The weekend before our school started here in Georgia, we squeezed in a last hurray before we all back to the routine of life. We packed up the car and drove to our neighboring state in Alabama for a fun weekend of family friendly activities in Huntsville. Here are the sneak peek of what we did in Huntsville during this weekend trip.

The Wonder of Nature at Cathedral Caverns

Our first stop while we were en route to Hunstville was Cathedral Caverns. This was our first visit to any caves with kids. A cave helmet was a great souvenir to get them excited about the journey lied ahead.

I will have to write a more detail post on our journey deep into the caverns. It was such a cool and great experience. The Cathedral Caverns State park is well maintained so it was very easy for family to enjoy. The path along the caverns is paved and you can easily navigate with your stroller.

Sharpen Young Mind with Science

Sci-Quest was our next stop in Huntsville. This small, yet fun science center provided us with many hand-on exhibits that we spent the rest of the day there.

Blast Off Their Imagination with Space Center

Our last stop was the main attraction that we came here for. The US Space & Rocket Center was hosting the special Star Wars exhibit. And the kids were truly excited as we pulled into the parking lot greeting by the huge space rocket.

Needless to say, Mr. Z couldn’t stop talking since. He even asked if we can move there permanently. Only if he will realize that the Star Wars exhibit is only temporary and they have already moved on to the unknown destination.

Visit back soon as we dive into the detail of our fun visit in this small town.

Also check out other traveler tales at Photo Friday and Spotlight Thursday.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Huntsville, AL With Kids: Caverns, Science and Rocket is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

One of Mr. Rojo’s favorite Thai dish that he recently discovered right before we headed to Thailand for our summer trip is Khao Mun Gai (Hainanese Chicken Rice).

This Chinese origin dish is one of the main staple of Thai people. The chicken is boiled in the salted water and the rice is cooked from that chicken stock along with ginger and garlic. Then it will be served up with cucumber and green onion garnish with salted-bean sauce.

With it’s simplicity yet savory taste, no wonder you can find this dish in almost every corner in Thailand.

For the very popular restaurant, this dish might be the only dish they sell and yet there might not be any available seats in the restaurant during the rush lunch hour.

The Scene Behind a Great Dish

Be warned though that most of the time, THIS will be what you will see as well.

The row of cooked chicken hanging by the neck as the cook works efficiently to cut up the chicken. For most, it might seem too gruesome for a lunch scene but for many it’s an easy way to spot your favorite dish.

I don’t know if Mr. Rojo had seen this, would he still try Khao Mun Gai in the first place. But for now, his love for this dish is unwavering.

Check out other food from around the world at Wander Food Wednesday.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Food in Bangkok: Khao Mun Gai (Hainanese Chicken Rice) is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

When talking about a visit to Orlando and more specifically Walt Disney World, most people will probably think about the big 4 – Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studio. But for us, summer family trip to Orlando only means a water park. Our last trip we enjoyed our visit to Disney’s Blizzard Beach. 

This time around we went to another Disney Water park at Typhoon Lagoon. I always recommend my friends who visit Walt Disney World in summer or even spring to at least plan a day to the water park. Not only, it’s a great way to break out park routine but it’s a wonderful way to beat the heat in Florida. 

What I Like About Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon

Easy on the Wallet (sort of) 

The Typhoon Lagoon is part of Walt Disney World theme parks but the price is very comparable to local theme parks in Orlando. I mean we are still talking about a big chunck of cash for a family of 4 but at least it’s much cheaper than the main Disney Theme parks. 

Plus you don’t have to pay for parking like other parks so it’s a perfect place to enjoy even half a day or a whole day. 

Fun For the Whole Family

Having little kids always create a challenge in finding a fun ride that will satisfy the whole family. At Typhoon Lagoon, there is something for everyone. We especially love the Castaway Creek where we could float along the gently steam as it’s winding along the park. 

And for the dare devil of the family, there is no dispute that the Surf Pool is one of the kids’ favorite. They braved the chest-high water and patiently waited along with hundred of kids and adult in the blue pool. As thundering sound roared from the distant, the crowd started to prepare themselves. Parents held on tight to their children’s little hand. School-age kids pushed down their goggle and breathed in the last big breath.

The wave as high as two story house crushing down to anticipating kids. Some rode with the wave and got pushed all the way in land to the white sandy beach. Some ducked down under the water as the tide passed. Some swam up and found the strength to ride on it. In the end, you heard the cheer and the laugh all around.

Fun For the Littlest of the Family 

Ketchakiddee Creek is a perfect safe haven for babies and toddlers to enjoy the cool water slide, fun fountains, waterfalls or the mini ripply-rapids ride. At first, Miss J and Mr. Z anxiously waited in line to ride on the mini ripply-rapids raide. But soon discovered that the ride was too timid for their liking.

Fun For Big Kids and the rest of us

Miss J and Mr. Z are bordering big kids size so we were able to have fun in most of the 9 waterslides attractions available in the park.

We enjoyed the Strom Slide, the fast moving body slide that twists and turns through waterfalls, caves, and geysers then drops into an exhilarating pool at the bottom, so much that we slid down the 3 different slides twice so that’s a total of 6 slides in one day! Luckily, the line was not long at all.

Our second favorite ride was the Gang Plank Falls, a 4-person family inner tube. The walk up was a bit of a work out for the daddy but it was all worth it as we descended down the 300-foot long waterslide.

Family Tips:

• Bring water shoes for everyone. You will be walking a lot between ride. And on a hot day, it wasn’t fun to walk bare foot.
• You can bring cooler to the park. So to help save money, you can bring water, sandwich and snacks for the mid-day break.
• Rent a locker to put valuable items and your clothes because you won’t spend much time at your spot.
• Don’t forget to reapply your sunscreen regularly and make sure to dry yourself before doing so. Trust me, apply sunscreen to the wet body doesn’t help.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Orlando With Kids: The Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon Water Park is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

It has been a very relaxing weekend for us. I hope everyone has a great weekend.

Now I know you want to know who win the giveaway. So without further ado..

Congratulation to our 2 winners for our zozi.com giveaway.

Comment #9 is Jackie H!

Comment #23 is Kelley C!

Thank you everyone for participating.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Giveaway Winner for Zozi.com is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

This is Miss J and Mr. Z first experience with Rock climbing at US Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama.

I was so proud that they were able to climb to almost to the top and were able to come down on their own. Without many people in line, they were able to do it 4-5 times.

We had a great time during our quick jaunt to Huntsville over the weekend. Stay tune for more detail during our trip for many fun things to do with kids in Huntsville, Alabama.

Check out other travelers Photo Friday at Delicious Baby.

Huntsville Vacations

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) First Experience with Rock Climbing at US Space & Rocket Center, Huntsville is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

One of the big trend in online shopping is the group buying. There are numerous sites with group buying deal ranging from products, children product to deals in the cities.

Today, I would like to introduce you to another great daily deal site – Zozi.

Zozi offers deals to fun activities in the cities ranging from sea kayaking, yoga classes to wine tasting and hiking tour with deep discount when a number of buyers are met.

The site is simple and easy to navigate. You choose the city that you are interested in and the deal for the day will be displayed.

You will see the price, detail description and how many people have already bought the deal.

What make this site different from other deal sites is the focus on activities and adventures. We are the Q Family Adventure after all. So it’s a great way for family travelers who look for fun things to do during your vacation to grab the great deal.

As the site expands, I hope to see more deals nationally and worldwide. So far they will be 16 cities to start with.

• Atlanta
• Austin
• Boston
• Chicago
• Dallas
• Denver
• Los Angeles
• New York
• Orange County
• Portland
• Salt Lake City
• San Diego
• San Francisco
• San Jose
• Seattle
• Washington D.C.

The Giveaway: (The Giveaway is CLOSED)

So with the launch of 16 cities today, Zozi is providing us with a great giveaway to get you started.

The Prize:

Two lucky winner will win $50 Zozi credit to purchase the activities of their choice.

How to Enter:

• Leave a comment with your email (I will not share your email address) telling me ‘What is fun activities would you like to see on Zozi?‘
• The comment must be entered before 10pm EST on Sunday, August 29th, 2010.

Additional Entries:

• Become a fan of The Q Family Adventures on Facebook and come back to leave a comment to let me know that you are a fan.
• If you are already a fan of The Q Family Adventures, you can leave a comment to let me know.
• Follow @TheQFamily on Twitter and tweet about our giveaway “I enter @TheQFamily giveaway for @Zozi $50 Credit to fun activities #giveaway” and come back to leave a comment with a link to your twitter post.
• Follow @zozi on Twitter and leave a comment here that you entered the contest
• Join zozi’s Facebook Fan Page and leave a comment here that you entered the contest

Winner:

The giveaway will be closed on 10pm EST on Sunday, August 29th, 2010. I will choose TWO lucky winner randomly and the result will be announce here on Monday, August 30th, 2010. I will contact the winner to get information for the shipping address for your winning prize.

The winner must reply to my email within 3 days otherwise I will select another winner.

Rules:

• Duplicate comments and anonymous comments will be discarded.
• Please make sure that the email address in your comment form is valid so that we can contact you (email addresses are never made public or shared).
• Winners must claim their prize within 3 business days after the date of notification of such prize.  We will disqualify any entries that we believe are generated by scripts and other automated technology.
• No substitutions including for cash are permitted.
• Winners shall be responsible and liable for all federal, state and local taxes on the value of their prize.
• Immediate family of The Q Family Adventures are not eligible to win.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Zozi Launch and Giveaway is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

During summer, we took Miss J and Mr. Z to Six Flags Over Georgia using their free tickets from their school reading reward program and with the current promotion of adult pays child ticket, we were able to save quite a bit in tickets admission.

Our First Time Experience was 2 Years Ago

We haven’t been to Six Flags in a couple years. Our first visit to Six Flags Over Georgia was when they were still pre-school and I found that it wasn’t much they could enjoy. It was more of a hassle to have to explain to them why they couldn’t get on the ride because they were too short or too young.

Now that they were older and hopefully more reasonable, we took a chance.

A Different Game Plan and Approach

After talking to a friend of us who recommended us to go to the park in the afternoon and stay late instead of going early in the morning to escape the heat, we decided to head there after lunch.

It might seem weird to go there late but it worked out pretty well. The park during the summer time close at 10PM so even when we arrived at 2PM we still had a full 8 hours in the park. This approach however might not work with a family with younger children who have early bed time. For our kids, they could easily stay up until midnight if we let them.

When It Rained, It Poured

Well, we thought that would give us plenty of time to explore the whole park. Unfortunately, the mother nature didn’t agree. It was raining for a good hour while we were there. So after the rain, a lot of rides were close and we spent time walking around trying to find a ride. Mr. Z was pleased to hop on the Railroad and enjoyed the preview of many rides in the park that he hoped he could conquer.

Small People Area: Spanish/Bugs Bunny World

For us, even though they are now in school, their sizes are still small comparing to their peers. So there were still many disappointment when they couldn’t get on several rides they hoped for.

We decided to head to Spanish/Bugs Bunny World – the area mainly for younger kids. This area provided us with an insurance that they would be able to enjoy every single ride and with less wait time as well.

By now, we were all hot and sweaty. It was time to head to the back of the park for some water fun.

Water Fun in the Park

When we visited Six Flags Over Georgia last time, the Skull Island was already closed. So this time, we were looking forward to it.

I think we could have just come to the Skull Island and they would be VERY happy about it.

But as a parent, it was very stressful to have to keep an eye on your kids running around in the slippery and wet area. No matter how many times you tell them not to run, they just couldn’t easily contain their excitement.

We spent the rest of our time in the Skull Island. In hindsight, I think we should have come to this area sooner. They had so much fun that I think we might have to visit Six Flags again before they close for the season.

So if you have the little dare devil in your household, I think this is a park that they will absolutely enjoy. Mr. Z is working hard to grow himself a few more inches so he can enjoy most of the roller coaster rides. Check out Six Flags Over Georgia tickets page for various deal and ticket combination.

