Travel

My sister lives in the twin cities. My kids and I visited for a couple weeks earlier this summer, so we had a chance to explore a lot both Minneapolis and St. Paul. I love visiting the Twin Cities in the summer because there is so much to do, especially with young kids. It was rather hot while I was there, so we looked for fun ways to cool off and keep the kids entertained. Here are 8 fun kid-friendly things to do in the Twin Cities in the summer.

Do you know where your food comes from? Since moving back to California, I have a lot more opportunities to buy local produce, but I don’t always prioritize it as I should.

Last month, I had the opportunity to visit Copenhagen in Denmark for nearly a week. Although I traveled for a work conference, I did have a bit of free time so I could experience the city. Denmark was not a place I ever envisioned I’d travel. I had no pans to ever go to Copenhagen, but I’m so glad this conference came about so I could experience a new place and a new culture. There are so many things you must see in Copenhagen Denmark

Traveling with early elementary-aged kids is leaps and bounds easier than traveling with babies or toddlers. My kids are at the age that I no longer have to bring bottles, diaper bags, etc., which is such a relief. They are pretty good at entertaining themselves. But on long trips, even my usual travel tips and tricks start to fail. That’s why I’m so glad we finally got a new Amazon Fire Kids Edition tablets – or KET for short.

A few weeks ago, I got the chance to visit Portland for work. It’s a city I’ve always wanted to visit, but I only had slightly more than 24 hours in Portland to experience the city. Although my time was short, I was still able to pack in a lot of site seeing in a short amount of time. If you’re heading there some time soon, here are the 7 things to do in Portland.

Earlier this month, my girlfriends and I took a road trip to Santa Barbara. Although I had been to Santa Barbara a decade earlier for a wine tasting, it was only a day trip, so I didn’t get to experience the city or the wineries in the area. It was my girlfriends’ birthday and also Cinco de Mayo weekend, so we were pretty excited to celebrate.

Last week, I traveled to New York City for work. Most of the time when I travel, I spend quite a bit of time posting to my Instagram stories, to document the entire experience. This trip, I decided to do something new. I decided to quit social media. I put my phone down, and actually live in moment, for once. Although I did take some photos and videos, I did not post to IG at all. It was so freeing. We all need to put our phones down more often.

When I was six years old, my parents took me Disneyland. It was my first time on an airplane and I can distinctly remember the excitement leading up to this trip. Given my fond memories of my first time at Disneyland, I wanted my kids to have that experience around the same age. Since my parents were going to be in town, it felt like the perfect opportunity for all of us to experience it together – just as I had 30 some years ago. So I made all the plans. Going to Disneyland with little kids takes a little extra planning, but it’s totally worth it.

A couple weeks ago, my parents were in town. They love to visit botanical gardens, so we decided to check out the South Coast Botanic Garden. There are several different Los Angeles Botanic gardens, but this one was the closest to where my parents were staying, so we decided to check it out.