Vacations Blog

Benson Park Sculpture Garden

Most families only visit Loveland, Colorado, because the town is the last stop on Highway 34 before you reach the gorgeous Rocky Mountain National Park, just 30 miles away.

Benson Park Sculpture Garden

But if you’re heading into the National Park, or simply driving through Colorado on Interstate 25, Loveland makes for an interesting stop along the way.

If for no other reason than to see the statues.

Loveland has nearly 300 pieces of public art, mostly sculptures, spread all over, in front of city buildings, dentist’s offices, schools, and private homes.  You can drive around town, playing a game of spot the statues, but I don’t recommend it if you want to keep your insurance premiums down.  Instead, go directly to where the bulk of the artwork is on permanent display, at the Benson Park Sculpture Garden.  And it doesn’t cost a thing to enjoy.

The park is a dazzling site, with over 130 sculptures of all shapes and sizes placed around three large ponds.  When I first took my kids there, their response was the usual, “Oh no, do we have to walk?”  But once they meandered down the trail and spied their first statue, a boy playing marbles with a dinosaur, they were immediately hooked.  Aching feet were completely forgotten as they discovered new surprises around ever corner.

Benson Park is in a quiet, residential area, so it feels peaceful and uncrowded.  On the cold spring day we were there, it was certainly free of people.  The morning snowfall added to the magical air of the place as we took our time walking the trails.

This is the kind of place you’ll want to have your camera ready for memorable poses of your kids with the various sculptures.  They’ll plead with you to take a picture of them with every strange and whimsical creature they see.

There are picnic tables, benches, and bathrooms, so don’t worry about how much time you spend.  We were surprised to find two hours gone by without even noticing.

Granted, we were not in any kind of hurry.  Loveland was an overnight stop for us on our way through the state.  I highly recommend the new Holiday Inn Express just off I-25, which features the usual indoor pool but with a kid-pleasing giant red water slide.

Colorado is an amazing state, with majestic mountains and stunning scenic vistas.  It’s easy to overlook the little things.  But, next time you’re traveling through the area, you’ll find it well worth your time to add Benson Park Sculpture Garden to your list of places to see.

Benson Park Sculpture Garden

Benson Park Sculpture Garden

Benson Park Sculpture Garden

All photos by Phil Corless

Digging in the dirt at the Fossil Fair

October 31st might signal Halloween treats to you, but for South Carolina science fans it’s also a day of archeological fun at the South Carolina Fossil Fair hosted at the Ocean Lakes Family Campground’s Recreation Building in Myrtle Beach.  The day-long event features a mock dig site, PCS Phosphate Mine, a fossil hunt and lots of bones.  Experts from the Smithsonian Institute’s National Museum of Natural History will dust off your discoveries and identify the fossils.

Start at the mock dig site where a museum specialist will illustrate how to create a plaster cast to move a specimen from the dig site to a museum.  You can observe how the fossil is removed from the plaster and prepared for display. The fun part is that you get to help clean the specimen. Read More »

Like any good fish story, this one got away.  That’s right, you just missed Salmon Days in Issaquah, WA and you should be ashamed of yourself.  Go ahead and cry it out.  I’ll wait.

Okay, enough.  You brought it upon yourself.  Now sit still and let me tell you what you missed, aka, rub it in.

Every year about this time the salmon leave the deep, salty waters of Seattle’s Puget Sound and they start swimming.  They swim through lakes and streams and wind their way to Issaquah Creek, where the water is shallow and clear.  They swim all the way to the hatchery in which they were born, they do their thing with the eggs and the stuff and then they die.  Needless to say the salmon don’t find the occasion as festive as we do.  I watched them for hours and never saw a single party hat. Read More »

Chicago's Navy Pier

Do you have a family?  Is Chicago your kind of town?  Well, you’re in luck.

The Navy Pier, pictured here, is free to the public.  That’s FREE.  It’s Chicago’s most visited tourist attraction and has all kinds of activities and events for travelers of all ages.

The Ferris wheel, a carousel and swing ride bring the boardwalk to life.  The miniature golf course, the Amazing Chicago Funhouse Maze and Chicago Children’s Museum give the area a taste that is strictly Chicago.  Also, stuff to eat.

Visit Chicago.  Take the kids.

UPDATE: Sorry about the Olympics, Chicago.  We still dig you.

Photo courtesy of the City of Chicago

For more family-friendly travel photos visit DeliciousBaby’s Photo Fridays.

Tenure is a great thing, especially when it equates to four paid weeks of vacation per year. Unfortunately, my husband doesn’t have as much vacation time as I do. Since mine is a “use it or lose it” kind of situation, there are a couple of weeks out of the year that I find myself on vacation while my husband still works.

One such vacation week is coming up in October. I’ve started making tentative plans for how to occupy my time – you know, OTHER than the cleaning and “honey-do” list the vacationing spouse is required to take care of. My ambition is to make myself feel like I’ve been fully entertained for the week for as little money as possible. I want to feel like I’ve actually taken a vacation, not just sit on the couch at home all week trying to avoid spending money.

DAY ONE:

I will dedicate a leisurely hour lounging in the tub, followed by a trip to my local library. I will then take any books I procure to nearby Desert Breeze Park, lay down a blanket (because by that time it’ll be cool enough to stand the sunshine), and read for as long as I want. I might even take a ride on Desert Breeze’s miniature train, if I’m feeling adventurous.

Total Cost of Day One: $2.00 for the mini train ride.

Read More »

After the 5-hour, nerve-racking motorcycle ride out of the Kathmandu congestion and into the outlying mountain ranges, I planned on doing a whole lot of nothing in Pokhara.