Family Tips:

• Bring extra change of clothes and towel for Skull Island water fun.
• Check out the ride restriction so you can plan your visit accordingly.
• We purchased bottomless refill drink to enjoy cold drink throughout the day. Yes, it’s soda but it’s only for a day. :)
• Purchase ticket online to avoid the line at the entrance.

Check out other travelers stories with Photo Friday from Delicious Baby and Spotlight Thursday from Trekaroo

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Atlanta With Kids: Six Flags Over Georgia is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Finding family friendly food to eat in Bangkok is relatively easy as there are many choices ranging from upscale Thai restaurant, familiar Western fast food chains to street stalls. Thailand is known as the land of smiles. But we are also known for an array of food choices that accessible 24/7.

However, when we first arrived in Thailand, it’s very advisable to be cautious at where you eat. As much as I want to chow down on the first street food I ran into, we had to ease ourselves slowly to the food scene in Bangkok.

Street food is definitely my favorite place to satisfy my Thai food craving BUT my family especially Miss J and Mr. Z were not quite ready for that type of adventure yet.

Safe and Great Food Options in Bangkok: Mall Food Court

The next best option is the shopping mall food court.

Well, before you scoff at the food court option because you think it’s the typical fast food chains similar to the United States then you might want to hold that thought.

The food court in most major shopping malls in Bangkok is huge and abundant with different types of food from Thai noodle dishes, rice dishes, fruit smoothies drinks, snacks and fresh fruits. Typically it will be either on the ground floor or the top floor of the mall. This is where you can get relatively cheap food without sacrifice the quality.

Our Family Pick: Siam Paragon Food Court

Our family favorite food court in Bangkok so far is the basement floor of Siam Paragon. With the convenient location at the center stop of Bangkok BTS and the home of Siam Ocean World, the Siam Paragon had become our regular stop for lunch and dinner.

The table top aquariums scattering all around the food court area are a great option for family with children. While I took my time deciding what to eat, Mr. Rojo and the kids could wait and enjoy spotting different fish in the tank.

The Training of Food Adventurer

For kids who grew up in America with mac & cheese and spaghetti meatballs, eating in Thailand can be intimidating. But with a little bit of encouraging and compromising, they could have a great experience trying new food.

I ordered Thai noodle soup with fishballs (Kuay Tiew Nam) without much of the veggie or garnish per Miss J’s instruction and it had become her new favorite dish.

My favorite dish? Too many to list but that day I settled for boat noodle soup (Kuay Tiew Ruea) and followed by seafood in red bean curd soup without noodle (Khao Lao Yen Ta Pho Talay).

Does this make you hungry for more food? Then check out other food post from around the world at Wander Food Wednesday.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Bangkok With Kids: Cheap and Family Friendly Eat in Bangkok is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Two weekends ago, we had an awesome opportunity to help volunteering with local organization – Act Together Ministries for the Back-To-School event – Tools 4 School Event at Christ the Shepherd Lutheran Church Alpharetta.

An Organization with Family Oriented Goals

Act Together Ministries is a christian based organization that aims to help change the plight of children living in distress in North Atlanta area. They focus their work on supporting children in distress by providing for children’s basic needs, giving children the opportunity to experience the joy of childhood and offering programs to strengthen family bond.

What I also like about Act Together Ministries is that they also inspire young generation to serve by providing service projects that are child friendly and making giving and serving fun for young children as well.

Tools 4 School Project: A Group Effort

The Tools 4 School is one of many service projects that Act Together Ministries have done in partnership with local organizations. This event was sponsored by Christ the Shepherd Lutheran Church in Alpharetta.

I signed us up as a family. Mr. Rojo and the kids signed up to help food service but he actually ended up as the volunteer to help gathering school supplies and the kids were there to play with other kids. I signed up to help blog about the event.

Tools 4 School provided children in need including foster children, military children, and children living in poverty with school supplies, hair cut, medical and dental check up.

As the families arrived and registered, volunteers helped them pick out the school backpack and started working on their school supplies check list.

The volunteers worked with kid one-on-one to help them gather their school supplies from the list.

Once they were done, the medical team of doctors, nurses and dentists were there to provide them with necessary medical and dental check up for school.

With the generosity of donors and volunteers, there were also a table setup with bags of groceries to help family start off their back-to-school with a healthy meal.

Once the families gathered their school supplies and finished with their medical & dental check ups, the children could enjoy free art & crafts or played game with volunteers.

I was truly impressed by the well-run and organized event by both Act Together Ministries and Christ the Shephard Church. After talking to a few volunteers who were also the church members, I found out that this was the first year that they have done this event. But I sure hope it will not be the last.

In the end around 125-150 children from single parent homes, foster homes and local shelters received new school supplies.

It was a really great experience and one that I hope we will continue to do as a family. The smile on the kids are priceless and show us that we are the ones who are on the receiving end in this.

If you are looking for way to help, you can sign up to volunteer with the events from Act Together Ministries or donate to help fund many more projects in the future.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Volunteer with Kids: Tools 4 School Event is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

During our summer trip to Thailand, we have visited many places in the span of 3 weeks. However, one afternoon with no plan to do, no place to go just a float and family was what remains etched in the kids’ mind and reminds them how perfect their vacation in Thailand was.

We took a short trip outside Bangkok to Saraburi to stay at a newly opened boutique hotel which was once a Thai house that has been remodeled for a perfect getaway for a family.

I will write more about our visit to this lovely and unique stay soon.

To check out other travelers Photo Friday, head out to Delicious Baby.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Perfect Kid Vacation in Saraburi, Thailand is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Would you be able to guess where is this place by looking at the menu?

Probably a typical Italian place maybe?

Nope. Not that.. It’s McDonald

Yup! This is a McDonald in Orlando that is also advertised as the World Largest McDonald Play Area.

How did we know it’s the World Largest McDonald Play Area and get sucked into this place? Well, that happened when your kids now learn to read and request to have input on the dining choices!

When we first walked in, we were overwhelmed by the decoration and choices on the menu. It seemed like we were walking into a twilight zone. It’s so NOT McDonald.

The food selections are so different from the typical McDonald menu that it took us a while to decide what we want. The food selections range from breakfast items like Belgian Waffle, Breakfast Enchiladas to pasta and ice cream.

Miss J ended up with Ravioli that took way longer than we hoped for. And Mr. Z was not swayed by all these choices and remained a faithful chicken nuggets fan.

So if you are looking for a semi-fast food that has more selections than your typical burger and fries, then this McDonald might be a good stop after a long day of Disney Parks or Orlando attractions.

However, just a warning that this place does have a huge play area that your kids will probably want to spend time and money in games. So it might not be as fast as you want. Also it can get crowd even with the huge space!

Today I participate in Wander Food Wednesday. So head over to Wander Food for food fun around the world.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Orlando With Kids: Not Your Typical Fast Food Place is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Riding the BTS (Bangkok Mass Transit System) is one of the activity that we did in Bangkok that Mr. Z is still talking about and asking about till now. I think we could do that all month long and he would think that it was the best day of his life.

Purchase A Day Pass

The cost to ride the BTS for adult and kids (taller than 100 cm) can range from 15 Baht to 40 Baht. We decided to purchase a day pass for 120 Baht (it costs around $3.75) and made it a BTS day. A day pass allows us to be able to hop on and hop off in any stop or ride the BTS as many times as we want in one day. It’s a perfect choice for us.

Here are family friendly things to do near BTS stops in Bangkok.

The Sukhumvit Line

Ekkamai Station (E7)

The planetarium and Science Museum: It’s only a few steps away from the Ekkamai station. The Science Museum has various hand-on and interactive exhibits for kids in this multi-levels building. Unfortunately, when we visited, they worked on updating several exhibits. I hope our next visit, there would be more exhibits that work!

Another worthy note here is that a lot of displays are in Thai so it might be more difficult to read and understand. But our kids were bouncing between exhibits they hardly paid attention to the words or descriptions.

Phrom Pong Station (E5)

The Emporium Jamboree Land: The Emporium shopping mall is one of the high end shopping mall in Bangkok. If you plan to travel on the budget then don’t even bother shop in there. You won’t find anything worth purchasing.

However, it’s a great stop to escape the heat with a little break for kids. The Jamboree land is very small comparing to other kid indoor play area in other malls but there are enough rides and activities for kids to last a couple hours. We enjoyed making craft and played in the bounce house.

You can stay at nearby family friendly hotels*:

• Emporium Suites Bangkok – Near BTS Phrom Pong Station
• The Davis Bangkok – Near BTS Phrom Pong Station
• Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit Bangkok – Near BTS Asok Station
• Rembrandt Hotel & Towers Bangkok – Near BTS Asok Station
• The Westin Grande Sukhumvit Bangkok – Near Asok Station

Siam Center Station (CEN)

Siam Ocean World: The Paragon – Siam Ocean world is one of the top destination for family in Bangkok. This underground aquarium is surprisingly fun and has a lot to offer as a day trip in Bangkok. The price is not cheap by Thai standard but comparable to other tourist attractions around the world. We have visited the Siam Ocean World in the past and I have to say I was surprised that I still enjoyed it as much.

You can stay at nearby family friendly hotels*:

• Novotel on Siam Square – Near BTS Siam Station
• Pratumwan Princess Hotel – Near BTS Siam Station
• Centara Grand at Central World – Near BTS Siam Station
• Grande Centre Point Hotel & Residence Ratchadamri – Between BTS Chit Lom Station & BTS Siam Station
• InterContinental Bangkok – Near BTS Chit Lom Station
• Grand Hyatt Erawan Bangkok – Near BTS Chit Lom Station

Mo Chit Station (N8)

Bangkok Butterfly and Insectarium: Located next to the famous Chatuchak Weekend market, this insects’ natural habitat provide a sanctuary for over 500 butterflies.

Silom Line

National Stadium Station (W1)

Bangkok Art and Cultural Center: As we have reveals the little hideaway on the basement level of BACC, this place is a great stop for a nice quiet break in the crazy day. The Kids library has a great selection of books with both English and Thai.

Sala Daeng Station (S2)

Lumphini park: A popular green space in the middle of the city. Lumphini park has many things to offer for families. You can enjoy a leisure walk in the morning and observe the locals work on their Tai Chi or enjoy a peddle boat in the lake.

You can stay at nearby family friendly hotels*:

• The Dusit Thani Bangkok – Near BTS Sala Daeng Station
• Montien Hotel – Near BTS Sala Daeng Station

*Note on hotel recommendation: I have never had to stay in the hotels so the list is based on the rating I found and the location that I think it’s convenient to the BTS station.

Have you done BTS day during your visit to Bangkok? Is there any fun stops I missed?

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Bangkok With Kids: Family Friendly Stops along BTS Skytrain is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

As I have previous posted about our Misadventure day in New York City, it was just a prelude to what we actually did in New York City with only less than 8 hours.

It’s probably safe to say that 8 hours in New York City hardly enough to take in when you travel alone without kids, added 2 school-age children, we could only hope to do so much.

So here what we did on that HOT summer day in Manhattan.

8:00 AM: Hop on NYC Subway to the American Natural History.

Ah!! Probably one of the highlight for Mr. Z. He wasn’t fade by the dark and steaming hot of the subway station but mostly was mesmerized by the sound of subway trains, the energy of rush-hour commuters and the details of the ceiling in this decade old stations.

Unfortunately, we didn’t visit the American Museum of Natural History as planned.

8:30 AM: Wandering in Central Park, break for breakfast, and a stop at the playground

It actually sounds pretty good, doesn’t it? Well, the truth is it was more wandering while *I* cursed myself for not being more prepare to get the detail map of the Central Park. Why on Earth did I think I can manage this 843 acres without getting lost?

Luckily, a short break at Le Pain Quotidien had helped us to slow down and enjoy the leisure morning in Central Park. The organic breakfast was delicious. I am still thinking about the fruit tart that I enjoyed.

Before long, we headed out in search of the fun playground as a reward for their somewhat good behavior. When you are on vacation, the bar has been lower considerably. Yes, we bribed, threatened and bargained for a decent behavior that won’t explode in the middle of the city.

