New Article

New Article Read Post

New Article

Here are some highlights from our travels from San Francisco to Vancouver, B.C., — the start of our great summer family adventure!

My son and my baby daughter were happy to arrive at the Vancouver Airport. Our flight got in at 9:30 a.m.

My number-one lesson from the day
Never book a 7 a.m. flight when you're traveling solo with three kids.

I don't know what I was thinking when I booked a 7 a.m. flight. I must have not been thinking. 

The early departure required us to wake at 4:15 a.m. My two oldest kids, ages 9 and 11, were dead to the world when I barged into their room and started singing "You Are My Sunshine." I had to belt out the words at the top of my lungs before their eyes opened.

And then there was the 11-month-old baby who screamed as if she were starring in a horror flick when I pulled her out of her crib.

Somehow I got the crew dressed and piled into the car along with all our luggage. By the time we got to the airport parking garage, everyone had perked up, but my daughter did say, "Why did you ever book us such an early flight? This is crazy mom!"

One good thing about early flights: They're less likely to be delayed and ours was on time!

My kids are the most amazing Sherpas: Do you want to hire them?

Our luggage included the following separate pieces: One 40-pound suite case (yes, we packed everything for four people into one big bag), one portable crib, one large camera, one violin (because I'm a crazy mom who makes her son practice on vacation), two backpacks and a car seat. Oh, and a baby!

The only thing I had to carry was the baby. My kids lugged everything else to the ticket counter where we dumped the suitcase and crib. I was so proud of them.

I think they could stand outside on the airport curb with a sign "Hire us to carry your stuff" and they'd make a lot of money.

How do I interpret this conversation with my kid?
Mom: I'm so sorry Dante. You're seated a few rows ahead of Paris (his 11 year old sister), Julia (his baby sister) and me. I can ask one of the passengers to switch seats so you can be with us.
Dante: It's Ok. Don't worry about it.
Mom: But it's no problem. I don't want you to sit by yourself.
Dante: Mom, I want to sit by myself.

My new favorite airline is Air Canada

Changing tables on Air Canada flights make babies happy!

After my kids and I settled into our seats (Dante seated four rows ahead of us), the flight attendant came over and said, "Can I help you in any way? Do you need milk? Water? I see your son's sitting a few rows ahead by himself. I'll keep an eye on him. Here are some bags for your diapers. Oh, and there are changing tables in the lavatories."

Changing tables? The look I gave her was one of complete and total shock.

First of all, I'd never been treated with such kindness and respect by a flight attendant. Most often they scowl at my children. And secondly, I was so thrilled that there was a changing table, something I hadn't encountered on a plane in years. Most airlines have removed them from their planes and I find myself doing a yoga act in the closet-size bathroom trying to change the baby. We usually end up scrunched up on the floor. Poop gets smeared on the walls. The baby cries. A line develops outside the door as I clean up the mess. Nightmare!

But on this Air Canada flight, with the big roomy changing tables, doing diaper duty was a dream and my baby Julia smiled and squealed as I put on a clean nappy.

Air Canada I love you!

Taxis are affordable in Vancouver
Traveling with three exhausted kids, I thought it made sense to take a taxi to our hotel. Usually, I opt for public transit to save money, but this morning I decided to splurge and pay for a taxi. What a deal! We paid only $28 to get into town. Well worth every penny!

Read More

Testing Home Page

Testing Home Page Read Post

Testing Home Page

Here are some thoughts and highlights from day number three on our vacation:

Victoria charms with it's stunning location 

On the southern tip of Vancouver Island, Victoria's location is simply stunning. This British Columbia city of 350,000 sits on a bustling harbor and across the water the snow-covered Olympic Mountains loom in the distance. On a clear day, the range pops off blue sky background and looks so close that you almost feel as if you can reach out and grab the mountain peaks. The city itself is filled with magnificent architecture and blooming gardens.

 As the capital of British Columbia, Victoria is most often recognized as North America's most English city with the grand-old Empress Hotel still standing at the foot of the harbor and drawing hundreds every day for a proper tea with crumpets. But this picture-perfect city is far more sparkling, colorful and magical than any city in Great Britain. What's more, many of the touristy pubs and trinket shops selling Union Jack key chains have been replaced by inventive restaurants and hip boutiques. Victoria has grown up and is moving beyond its English roots.

