhooooo. the derek and the kids kicked off my birthday morning but going out and picking up a starbucks peppermint mocha and bagel station salt bagels and chive cream cheese. so good. […]
shenendoah national park.part two.

our second full day in shenendoah was beautiful. unfortunately, so overnight wind and rain had knocked a LOT of leaves off the trees. there was a distinct difference in fall foliage between the two days. on tap for the day was a short little hike that derek discovered that took us up to bearfence mountain. […]
new england apple picking detour.

the ride home from acadia is somewhere in the 17 hour range, so we broke it up strategically across four travel days, finding stopping points along the way where we could do something fun in the morning and then load up and drive to the next spot in the afternoon and evening. our first such […]
acadia. day seven.all the maine foods and last hurrah.

sigh. our last day in acadia. we had done most of the things we wanted to do. it was rainy and cold. our dietary restrictions had been lifted. and we were ready to have a maine themed day of feasting. first up, jordan’s restaurant. it is one of the top reviewed places to partake in […]
acadia. day six.ocean path, part two. (and yummy food).

day six at acadia kicked off pretty low key. we lounged around the camper for awhile being quite lazy, deciding what to do with our day. on the previous day, when i was riding the bus back to camp after my precipice hike, we passed thunder hole, where there was loud claps of waves crashing […]
acadia. day five.precipice and general maintenance.

on our first trip to acadia, i was too chicken to hike the precipice trail. but, after making our way around the country, doing more strenuous and dangerous hikes, and consulting with folks who have done the same, i felt confident in my precipice hiking abilities. so, on day five, i ditched the fam and […]
acadia. day four.bee hive, sand beach, ocean path.

on our first trip to acadia, three years ago, i hiked the beehive trail alone. from the moment we booked this trip, anna has been plotting and planning all of her adventures, and hiking the beehive with me was on the top of her list. so, on day four, we all hopped on the shuttle, […]