Finally, we arrived at the Heckscher playground. To say, I was disappointed was an understatement. I guess coming from a small town where space is something you don’t have to think about when you go to the playground has somewhat change my view. The playground is big and has a very unique water-fun feature. But other than that, you won’t find much to enjoy. The sand area was way too hot in the heat so after a quick run to the slide, they were done.

I will make sure we have extra clothes for the water fountain next trip!

10:00 AM – The mother of all toy store – FAO Schwarz and iPhone is back to the mother ship

We needed a place with A/C stat! It was way to hot to pretend that I enjoyed the time in the playground. And the only place that came to mind and also had the bargaining power with my kids was the FAO Schwarz Fifth Avenue. So away we went, a short walk to the Toy Store.

Ah!!! The cool, crisp air blew through my skin. This was where we were meant to be.

It took a good hour for Miss J and Mr. Z to comb through the whole store to find toys that within our budget. I knew it was a hard goal to do but we did walk out with only $20 lighter in our wallet.

And as a recent convert Mac users, we couldn’t ignore the pull of the clear glass window with the Apple symbol hanging and calling us in. I know.. I know.. We do have an Apple Store in Atlanta. BUT, it was cool to ride on the all glass elevator of the Apple Store Fifth Avenue.

12:00 AM – Lunch at John’s Pizzeria

It was lunch time and I had a plan. Pizza would be a good choice for us. Miss J and Mr. Z can eat pizza everyday of the week. With a good review from fellow travel blogger, we hopped on the Metro and headed to John’s Pizzeria.

John’s Pizzeria on Time Square is as cool as others said. The old stained glass provided a nice visual fun for kids while we waited for the food.

2:00 PM – The suburb kids in Time Square

After lunch, we walked back to Time Square. The experience was overwhelming with tourists, locals, cars and bright LCD Display on the buildings. It would definitely be much better to take a picture at night. But daytime, also provided a fun of its own. Where else in the world that they could chasing pigeons in the middle of the most famous city center?

2:30 PM – Toy R Us Ferris Wheel

Finally, we made it to the Toys-R-Us Time Square and the Ferris Wheel is there to greet tourists and locals alike.

Yes, it’s just a toy store BUT I have to admit that the selections are plentiful and it could be a fun day for kids to browse as long as you can say ‘No’ to buying all those toys.

4:00 PM – Back to parking garage and good bye NY

With a long road trip back to Atlanta ahead of us, we had to say ‘Good Bye’ to New York City and headed back to the parking garage. Yes, our one day in Manhattan might not live up to typical ‘must-do’ list but I think it’s a good introduction to our kids that we will sure to come back with more times to explore.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) New York City With Kids: The Whirlwind 8 Hours in Manhattan is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

There was no doubt in my mind that our trip to Thailand would be hot. It’s just inevitable.

During our day trip to Wat Pho was no different. The best thing we could do just prepare ourselves physically (hat – checked, fan – checked, breathable clothes – checked) and mentally.

Get Ready to Explore Wat Pho

So we marched into Wat Pho late morning with a game plan to beat the Bangkok heat. First we would replenish ourselves with cold water and yummy popsicles as often as we could. Forget about checking out the site and walking the whole temple. We would just have to pick and stick only to the main area.

The Reclining Budha (Phra Buddhasaiyas)

Our first stop after an ice cream break was to visit the Reclining Budha. With the measurement of 46 meters long and 15 meters high, the Golden Reclining Budha is one of the most visit sacred destination in Thailand.

Built during Rama III’s restoration of Wat Pho, the Reclining Budha is designed to illustrate the passing of the Buddha into nirvana. The feet and the eyes are engraved with mother-of-pearl decoration, and the feet also show the 108 auspicious characteristics of the true Buddha.

Calm, Cool and Coins

As we walked around to the other side of the Budha, the 108 bronze prayer bowls are lined along the wall as visitors put a coin to each one as they give merit and wish for good luck.

Don’t worry if you don’t have 108 coins handy in your pocket, there is a donation table that already setup a bowl of coins for you.

As we dropped one coin at a time to the bowl, I could feel the stillness and calm inside the building.

Thai Massage at the Original Thai Massage School

Along with being one of the oldest and largest temple in Bangkok, Wat Pho is also known for Thai traditional massage school. And that was my game plan number two. As much as I would love to walk around the grounds, I knew that my family was melting rather quickly. So we played a game of “Get in the Shade” as we made our way to the back of the temple for the Thai Traditional Massage area.

To my surprise, the upgrade from fan to A/C definitely provided us with much comfort and relief we looked for. The Wat Pho massage that I have seen in the past was done in the open area where fan was the only source of air flow. Now that they had upgraded to A/C, we couldn’t sign up fast enough for massage sessions for the whole family.

Yes, I mean the whole family as in Miss J and Mr. Z as well. I guess we could say their first Thai massage experience were truly from the origin.

Family Tips:

• Dress in appropriate clothes as a temple is a place of worship.
• To avoid the heat, the morning hours will provide some relief from hot Sun in mid-day.
• To cover the grounds with kids might be too much in the heat. So plan to break it up to small area.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Bangkok With Kids: Escape the Heat in Wat Pho (The Temple of The Reclining Budha) is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

During our recent visit to Orlando, after so many trips to Disney World Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, Universal Studio and Island of Adventure, it’s time that we switch it up and do a non-theme park day for a change.

The Non-Theme Park Attraction in Downtown Orlando

So we decided to take a day to explore Orlando downtown. With our family membership to our local Science Museum, thanks to the deal from Groupon Atlanta!, we received reciprocal admissions to Orlando Science Center. There is nothing better than free admission to local attractions.

The Orlando Science Center looks rather small from the outside but it impressed our kids as soon as we parked. The walk way from the parking garage to the entrance provided them the unique view to see the cars driving by underneath. Yes, for many part of the world or even in a big city, it’s normal.. But for these kids, it’s something they thought was so cool!

KidsTown and NatureWorks

We started off from the first floor to check out Kids Town and Nature Work.

From adult’s perspective, the Kids Town is small and decent exhibit, not as big as the one we have seen in EdVenture Children’s Museum. But for kids, I think they can spend hours in there if we didn’t persuade them that there were more to see.

The walk through Nature Work was fun and provided a good hand-on and learning experience. The staff was friendly and we also got a chance to touch and feel both snake and baby alligator.

Explore the Science Park

Next stop was probably where we spent most of our time. The Science Work is a really great place with hand-on and interactive exhibits that allow kids to touch, push and play for all their heart content.

Mr. Z’s favorites were probably between the Hurricane chamber and the race car platform. How cool was it to be in a chamber with 70 MPH wind!

Another neat and very education exhibit within the Science Park is the H2NOW city. Kids learned about the use of Hydrogen energy from earning the Hydro Cell to power the miniature city. It was a great way to help their little brain to focus on learning. Even if it’s just a bit!

We spent the rest of the afternoon checking out various exhibits like the DinoDigs, Frog (the traveling exhibit), Diabetes: A Deeper Look and SimMan. It was rather quiet on the weekdays. It was so quiet to the point that we thought we were the only ones in the whole place.

Before we knew it, it was the closing time. So we didn’t have a chance to check out the Crosby Observatory.

Overall, it was a fun day away from the buzz and busy of the theme parks that kids can truly enjoy.

Family Tips:

• If you have family membership to your local Science Museums, check if they have a reciprocal membership with the Orlando Science Center. You will save your admission fee. The parking is $5.
• I don’t know about weekend, but weekday is very quiet so it’s a good day to visit. This will allow kids to be able to enjoy interactive exhibits with more time to explore.
• You can explore the whole center in about 2-3 hours. This can be a half day trip.

This post is part of Trekaroo Spotlight Thursday. Check out other family travel posts.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Orlando With Kids: The Orlando Science Center is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Ok.. It’s a confession time. I feel a bit unmotivated to update the blog lately. Guess you guys know from the infrequent update recently. We did have a great summer with so many trips far beyond my expectation. But all the traveling seems to wear me out. I even swore of traveling for a while.

However, I guess travel soul die hard. We are at it again but this time it will be just for a quick weekend trip to Huntsville, Alabama.

Why Huntsville?

Huntsville has a nickname as ‘The Rocket City’ because it has the U.S. Space and Rocket Center there and that’s where we want to go for this trip. It’s not just the Space Center though because right now they have the traveling ‘Star Wars’ exhibits.

And needless to say, we HAVE to go there. Mr. Rojo is a HUGE fan of Star Wars and he proudly raises Mr. Z to be another little Jedi in a making. The kid can name all the ships from the Star Wars collection so I know he will be so ecstatic once we get there. We will keep that a secret about the exhibit and can’t wait to see his face.

I can’t just go to Huntsville without checking out other fun things to do with kids. So here are family friendly things you can do in Huntsville for a quick weekend getaway.

1. U.S. Space and Rocket Center – The main attraction for the Huntsville especially for school aged kids. The U.S. Space and Rocket Center also provides space camp for kids and parents. It’s something I might consider when they are a bit older. For now, they have one of the coolest exhibit (at least for a big Star Wars fans)

2. Sci-Quest – A hand-on science center with more than 100 permanent, interactive exhibits in seven different subject areas. Unlike a typical “museum,” Sci-Quest’s exhibits are designed to engage, educate and entertain.

3. Huntsville Botanical Garden – The Huntsville Botanical Garden has the largest seasonal butterfly house with over 2,000 butterflies, tadpoles, frogs and other critters. The Children Garden and the Tremendous Treehouses are sure going to be a big hit for the kids.

4. Cathedral Cave – Not exactly in Huntsville downtown but only a short drive and we will be able to explore one of the wonder in nature. The Cathedral Cave is part of Alabama State Park and is located about 40 minutes East of Huntsville. We have never been to a big cave before so I’m looking forward to taking the kids and let them experience the beautiful formation that Mother Nature has created.

5. Earlyworks Museums Complex – With the options of Constitution Village for history buff kids, Children’s History Museum for the hand-on, interactive kids, or Huntsville Depot & Museum for all-things-move kids, it’s sure a good pick for the whole family. And if you have your local family membership to your Children Museum and they participate in the reciprocal program with ACM then you are in luck because you can get in for free.

6. Unclaimed Baggage Center – Now, that we spend most of our itinerary for kids entertainment, I have to put in a stop for moms. Since the Unclaimed Baggage Center will be on our way without any detour, it’s only appropriate that we stop by and *check* them out. It’s the Lost Treasures of Travelers around the world – sounds like a great bargain hunting place for me.

That’s probably will pack our weekend to the brim. But please feel free to leave a comment if you know of other fun things to do with kids that are not on this list.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Fun Things to Do with Kids in Huntsville, Alabama is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Bangkok is a city of crowd street and chaos and there is no way to sugar it up. Where ever you go, you will surely see a sea of people on the buses, in the mega malls or along the sidewalks.

So where could you find a quiet place to escape those craziness for a few hours?

Hidden on the ground floor of the fairly new Bangkok Art and Cultural Center right in the middle of the city is the Art Library with special children room – Kid’s Corner.

Central Location

The Bangkok Art and Cultural Center (BACC) is located just off the last station (National Stadium) on BTS Silom line across from both MBK and Siam Discovery Center, the famous shopping area in the heart of Bangkok.

The Bangkok Art and Cultural Center was opened in 2008 as the city center contemporary art center to connect artists and create new cultural resources for both public and private sectors.

When we first walked in, we were greeted by two giant astronaut-looking model with the height at at least 2 stories tall. Definitely a fun way to start our tour of this center with kids.

The center seemed to be very much ignored by most of the people in Bangkok because even on the busy day where we could see thousand of people walked by, the area was largely quiet and empty!

The Hidden Gem on the Lower Ground Floor

Walking around in the BACC didn’t take long if kids were young and didn’t fully appreciate the different types of art. BUT, heading down to the lower ground floor and kids will enjoy the Kid’s Corners in the Art Library.

Visitors could use the library free of charge. They just asked that you sign in at the guest book.

The Kid’s Corner was clean and spacious with bright color suitable for little ones. There are books lining along all 4 walls with several simple toys for the little ones.

The book selections are surprisingly good. I found several bilingual books with both Thai and English languages.

