January 15, 2016

Why We Love Our State Parks Pass Featuring Scenic Beach, WA

Slaed has received our state parks pass (called the Discover Pass) for Christmas from me for the past 4 years! Confession: This is embarrassing, but at one point in time we actually avoided a state park parking lot (we parked elsewhere and walked in) in order to avoid paying the park’s fee! We laugh now at how silly this was–if only I could talk to my old self. Here’s what I’d say: “Just pay the stinkin’ $30 to park (and visit parks throughout the entire state) all you want for an entire year!”

Back to the 4 years of responsible state park patronage: We love our state parks pass, and can’t believe we ever went without it. We visit a state park at least once a month, and when we’re not exploring our home state of Washington, we seek out other state parks in our travels. Always a wonderful experience full of nature, history, and just enjoyment of our great outdoors.

4 Reasons Why We Love our State Parks Pass

1. Easy Payment.

2. Access to the Outdoors!

3. We’re supporting the park system.

4. It’s Motivating!

Wondering exactly what I’m talking about with some of these reasons? I’ve put together a video for you explaining why we love our state parks pass. And if you don’t want to listen to me ramble on about how much we love the state parks pass, just fast forward to about the 5 minutes and 30 seconds mark, and you can see some of our adventure at Scenic Beach State Park near Silverdale, Washington. We visited the park on New Year’s day as part of a day trip to the Kitsap Peninsula.

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January 13, 2016

Savoring the Season with a Winter Bucket list

We’re celebrating our days slowing getting longer and longer after the recent winter solstice. It’s a little hard to believe, but in less than a month’s time, I can already tell a difference in the afternoon! We’re getting just a little more out of that sun on our daily walks before dinner.

To help us appreciate all that the season has to offer, we’ve (yes, Bergen and Slaed had input) put together a list of 11 winter inspired activities for us to focus on, and hopefully accomplish! Depending on your location, you might be able to gather some winter inspiration, and get into the fun right along side of us. Included in the list are nature and outdoor focused activities that we would like to get to this season.

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January 11, 2016

Springhill Suites Wenatchee, WA: Family Friendly Comfort in a Modern Space

So many of our hotel stays within the last year have been for one night only, because we were limited on time or just passing through on our way to another location with a rental home, so it was nice to set-up roots so to speak for two whole nights for a visit to Wenatchee, Washington.

We traveled to Wenatchee last fall in collaboration with the Wenatchee Valley Chamber of Commerce to show off all that this area in North Central Washington has to offer. We were lucky to get to lodge at one of the small city’s newer hotels: Springhill Suites Wenatchee by Marriott.

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January 8, 2016

Exploring Oakland, CA: The East Bay Depot for Creative Reuse

The last thing you might think of for exploring a city while on vacation is to go visit a store full of junk, however, that’s exactly what Bergen, my mother-in-law, and I did while we were in Oakland, California for Christmas. After spending 2 days camping in Samuel P. Taylor State Park in their rustic cabins, we had just 1 day to relax in Oakland, where Slaed’s sister & her family call home. So while Georgia (our 1-year old) napped, we paid a visit to the East Bay Depot for Creative Reuse.

Shopping with a 4-year old little boy can be stressful at times, at least with my particular 4-year old. I’m worried that he’ll break things or mess up displays, but shopping at a junk store with a 4-year old was a pleasure! Treasures to delight him were around every corner, and nothing (within reach) is too terribly valuable.

Drawers full of crayons, markers, and pencils!

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January 5, 2016

Christmas Vacation: Samuel P. Taylor State Park + Cabins

Before we get any further into 2016, I wanted to share some of our 2015 Christmas vacation with you! We visited family down in the Bay Area, and instead of crowding into family members homes, renting a vacation house or staying in a hotel (though we did spend one night at a Hilton Garden Inn), we rented cabins, and camped in a state park about 30 miles northwest of San Francisco.

Truth be told between travel, set-up, clean-up, and packing-up, it was a lot of work, but for me WELL WORTH all the effort. I put together a video that features a tour of the cabins, a little bit of our Christmas celebration, and some snapshots and clips from our hikes around the park.

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January 4, 2016

New Year’s Savings: Chinook Book 2016 Giveaway!

I’m so excited to begin our first full week of 2016 with a Chinook Book giveaway! The Chinook Book continues to play a huge part in helping us get out, experience, and explore our city and region. I knew that we used “the book” (as we refer to it) quite a bit throughout 2015, but it wasn’t until I actually sat down, and started jotting down all the coupons we used that I realized just how much!