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    Travel

    How to Spend 24 Hours in Watkins Glen New York

    November 5, 2019 - By 

    The drive from Rochester New York through to Watkins Glen is unforgettable. Curving rural roads stretch out for miles and then suddenly the landscape switches carving down towards one finger-shaped lake after another. Wineries crop up on both sides of the road and the sloping rows of vines command attention. Welcome to Watkins Glen Watkins Glen, a small village that’s part of Finger Lakes New York wine region is a geological marvel. Oddly, I had no idea it was so spectacular and so close to home. We were guests while in Watkins Glen which means we received accommodations, meals and…

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    Three Days of Play in Rochester New York

    October 29, 2019 - By 

    “Play is the highest form of research,” – Albert Einstein It had been years since I last set foot in Rochester New York. There was a time Rochester was a destination Canadians visited for the weekend, when they wanted to shop and save money. Shopping bags loaded with clothing, shoes, and the occasional bottle of rum or whiskey, we’d return satisfied and armed with Christmas presents for everyone, but not before that final stop at the Duty Free store. This is how I remember Rochester, New York. We were guests of Visit Rochester while in the city which means we…

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    Travel

    The Flight Before Christmas – Everything You Need To Know Now

    October 22, 2019 - By 

    Need to travel over the holidays? Need the flight before Christmas? Oh sure we all want to travel during the holiday season and go somewhere warm, or even some place familiar filled with family and friends. But do you need to travel during the holidays? If so, then you need some ground rules and also some guidelines and tips on how to go and when to book the flight before Christmas. There are lots of benefits to holiday air travel and a few big drawbacks too. But, if you want to know the ins and outs and the ways to…

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    Best Places to Wine and Dine in Tualatin Valley, Oregon

    October 13, 2019 - By 

    Hundreds of families push strollers through downtown Beaverton, Oregon while middle aged couples line up at each food station waiting their turn to buy everything, from organic fruit popsicles to Falafel burgers, and gourmet grilled cheese. Nearby, in a green space, families spread out impromptu picnics on the lawn. Some stroll hand in hand browsing bright coloured Indian scarves, Korean jewelry, crafty bookmarks and holiday decorations made from old tattered, repurposed, maps. Across the tracks, a cable car periodically splits the crowd in two, while police stand by watching and guarding barricades. The streets are cordoned off in a radius…

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    Travel

    Reasons to Stay at a Ski In Ski Out Lodge

    September 30, 2019 - By 

    No big surprise for many of you that we love to ski. We have done at least one epic ski trip every single year since learning how to ski at Tremblant in 2015. We have stayed: on the mountain, at the resort, right at the base of the lodge, ten minutes away, half an hour away, in condos and most recently in a ski in ski out lodge. So, we have formed some opinions of the benefits and even the slight inconveniences associated with each type of family ski trip accommodations. Ski in ski out lodges are our new favourite…

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    Wyoming’s South Gap Lakes Trail Outdoor Adventures

    September 16, 2019 - By 

    Jagged rocks of South Gap Lakes Trail are slick with Wyoming’s first snow of the winter. This morning this Ontario Canada girl left Vee Bar Guest Ranch near Laramie where the scenery was all golden light, faint autumn breezes and babbling brooks only to find winter here. Wintery Welcome I came to explore Wyoming and had zero intentions of finding snow. My city in southern Ontario nets more than enough snow from December through end of March that I need not hunt more down. And yet here in the mountains of Medicine Bow National Forest finding the first snow of…

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    51 Summer Things To Do at Smugglers’ Notch Now

    August 6, 2019 - By 

    Bring your family to Smugglers’ Notch in the summer and never hear I’m bored again. Oh, believe me, I know it takes all of five seconds into most holidays for kids to launch into that familiar refrain. But, there are hundreds of summer things to do every single day at Smugglers’ Notch. A Vermont Summer Vacation Story I’ve been back for three weeks and I am still getting text message alerts about the activities at Smuggs. Why? Maybe I am a bit of a masochist as I live nine hours away and can’t exactly drop everything and race right back…

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    A Smugglers’ Notch Summer – Open Your Eyes to Something New

    July 23, 2019 - By 

    We were hosted media guests at Smugglers’ Notch this summer. My opinion is all my own and also truthful. Have you ever seen a Luna moth? They have an impressive wingspan, a lime green colour that makes them look almost bioluminescent and streamers trailing behind as they fly. If I’d never seen this moth, I’d still believe all moths drab and grey. Looking Through a Different Lens If I’d never experienced a Smugglers’ Notch summer I might have missed seeing all the fun ways you can play at a ski resort when the snow has long since melted. Sometimes, a…

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    Where in Canada Can You Stay in a Hotel Made of Ice?

    May 23, 2019 - By 

    I wake on a bed of ice, intricate carvings of a basilisk surrounding me, light subtly creeping through a snow ceiling and polished bricks of ice. Outside this crystal ice palace, the world is still and silent. The kids, in the bed beside ours, just a few feet away are still snugly bundled, not yet stirring. Beside me, wrapped in a burrito sleeping bag, is my husband. I hear the familiar rise, fall and slight catch of his breath. What Can I Expect Overnight at Hôtel de Glace Quebec? I squeeze my eyes shut a moment longer, listening with my…

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    Travel

    Where Can You Find Amazing Skiing in Maine?

    April 30, 2019 - By 

    “There’s skiing in Maine?” That’s what my family asked the week before we left for a 12-day road trip through New England and up to Quebec. Oh yes, indeed, there’s great skiing in Maine and when it comes to affordable family friendly ski trips, Sunday River Resort delivers. Spring/Winter Family Road Trips As a family, we ski Vermont every year and we’re extremely familiar with that territory and the Green Mountains. But this year we decided to add on to our trip and keep exploring for as long as we could. So, after five days of skiing at Sugarbush and…