So if you are in the Siam Center shopping area and look for a place for a downtime, check out BACC library. Best of all, it’s free!

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Bangkok With Kids: A Quiet Escape In the Midst of Chaos is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

New York City has been on my list of places I want to visit with my kids for a really long time. When the Travel Blog Exchange announced that they would host TBEX 2010, a travel blogger conference, in New York City this summer, I couldn’t wait to plan a trip with my kids. However, with some logistic and financial issues, I had to put that plan on hold and planed my trip solo.

Well, at the last minute, Mr. Rojo decided he was up for a 16 hours road trip with 2 kids to visit our family in Philadelphia and would swing by to meet me in New York City afterward.

I wouldn’t recommend this kind of impromptu trip to anyone. But sometimes the kids got so much out from just a quick trip than any other trips.

They loved spending time (even for a short amount) with their long distance cousins. Mr. Rojo loved reconnect with his cousins.

A Day of Misadventure Starts off as a Good Day

We started off the day bright and early. Mr. Z could hardly contain himself for a ride on the subway. This boy can go anywhere as long as there is a subway. Miss J, on the other hand, wasn’t so sure about those dark and dingy looking of the subway. In her defense, we just came back from our summer trip to Thailand where subway and skytrain systems are still in its infant years.

With all the excitement for the subway ride, I made a few mistakes along the way. Previous night, I had done all my research about what to do in New York City with kids when we would have less than one day. With a great post from Jamie from Travel Savvy Mom, I armed myself with a good starting list of worthy and family friendly attractions in New York City for a first-time visitor.

From her list, I have to trim it down even more because we would have half the time as her plan. So I came up with a short list of a few things we thought our kids would enjoy.

A Short List of a Short List

The American Museum of Natural History was on top of the list. They both had watch Night of the Museum movies countless time so I think it would be fun for them to experience the museum first hand. Plus, with a claim as the world largest museum, now.. I would love to check them out.

A ride to Top of The Rock was another one that I hoped to accomplish that day. It would be a great way to take in the view of skyscappers of the Big Apple.

Now, I felt really ambitious to also add a plan to ride the Staten Island Ferry to the list. We wouldn’t have enough time to visit the Statue of Liberty but a ferry ride with her view would be a great experience for them.

Well, my plan was to plan for more than we need so we could pick and choose and adjust the itinerary as the day goes.

I also didn’t think a visit to New York City would be fun without going to Time Square. Yes, it’s touristy but there is no other places like that anywhere else.

Now that we had our short list, we were ready to explore Manhattan! Until…

Mistake #1: Too eager for the museum

We or I forgot to double check the museum admission hours and we arrived one full hour earlier than the opening hour. Now, I might typically wait out and try to find a way to kill the time. But we were in New York during that I had to say one of the HOTTEST week. Sitting out on the front entrance wasn’t on the card. Like that wasn’t enough, the kids were in need of a potty break.

So off we went walking to Central Park in the hope to find a restroom and came back in time for the museum.

Mistake #2: The wanderers of Central Park

I thought I had all the maps we would need walking around Manhattan. BUT, yup another mistake on this traveling mom. I forgot the map in the trunk of our car which we parked all the way in midtown. So our walk in Central Park was less than ideal to say the least. And did I mention that it was HOT yet!!

It would be lovely to write about our wonderful leisure walk along the path in one of the most popular park in the world. But my story was the opposite. Kids were whining and complaining and whining some more.

And why didn’t they have a map at each entrance of Central Park. At least for a silly tourist like us who dare to wander to Central Park with no idea where we were going.

However, I have to say the stereotype of mean New Yorkers were so NOT true. We got so many helps to find our way in the park. They were all friendly and willing to help out.

Needless to say, we eventually found ourselves at the Le Pain Quotidien restaurant. A quick rest with organic breakfast and freshly made bakery set everyone in the right mood.

While we were waiting, I put my iPhone to good use and check out the list of recommended things to do. Of course, there are Central Park Zoo which would take too long to do in our limited time, the Conservatory Pool which seemed to be too far for these little legs. So I chose for the playground.

Mistake #3: Not ready to get wet

We marched along the pathway of Central park passing group of little kids enjoying their summer camp , a group of runners jogging with determination and a family biking together to the Heckscher playground.

Once we got there I realized yet another mistake. This playground would be a blast if we had a set of clothes to change afterward.

It doesn’t have the coolest playset you could find but the water feature is definitely the main attraction here. Kids could walk along different path that filled with water to their angles meandering to the fountain. My kids were looking with envy eyes for kids who had a blast playing with their water gun.

Next time, kiddo.. Next time..

I held off as long as I could but with the heat beating down on us I finally had enough. We started to round up the kids and ready to head for somewhere cool. Preferably with A/C and within a short walking distance. It took some convincing and bribing for them to agree to leave the playground.

So where did we promise the kids we would take them? The Museum of Toys! Ok.. Not exactly the museum of toys but that what we like to call the famous ‘FAO Schwarz’ and ‘Toy R US on TimeSquare’

Yeah.. I know.. How could I turn a day of educational to a day of shopping.

Well, that’s something I still tried to deal with.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) New York City with Kids: The Q Family Misadventure Day in Manhattan is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Visiting Bangkok with kids for many families mostly involve a stop at one of the mega mall in Siam Square like the Paragon, MBK or Siam Discovery and a tour of the temples and palace. But for us, we started our visit in Bangkok with shopping and then more shopping.

So after a few days it was about time my kids started to ask about temples, more specifically the Golden Temple (as they called). They had seen the Golden Mount (which is part of Wat Saket) from the distance when we went shopping at Bo Bae Plaza a few days earlier and it had been on their mind since.

The Golden Mount at Wat Saket Rajavaramahavihara

The Golden Mount was built in the 19th century during King Rama III and finished in the reign of King Rama IV. In Thailand, we called ‘The Golden Mountain’ but the Golden Mount is not a real hill but the result of soft ground that needed support structure.

The Unusual Place for Graveyard

What unusual about the Golden Mount is not only the history but also the graveyard that is part of the structure. Around the base of the Golden Mount along with trees and vines, there are various shines ranging in size from small with a picture to elaborate one with Budha statue. It was creepy and peaceful at the same time to walk up the 318 steps and looked at the resting place of many departed soul.

Based on the history, Wat Saket was used as a burial and cremation site which was not permitted inside the city wall during the 18th century. During the plague in the reign of King Rama II over 30,000 bodies were brought here.

The Journey to the Top

As much as I wanted to claim an expert badge in traveling, sometimes I went on and did some foolish thing that will disqualify me from such claim. One of those things was visiting and climbing the Golden Mount during mid-day in one of the hottest month in Thailand. That’s NOT advisable.

But sometimes, kids’ enthusiastic blinds your reasons. We took a Tuk Tuk from Wat Pho to Wat Saket. A ride that my kids will forever talk about. Arriving at the quiet temple in the afternoon, we found our way to the base of the stairway.

Without any hesitation, Miss J and Mr. Z climbed up the steps one by one as we ascend to the top of the Chedi. Luckily for me and Mr. Rojo, there are a few break in between for us to catch our breath. Even better, when there are a few distractions to slow Mr. Z down from running all the way to the top while we slowly making our way up. Ringing the bells along the wall of the Golden Mount was one of such distraction.

I would love the say the walk up is easy BUT it was hot and we were tired. So I would say prepare yourself for quite a work out as you walked those steps. The cool thing was that as we went up higher in elevation the view of Bangkok revealed. The steps are wrapped around the Golden Mount so we had a complete 360 degree view.

Once we were at the top, we rewarded ourselves with ice-cold popsicle. There is nothing better than an ice pop on top of the Golden Mount. By this time, Mr. Rojo almost passed out with heat exhaustion and questioned ourselves why did we let the kids talk us into going up in the first place. Well, all things considered it was a really great experience for them.

Family Tips:

• Try to plan your visit in the evening or early morning to avoid the heat
• There is a small shop at the top that sell drinks and ice pops. But the best thing to buy is chilled facial wipe. It will help cool you down and sure will help you beat the heat in Bangkok.
• Wear comfortable shoes.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Bangkok with Kids: Climbing the Golden Mount at Wat Saket is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Whenever we go back to Thailand for a visit, we plan a vacation trip (within our vacation trip) with the whole families. These include all my siblings and their children and my cousins. We don’t have a large extended family so it was not anything in the size of a family reunion in America. Basically, it was a size of about 15 adults and 7 kids.

Choosing a place to go depends on where we want to go. Last visit, we all went to Hong Kong and Macau. It might seem like a big deal but when you booked everything through the travel agency, it made it all possible. As much as I cringed for using a guided tour, I was thankful for that trip. With the age ranges from 60 years old to 6 months old, we could use some luxury like our own bus to take us everywhere.

The Photo Story: 5 Things We Love About Ko Samet

This time around we chose a quick weekend getaway from Bangkok to Ko Samet. Check out why we loved our time on Ko Samet!

1. Great Destination for a Quick Trip from Bangkok

This trip was a bit easier because Ko Samet is a great weekend destination from Bangkok. With less than 3 hours drive from Bangkok and another 45 minutes boat ride, we were transported to our homeaway from home for the weekend.

Ko Samet might not be as well-known as Phuket or Phi Phi island but it’s a very popular destination for Thais due to the affordable cost and short distance.

2. Family-Friendly Accommodation

We stayed at Sai Kaew Beach Resort on Sai Kaew beach, the most developed beach on the island. It was a PERFECT place for family.

Our room was literally stone thrown away from the pool and that was where we spent most of our time there. You can see the room from this picture right behind Miss J.

The resort is beautifully decorated with all the detail that incorporate nature to the design.

3. Pool Time is the Best with Family

Even though, our resort is just a quick walk to the beach, we ended up spending most of our time in the pool.

Due to the rainy season, the water wasn’t nearly as nice. Also the rain on the next day didn’t help with our plan to spend the day soaking up the Sun on the beach either. But it was no big deal for kids because the pool was as good or even better than the beach in their mind.

4. Relax Yet Many Options for Fun and Food

Koh Samet is small for a relaxing getaway for the whole family yet still has enough fun activities and great food for us to keep us entertained and fed.

One of the great way to enjoy a good meal is right on the ocean at Ploy Samed Restaurant where you will have to take a free boat ride to their restaurant. The atmosphere was relaxing yet a bit nerve racking for family with small children. I will be writing in more detail about our fun experience here.

5. Time to Reconnect and Relax with Families

This might have been true no matter where we decided to vacation. But Ko Samet provided a perfect location and accommodation for kids to enjoy spending time with each other. At the beginning of the trip, each of them (mostly Miss J and Mr. Z) just met their cousins. But at the end of the trip, they can’t wait to have a sleepover and spend more time together. It made all the plan, the many connecting flights and the cost worth it!

Also, for many of you who are still afraid to come to Thailand, I have been to Thailand for over 2 weeks right after the curfew and the protest, I have never seen any problems. I feel safe here! So please come! Thai people need your help in getting back on their feet. Plus you will be getting a deep discount on everything where ever you go!

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Thailand With Kids: 5 Things We Love About Ko Samet is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

In case you haven’t noticed, we have been enjoying our vacation in Thailand for the past 2 weeks. I should have warned you about this in advance so you will like us on Facebook at TheQFamilyAdventures as that’s where I updated most of our fun things we did in Thailand so far.

I have realized that family vacation and blogging is HARD! I can’t update my blog as regularly as I want to. And it’s not because of the reason you might think.

Oh! I have internet connection to pretty much where ever we went. But at the end of the day, I was just so dog tired that I can’t even form a regular conversation with Mr. Rojo let along writing a good post about our day.

So for now, become our fan (or what they are now call ‘like’) on Facebook.

Kob-Khun-Ka (Thank you!)

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Family Vacation and Blogging is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

There is no doubt that one of the favorite past time for families in Bangkok is going to the mega mall. There are more malls than I could care to remember. One of our mall tour during our Thailand trip was at the Fashion Island shopping center at outskirt of Bangkok in Kan Na Yao district on Ramindra road.

