Ruh roh, Raggy! Snack time.

Cookies and milk.

What more could a boy want for a snack. ;)

Can I play on your iPod Touch? Pleeeaaasssseee...

So, as you are aware, we'll be posting a lot of blog entries as we make our way through this adventure. Which means we'll need to have at least one laptop along for the ride. But, being that I'm a gadget geek and a systems engineer, you *know* that I'll be bringing a few extras along for the ride.

Let's review all of the "toys" that will be traveling with us...

Apple 15" MacBook Pro (mainly Heidi & Bob)
Toshiba 10" NB-505 netbook (mainly Bob)
Apple iPhone 4S (Heidi's)
Motorola Droid X (Bob's)
Apple iPod Touch (Bob's)
Apple iPod Classic (x2) (Heidi's & Hannah's)
Panasonic 12MP camera (Hannah's)
Sony 10MP camera (Heidi's)
Cisco FlipVideo HD (x2) (Heidi's & Bob's)

Doesn't sound like much but add in all the power/charging cables, cables to join things together, batteries for some things, mice, headphones, and a car mount and you have quite a bit of stuff.

All in all, it fits in one large and heavy backpack. Not too bad, and we'll be extra careful about keeping it safe.

First Stop

Hannah here -
Well, first stop is Truckee, CA, because our grandparents are staying there. I'm really excited about being able to go in the pool one last time there this year (or maybe twice, I don't know).
I haven't seen my Gramma and Pappy for awhile, because they've been at Truckee.

Normally we would go to their house every other day or so, and I would grab the newspaper, and bring it inside, then read the comics.

Then I would grab a container and head out to the front yard and pick the blueberries, eating half of them (shhhh!), and bring the ones that were left inside, sticking them in the freezer, if I remembered to.
Then I would grab another container...

well, I won't bore you with details. 

Oh, wait.

I did. 

Nevermind.

Anyway, were leaving in a few days, and if Mom approves of this, then it will get posted.
Therefore, you are reading this, then that means she approved.
If you aren't reading this, then she didn't.
   
                                                -Hannah
  

Food...

I like food. Really, I do.

At least, I do now.

When I was a kid, I was a pretty darn picky eater (just ask my mom). But 20-30 years later, a few seasons of Good Eats and Diners, Drive-ins and Dives and I'm getting pretty diversified when it comes to food. Plus, if you look at my Bucket List 2012, you'll see that more than a few things listed revolve around food.

So I've been put in charge of where we eat out. Most of the time, we'll be getting groceries and eating in but on many occasions we'll be eating out.

I'd like to get a Chicago-style hot dog from a street vendor while we're passing through Chicago. Maybe even some Chicago-style pizza too.

I'd like to try Boston Clam Chowder (for the first time ever!) while we're in Boston.

So far, a friend from work (and originally from Delaware) has recommended the following...

Steamed blue crabs:

The Boondocks
825 Lighthouse Road
Smyrna, DE 19977


Scrapple:

Anywhere that serves breakfast in Delaware, East Maryland, East Pennsylvania, or Western New Jersey


Pizza:

Grotto's Pizza (I love the standard cheese pizza, but you will only like this if you think pizza sauce is the star of any pizza)

Many locations… ones I typically go to:

15 Boardwalk at Baltimore Avenue
Rehoboth Beach, DE 19971

Or

17 Surf Avenue
Rehoboth Beach, DE 19971


Cheesesteaks:

Geno’s Steaks (cheesewhiz cheesesteak)
Intersection of 9th Street and Passyunk Avenue
Philadelphia, PA 19147

Or

Pat’s King of Steaks (provolone)
1237 East Passyunk Avenue
Philadelphia, PA 19147

Anyone else have any other ideas from around those parts of our good ol' USA??

Where Have You Been?

There are so many places that we have never been, it has been a chore to narrow them down to what is reasonable.

Traveling with kids means you can't pack as much into your day, there needs to be downtime, playtime, and snack time. 

We'll only have a few days in any one location, and we may never get to go again, so deciding what to do is not easy. There are some historical sites that I don't want to miss, but I know those won't be the most exciting for the kids. We'll try to balance activities, by visiting (potentially boring) museums and historic sites in the mornings, and keep the afternoons for kid centered activities, like children's museums, swimming at the hotel or campground pool, and playing at the beach.