 We arrived in Victoria on a bus that dropped us at the Depot in the center of town. Our hotel, the Best Western Plus Inner Harbour, was only a couple blocks away and on our walk we passed the spectacular parliament building (above). Free 30-minute tours of the building are offered daily.


Red Fish Blue Fish dishes up the best food in Victoria

After checking into our hotel, we walked a few blocks to the Visitor Center, right on the harbor, which is a great first stop to learn about popular attractions and sign up for tours. We asked for an affordable, family-friendly restaurant recommendation and the 20-something behind the counter directed us to Red Fish Blue Fish.

Red Fish Blue Fish is an outdoor waterfront eatery dishing up sustainable seafood from a cargo container on a wooden pier that sits on the Inner Harbour. It's a fresh take on the old fish 'n' chips shop. People line up for this food and we waited at least 30 minutes to place our order, and then the food quickly arrived in 15 minutes. A local told me that the line gets far longer when a cruise ship is at the dock. 

Here's a look at what we ordered: Grilled local salmon on a bed of salad greens, fish and chips made with halibut, coconut milk clam chowder and tomato gazpacho topped with baby shrimp. Everything was fresh and delicious and honestly it was one of the best meals I've ever had. The sea food was so sweet and juicy and my kids devoured the halibut.

My kids love hotels with swimming pools

 After lunch my husband and I wanted to explore the city, but all my kids wanted to do was jump into our hotel swimming pool. Our family likes to stay at Best Western Hotels because 90 percent of the properties have a pool and the Inner Harbour has one of the prettiest pools I've ever seen at a Best Western. The tile mosaic pool sits next too a grassy lawn encircled by blooming flowers.


The lawn of the Empress Hotel is a nice place to hang out

Built in 1908, the Empress Hotel is a Victoria landmark sitting, perfectly centered, on the harbor. Tourists gather on its large grassy lawn and watch the water taxis buzz about the harbor, the sea planes land and the horse-drawn carriages pass by. Our family plunked ourselves down in the well-groomed grass and enjoyed the Canadian sunshine.

Traveling with a baby, we've found that it's important to slow down. We've realized that in order to experience a new city, we don't have to move around from place to place, from attraction to attraction. We also see a lot when we just stay put and watch the city go by. On this afternoon, the Empress was hosting a high school prom so we had fun picking out our favorite dresses.

We also had a lot of fun watching baby Julia crawl around around and make adorable faces.

The Royal BC Museum is worth visiting

 The Royal BC Museum is recognized as the best museum in British Columbia and presents the natural and human history of the area through three different galleries, natural history, first peoples, and modern history. The exhibits are outstanding and my son especially enjoying the modern history portion where you can walk through a re-creation of a Gold Rush town. You can enter into the homes, the livery, the hotel and all the little shops and even walk up and down the stairs. It's easy to get lost and my son was fascinated by these exhibits showing how people lived in the 1800s. 

We were also lucky to visit during the Vikings exhibit, a special traveling show featuring artifacts leaving Sweden for the first time ever. My son had the most fun in the gift shop where he could dress up like a viking and hold a sword and shield.

Pig BBQ Joint serves juicy pulled pork and crispy fried chicken

This Southern-style restaurant offers comfort food such as crispy fried chicken, ribs slathered in sweet and tangy barbecue sauce and thick slices of cornbread. The prices are affordable; a family of four can easily eat for under $30. We placed a to-go order and had a picnic back at our hotel room.

Read More

Testing Post

Testing Post Read Post

Testing Post

Here are highlights from our fourth day in British Columbia. We spent the afternoon touring Victoria.

Hippo Tours are the most entertaining way to bone up on Victoria history

The best — and most hysterical — way to see Victoria is on a Hippo Tour, which you can pick up on Belleville Street outside the Black Ball Ferry Line, only a couple blocks from the Best Western Plus Inner Harbour.

On these wild and raucous tours, a group of some 40 tourists load into a 40-foot yellow amphibious bus that whirls around the city past the top sights—from Parliament to Chinatown—before plunging into the Pacific Ocean, offering breathtaking views of the harbor and snowy Olympic Mountains looming in the distance.