The top floor of Fashion Island is the Kid’s Island where kids could play to their hearts content.

The most unique play area has to be the Jellyfish where kids can step into a huge bubble and float above the water.

Just think of a bubble boy on the water! It was very simple but provided great fun for a whole 3 minutes. It might seem like 3 minutes was a really short time but I could tell that toward the end they were exhausted.

Kids would wait in line to step in the bubble ball while the attendant inflated the ball.

After the balls were fully inflated, they were gently loaded in the water. And off they go trying to run, jump or simple pretend they were walking on the water.

OH.. If only they have an adult version for us to try!

Check out other travelers Photo Friday at Delicious Baby.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Bangkok With Kids: Bubble Madness is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

One of the most important must-packed item for our travel is our kids Nintendo DS. I know it might not be what many parents want to bring on their trip but for us it’s a life saver.

However, one of the concern we have about using the personal game system on an airplane is the sound. It can disturb our fellow passenger. So I have been looking for a set of headphones that will be perfect for kids.

It has been a challenge to find a perfect headphones for little one. Most headphones in the market are for adult so it is too big to fit them perfectly and it tends to move around.

After a quick search online, I found Kidz Gear. I was instantly drawn to their products.

Built Just for Kids

After receiving my Kidz Gear Wired Headphones For Kids, Mr. Z tried it out right away. I am happy to see how perfectly fit it is to his ears. The adjustable head band gives plenty of allowance for kids with different size. I can even use his headphones once in a while.

The ear piece is built with cushion that make using it on a long flight comfortable. He has used it during our flight from the US to Thailand and had no complaint about it at all.

Another great feature I like is a volume control on the headphones. It’s nice to be able to control the volume from the headphones. And for the techy parents, the sound quality is superb with stereo sound quality.

After such a long flight, I was afraid that it will be the end of the headphones. But Kidz Gear proves that they understand kids and built their product to stand the test of abuse from kids. Mr. Z is not the most careful kid on the planet. So there are times that he would drag his headphones with him while we moved around.

If you are looking for a kid headphones, I would highly recommend Kidz Gear headphones. I will probably order another set for Miss J as well.

There is also a wireless headphones from Kidz Gear that will be a perfect addition for the car DVD system.

Disclosure: I received a set of Kidz Gear Headphones for review but my opinion is my own without any outside influence.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Family Travel Product: Kidz Gear Kids Headphones is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

As much as I love my kids and love to take them with me to experience every where we go during our vacation, there is a place and time that it’s not feasible to bring them with us. One of the places in Bangkok is Sam Peng.

Sam Peng is the wholesale market where  retailers go shop for their products that eventually you will see them sell in the mall or shops around town. It’s a place that takes certain type of skills and endurance to experience it.

We woke up at 4 AM and headed out there with my sister. She has been going there for years to shop for different products like toys, clothes and children products for her shop.

The first test was the parking. I don’t care how good of a driver you can be, I’m sure my sister is one of the best. We had to park in a parking spot with less than 1 foot clearance from either side of her car with a column on the side nonetheless. I was holding my breath and praying that she won’t scrape her car. Alas, she parked without any incident.

Next stop, we had our early breakfast because this would be a really long day and we would need all the energy we had. The breakfast was typical Thai food. Kao Mun Gai (Chicken and Rice) was Mr. Rojo’s favorite and luckily there was a food cart nearby. Yup, we didn’t have cereal or bacon & eggs but rice with chicken. For $4, all 3 of us were fed and ready for a day of shopping.

Based on my sister, the market has 2 sections. The early section which opens from 5AM-8AM and the day section which opens later in the day from 8AM-5PM. So we started off at the early section.

Shopping here is not for a faint of heart. The street is small and narrow and filled with people, bikes and even trucks. The shop sells in bulk so be prepared to buy a minimum of 6 to get the bargain.

After 8 hours of shopping, we were done and ready to head home. It was a really long and hard day.

If you want to check out this area, here is a few tips:

• For a real bargain, go shop with someone who can speak Thai. Otherwise, you will surely pay for foreigner’s price. These shops mainly sell to retailers so they know you are not gonna buy their products in bulk to sell.
• Get there early so you can enjoy the shop without the heat during mid day in Bangkok.
• Drink plenty of water to keep yourself hydrated.
• Wear comfortable shoes and clothes.
• Leave your personal space at home. There will be none in this packed market.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Bangkok Without Kids: Early Day in Sam Peng Wholesale Market (Chinatown) is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Our fun time at a family- friendly restaurant in Bangkok, Reun Panya. As we waited for our food, kids could enjoy playing in a fenced in playgroud.

I wonder what the people of Disney will think to see this imitation Mickey is hard at work entertain kids down the slide.

This post is updated via iPhone.

See other Travelers Photos from Photo Friday at Delicious Baby.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Fun with Mickey in Bangkok Restaurant is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

What a great turnout for our family vacation package giveaway from San Antonio CVB.

Thank you everyone for participating!

Also thank you San Antonio CVB that reached out to me and offered a great prize for our readers.

Now, onto what everyone is waiting for.. the winner is…

Comment #44: Vandana Upadhyay

Congratulation and I hope to hear back from you soon!!

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Giveaway Winner for San Antonio SAVE Family Vacation is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

By now, I am sure you already heard about the situation in Bangkok and caught up on what is going on. I don’t like writing about politic on my blog because I think I am not qualify to even venture out an opinion in this matter. I don’t live in Thailand. Plus I think politic is something that is a personal choice.

However, I also cannot NOT write about what is happening now in Bangkok because my heart is broken for all the people in Thailand. It doesn’t matter what color or side they are the impact from this event will have a lasting impression for a really long time.

I have a very emotional roller coaster in the past several days as I monitored the situation in Bangkok and Thailand. This post has been in the draft mode for several days before I can pull myself together to be able to finish it.

It’s heart breaking to see my beloved city and country engulfed in flame and my fellow Thais turned against each other.

My Reason to Visit Bangkok Now: My Family

We are still moving forward with our plan to visit Thailand this summer even with strong suggestions and warning from the State department to avoid traveling to Thailand.

Now, I can’t speak for everyone out there because it’s very much personal choice for me and my family. I have family in Thailand and especially in Bangkok so I have the big advantage in traveling there. I feel the pull to go back even more now than ever. I want to be with my families. I want to see it with my own eyes of what has become of Thailand.

My family is safe and they assure me that life has slowly gone back to normal. Thais are resilient and hardworking. I have absolute faith in my country that we will be able to find a way to bring back the Land of Smiles soon.

If you plan to visit, I would strongly suggest you to monitor the situation and read up various resources (not just news website but local bloggers on the ground) to understand the fast changing situation in Bangkok.

Three days ago, it was as if Bangkok was under the civil war. But now, Thai people has come together and work hard to bring back the peace we have. Many of Thais will be out on the street not protesting but cleaning up the city. They have organized it themselves without any influences from any political groups. I hope this will help heal the wound and bring everyone together!

Websites, Blogs to Follow for Bangkok Situation

Here are a few sites that have a great coverage on what is going on in Thailand:

• Michael Yon’s Facebook page: He is American author, independent writer, columnist and photographer whose photo is used on the first image.
• Reuters Live Blogging: A live blogging with update information from Reuters.com
• My Thailand Blogs by Richard Barrow: A great resource for Thailand traveling, food and photography.
• WomenLearnThai has a great post about Staying Safe in Thailand.
• Follow my Thailand-News twitter list. Twitter has become a great way to follow the situation on the real time. I have learned about many updates way before my family in Thailand from Twitter. But Twitter also has a tendency to spread unconfirmed news or rumor faster than the wild fire. So you have to filter the information and take it with the grain of salt before jumping into any conclusion.

Stay tune for my update from our trip to Thailand!! And I promise to be back to my old self and talk about travel tips and fun stuff soon.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) My Heart is Broken for Bangkok is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Last year, travel blogger community started by Katie Sorene from Tripbase shared ‘3 Best Kept Travel Secrets‘ with one another. What started as a way to connect to each other has gone viral and has become a launching pad for a way to help a great non-profit cause.

What is The Travel Secret E-Book Series?

Tripbase has collected and compiled many incredible secrets into a Free Travel Secrets E-Books series. There are over 150 travel bloggers contributed their unique and inspiring travel tips and secrets over the course of the project. Each one of the travel secret is compiled into a series of unique travel e-books.

There are many e-books in the series that help in any type of travel styles. For my family travel readers, you can see my ‘3 Best Family Travel Secrets’ in the Family Travel eBook.

Who is “Charity:Water”?

Charity: Water is a great non-profit organization that aims to help bring clean and safe drinking water to people in developing nations. The organization operates with the help of private donors that allows your donation to go directly (100%) to the water project.

What Is In It For Me? And How Can I Help?

You can help bring clean water to many developing countries around the world by donate to Charity: Water campaign or download our Travel Secrets E-Book series.

I’ve helped, please help too

Download Free eBooks

led by Tripbase

So in a sense, you get free valuable travel e-books from many talented and well-known travel bloggers/writers and you will help contribute to the Charity: Water campaign.

For every person that downloads a Travel Secrets eBook Tripbase will make a $1 donation* to the fantastic cause, Charity: Water.

* $1 Donation per download up to $5,000, half a dollar to $10,000, and 25 cents to $15,000. Total donation cap is $15,000.

So what are you waiting for? Download all 7 E-Books (there might be more additional ebook in the future if they receive more tips) and help bring clean water to developing nations!!

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Free Travel Secrets E-Books for a Great Cause is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Summer is almost here. I can feel the heat and my heart is pounding as I think about months of carefree and full of fun activities ahead. For many families, the plans are already in place. The flights are booked and the hotel rooms are reserved. For many, the summer plan is still up in the air. The planner is waiting for inspiration.

San Antonio is a great family friendly destination as you might remember our top 5 Family-friendly activities in San Antonio from last week.

Now that we know a little bit more about San Antonio. Would you be interested in a chance to win a FREE vacation package to the land Deep in the Heart of Texas?

San Antonio Vacation Package Giveaway

San Antonio is a city that I have yet to visit. BUT it doesn’t mean you can’t visit San Antonio this summer.

Because my friend, a good people of San Antonio Convention and Visitors Bureau is planning a BIG, HUGE summer fun for you!

It’s a huge SAVE Summer Sweepstakes that involve not just one but 12 – TWELVE family travel bloggers that will be giving away great vacation packages for 12 lucky winners.

Today is The Q Family Adventures turn to reveal our giveaway vacation package to San Antonio. Read on to find out what fun we plan for you in San Antonio.

Stay in Style

There is no better way to kick off your vacation than staying at this elegance boutique hotel – the Crockett Hotel. The Crockett Hotel is well-located, independent, spacious, comfortable, has a great history, and is friendly and personable.

Kids will fall in love with the outdoor pool with landscape water fall. A great amenity that family will appreciate during the hot summer month.

Fun Attractions For the Whole Family

The list of family friendly attractions in San Antonio is long.. so there is no shortage of fun, family friendly activities in San Antonio.

Ok.. I have to admit that I didn’t know that San Antonio has Sea World! It’s one of our favorite park during our family vacation to San Diego. So I’m very excited to see that a lucky winner will have a chance to enjoy a fun day in Sea World San Antonio as well.

Along with Sea World San Antonio passes for four, there are also passes for other fun attractions in San Antonio including The Institute of Texan Cultures, Ripley’s Believe It or Not!, Louis Tussaud’s WaxWorks, San Antonio Children’s Museum, and Texas Transportation Museum.

The Ultimate Family Vacation Package to San Antonio Giveaway

One lucky winner will win the fabulous vacation package to San Antonio. The vacation package for four includes:

• Two nights at Historic Crockett Hotel (expires 1/31/2011, based on availability, not available when sold out and during special events (such as Cinco de Mayo). Can check on specific dates when call to make reservations.)
• Passes for four to the following attractions:
  
  • The Institute of Texan Cultures (expires 1/31/2011, not valid for special events)
  • Ripley’s Believe It or Not!
  • Louis Tussaud’s WaxWorks
  • San Antonio Children’s Museum (expire 12/30/2010)
  • Texas Transportation Museum
  • Sea World San Antonio (expire 1/2/2011)

How to Enter:

• Leave a comment with your email (I will not share your email address) telling me ‘Which activity you are most looking forward to doing in San Antonio?”
• The comment must be entered before 10pm EST on May 24th, 2010.
• The sweepstakes for The Q Family Adventures will run from May 18th, 2010 to May 24th, 2010

Additional Entries:

There are three additional entries you can enter. You must follow the rule and come back to leave a comment for each additional entry.

