Lessons Learned In Traveling With The Kids … And Without My Other Half

October 25, 2016 By Cori

Maybe it’s juggling multiple little people, maybe it’s my own anxiety, maybe it’s a healthy mix of both– whatever it is– I will sheepishly confess to you guys, that the cold-hard-truth is, when it comes to traveling (anywhere!) with my crew in tow, I’m not exactly the most spontaneous person in the world.

Don’t get me wrong. I love traveling as a family, but I’m a planner. I like knowing what to expect and the comfort of feeling I’m prepared for anything the kids may throw our way.

And I’m painfully aware that at times it holds us back..

For probably about 5 years now, spending a weekend soaking in all of the fall foliage goodness in the New England area has been on my proverbial list. But with both the foliage and our social calendars peaking simultaneously every year, the stars never seemed to align for us.

Last Tuesday, on the way to pre-k drop off, I drove down a gorgeous canopy tree lined road, and it hit me– another season was passing by, and we were missing it– again! I looked at the calendar and with James heading to LA for work, the weekend ahead was looking like the last October weekend we had “free”– but it was just me and the kids.

I don’t know what came over me, but I called my mother and said, “I know this sounds crazy… but… let’s take a roadtrip to Boston… this weekend!!”

Fast forward a few minutes and I was researching hotels, scenic roads and places to bring the kids –because if there’s one thing Carol of Girl Gone Travel has taught me, it’s that being spontaneous doesn’t necessarily mean not having at least a rough outline of options.

I learned a couple of other important lessons relatively quickly in both the planning process and the road trip itself.

Lesson one: There was NO way I was going to fit in everything I wanted to– and that was ok!

The Boston area has a ridiculous amount of things to do– so much history, shopping, restaurants– and lots of options for kids too. It was easy to lose sight of the fact that it was the foliage that led us on the trip on the first place. We could always come back to see a lot of the other stuff.

Lesson two: Spontaneous adventures are built on flexibility.

When looking for a hotel, I learned that weekend was the Head Of Charles Regatta– an annual rowing event that takes place on the Charles River between Boston and Cambridge– which meant hotel availability was scarce and the city was extra busy

So I found the awesome site, Furkot and began planning our “Plan B” adventure– which now included a stop in Mystic Connecticut, the basketball hall of fame, a hike through a the Rockhouse Reservation– and only a quick stop in the actual city of Boston.

Lesson three: My kids are a lot more go-with-the-flow than I give them credit for.

The picture above was taken at a scenic overlook we spied out the window. The kids were so excited to race down to the water and check it out.

From the moment I announced we were going on a road trip, my kids were totally game. I have a tendency to focus on all that can go wrong in trying to keep everyone happy on the road, but truthfully? They were pretty content with their iPads, snacks and checking out the sights. I cannot say that the trip was without the occasional toddler protest, tween-age angst, sibling bickering or even my own overwhelm– it was tooootally sprinkled with all those things, but the kids truly enjoyed everywhere we went and everything we did along the way– from hiking to boat-making at the Seaport.

Lesson four: Social media can wait.

I love live-sharing when we travel, but being in the “driver’s seat” (both figuratively and literally) this time around didn’t really allow me to do that the way I normally do– and my experience was all the better for it. I was fully “IN” the moment, and it made me realize how not rushing to share photos allowed me to appreciate and enjoy the moments themselves, and the time with my family even more.

Lesson five: Though traveling with our complete family unit is always ideal, having an a different kind of adventure can be good for the soul.

We missed James beyond words (I lost track of how many times Avery asked for him). He is usually the compass in our family adventures, and when it comes to juggling the kids, we are truly the definition of a team to our core– but this trip reminded me that I can travel with the kids independently.

It was also a quality of bonding time we don’t often get to experience with my mom– spending that time with her, in itself is a memory that will last us a lifetime.

And unexpectedly, the best part of it all was coming home to James, sitting around the table, eating late night pizza and one by one filling him in on our crazy adventure.

Stay tuned….

