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April 12, 2016

Learning the Importance of Water Safety with British Swim School

This year more than ever (since he’s not getting any younger), we are determined to get our 4-year old, Bergen, swimming independently. He loves the water, interest and enjoyment is no problem at all, but he needs more explicit practice and experience to get some basic water safety skills in place.

We’re seeing that as he gains independence as a little person, he has the mindset that he can “do it all”, which is why learning to swim is so important at this age. We live in Seattle, a city with water everywhere we turn from the beaches of Puget Sound to all of our lakes, and even the streams and creeks that we explore, so it’s a must that Bergen have at least a basic idea of what to do if he were to get in water over his head.

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April 11, 2016

Ocean Village Resort in Tofino, BC: Comfortable Rustic Family Accommodations

During our February visit to the small coastal town of Tofino on Vancouver Island (British Columbia), we had the pleasure of staying at Ocean Village Resort in one of their cozy 2-bedroom cabins. After several days of urban exploring in Victoria, plus a full day of driving, the resort and the surrounding area was the perfect place to slow down, immerse ourselves in nature, and bond as a family.

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March 27, 2016

Travel Guide to Seattle, Washington with Kids

This extensive Guide to Seattle with Kids is brought to you in collaboration with Expedia.com. All opinions and ideas are my own, and the content was created and written by me. Special thanks for providing the push that I needed to finally create this (hopefully) helpful and long overdue resource for families!

As a resident of Seattle, Washington for over 10 years, a teacher, and a mother of two young children, I’ve come to realize that Seattle really is a great city for kids! Over the past 4 years of blogging, I’ve certainly written about some of our favorite spots, including things to do and places to eat, but I’ve yet to compile it all into one handy guide for those visiting Seattle with kids, or for fellow Seattleites who are looking for more ideas…until now!

In this guide to Seattle with kids, you’ll find our favorite recommendations for activities and restaurants, plus a few of our recommendations for lodging. For planning or organizational purposes, I’ve divided the guide into two sections: The Downtown Core & Beyond Downtown (though still within the city limits). Of particular note and what I absolutely love is that most of our attractions can be enjoyed by everyone, not just children, not just adults, but the whole family!

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March 21, 2016

Exploring Nature with Kids: Conifer Cone Search

It’s the first day of spring, but Bergen and I just ticked one last thing off of our winter bucket list: A Conifer Cone Search! It ended up being quite spontaneous. We were out on one of our usual walks as a family through the Washington Park Arboretum. Along the way, Bergen was paying particular attention to all the conifer cones (aka: pine cones) on the ground and under trees.

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March 19, 2016

Victoria, BC’s Inner Harbor and Parliament with Kids

In typical winter in the Pacific Northwest fashion, our morning to explore Victoria BC’s Inner Harbor and Parliament area brought us grey skies, wind, and rain. Though as you can imagine, if you’ve read our blog at all, we got outside and faced the nasty inclement weather anyway. We only had a few days in town, and a full itinerary of things we wanted to see!

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March 14, 2016

Victoria BC’s DoubleTree Hotel: Fresh and Modern Family Accommodations

We love staying in hotels that have been around for years and years for their charm, history, and character, but there’s also something to be said about a staying somewhere that’s brand-new. The words modern, fresh, and contemporary come to mind when I think of our experience at Victoria, BC’s DoubleTree Hotel. We stayed here during our recent visit to Vancouver Island (you can view our 7-day itinerary here), and we were quite pleased with the visit!

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