*It’s very important that you come back and leave a comment for each additional entry to be counted.

• Become a fan of The Q Family Adventures on Facebook and come back to leave a comment to let me know that you are a fan. If you are already a fan of The Q Family Adventures, you can leave a comment to let me know.
• Follow @TheQFamily on Twitter and tweet about our giveaway “I enter @TheQFamily giveaway for San Antonio SAVE Sweepstakes: http://ow.ly/1MFvB ” and come back to leave a comment with a link to your twitter post.
• Share our giveaway on your Facebook page by click on the ‘Share’ icon on the top of the post or ‘Like’ icon at the end of the post and come back to leave a comment.

The giveaway will be closed on 10pm EST on May 24th, 2010. I will choose ONE lucky winner randomly via random.org and the winner will be contact via Email.

The winner must reply to my email within 5 days otherwise I will select another winner.

• Duplicate comments and anonymous comments will be discarded.
• Please make sure that the email address in your comment form is valid so that we can contact you (email addresses are never made public).
• Winners must claim their prize within 5 business days after the date of notification of such prize.  We will disqualify any entries that we believe are generated by scripts and other automated technology.
• No substitutions including for cash are permitted.
• Winners shall be responsible and liable for all federal, state and local taxes on the value of their prize.
• Immediate family of The Q Family Adventures are not eligible to win.
• Eligibility: Sweepstakes is open to legal residents of the 50 United States and the District of Columbia who are 21 years of age or older as of the date of entry., except employees of San Antonio CVB, participating hotels and attractions, their agents, affiliateds, subsidiaries and members of their immediate families and person residing in the same household. Also, San Antonio residents are not eligible.

Sponsor:

The San Antonio Vacation Experience (SAVE) is a cooperative effort of the SACVB and local business partners to provide discounts on 28 attractions and almost 40 hotels to help visitors save money while in town. Register to get access to great deals and coupon codes for popular hotels, exhilarating theme parks such as Six Flags Fiesta Texas and Sea World, shopping destinations, and historic sites around the city.

Sign up to receive special offers and the latest updates on San Antonio events and happenings. Or, request a SAVE brochure here, including coupons.

Be sure to visit the San Antonio SAVE Summer Sweepstakes page for more information on the contest, as well as other sites participating in the giveaway.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) San Antonio SAVE Summer Vacation Package Giveaway is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Last weekend, we were invited by Georgia State Park to attend their kick off event of Geo-Challenge.

Geo-Challenge is a new program by Georgia State Park incorporating Geocaching to 42 Georgia State Parks and Historic Sites.

You can pick up Georgia State Park Geo-Challenge passport or download it online. Then go to geocaching.com to get GPS coordinates for the caches location in the parks. Head out to the parks and start the hunt.

Once you find the cache hidden in the park, there will be a stamp (unique to each location) for your passport. Complete specific numbers of caches to get a custom geo-coin. Bring your stamped Passport into the park’s Visitor Center and receive a voucher for your coin.

If you are new to Geocaching like myself, there are many sites you can find out more information about. One of my travel blogger buddy, Tripping With Kids, has many posts with great information about geocaching.

Now, on to our first experience with geocaching with kids…

I’m glad that our first geocache attempt was with the Geo-Challenge. We went to the Fort Yargo State Park in Winder and checked in. Typically, geocacher will need a few equipments to start with namely GPS handheld unit (very important) and a few other hiking items.

We were able to borrow the GPS unit from the GA State Park along with a helpful experience geocacher – Ms. Linda. She taught us what caches might look like, how to read the GPS and when to follow the compass or not to follow the compass since sometimes the compass tends to take you on the most direct route. We have to use some common sense as well to not get ourselves in trouble.

Since this is the kick off event, there were 5 additional caches hidden in the park specifically for this event. We arrived a bit later than the starting time so we planned to just attempt to find one event-specific cache.

Our first cache took us on a walk along the nature trail to the wood. It was a beautiful day and a perfect weather for geocaching. We were lucky as we arrived at the location to find another family was there looking for the cache as well. The kids couldn’t be more excited to find their first cache.

As we walked back, we ran into another group putting another cache away. Well, it could be considered as cheating since we didn’t even have the coordinate of this cache. But I considered it as an incentive for a first timer.

With 2 successfully caches, we were ready for the real cache in the park. We loaded our GPS with the coordinate and headed back out on our own for the hunt of Geo Challenge cache. I’m happy to report that it was a success. We found our cache and stamped our passport. One down, 41 more to go!

This is definitely a great way to get kids engage and involve in a destination. Thank you for introducing geocaching to our family. We are hooked!

Do you have an experience with geocaching? Would you like to share with us?

Check out other traveler Photo Friday at Delicious Baby.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) GeoCaching with Kids: Our First Experience in Geocaching is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Exploring San Antonio, Texas is like traveling the world in a day.  There’s the Colonial Spanish history found at the Mission churches, the German heritage of the surrounding Hill Country towns like Gruene and Fredericksburg, and the influence of Mexican culture that can be found in the architecture, food, and music of this city.  But what if you don’t have time to do it all?  What are the five best family-friendly activities in San Antonio that can be crammed into one weekend?  Well, here they are–my five favorite activities that both parents and kids will enjoy:

1. San Antonio Children’s Museum

San Antonio Children’s Museum: This is a great rainy-day activity since so many of San Antonio’s other attractions are outside.  The children’s museum features a surprisingly realistic mini-grocery store, a small airliner and control tower, and a special area for younger children.  The main attraction though is PowerBall Hall, a huge contraption that sorts, sucks up, and spits out colorful balls.

2. Missions Baseball

Missions Baseball: Sometimes it’s hard to find kid-friendly evening activities.  If you’re visiting during the spring or summer, definitely check-out a Missions minor league baseball game.  Inexpensive, convenient, and fun, these games feature something your kids will never forget: two of the most unusual mascots in all of sports, Ballapeño and his sidekick Henry the Puffy Taco!

3. Mission Churches

Mission Churches: No trip to San Antonio would be complete without visiting the real missions that make up the San Antonio Missions National Historical Park.  Highlights include the very photogenic church at Mission San José, the well-preserved Mission Concepción and the peaceful Yanaguana Trail that starts at Mission San Juan.

4. River Cruise

River cruise: One way to explore the famous riverwalk is to take a river cruise.  Parents will enjoy listening to the tour guide as he describes the city’s unique architecture.  Kids will love going for a boat ride and waving at pedestrians.

5. Hill Country Day Trip

Day-trip to the Hill Country: San Antonio is a great starting point for day or weekend trips into the surrounding Hill Country.  Consider driving out to Bandera, known as the Cowboy Capital of the World, or make the drive to Fredericksburg, which is filled with interesting shops, restaurants, and historical sites.

We have lived in San Antonio for almost a year, and we are just now feeling like we’ve seen most of the city’s attractions.  Be ready for hot and humid weather…and lots of fun!

Sarah V. writes a travel blog called Wandering Off, which focuses on her family’s adventures through Texas.  She loves nothing more than jumping in the car, firing up the GPS, and seeing where the road takes her.  To go along on her adventures, follow her on Twitter at @wandering_off or become a fan of Wandering Off on Facebook.

Thank you, Sarah for a great post about San Antonio. Stay tune for more posts about San Antonio and a big giveaway from The Q Family Adventure and San Antonio CVB! In the mean time, you can check out giveaway from other top family travel sites at SAVE Summer Sweepstakes.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) San Antonio With Kids: Five Favorite Kid-Friendly Fun is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

This Monday I have so many dreams. Most of them involve traveling to many places with my family.

The most vivid one for me today however is the dream of going back on the big ship and cruising again to fun places in different port of call. I wouldn’t call us an expert in cruising by any means. We have only been to Disney Cruise and Carnival Cruise with our kids. But I can say that cruising with kids is one of our favorite non-stress vacation we have had.

It also helps to have been following Randy from The Lollipop Road as he is live-blogging and tweeting from the sea.

Check out a month long event from his blog as he talks about his experience on board 3 of the most popular cruise lines – Carnival, Disney and Norwegian.

So far, I have enjoyed reading about the shore excursions which Randy provided insightful information on DIY vs Cruise Line tour, the review of kid’s programs from both Camp Carnival and Disney’s Oceaneer Club, and the tips & tricks for family cruising.

Now, there is more to this month-long program than just information to help family understand and gain more information on cruising with kids, they will also give out the prizes at the end of this event. All you have to do is check out their event page to see how you can enter for a chance to win a prize.

Check out other travelers’ dream at Mondays are for dreaming at Mother of All Trips.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Dreaming of: Cruising with Kids (Again and again and again) is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

As I mention a couple weeks ago about how I love winning prizes from various blogs and twitter contest. Granted I have never won crazy expensive prizes like an all expense paid trip but I still love winning it regardless.

One of the prize that I love is yet another great travel companion for travelers especial family travel.

The Family Rambling Journal is a product from Jody of Family Rambling – a good friend and family travel expert. The travel journal is created with traveler in mind.

The journal is a perfect size for me to pack in my bag. It’s not too big to carry and not too small to write on.

Inside, there is a one page travel tips that provide great information for family travel from flying, driving and camping with kids.

The journal part is well thought out. There are already pre-set detail so it will help keeping journal during your travel easier. I’m not a journal type person who can sit down and jot down my thought and my feeling in paper. So I really appreciate the header to remind me of important things I might want to write down.

So if you plan to take any family vacation soon, you might want to check out the Family Travel Journal.  I know I will have it with me on my trip to Thailand.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) I Got Mail: Family Travel Journal is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Three years ago when we went back to Thailand for a family vacation, we met up with my brother’s family for a fun family-friendly day at Siam Ocean World.

Siam Ocean World is one of the main attraction for family with children in Bangkok. It is one of the biggest aquarium in Bangkok and South East Asia. Plus it is located at the heart of Bangkok in Siam Paragon.

However, with the unsettling situation in Bangkok near Ratchaprasong business area, we will probably skip our return visit if the situation is not resolved by then. I do sincerely hope that it will be resolved though.

We went there during the weekend so that my brother’s family could meet us. It was a great family outing even though it was a bit crowd. But that’s something you just have to learn to deal with when visiting Bangkok. We have a lot of people live there.

I was pleasantly surprised to see how well kept the exhibits were. We also purchased the tickets to Glass Bottom Boat. The tour was fun. It was quite nerve racking at the same time when we had 4 kids all under the age of 5 in the group. I think if we go back now my kids will enjoy it even more because they will be able to feed the fish.

There were also many other interactive activities for children and family to enjoy throughout the aquarium. We witnessed the diver feeding at the huge wall-to-wall glass tank. We enjoyed seeing the sense of humor they put in from car fish tank or refrigerator fish tank. Basically, virtually anything can become a fish tank!

It wasn’t long before all the kids were restless. So we headed out and played with Thai mermaids. I guess you can see from Mr. Z’s face how exhausted he was by then.

The benefit of having the Aquarium right underneath the shopping mall was it was easy for dinner or lunch. Bangkok is famous for food. And Siam Paragon food court wasn’t disappointed. If you are a tourist, I think it’s a safe bet to eat at the food court. You will be able to try out different types of food and the price is very affordable as well.

Check out other travelers’ Photo Friday at Delicious Baby.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Bangkok With Kids: Thinking of Siam Ocean World is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Going to a baseball game at Turner Field stadium is one of the kid-friendly activity for a family in Atlanta. However, with the nature of the baseball game it’s quite a challenge to entertain children throughout the game.