Along the way, a high-energy tour guide—who seems to have consumed at least eight cups of espresso—shares facts about the city and tells jokes that are laugh-out-loud-funny.

Our guide Karlee was darling, smiley and full of puns. When we rolled past Clover Point (pictured below), she mentioned that this was the spot where Victoria's Synchronized Kite Team practices. "I could pull some strings if you want to get on the team," she joked. My 9-year-old son was hysterical.

Karlee was also an endless stream of random, quirky facts. When we passed the IMAX theater at the BC Royal Museum, she told us that IMAX was a Canadian invention and then rattled off a few other Canadian inventions such as medical insulin and the push-up bra.

On the tour we caught a glimpse of China Town. Karlee pointed out Fan Tan Alley, a skinny walkway that's only five-feet wide and touted as Canada's narrowest alley. In the 1920s, Fan Tan was home to one of the best known gambling dens.

Our hippo rolled through Beacon Hill Park, a 200 acre swatch of gardens and grassy meadows that overlooks a picturesque stretch of the Juan de Fuca Strait. The park is a family playground with hiking trails, a petting zoo and a giant watering can spewing out water that kids can play under.

Fisherman's wharf offers a festive atmosphere and tasty fish 'n' chips

Scooting around town in a Hippo made us hungry. Our tour guide directed us to Fisherman's Wharf, a bustling dock where kayakers, boat taxis and people like us on foot stop for lunch. A couple restaurants dish up food that can be enjoyed on picnic tables but Barb's Fish & Chips is the best known.

We ordered steamed clams, fish and chips and some chicken strips for the kids.

Across from Barb's, you'll find some of the best ice cream in all of Victoria at Jackson's.

Moose Tracks with chocolate peanut butter cups and fudge swirl is the most popular flavor.

My kids can't get enough of the Best Western Inner Harbour swimming pool
Do you want to go to Craigdarrough Castle? Emily Carr's House? Miniature World? Victoria is filled with fun sites for families but after lunch my kids only wanted to go back to the hotel pool.

Family travel tip: Occasionally break off into groups to give kids special one-on-one time
Baby Julia was tired and fussy and my son was cranky and worn out. My husband decided to stay back at the hotel and eat dinner in with the two younger kids, while my daughter and I planned a special date for just the two of us.

On family trips, we often feel as if we have to do everything together but all of the togetherness can be exhausting, especially for competitive siblings. Breaking into groups can give everyone a break.

Everyone from Allen Ginsberg to Bob Dylan has eaten at Pagliacci's
My daughter and I asked the staff at the hotel front desk for a dinner recommendation.

"What do you want? Sushi, seafood, pasta?" he asked.

My daughter's lit up with the mention of pasta, and he recommended a beloved Victoria restaurant Paggliacci's.

As soon as we stepped outside the hotel and walked to the Inner Harbor, I was happy we decided to go out. The night was glorious and the setting sun had cast a golden light over this dreamy Disneyland-like city. 

We were lucky to get the last table at Pagliacci's and it happened to be front and center in the window. The menu is filled with homemade pasta dishes, but my daughter and I opted for salads: Caesar topped with grilled chicken and a green salad served with salmon. Both were fresh and delicious.

Pagliacci's is one of those neighborhoody feeling restaurants where the staff is warm and welcoming and the environment is cozy. The tables are close together and the walls are filled with murals, paintings and memorabilia. Photographs of famous people who've eaten at the restaurant hang on the walls: Saul Bellow, Bob Dylan, Susan Sarandon.

After dinner, we stepped inside Roger's Chocolates that dates back to 1885. These famous chocolates have been mailed to the White House and Buckingham Palace. We tried the pecan chews.

Ghostly Walks are spooky and offer up a lot of fascinating Victoria history
My daughter and I finished up our date night with a Ghostly Walk, a nighttime tour of Victoria that offers a look at the city's darker past.

Here, my daughter stands with John Adams, a Victoria historian who first started leading Ghostly Walks 15 years ago. His company Discover the Past leads a variety of historical tours but he says that for every straightforward history tour he leads, he gives five Ghostly Walks.

