#TBT: the 15 steps of packing for a family vacation
On Thursdays I post from the vault. This is from Nov 2012 We are gearing up for our big Peru trip this weekend, and I’m a teensy bit stressed. The fact that I like to procrastinate doesn’t help matters, and I typically end up in a self-fueling loop of non-helpful avoidance behaviors any time I need to seriously pack for a big trip. It goes a little something like this: 1. Make a list 2. Get suitcases out of garage 3. Go on facebook 4. Decide to pack, look for list, realize list . . .
National Geographic family safari in Tanzania, day 2
On our second day in the Serengeti, we started out with a nature hike. This particular area is full of animals but not many predators or cats, so it was safe. (This would not be the case at our next campsite in the Serengeti, where we weren’t allowed to walk to our tents alone.) Our guides came along and were great with the kids, helping them identify animal tracks and plants. We were told we would eat breakfast after the hike, but what we didn’t know is that we would be eating . . .
Meeting our Tanzanian penpals
About six months ago, my kids started writing back and forth with some Massai children in Tanzania. This is a feature of National Geographic’s family expedition to this location, and it was a really neat experience. For a long time, my kids had no idea they would actually meet their new penpals. So when I told them about the trip and that they would get to meet the kids they had been writing, they were really excited. Karis’s penpal was a sweet girl named . . .
National Geographic family safari in Tanzania, day 1
For the past week and a half, we spent a magical time in Tanzania on a family expedition with National Geographic. I have so many stories to tell from our time there that I’ve decided to break it up into several posts. Our first day we hit the ground running, and were picked up at our hotel near the airport in Arusha, Tanzania bright and early. We took a van to the small Arusha airport and got to know the other families on the trip with us. There were several kids the same age as ours, so there . . .
Massai jumping
We’ve spent the past week in Tanzania on a family expedition with National Geographic. I’ve got so many stories and photos to share, but first we have a long journey home. In the meantime, I wanted to share a couple of my favorite pictures of the trip, from an afternoon we spent with a group of Massai people. Massai warriors are known for their incredible jumping skills. It is something they have a lot of pride in, and a group came and demonstrated their jumping for us. It really was . . .
Two days in Paris with kids
On our way to Tanzania for a week-long safari, we decided to open up our layover in Amsterdam and spend two days in Amsterdam and two days in Paris. Thanks to the high-speed Thalys train, we were able to get from Amsterdam to Paris in about 3 hours. We arrived to Paris around midnight, when the kids’ exhaustion and jet lag morphed into giddiness. Nothing like a 1am dance party in Paris. We found a hotel that had three beds per room just outside of Paris’s main train station. This was great . . .
What to do with one day in San Francisco with kids
The kids had ski week last week – a west coast tradition in which the 1% goes to their ski chalets, and the rest of us either scramble for childcare or make the best of a random mid-winter week without school. We’re not big on cold-weather sports, or cold-weather anything for that matter. But our ski week coincided with Mark’s brother and family who live in Seattle so we decided to meet in the middle and spend the week in Sonoma County. On our way up, we took one day to see the sights in San . . .
We’re on a boat: Tortola, Virgin Islands
I am totally being that annoying friend right now who makes you sit and watch the slideshow from their family vacations, aren’t I? Here are some more pictures from our trip. This is our stop in Tortola in the British Virgin Islands. Here we are, fresh off the boat. I think this is the only photo we got of the whole family on this trip. Don’t the kids look thrilled? On this day, we took an excursion to Van Jost island. It was about a 30 minute boat ride from Tortola, passing by . . .
Unwelcome Guest
Turns out we did bring a little guy home from Haiti. But not the one we hoped. This little parasite's name is Giuardiasis. We call him Gordy for short. He has been making his presence known for a few weeks, and the doctors confirmed it yesterday. In fact - a whole slew of doctors. Turns out our family has sparked many a consultation at our local medical group. Prescriptions have been filled. Pills have been taken. We wait expectantly for our tummies to respond. Gordy, buddy, it's been . . .
A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words
I might have mentioned that we are still afflicted with a "touch of the Haiti", manifesting as some gastro-intestinal issues. I remain commited to not talking about poop on my blog (as I have done here, here, here, and here.) So, I will leave it to you to decipher what I am supposed to do with this little goodie bag I got from Urgent Care today, that I get to return to them tomorrow. Hint: those are not pill bottles. . . .