The Atlanta Braves has done a great job in making a visit to the stadium fun for the whole family. I’m pretty sure most of the parents already know about the Cartoon Network’s Tooner Field and the Scouts Alley. Both family entertainment areas are on the first level ready for families as soon as you enter the stadium.

But our recent visit to the Braves game we discovered another gem hidden up above the stadium at the Coca-Cola Sky Field. The Coco-Cola Sky Field sits atop the outfield roof at Turner Field. This Coke fan attraction features picnic pavilion, giant Coke bottle and base path for kids.

Mr. Z and Miss J were pretty amazed at the size of the giant Coke cannon and asked when they can see them shoot the confetti. No such luck that day!

One of the best feature here is the base path with base pad for kids to run the base. It is a genius way to exercise those excess energy. Kids can run the base with the help of a very friendly staff who is there to cheer them on and organize the run.

I lost count on how many times they ran. All I knew was we could still enjoy the game on the roof. It was way better than watching it on TV while we watched them at the Cartoon Network’s Tooner Field or the Scouts Alley.

Afterward, we checked out the three giant coke lawn chairs. They are HUGE. I think we could probably fit at least 4-5 adults on the chair. The kids enjoyed posing for picture and just hung out.

It was a great success visit to a ball game after the 3rd tries. I believed the Coca-Cola Sky field and their ages have a major part in making this visit a fun one. Plus a night game is definitely a way to go for our family!

Thank you, Jim from Atlanta Braves who showed us this gem!

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Atlanta With Kids: Secret to Entertain Kids @ Turner Field Stadium is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Our first night in Columbia was nice and relaxing.  The next morning we woke up early (for my standard) to have a healthy and great breakfast in our hotel – Embassy Suite Greystone-Columbia. Then we headed out for our fist stop for a fun day that would be filled with lot of activities.

Our first stop from my ‘best things to do with kids in Columbia‘ was EdVenture Children’s Museum.

The EdVenture Children’s Museum is located in the Vista area right along the river bank. So the view from the museum was amazing. I was truly impressed by the size and the exhibits of this museum that I won’t hesitate to go back again in the near future. We had a few places to visit that day so we didn’t have as much time as the kids or I would like to spend in the museum.

Meet Eddie The World Largest Kid

As soon as we walked in, we were greeted by Mr. Eddie, the world largest kid! Mr. Z and Miss J didn’t waste any time going up Eddie from the inside out. It was so cool and a bit gross at the same time to be able to see the inside of Eddie.

After a few slide up and down inside Eddie’s internal system, we reminded them that there were more stuff to see and check out. You have gotta try the slide inside Eddie, they do produce special sound to teach kids about digestive system. Care to guess what it sound like?

Great Seasonal Exhibits: West Africa & China

We checked out the seasonal exhibits. First on the list was the ‘From Here to Timbuktu – Journey Through West Africa‘. We had fun learning about how people of Timbuktu live, what they used for their transportation, what it likes in their market (the sound or even the smell). Mr. Z and Miss J tried out the Camel. I think he likes it!

Another fun seasonal exhibit we liked is ‘Monkey King – A Story from China‘. I especially loved this exhibit because I grew up watching this cartoon as a kid in Thailand.

Fun Exhibits from Art, Music to BodyWorks

There are also many great exhibits that I will be writing a guidebook if I have to list them all. Kids enjoyed playing music, becoming a news reporter, and sending special message through the Mission’s pneumatic tube at the Mission Imagination Gallery.

Miss J was curious about teeth and tried to put them back at the right place in Body Work gallery where kids learn all things about human body from bones, heart or teeth.

World of Work: Pretend City for Kids

By this time, both kids had enough of the educational type exhibits so they ventured into the World of Work exhibit. Little did they know that this one was as educational as the previous ones.

Like the name of the exhibit, the World of Work is a pretend world for kids. Kids can pretend to be a shop owner or a mom shopping for a grocery store. They can be a farmer harvesting their vegetable and collecting the eggs from their chicken. They can be a mechanic fixing up a VW bug.

Mr. Z’s favorite has to be a firefighter with complete outfit. He climbed up on the real firetruck and slid down the fire pole countless times. It was a great day of work for him.

More Fun Outdoor at the Great Outdoors

Finally, after a couple hours indoor, we were pulled by such a gorgeous day outside. I was so happy to see the Great Outdoors where kids could enjoy fun playtime outside.

I really like this children museum because there are various exhibits with mostly hand-on activities for kids to explore. With that being said, several of hand-on items were not working when we checked them out. And we were pretty much one of the first few people in the museum.

I hope to be able to bring them back again. Columbia is such a great place for a family weekend trip from Atlanta. Plus if you are a member of Atlanta – Imagine It! Children Museum, you can take advantage of family reciprocal program and get free admission. What a deal!

Family Tips:

• Plan to arrive early so you can get the whole museum to yourself.
• Dress kids appropriately so they can have fun sliding, climbing and even get wet outside.
• Bring extra clothes in case they have too much fun at the Great Outdoors.
• Pack your picnic lunch and enjoy your lunch by the river bank. The entrance to the river walk greenway is just across the street.

This post is part of Delicious Baby Photo Friday. Check out other travelers Photo Friday here.

Disclosure: We were hosted by Columbia CVB for an all-expense paid trip to visit Columbia. However, this post is based solely on my experience and my opinion without any outside influence.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Columbia With Kids: EdVenture Children’s Museum is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Up until now, I’m still amazed at all the friendship, connection and opportunity I have received since I started blogging.

This time is not different.

I was honored to received an email from Jennifer from Two Kids and A Map for an interview for her article with TravelingMom.

Me? Really? You want to know about me and our family travel? :)

So head on out there to check out what we talked about during our interview about Why We Travel With Kids.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Interview with Southern TravelingMom is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Over the weekend, I joined my mom group to do the volunteer work with our elementary school children at Horse Rescue, Relief and Retirement Fund, a local non-profit organization that work to the rescue and rehabilitation of horse and equine suffering from abuse and to the successful retirement of working horses and equine.

We were greeted by Ms. Deb who is a field trip coordinator who is a volunteer staff there. She gave us a quick orientation on what to expect and then we were off to tour the property.

We learned many new things about horses like what term do we use to call horses with multi-color (paint) and what we call their mark on their forehead (star). We met up with the regular residents there who were more than happy to greet us.

There are different area within the property for different types of horse. Mr. Z was so excited to meet horses that are smaller in size. It was wild to be able to walk up to them and touch these gentle souls. Remember, NEVER walk behind the horse!

A larger area is for bigger horses who need more space to exercise. We also learned a lot about how each horse came to the rescue.

After the tour, we then got to work. Since our kids were pretty young comparing to their typical volunteers. Ms. Deb gave us an easy task to help grooming two of their ponies. The kids did a great job!

Afterward, we were rewarded by a surprise treat. Mr. Z tried so hard to make him run. :) But he was a really good horse and didn’t even move a bit with many kids on his back.

It was a great experience and one that we would love to repeat again in the future.

If you would love to volunteer or plan a field trip, you can check out their website and contact them.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Volunteer with Kids: Save The Horses Organization is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Before the Social Media era, I have never been one to win any prize or giveaway from a drawing whether it was lottery or school fundraising giveaway.

However, in the past year actually past couple months, I have been a lucky one. I not only won a prize but won FOUR prizes from various travel bloggers and company.

Maybe it’s a sign that I should start planning my trips to all these destinations? Yup! I will take that as a sign. Let start from my first winning prize.

The Best of New York in Just 10 Seconds

It all started from a comment to NYCityMama for a chance to win ‘The Best of New York in Just 10 Seconds’ book. How could I not enter for this giveaway, when I will be there this Summer for my first Travel Blogging Conference – TBEX’10.

The Best of New York in Just 10 Seconds is a great guide book with the to-the-point information and a unique way of organizing the book. It was a love at first sight for me. Not because it’s free but because it’s a clean look that caught my eyes.

The book’s table of content gives the short and simple way to find information. I love the big font that makes it easier to find information I need. They also organize the book in the way that we typically plan our trip. The sample of table of content are Art, Eat, Shop, Stay, See, Event, Neighborhood and many more.

And for this family travel mom, the kid-friendly is a big plus for me. For the big three things in travel – Eat, See and Stay – the book also have subcategory for Kid-Friendly section. It makes reading this guidebook very easy and fast. No wonder they said we will find what we look for in 10 seconds.

The listing has short description with essential information. I particularly love the Eat section with recommended dish from the restaurant.

In the back of the book, there are various maps to each neighborhood and a big map for the Manhattan subway.

Overall, it’s the guidebook that I will definitely pack with me to New York City.

Disclosure: I received this guidebook for free from winning a contest. But no one asks me to do the review or write a post about it. This post is based solely on my opinion without any outside influence.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) I Got Mail: The Best of New York in 10 Seconds Travel Book is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Thank you everyone for participating in our first giveaway at the Q Family Adventures Travel Blog.

I love reading all your comments about what is the most important feature at the hotel for your family.

I also would like to thank Melissa from Homewood Suites Lawrenceville who provided us with a perfect prize to give for our giveaway.

Now without further ado… Here is the winner.

Comment #18 is Jacqui Smith!!

Congratulation! I hope to hear from you soon.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) The Q Family Giveaway Winner is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Over the weekend, we headed out of town to Columbia, SC for a quick weekend getaway as a guest of Columbia CVB.

Quick Drive From Atlanta to Columbia

We packed up our carry-on and loaded up on audio books and headed out of Atlanta on Friday evening.

The road trip was fairly uneventful. I guess my kids are used to a long drive now after a trip to Washington DC last Spring Break and Orlando in Summer.

We made a quick stop at the South Carolina Visitor Center on I-85. I love to stop by Visitor Center along the interstate because you can walk around, stretch your legs and gather information about our destination.

It took about 4 hours drive from our house to arrive at the Embassy Suite Columbia where we would be staying for the next couple days.

After checking in, we let the kids relax and swam in the indoor pool. That’s one of the great amenity we try to look for when staying in a hotel. An indoor pool provides a great fun without hassle for family travel. We then headed out to downtown area for dinner and a ball game.

Checking out the Vista in Columbia

Our first impression as we drove into the Vista area was that the town looks very old and run down.. BUT upon closer look, we realized that it wasn’t run down but actually it was the historic building that has been converted to business.

The Vista area was once a bustling cotton warehouse district and commercial railroad terminal. Today, the Vista is a main attraction for music, restaurants, shops and entertainment for Columbia.

I love that the city doesn’t just demolish old building but try to preserve and work with what they have. It’s a great area to walk around checking out businesses that are located in old building. This Publix Supermarket is in the  historic South Carolina State Dispensary warehouse.

There are many options for dinning ranging from fast food like McDonald to upscale and popular places like the Motor Supply Co. Our pick for that day though was rather disappointed and I will be writing about that in later post.

Brand Spanking New Ball Park

After dinner, we headed to Carolina Stadium for a college baseball game. The Carolina Stadium is a fairly new baseball stadium for the South Carolina Gamecocks. It was not a big stadium by any mean but I think that’s what makes it a great choice for family with kids. I don’t think there will be any bad seats in the stadium that you can’t fully enjoy the game.

Mr. Z enjoyed watching the game and managed to stay in his seat for a full hour! That’s a lot longer than any ball games we have ever been in the past. But I knew that we had a long day with all the traveling and swimming. So we headed out after we saw a homerun by the home team. It was a great first night in Columbia.

Check out other travelers’ Photo at Delicious Baby-Photo Friday.

Disclosure: We were hosted by Columbia CVB for an all-expense paid trip to visit Columbia. However, this post is based solely on my experience and my opinion without any outside influence.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Columbia With Kids: The Vista and the Carolina Stadium is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Several weeks ago I was invited to visit and tour Homewood Suites by Hilton Atlanta – Lawrenceville/Duluth. I was already a big fan of Homewood Suites during our stay in San Diego so I was excited to see if this location will have the same quality and charm.

Location Location Location

The location of the hotel is very important when you travel and this home away from home hotel is no difference.

The Homewood Suites Lawrenceville/Duluth is conveniently located next to I-85 and Sugarloaf Parkway. It’s literally across the street from the Discover Mills  mall, one of our family favorite outlet mall. And right down the street, there is the Gwinnett Center which hosts various concerts, family shows and conferences through out the year.