I still have SO much to share, specifics about our trip and TONS of photos. I’ll be breaking up it all up into into several posts over the next week and will update this post below with the links.

Thank you to Toyota for providing us with a smooth ride in their Highlander SUV!

Enjoy the journey. Every moment.

Follow along on instagram #GoPlacesCori

Family Travel: Why We Travel With Our Kids As Much As Possible

September 27, 2014 By Cori

Disneyland.

That’s how it all started.

Much smaller than Disney World (where we are multi-trip veterans), Disneyland felt like a fun, yet manageable option for our first summer traveling as a party of 5.

Party of 5, traveling across the country….with a 6 month old.

“You. Are. CRAZY”, everyone told us.

We thought, “OMG. *Are* we crazy?”….

“We’re crazy!”

“Nope. We are totally doing this.”

The adrenaline took over and it wasn’t long before we were thinking– we would only truly be insane if we did not make the most of this!!

My husband’s cousin who lives in San Francisco had recently had her first baby, whom we were dying to meet… and just like that, our small manageable trip to Disneyland turned into a 10-day road trip from San Francisco to Los Angeles!

Exciting. Scary… and all the emotions in between.

YOLO!

(Are people still saying that?)

Today, we are still asked about that trip. The cities and stops we made, and how did we do it?

The answer in short is– we just did.

We made a decision and rode out the highs and lows.

Yes. I stressed the hell out prior to the flight, playing a game of Tetris with clothes for 5, baby gear and various other entertainment-y things to occupy– and only 3 duffle bags (but we did it!! … and found suitcase packing secrets, my friends!)

Yes. The baby’s sleep was thrown off a bit…

Yes, this adorable photo of Laina dancing like no one is watching along the PCH, might have actually been us pulled over on the road after Ryan had a *slight* panic attack that he left his iPod back at the previous town ….about 25 minutes back (he didn’t).

And sure, these pictures of Avery happy as a clam on the beaches of Malibu *may* not tell the tale of how we novice road-trippers decided to pass on multiple “fun stops” so that the baby could nap. Ending up with cranky, disappointed kids at a beach that sounded fancy, but in reality was barely a beach at all.

But all of those stressful moments were overshadowed by the fun ones.

Like baby’s first plane ride.

And Fro-Yo 30,000 feet in the air.

{Shout out to Delta Airlines!}

Packing and un-packing a car every few days in new cities.

/ Read more about stay at the Diva Hotel /

Waking up to breakfast with family who live across the country from us.

Meeting new cousins and taking pictures at the park where the Full House gang picnicked.

Hiking through the Muir Woods, inhaling the scent of the Redwood trees,

and being photobombed by a seagull at the Golden Gate Bridge

/ Read more about our San Francisco favorites /

Sleeping in a jungle and ordering pink champagne cake– way past their bedtime.

/ Read more about our stay at San Louis Obispo’s Madonna Inn with kids /

Stopping to see the dolphins play along the Pacific Coast Highway

/ Read more about our Stops Along The PCH /

Sending postcards to family at various stops along the way…

Taking selfies by landmarks…

and selfies in the cute town of Tiburon.

Touring Hollywood and Rodeo Drive

and of course that amazing feeling, finally arriving at Disneyland.

/ Read more about our Disneyland Must-Dos /

I’d be lying if I said every time we plan a trip, I don’t pause for a second and question “Are we going to pull this off?” James will back that up.

But we always power through it, because if we let those doubts take over, we would be missing out on so many amazing memories…. and in the end?

That always outweighs the stresses of travel.

Acura was a featured partner for our California Roadtrip

The Diva Hotel | A Modern Boutique Stay In San Francisco California

September 14, 2014 By Cori

The Diva Hotel (part of the personality hotels in San Francisco), was the first stop on our California road-trip adventure.

This ultra-mod boutique hotel is located in the heart of San Francisco and welcomes it’s guest with concrete squares donned in handprints and signatures of Hollywood favorites.