John passed our group of about 20 off to our guide Kate, an educated historian herself who played up her part as "ghost story teller" by dressing in all black and letting her spiral curls hang wildly. As we walked around town, she told stories of murders and deaths in detail and many of the tales were horribly gruesome. I worried that the tour was overly graphic for my 11-year-old but she insisted that she wasn't scared and found the history fascinating.

On our walk back to the hotel, we quickly forgot about the tales of horror as we walked past the Parliament building, strung with tiny white lights like a fairy tale castle.

Read More

British Columbia Family Vacation Day No. 8: Chilliwack to Kelowna

British Columbia Family Vacation Day No. 8: Chilliwack to Kelowna Read Post

British Columbia

British Columbia Family Vacation Day No. 8: Chilliwack to Kelowna

Here are highlights from the eighth day on our British Columbia Family Vacation. We drove from Chilliwack to Kelowna.

The drive from Chilliwack to Kelowna was gorgeous
We traveled along Highways 5 and 97 from Chiliwack to Kelowna, about a three-and-a-half-hour drive. The first stretch cuts through pristine timberland as it hugs the Fraser River. Snow-dusted mountains loomed in the distance. And as we climbed to the top of the Coquilhalla Summit, we started spotting patches of snow on the roadside. Waterfalls were everywhere, hanging like tassels from the mountainsides. As we descended the mountain and reached the town of Merritt, the terrain quickly turned into a vast dessert dotted with pines and sage brush.

Here's some video footage my daughter took of the drive:

The Okanagan Valley is best known for its wine but you'll find more here than grape vines

Driving down Highway 97 into the Okanagan Valley, we caught our first glimpse of Okanagan Lake, a vast body of water stretching for 70 miles through the valley that's squeezed between the Cascade and Monashee Ranges. Sparkling under the sunshine, this deep royal blue lake, fed by snow melting on the surrounding steep mountains, is breathtaking. Rows of vineyards line the hills, providing grapes to some of the world's most renowned wineries. The Okanagan Valley is known for its ice wine, a type dessert wine that's produced with grapes pulled from the vine after the first big freeze, but more than 60 types of grapes are grown in the region.

And while the Okanagan is best recognized as a wine region, you can do a lot more here than sip fine vintages. The area is filled with hiking trails, sandy beaches, golf courses, museums and postcard-picturesque towns sitting on the lake's shores. and with three kids in tow, we weren't here to rub elbows with sommeliers and sip fine vintages — though we hoped to visit a few wineries. Instead, we hoped to do all the other stuff. Plus, we'd heard this scenic valley soaks in a lot of sunshine. Living in San Francisco, where summer's are marred with foggy, cold days, a guarantee of warm, balmy weather was appealing.

Kelowna is a great town for walking

With only one night and one day to explore the area, we decided to focus on Kelowna. This pedestrian-friendly town is centered on the water with wide sidewalks along the main drag, Bernard Avenue, and the waterfront.

We parked our car, changed into comfortable shoes and set out to explore. Downtown is chockablock with restaurants, their cafe tables spilling out on the sidewalk. Families were lined up at Moo-Lix for scoops of ice cream in bright, florescent colors. The warm, sweet smell of homemade waffle cones wafted out the door.

Bernard Avenue leads to the waterfront where tourists gather to look out at the lake and take photos in front of a soaring sculpture called "Spirit of Sale" that was designed to look like the sail on a boat. We walked south to a children's playground where sprays of water keep children cool and then because we had a baby who was eager to crawl around we sat in the grass and basked in the sun.

The Hobo Eatery welcomes diners with wholesome, home-style food

When we arrive in a new town, I look to TripAdvisor for restaurant recommendations. The site offers a user-ranked list of eateries and I often find that the number-one recommendation isn't necessarily the city's best white-table-cloth establishment, but rather a favorite, family-friendly affordable locals' joint. That was the case with Kelowna. The number-one ranked restaurant in town is the Hobo Eatery, which is basically a hole-in-the-wall off the main drag with satisfying soups and sandwiches.

The kindhearted owners Crystal and Steve are former youth counselors and took over the restaurant a couple years ago. "I've never been happier," Steve told me. They offer the sort of warm welcome you'd expect to get from your favorite aunt and uncle. They'll pull out a high chair offer a free scoop of Hobo Stew if you have a baby in tow, give you change for the meter, accept American dollars, and even give you an IOU if you don't have enough money to cover your bill. 