And that’s exactly what I did. Read More »

Babble is an online magazine that covers all things kid and parenting. It’s what they do. That means that with the summer suddenly upon us they have devoted a good portion of their time planning how to get away from it all – assuming all does not include the children (but nice try).

Here are a few examples of what they offer:

From “Babies on a Plane” by Hana Schank:

“We’re just checking to make sure you’re not over the limit,” the security officer said when I asked exactly what they were looking for with regards to the baby food.

“What’s the limit?” I asked.

“Just a reasonable amount,” explained the security officer.

Which is what? Enough to feed a baby but not enough to make an exploding applesauce bomb?

As if that’s not bad enough, the type of baby food you bring on board is also subject to inspection. I was once in line in front of a woman who had a jar of Gerber’s Peach Cobbler confiscated because the security officer said it was a dessert, not baby food.

For more Babies on a Plane visit Babble!

From “10 Toddler Vacation Tips” by Merideth Broussard:

Fill up the iPhone or iPod with family photos and videos.

If you have an iPhone, it’s probably already loaded up with kid-friendly apps like MyFirstABC, Poppin’, Doodle Kids, Scribble, and KidArt. When your little one tires of doodling or popping bubble wrap bubbles, pull out the big guns: family photos. I’ve yet to meet a toddler who doesn’t love going through the family digital photo archive. It’s a chance to tell stories, reflect on the past, and remember the good times your family has had. In other words: a perfect way to begin a family vacation! When you tire of explaining who’s who in every photo, it’s time to move on to home movies of your child. Unrepentant narcissists that they are, toddlers looooove seeing movies of themselves and people they know.

Going to a warm place? Don’t forget that afternoon nap conflicts with prime time on the beach.

There are two strategies for dealing with the afternoon nap issue.

Option 1: reserve a room with a balcony, or a first-floor room with outdoor access. It sounds simple, but I can tell you that it made a huge difference in my happiness on our beach vacation. While my little one napped in our first-floor beachfront room, I sat outside in the sun and read my trashy mystery novel or chatted with friends. It was perfection.

Option 2: Avoid hotels and go to a family-friendly B&B or small inn.

Find out why and some other great tips for Traveling with Toddlers at Babble!

From “25 Family Travel Tips” by Annie Bacon:

Always have a couple of small toys in your bag for outings. Avoid toys that have many small pieces: Polly Pockets are perfect to keep a young girl occupied in the hotel room, but you don’t want to have to crawl under the table to find a missing shoe. Also, don’t bring any “beeping” or musical electronic toys: parents have a selective sense of hearing that allows them not to go crazy in the presence of anything from Vtech, but others might not have that skill.
A few good choices…
- Coloring book with washable pencils
- Activity or sticker books
- Etch-a-sketch
- Magnetic play scenes or dress-up dolls
- Anything that comes in a small case

Resist the urge to ask for a child’s plates before yours. It might keep him quiet at first, but then he’ll have nothing to do once it’s your time to eat.

If you travel abroad, keep in mind that some cultures have different meal schedules and that restaurants’ open hours may differ from what you’re used to. Make enquiries before heading out, or you might hit your nose on a “Closed” sign.

Read more Family Travel Tips at Babble!

As you can see, they offer plenty of advice on how to make the most of your family vacation, from airports to passing the hours of a long road trip and all the beaches in between. It’s also a great place to see what the rich and famous are doing over their summer holiday, and who doesn’t want to know that?

Safe travels!

All photos and quoted text are property of Babble.

When I was little, growing up in the back BACK woods of Maine (think Stephen King, here), I couldn’t be kept away from anything having to do with water. Ponds, lake, streams, even standing water in the fields after a rainstorm. It seems all I wanted to do was get the cuffs of my jeans wet and muddy.

Fast forward some thirty-mumble years, and I still have that inclination. Dwelling in the desert presents a problem, though, unless I want to wade in a community pool or a “man-made lake” (anathema!).

This is where my very favorite scenic drive in Arizona comes in. It’s Scenic Route 89A through Oak Creek Canyon – twenty-eight miles of tree-lined and mountainous winding road that follows along Oak Creek.

On one end, you have Sedona:

On the other end, you have Flagstaff:

All along the middle, you have this:

And this:

And this:

Aaaaaaand this:

There are great little places all along the route to stop and take pictures, or to obtain refreshment. Private resorts and bed and breakfasts abound. Swimming (and sliding!) at Slide Rock is popular for families with children. Hiking along the West Fork Trail and Palatki Indian Ruins is appropriate for all skill levels.

Finally, the road climbs out of the canyon, and a the top of the final crest (over 6,000 feet!) there is a rest stop maintained by the National Forest Service. It features necessary conveniences, an Information booth, a lookout area from which the entirety of Oak Creek Canyon is laid before you, and Native Americans set up along the pathways selling their crafts.

It was a beautiful and refreshing way to spend an afternoon. We rely upon this scenic drive at least two or three times a year, to get us out of the sweltering heat of the Phoenix metropolitan area. It was hard for us to come back home when all we wanted to do was plant ourselves next to Oak Creek and never leave. We did come back home (work calls, after all), but it’s comforting to know that we can go back any time we need to.

To experience the drive from the Phoenix area, take I-17 north, then take exit 298 to access Highway 179 east to Sedona. Highway 179 connects to Highway 89A in the heart of town.

To access the drive from Flagstaff, take I-17 to the junction of I-40, then take exit 337 to Highway 89A. You will then follow the route south to Sedona, instead of north like we did. It’s just as pretty going in the other direction, trust me!