It’s like a miniature version of the walk outside Mann’s Chinese Theater (which we did later visit) and the photo op was not lost on our little selfie king.

We stayed in The Diva’s Kid Suite, which was chock-filled with toys and video games to keep them busy.

/ photo credit: personality hotels

This was especially great because when we were unpacking the car, we realized we left our camera (and lenses) ON. THE. PLANE.

{Insert panic attack here}

James immediately got back in the car and headed back to the airport where by some miracle of God, was able to recover the camera

{exhale…}

While he was on this wild chase for our camera, the baby caught up on some Zzz’s and the big kids explored their room of toys.

The Kids Suite

Mostly catering to people traveling solo or as a pair, there are only two kids suite in the hotel.

The kids suite consisted of 2 bedrooms: master suite with a king size bed and the kids suite with bunk-beds, a small bathroom in between the two rooms, 2 outside-of-bathroom sinks… and toys! Lots, and LOTS of toys.

From dress up clothes to video games the kids were never bored.

Some board games and such were missing pieces– which as a parent, I imagine the upkeep of pieces is a near impossibly task for the hotel– I mean we lose game pieces in our home on a daily basis.

The kids loved having a space of their own and exploring the new-to-them toys in the room, however it was a bit of tight quarters for our family of five.

The Recommendation

With its modern vibe, reasonable prices and prime location, The Diva Hotel is one I would recommend for business travelers and couples looking to explore the city.

Window coverings in the master bedroom of our suite. //credit: Trip Advisor

Various stores and take-out places are in walking distance and for my fellow Starbucks addicts, an added perk is that there is a Starbucks CONNECTED to the hotel!

photo credit/ trip advisor

{high fives!}

As for the kids suite itself, the idea of having a room supplied with all things play is a great concept and I think with a few adjustments, it has the potential to draw in more families staying in the city.

That being said, it was undeniably nice to have the kids occupied for the time we were in the suite.

Note: This hotel is located on a busy street, so if you are looking to stay here and are a light sleeper, be sure to ask for a room towards the back of the hotel so you aren’t kept away by the hustle and bustle of the city below. The kids suite we stayed in was at the back and quiet at night.

________________________________

Thank you to the Diva hotel and staff for hosting us for a portion of our trip!

Family Travel: Minimalist Packing Tips For A Road Trip

September 10, 2014 By Cori

Packing for a family vacation is always a bit of a challenge.

You want to be prepared for every place and weather change you may experience.

When we planned our big 10 day California road trip adventure, I was faced with a big packing challenge.

Not only were we packing for 5 (including an infant), but our luggage (and baby gear), had to fit in the back of the Acura MDX we were using to trek around from place to place.

The MDX was the perfect fit for our family of 5. It had ample trunk room and an awesome 3rd row that could be partially folded down for extra trunk space (Oh, hello there baby gear!) and was super easy to for the kids to access – just a touch of a button.

But even with the best scenario for our vehicle, it took some extra planning and Tetris-skills to get us all packed up (don’t forget we were also flying from NY to Cali!).

For a 10 day road trip we packed our family of 5 with:

3 duffle bags
3 backpacks (one for each kid)
and minimal baby gear

This will probably be my most braggy-travel story and I plan to tell it often. I can’t help it. I love a good challenge and am so proud and excited to share the packing tips and tricks that we learned from this trip.

How To Pack (the least) For A Family Road Trip

1. Transitional Pieces

Plan out outfits for 1/2 the stay of your trip with pieces you can recycle.

So for example, for our 10 day trip, we packed each family member:

– 1 sweat shirt

– 3 to 4 bottoms.

This ALWAYS means at least one pair of jeans. The rest could be shorts or skirts. Jeans can generally be worn a few times before they need a good washing, so use this to your packing advantage!

– 5 tops MAX

-2 pairs of shoes … Ok, ok 3 for Mom if you have a place you are getting lucky enough to be getting a night on the town sans kids… otherwise, leave the wedges and heels at home.

– Underwear + socks for every day

2. Packing Cubes.

Not kidding you guys, these babies are nothing short of magic.