The food is wholesome and comforting. My daughter devoured a hearty meat chili topped with cheddar, chives and sour cream and served with a fluffy biscuit studded with cheese and green onions. I enjoyed my broccoli salad dressed in a creamy poppy seed vinegarette and my son was happy with his roast beef and cheddar sandwich packed with fillings. Crystal invited both kids to take a chocolate chip cookie on their way out.

The Best Western Plus Kelowna Hotel & Suites is one of the greenest hotels in Canada

The Best Western Plus Kelowna originally opened in the 1960s as a basic motor lodge in a two-story building that wrapped around a parking lot. In recent years the Kelowna has been under the ownership of Greg Salloum who has transformed and expanded the property with a green vision. The hotel now has 154 rooms and a beautiful, modern eight-floor tower proudly rises above the former fully remodeled motel that now has its own "Environmental Wing."

The Best Western Plus Kelowna is now the greenest hotel in British Columbia, if not all of Canada.

What does green mean? Let's start with the hotel's LEED Certified "Environmental Wing" where my kids and I stayed in a one-bedroom suite. The well-appointed room had low-VOC paint, locally made furnishings and wall coverings made from recycled vinyl. The room was heated with an energy-saving geothermal system, which also kept the bathroom towel rack warm. Getting out of the shower and wrapping up in a warm towel felt luxurious.  

And the list of ways Salloum and his staff are committed to sustainability goes on and on. The heating and cooling systems and the lighting throughout the hotel are energy-efficient. All rooms were equipped with blue recycling boxes, starting in 1990 when recycling wasn't fashionable. Windows are covered in a sliver reflective film that helps to keep rooms cool in the summer and warm in the winter. Rather than use chemical fertilizers, the grounds crew rakes Nature's Gold into the expansive lawn that many of the guests rooms' balconies overlook. Even the left-over coffee grounds at breakfast are composted and used as a garden fertilizer.

The Kelowna welcomes guests with a cozy lobby where you can relax in a comfy leather chair next to a fire. Walk past the front desk, and you enter an impressive room with cathedral ceilings constructed of raw, exposed cement. Floor-to-ceiling windows overlook the garden and swimming pool. It's a fresh and inviting room that's fit for the pages of the hip home decorating magazine Dwell.

The snappy style is carried throughout the hotel and the rooms, from the deluxe suites with cork floors, maple furniture and granite bathrooms to the bright, high-ceiling standard tower rooms with downtown views.

We stayed in a one bedroom suite in the Environmental Wing and when my daughter walked in she said, "Wow! This is so nice! I think we could just live here, Mom."

The Best Western Plus Kelowna Hotel & Suites is also a great place to relax
After a full week of traveling, we were all exhausted and decided to relax at the hotel and take advantage of its beautiful grounds and amenities.

The kids splashed around in the pool that's housed in a lofty, light-filled atrium. The water sanitized with mineral salt rather than chlorine. My kids appreciated that they could swim underwater with their eyes open. "Mommy, it doesn't sting," my son said.

Two hot tubs, also salt water, sit amid the one-acre outdoor garden. My daughter daughter had fun smelling and exploring the flowers while her bother and sister soaked in the tub.

Back at the room, the kids had fun playing spa and put on the robes and slippers.

After our afternoon of relaxing, we decided to order room service and eat in our spacious one bedroom suite with a kitchenette and family dining table. We enjoy Caesar salads and burgers.

Read More

British Columbia Family Vacation Day No. 7: From Whistler to Chilliwack

British Columbia Family Vacation Day No. 7: From Whistler to Chilliwack Read Post

British Columbia

British Columbia Family Vacation Day No. 7: From Whistler to Chilliwack

Here are some highlights from our seventh day on the trip. We drove from Squamish to Chilliwack.

Squamish is an affordable alternative to Whistler

We had a fabulous visit to the tony ski town of Whistler, but Squamish, just an hour south, is much more our speed. We stayed overnight at the Best Western Mountain Retreat, where you can get a room for about $100. Hotels in Whistler cost more than two to three times as much.

