Category: National Parks

Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, Bluenose Inn

August 4, 2018

While listening to Bill play live piano music in an old world lounge in the Bluenose Inn in Bar Harbor on a cliff overlooking the Atlantic, I have certain expectations for how the kids will comport themselves.  I’m normally very liberal with how they go about exploring their world (read: Grandmom suffers regular mini heart…

Baxter State Park: Middle of Nowhere Maine

July 29, 2018

By the light of a cozy campfire I read out loud, “I started to run and found I couldn’t, because of the boulders; that made me frantic and I climbed over them like a cat and yelled and shouted and cried all the time.  I yelled for my dad.  I climbed up as high as…

40th Birthday Day – Mu Ko Lanta National Park

July 17, 2018

I turned to Evie {seriously}, “If those monkeys get in here, you are going to throw your ice cream and run like hell.  Got it?”  Evie, with large eyes {equally seriously}, “Yes mommy.  Got it.  If those monkeys come in here I’m gonna run as fast as I can with my ice cream to get…

Koh Phi Phi – The Beach

July 11, 2018

Not all beaches in Thailand are created equal.  Thanks to the country’s seriously strong marketing skills, I was under the impression that the southern part of Siam is covered in pristine white sugar beaches.  That’s… not entirely accurate.  Those ’10 out of 10’ beaches exist, sure.  Just not where we were (giant black eels lurking in…

Elephants And The Karen Tribe

June 6, 2018

When things are going sideways, I’m usually thinking ahead to how I’m going to explain it to the Grands in a way that it doesn’t sound like we’re totally reckless with their grandkids. “But it sounded like such a good idea before we got up here,” just wasn’t going to cut it.  Jack’s bare bottom was…