Trips, Pics, and Tales

I've decided that Friday's are going to be a bit of a different kind of a post day...I'm going to do a "Friday Feature" post - maybe a travel tip, or feature a new or unique location, or just something a bit different from the current travel journey posts that the blog is currently showcasing. So today's "Friday Feature" is Spring Break Day Trip Plans ....featuring ideas to get out and explore with your kids, and examples local to me - but switch out my examples with ones in your town and you've got a plan!  I know a lot of kids, especially in our area don't have too many days off, if any, because of make up days from all of the snow this past winter - but keep the plans in mind for next year or even this summer! So....what are some great things to do to get out of the house? For me, the weather if finally starting to be nice enough to be outside!  The flowers are starting to bloom....if you have a park or a garden nearby, now is the

We were up early, our last morning at the Peace Lodge, and our driver, Wilson was right on time waiting for us.  He felt bad about taking us on the road that was in such bad conditions a few days earlier and to show how horrible he felt, he had a nice gift bag for us.  He told us he wouldn't be driving on that road again any time soon! We said our goodbyes to the staff, and were on our way to the Sansa terminal for our flight on the small plane to Puerto Jimenez.  We were making good time, so Wilson asked if we'd like to stop for some coffee and snacks at the Doka Coffee Estate.  Well, sure!   On past trips we'd rented a car, and liked the flexibility of driving at our own pace, but it was also so nice to have a driver to make suggestions of where and when to stop - at places we may not have thought of, and also to have him watch our belongings in the car as well.  Wilson had been fantastic through each leg of our journey! We didn't have time to take the coffee pl

After our visit to the Butterfly House it was lunch time.  We decided to go to the buffet restaurant.  We had a pretty good meal, at a reasonable price and everyone found something they liked.  The rain started during lunch, but that didn't stop us!  As my parents had come to realized, in Costa Rica, you don't let the rain stop you from anything - just just put your rain gear on and carry on!   We wanted to take full advantage of all of the other exhibits on the property, so we went to visit the snakes, the frogs, the Casita and the big cats! Alex and Megan at lunch The kids doing some chores at the Casita This is a replica of a traditional Costa Rican Casita Time to take the Ox out for a ride! The inside of the Casita, this is the dining room table set up for a meal This is one of the cats in the Big Cat area.  Each has a sign letting the visitors know its history, such as where it was rescued from and t