We wanted to take the Sea-to-Sky Gondola but it was too cloudy

The Sea-to-Sky Gondola opened in Squamish in May 2014. The 10-minute ride whisks you up over 885 meters, offering breathtaking views of the coastal mountains and Howe Sound fjord. We had planned to ride to the top and go for a hike, but we woke up to cloudy skies and rain and decided it wasn't worth spending the money when we wouldn't be able to enjoy the vistas.

My daughter was terrified of bears on the Lion's Bay Hike 
As we drove toward Vancouver, the clouds started to lift and we stopped at a small town called Lion's Bay that overlooks Howe Sound.

From the Lion's Bay General Store and Cafe, we picked up the Centennial Trail that weaves through a lush forest of trees and ferns and has a few viewpoints along the way where you can look across the sound over to snow-capped mountains.

About 10 minutes into the hike, a huge sign warned of us of Black Bears. The warning suggested making loud sounds to keep the bears away and my daughter sang at the top of her lungs throughout the rest of the hike, driving her brother crazy. Kids!


Birchwood Dairy is a kids' dream with ice cream, a petting zoo and a slide!

From Lion's Bay we drove through Vancouver and into the Frazier Valley and quickly the urban sprawl turned into rural farm country dotted with red barns and herds of grazing cows.

On the highway we saw a sign for the Birchwood Dairy with a giant ice cream cone.

"Let's stop there!" my daughter hollered from the backseat.

"I think this is a real dairy with cows," I explained. "I don't think you've ever seen a working dairy before. This will be fun!"

"Mom, I've been to Dairy Queen."

The Birchwood Dairy turned out to be a hidden gem, serving fresh, creamy ice cream made on site. The ice cream is richer than most, containing 16 percent butterfat, and comes in 50 flavors, from field of berries to coffee crunch.

Outside kids can run around on a grassy field and have fun on a play structure. My baby loved the swing.

 Kids can also play around on antique farm equipment.

Baby Julia fell in love with a miniature pony at the petting zoo. Little hands can also pet goats, sheep and cows.

Fun photo opportunity!

 

My son thought this was funny!

Bridal Veil Falls is the sixth-largest waterfall in Canada

Everywhere you look in Canada you see waterfalls streaming down mountains. Bridal Veil Falls just east of downtown Chilliwack is one of the more spectacular falls, dropping 144 feet to the floor of the Fraser Valley in Bridal Veil Falls Provincial Park.

Many of the falls you spot from the road are hard to access but this one is only a short 10-minute hike from a parking lot. A dirt path passes through a lush forest of trees covered in moss.

Dining out at the Little Yellow Deli in Chilliwack is like eating at the home of the Hobbit

The Little Yellow Deli is the type of place you'd expect to stumble upon on a hike through the forest. Maybe you'd meet a friendly garden gnome on the trail or a Hobbit-like creature and he'd direct you through an opening in a giant tree trunk that leads you into a warm, cozy home.

The interior of the restaurant is best described as woodsy, with the tables and chairs and ceiling beams all being constructed of raw, unfinished wood.

The food is healthful and wholesome. We ordered a curried yam soup, vegetarian chili and a fruit salad that was served with yogurt, coconut, chopped nuts and local honey.

The Best Western Rainbow Inn in Chilliwack welcomes guests with friendly smiles
The friendly service shines at this hotel. When my children and I checked in, the woman at the front desk gave us a warm welcome. She smiled at Baby Julia and said, "She's cute!" My two older kids always appreciate it when someone pays attention to their sister. She also recognized that we were a big group and upgraded us to a suite.

The Rainbow Inn is conveniently located off the Trans-Canada Highway just minutes from downtown Chilliwack. On the evening we arrived the hotel was buzzing with activity. JD's Lounge, was packed with people noshing on burgers and drinking locals beers. On Friday and Saturday nights, the pub hosts live music. There's even salsa dancing on Thursday nights.

The hotel rooms circle a light and airy atrium that's filled with lush green plants. A pretty swimming pool and hot tub are set amid the jungle and our room had a balcony hanging over the pool.

A buffet breakfast is included with the room and served in the Atrium Restaurant, that also offers dinner and brunch on weekends. At breakfast, we again encountered the same warm service. Kayla, a member of the waitstaff, noticed that our baby had a runny nose. She went looking for a box of Kleenex because she said the napkins weren't soft enough for tiny, sensitive noses.

Read More