I've also heard from friends and family, places that they have been and were the best for families.

High marks went to Colonial Williamsburg, so we plan to stay three nights in the area.

Washington D.C. is always a favorite, and I know we could spend a week just there, but we won't have more than two days, and will have to choose wisely what to see and what to skip.

New York City is a must, even if we just see the Statue of Liberty. We would love to see a Broadway show, like Lion King or Mary Poppins, but I'm not sure that will work out.

If you've been to any of these places with your family, what were the favorites?

South Dakota:
Mount Rushmore area

Minnesota:
Mall of America in Minneapolis (mainly for the Lego store)

Virginia:
Monticello in Charlottesville
Richmond
Colonial Williamsburg/Jamestown/Yorktown
Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge (of the Marguerite Henry books)
Mount Vernon

Washington D.C.:
National Zoo???
Museum of Natural History
Air & Space Museum
Memorials - Lincoln, Jefferson, Washington
National Archives (for a bit of genealogy research and to see the Declaration of Independence)
Madame Tussaud's to see the Presidents??

Pennsylvania:
Gettysburg Battlefield
Independence Hall, Philly
National Constitution Center, Philly
Franklin Institute, Philly
Please Touch Museum, Philly
Valley Forge
Audubon Center at Mill Grove
Lancaster

New York
Wave Hill Gardens
Statue of Liberty (sadly she's closed for renovations)
Broadway Show??
Niagara Falls??

Massachusets:
Plymouth Colony
Mayflower II
Paul Revere House, Boston
Old North Church, Boston
Boston Common
Bunker Hill, Boston
Loisa May Alcott House, Concord
Lexington

Tennessee:
Nashville (we'll only have one evening here)

Kansas:
Topeka

Colorado:
Mesa Verde
Durango
Sand Dunes National Park

Arizona:
Mesa/Phoenix

Share your family's favorites, pretty please :)

Car Travel Tips?

I'm so looking forward to the calm drive across our great country.

Enriching audio book playing.

Peacefully observing the beautiful sights that zoom by.

My perfect children getting along perfectly. 

Angels singing.

Pigs flying...



Help.



I don't want to resort to electronics, as I have observed that the more electronics they use, the less they get along when those electronics are off, and the quicker they claim boredom.

So please, share your best road trip tips.

Wow, What a Lot of Stuff to Do!

Preparing for a trip like this has taken much of my time and focus the last few months.

We bought a new (to us) Honda Pilot and gave our trusty old Ford Explorer away. We got a cargo box for the top of the Pilot, so it wouldn't be so completely stuffed inside.

We shopped thrift stores until we found six small duffel bags for our clothes.

We arranged a house & cat sitter.

Bob arranged for a two month leave from work.

I researched lodging, and found that KOA campgrounds now have what they call Kabins for around $50 per night. They are just nice wooden sheds with bunks and electricity, but it beats setting up and tearing down a traditional campsite every day or two. Plus, I can bring an electric skillet and hot plate for cooking and coffee!

I found that in some locations, an inexpensive motel was a cheaper alternative to the Kabins.

We got colonial costumes together to wear at Colonial Williamsburg. I ordered two colonial shirts for the guys from Etsy, to save me the time of sewing them myself. Made the guys colonial breeches from pants. Found a dress for Hannah at a second-hand store, and put something together for me from Goodwill finds. I still need to sew the guys their waistcoats.

I calculated costs, which includes gas, groceries, lodging, attractions, and occasional eating out.

Bob found that the cooler a friend has been storing in our garage was one that you could plug in, and it works fantastically! Makes it easy to eat inexpensively when you have a portable fridge with you.

I mapped all the Whole Foods and Trader Joe's along our route, so we can access their gluten free foods for Hannah.

We got washtubs so we can wash dishes and clothes.

I got new walking sandals for me, finally, after looking for a month.

I arranged and re-arranged our route to accommodate as many family visits as we could manage.

We started this blog :)

I know there is more, but I won't bore you with the details.

Oh, wait, I already did.

Never-mind.