We’ve tried the “rolling” method of packing and it did seem to save some room, but these packing cubes made our bags UBER organized truly created packing miracles.

I decided to try these on whim when I saw them at check out at our local TJMaxx. They came in sets of 3 (large, medium and small pouches) and turned out to be worth every penny of their $9.99 price tags.

3. On-site laundry. I know, I know– laundry is the LAST thing you want to think about when you are planning a vacation.

TRUST ME, laundry is the bane of my existence and I am willing to go out on a limb and say there isn’t anyone who prays for a laundry fairy more than I do, but when you are traveling with a family it actually may be a life saver and allows you to put a few outfits on repeat, ultimately resulting in less clothes to pack.

For us, we did laundry twice. Once when we stopped to visit family, and another towards the end of the trip at because our suite in the Grand Californian had a washer dryer in the room.

We went home with bags of mostly all clean clothes– which I was VERY thankful.

So when you are scoping out your hotel or stops along a road trip ask yourself if there will be anywhere you can throw in a quick load of clothes

4. Kid Entertainment Bags Pack one carry-on backpack filled with their own snacks, toys, games, etc. It’s easy to let panic get the best of you and want to pack tons of options, but don’t.

Pack things like crayons, coloring books, iPads, iPods and headphones. If it doesn’t fit in the bag, it doesn’t come on the trip. THE END. The older kids were responsible for their own bag.

/Bungalow 360 Baby Backpack/

We even got the baby a mini bag of his own, which was perfect for a few diapers, snacks and pacifier that we could carry with us while waiting on lines in theme parks, restaurants or walking through parks.

5. Baby STUFF. Traveling with a baby is intimidating to many and with many good reasons, one undoubtably being ALL. THE. STUFF. The gear, the food, the diapers… the entertainment and snacks…

When it came to gear there are a few recommendations:

– A great umbrella stroller. For our trip, Summer Infant provided their 3D Lite Convenience Stroller. It had all the essentials we needed in a light weight stroller: a great storage basket, shoulder strap, an extended flip out canopy to shade from the sun, multi position recline *and* it was only 12 lbs!

I did at times wish there were a snap on tray for snacks and things, but truthfully, that may have made it a bit clunky.

– The Ergo baby carrier. Strollers don’t bode well for beaches or lines at amusement parks. The Ergo has great back support and is overall really comfortable for baby and carrier.

So why do I need to bring both of these?

Well, maybe you don’t.

That is something you may need to weigh on a case by case basis. And if you are trying to travel with as little gear as possible, definitely weigh it all out.

For us, we wanted the stroller so the baby could nap in Disney. He did fall asleep in the carrier a few times, but for long stretches that could get a bit sweaty. Also, the stroller had nice storage underneath for diapers and things.

–Car seat travel cart. If you plan on taking a few trips with the carseat- this is a must. You can actually double it as stroller in the airport.

/We used the Brica Roll ‘n Go– $59.99/

If you decide you don’t need a stroller in addition to the carrier? This is super-sweet! You can check it right at the door of the plane– easy peasy.

We used ours as extra hands and attached 2 of our bags.

Alternately, you can usually rent a car seat through your car rental company but again, weigh the pros, cons and prices. For us, this investment has already paid for itself.

– Diapers, Formula, Food…

Plan ahead. Map out where there is a store closest to the airport or look into grocery delivery services OR look into services like Jetset Babies , that help you order and coordinate baby essentials like diapers, wipes, formula, etc to be delivered directly to your hotel.

Then when it comes to packing you will only need to pack for the plane + a 1 or 2 extra *just in case*.

–Planning for sleep

Most hotels have port-a-cribs or pack and plays they can bring to your room (This is what used for our road trip).

However, if you are staying somewhere that does not offer this, or at a family member’s home, I highly recommend the super duper lightweight Journey-bee or Lotus play yard/travel crib. They are essentially like the pack and play but WAY lighter and WAY easier to set up and take down.