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Frontier Culture Museum VA

Things to do in Staunton, Virginia

We love living in Virginia. You may recall from our personal story that we lived at a beach in North Carolina for awhile, but Virginia speaks to our hearts in a way the beach didn’t. We’ve explored a lot of fun towns in Virginia and they’ve surprised and delighted us

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May Goals and Family Trips

Our Monthly Trips & Tips: May 2022

May’s been called December 2.0  – and it is fitting. It is a time of transition and change, of running to and fro to close things down yet also beginning new things with gusto. May brings a lot of joy, but it can also be exhausting. News events at the

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What to know before you travel international

Questions to Ask Before Travelling Abroad

It’s happening! International travel is picking up again as so many put plans, dreams and trips on hiatus during a worldwide pandemic. I love Scott’s Cheap Flights predictions and they say that in 2022 both loads and prices are going up! We’re ready to get going again. But while international

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Our Monthly Trips & Tips: April 2022

As we reflect on our family trips and tips in April, it is a moment to recall how tender family life is. It is brittle, and on a scale that never feels quite in balance. Yet being here for each other is the most precious activity we could spend our

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A weekend in Harpers Ferry

A Weekend in Harpers Ferry (with kids)

Sneaking off to Harpers Ferry for a weekend in spring was highly anticipated and desperately needed. After slogging through spring sports, heavy work projects, rejuvenated social demands after a sleepy COVID era, and the wear and tear of daily life, a scenery change was due. Which is why we travel,

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How to Travel More with a Full-time Job

How to Travel While Working a Full-Time Job

It’s hard to balance an extreme love of travel with a strong sense of responsibility or, even, just a desire for some stability. I feel it. I especially feel the struggle to balance these two conflicting feelings as a parent.  We’ve elected not to be digital nomads because we like

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tips to make packing for vacation easy

6 Tips to Make Packing Easy and Efficient

Let’s face it: packing for a trip takes time and care. It can also create stress. When you travel frequently, like we do, it’s nice not to have trip preparation take more time than it’s worth. We simply can’t devote hours on end to packing when we are on the

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March 2022 Travel

Our Monthly Trips & Tips: March 2022

I am ready for spring, and warmer weather, a little relief, and some freedom to stretch out! Most parents I know are like us, in the middle of all the things. I know April will likely bring some changes, though, so in the meantime March turned out to be about

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Skiing Big Sky MT

What to do in Big Sky, MT – On & Off the Slopes!

We stayed up late into the night, exhausted and frustrated, but knowing a decision had to be made. As news of a big winter storm moving across the U.S. blared on the television and our phones beeped with notifications from airlines, we knew we had to risk it or call

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Big Sky Montana

Our Monthly Trips & Tips: February 2022

When I look back on February, the experiences are what are etched on my heart. (As usual.) I am sure we bought stuff, and I know I read a lot of books, but February was spectacular because of the amazing memories we created. One of those adventures was “epic” and

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Virginia family adventures

Our Monthly Trips & Tips: January 2022

January was a long one, and it seemed most of the Internet felt that way. With snowstorms and ice blanketing our part of the world, we found that we were all homebound again with canceled school and canceled plans more often than expected. But we still had adventures. As we

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Best Books (I Read) in 2021

I love books and I love talking about books and I love recommending books. So in line with tradition on this website, here are some thoughts looking back at my reading life last year. First thing to acknowledge: I read a lot of L.M Montgomery and Montgomery-related books. Given the

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C&O Canal Lockhouse

Staying in a C&O Canal Lockhouse

Sometimes, I don’t know how travel ideas become part of my daydreams. Sometimes, some trips, feel like they just pop up without warning then consume me until I book them. There is no clear recollection of deciding that the trip is a “bucket list” item  – there is just a

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The Channels Hike Abingdon VA

A Romantic Weekend in Abingdon, VA

Mr. Family Trip and I recently celebrated 15 years of marriage. With two kids, four homes, two dogs, one cat, one hamster, two fish, and two states conquered together, we felt it was worth celebrating this milestone in a special way. Alas, due to COVID, traveling overseas wasn’t something we

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What to buy at Trader Joe's

What to Buy at Trader Joe’s

Trader Joe’s is not the place where we do our regular grocery shopping, but having one nearby has been fantastic. Over the past few years, they have fueled our camping trips perfectly, and we have come to rely on them for go-to-freezer foods. Yet not all things at Trader Joe’s

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Dance as an adult

Beyond the Comfort Zone: Heading Back to a Dance Class

Always an overachiever, I decided to start this challenge with the scariest thing I could imagine: heading back to a dance class after nearly 7 years dance-less.  One rainy night as September turned into October I found myself inside a dance studio with four other smiling adults. The space was

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Muir Woods with Kids California (5)

Why You Need to See Muir Woods – & Then Keep Going

When we left San Francisco, as I mentioned, we were ready to get out of the urban and experience some nature. We were ready for the wild and untamed part of California (although, admittedly, Haight-Ashbury was fairly wild and untamed). Our first stop driving up Route 1 was Muir Woods.

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Colonial Williamsburg with Kids (3)

Tips for Visiting Colonial Williamsburg with Kids

We spend a lot of time in America, it seems, celebrating and memorializing the Revolutionary War. We memorialize our Founding Fathers and we pay a lot of money to see a Broadway rap version of the early days of the nation. But what was America like BEFORE it became… well…

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Family Visit to Alcatraz

How to Visit Alcatraz with Kids

Nature reclaims her own, time and again. She heals, restores and, eventually, makes whole that which is broken. It is why we go into the woods when we feel overwhelmed beyond help. It is why Walden appeals. It is why one of the top ways to stay mentally healthy is

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Surprising Things You Need for the Campsite

You can find camping essentials lists all over the Internet (this one here is particularly great). We love those and highly recommend them. BUT, there are a few things we’ve learned over the past couple of years of camping with the kids that make our time at the campsite easier

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What We’ve Learned: To Take a Helping Hand

This post, written by Mrs. Family Trip, originally appeared on Recreation.gov. As my sweaty, salty face looked up at my husband’s, dangling at least 5 feet above me, offering me his hand, I couldn’t help but laugh. I seriously thought I was going to do this alone?! I never would

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What to do in Southwest Florida and Fort Myers

I have been travelling to Fort Myers, Florida for many years now. My grandparents moved to a retirement community there when I was young. We spent time listening to my grandma sing at the clubhouse, riding around in a golf cart, and generally being way louder than the neighbors were

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