Also with easy access to I-85, you can travel to different part of Atlanta easily (but try to avoid rush hour because we are notorious for the traffic during rush hour)

Property Details

I have stayed at Homewood Suites Liberty Station-San Diego. And I was not disappointed to see that this Homewood Suites Atlanta-Lawrenceville has the same detail in decoration and functions.

The lobby is nice and feel very welcoming. The big sofa looks inviting for a quick break in front of the fireplace and big flat screen TV. I feel that I have been transported to a peaceful living room even though I am right in the middle of the city!

Movie Room makes for family

One of the unique feature of this hotel is the Media/Movie Room. The room is created with family in mind. Kids will enjoy a movie night in this room with flat screen TV, DVD player and comfy theatre style chair.

The Famous Hot Breakfast

My kids still talk about their favorite breakfast at Homewood Suites. We used to think complimentary breakfast means store-bought muffin, banana and cereal in a box. But not here in Homewood Suites, the breakfast area in the morning is the place where you will see other guests enjoy the fresh breakfast from scramble eggs, bacon, fresh fruits, bread or cereals.

When you travel with kids, having free and healthy option for breakfast is a big plus and a real saving for both time and budget.

The Rooms

They have studio, 1-Bedroom, and 2-Bedroom available at this hotel. Even the studio, the smallest option available, I can see that the space is larger than typical hotel room. The studio room also has pull out sofa and kitchen area with full size refrigerator, microwave and small pantry equipped with utensils and dishware.

The 2-Bedroom option here has one cool feature that sets it apart from other typical suite room. There are 2 separate doors to enter the room. So you can actually stay with your family with a complete privacy because each room will have their own entrance. That’s neat!

Other Amenities I Like

There are other amenities and services from Homewood Suites that make me like this hotel even more. (and you will think that I work for them.. which I’m not)

• Free WiFi – Ok, this is a pet peeve of mine when I travel. How much does it cost for a hotel to setup WiFi? Why can’t they provide that as a free service to hotel guests? At least, the people at Homewood Suites think we should have free WiFi! I think every hotel should follow their footstep.
• Great business center – Yes, sometimes you might have to do business on your family trip and it’s nice to have an option to be able to conduct your business at the hotel. The business center here has multiple computers with its own printer/fax machine. There is also a small room that you can close the door for privacy.
• Putt-putt green – With the great weather majority of the time in Atlanta, a fun outdoor activity is welcoming for family with kids. And what can be more fun than a putt-putt.
• Welcome Home reception – From Mon-Thu, there will be manager reception dinner. This is not just chip & salsa type. It’s a real meal. The menu is available online and from what I see you won’t get the same meal if you stay for a whole  month!

*This Giveaway is closed*

The Giveaway

So you are in luck as the nice people of Homewood Suites by Hilton Atlanta-Lawrenceville/Duluth is providing us with a great package for you to try out this special place for yourself.

Prize:

• Complimentary 1 night stay (Thursday – Sunday) at Homewood Suites by Hilton Atlanta-Lawrenceville/Duluth location for a One Bedroom King Suite with a sleeper sofa, full kitchen and wire/wireless internet. (a value of $114).
• $25 Gift card to AMC theatre at Discover Mills Mall
• The prize must be redeemed by Dec 31, 2010.

How to Enter:

• Leave a comment with your email (I will not share your email address) telling me ‘What is the most important amenity when staying at a hotel with your family?‘
• The comment must be entered before 10pm EST on Tuesday, April 13th, 2010.

Additional Entries:

• Become a fan of The Q Family Adventures on Facebook and come back to leave a comment to let me know that you are a fan.
• If you are already a fan of The Q Family Adventures, you can leave a comment to let me know.
• Follow @TheQFamily on Twitter and tweet about our giveaway “I enter @TheQFamily giveaway for a night @HomewoodSuites #Atlanta Lawrenceville http://su.pr/1mCcJs #giveaway” and come back to leave a comment with a link to your twitter post.

Winner:

The giveaway will be closed on 10pm EST on Tuesday, April 13th, 2010. I will choose ONE lucky winner randomly and the result will be announce here on Wednesday, April 14th, 2010. I will contact the winner to get information for the shipping address for your winning prize.

The winner must reply to my email within 3 days otherwise I will select another winner.

Rules:

• Duplicate comments and anonymous comments will be discarded.
• Please make sure that the email address in your comment form is valid so that we can contact you (email addresses are never made public or shared).
• Winners must claim their prize within 3 business days after the date of notification of such prize.  We will disqualify any entries that we believe are generated by scripts and other automated technology.
• No substitutions including for cash are permitted.
• Winners shall be responsible and liable for all federal, state and local taxes on the value of their prize.
• Relatives of The Q Family Adventures are not eligible to win.

So are you ready for a night out with your kids? What a better way to spend a weekend at this home away from home where you and your family can enjoy free movie, no cooking and no cleaning for a day!

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) A Tour of Homewood Suites Atlanta-Lawrenceville & Giveaway is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

It’s without a doubt that one of the must-do in Walt Disney World, is to find a perfect spot to watch the firework from Epcot – Illumination Show or Magic Kingdom – Wishes Show.  But the perfect spot doesn’t have to be inside one of these parks. There are several spots you can enjoy these fireworks without paying the admission tickets to the park. Check out best places to view Disney fireworks outside the park.

Disney’s Boardwalk

With the close proximity to Epcot theme park, Disney’s Boardwalk is a perfect place to watch the Illumination at night show. You can stroll along the boardwalk and check out various shops around the lake. The best location is the bridge that connect the walkways between the Disney Boardwalk Villas , Disney’s Yacht Club resort and Disney’s Beach Club resort.

The California Grill at the Contemporary

The Beach in front of the Polynesian resort

Bring your blanket and enjoy the show by the beach in the Polynesian resort with music from the park pipe to the speakers hidden in the bushes along the beach.

The Narcoossee at the Grand Floridian resort

Another restaurant option for viewing the Wishes firework outside the park is The Narcoossee restaurant.  It is located inside the Grand Floridian resort. Make your reservation at nightfall to enjoy the spectacular view of the firework.

See my full article at Oyster Locals.

Photo credits: 1. Express Monorail 2. Express Monorail

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Best Places to View Disney Fireworks Outside the Park is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

After we went to see the Christmas Carol movie at the El Capitan theatre in Los Angeles, we decided to cross the street, walk the famous Hollywood Walk of Fame and check out the Grauman’s Chinese Theatre.

Visiting Hollywood Walk of Fame is pretty much in almost every guide book. I even put it on my Best 10 Free or Cheap Things to Do with Kids in Los Angeles.  But I might have to take it back, I will say SKIP IT!

If you don’t have any plan to watch movie at the El Capitan which I highly recommended, then find something else to do like going to Santa Monica beach or the Griffth Park. Seriously, kids are too young to know anyone who has their names there. You can see how excited Mr. Z were when we asked him to pose.

Plus, there are a lot of characters walking around in front of the Grauman Chinese’s Theatre that will urge you to take a picture with them. Here is the thing. My kids are used to Disney World and other Theme parks where characters will pose a picture with you for FREE. Well, not in Los Angeles! You will have to tip them. I think I will take Mr. Incredible from Disney (which actually put on the mask to look like Mr. Incredible from the movie) over Mr. Incredible from Hollywood any day.

Now, if you are a movie fan, it’s still a fun thing to do to stroll along the Hollywood blvd and check out your favorite movie stars’ name plate. It’s just not the experience that we enjoyed as a family there.

Check out other travels’ Photo Friday at Delicious Baby.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Los Angeles with Kids: Skip Over Hollywood Walk of Fame is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

As you might remember from my Mondays are for Dreaming post about our dilemma for this Spring break, we finally came up with the decision and decided to go to Columbia, SC for a weekend.

I have to admit that at first I have no idea where Columbia, SC is. The only Columbia I know is in South America. Silly me! After a quick search from Columbia Visitor Center website, which I have to say very informative, I have found that there are many things to do and it looks like our Spring break is shaping to be a fun one after all!

Columbia is about over 3 hours drive from Atlanta so it’s a perfect location for a great weekend escape. Here are my Best 5 fun things to do with kids in Columbia, SC.

1. Riverbanks Zoo and Garden

The Riverbanks Zoo and Garden is a must-see in every list I have searched online. It’s a great place for a visit for kids of any ages. Plus I love the fact that it’s a 2-in-1 place. You get the Zoo and the Botanical Garden in one visit. What a value! The ticket price is very reasonable for less than $10 for adult and just over $7 for kid.

I check out their website and found that there are many animal presentation throughout the day. So I might need to spend some times to map out and consult with my little travelers to see what they would like to see on this trip.

Apart from the animals, there are also many fun rides and attractions that I know my kids will love especially the train ride! Check out the Attraction Wristband for $20 that will allow for unlimited ride. I don’t think we will have enough time to do that. We still have to visit the Botanical Garden part.

It’s a bummer that we will miss the Springtime at the Garden Festival that happened this past weekend. But I know I will enjoy taking pictures and hopefully get a few great ones to show you when we come back.

2. EdVenture Children’s Museum

Ok.. This is probably one of the coolest museum I have seen online because of Mr. Eddie – The World Largest Child. The reason I think it’s cool because it’s not just typical statue that you can just look at and be in awe but you can actually climb inside him! I wonder if they will allow adult to climb as well. We will know about that soon.

Visiting the EdVenture Children’s museum is a great way to spend a day for kids to explore, learn and interact. I especially love special exhibitions that the EdVenture currently has on displayed. From Here to Timbuktu is a journey through West Africa and Monkey King: A Story from China will introduce kids to China beyond Chinese restaurant.

3. Congaree National Park

With the Spring is in full swing, a visit to Congaree National Park will give us a great day of outdoor activities that we need. It has been a long Winter and my kids energy level is through the roof. So I’m looking forward to a day to reconnect with the outdoor adventures that we started last year.

I would love to do the Guided Canoe Tour now that Mr. Z is finally old enough for the minimum age. However, I might need to see if he will be able to do it. It’s a 3 hours canoe tour after all. My other option is a guided walk – Nature Discovery.

4. South Carolina State Museum

Another museum? Yup, how can I pass up a museum featuring Pirates, Privateers and Buccaneers? The South Carolina State Museum has 4 large floors devoted to the disciplines of art, history, natural history and science/technology. At first I wasn’t so sure about putting this on my to-see list. But after checking out their website and read about various exhibits from Art, History, Natural Historay and Science/Technology, I’m convinced that Miss J and Mr. Z will have a blast here.

The museum itself has a cool factor because it’s housed in its largest artifact, the former Columbia Mill. This former textile mill also is a world-first totally-electric textile mill.

5. Frankie’s Fun Park

I have to admit that this one will probably top my kids’ list of thing they must do. We don’t have a lot of chance to ride go-cart. So whenever we travel and they spot any go-cart place, we will here a non-stop begging and pleading for a quick round.

The Frankie’s Fun Park has many fun attractions that will make the whole family happy – at least my family! Mr. Rojo will probably spend a good chunk of tokens at the arcade and if I can drag my kids away from the Rookie track, I will probably have to chase after them in the Fun House.

There are still many more activities that I would love to do in Columbia, SC. But I think with these 5 on my list, I’m already pushing it. I won’t sweat it though. It’s just a quick drive from Atlanta so we can always go back there again if we miss out on any fun things to do.

So have you ever been to Columbia, SC? Do you have any additional recommendation for things to do with kids? Don’t be shy! Leave me a comment..

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Best 5 Fun Things to Do with Kids in Columbia, SC is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Our last stop on our tour of Los Angeles was the Santa Monica Pier. After a long bike ride from Santa Monica beach to Venice beach and back, we were all ready for a break and fun.

It was a bit disappointed that the Carousel that Debbi mentioned in her post was closed. So we walked down the wooden parking deck to the Santa Monica Pier.

It was early in the evening and we navigated through a throng of tourists and locals walking along the pier. I spot the sign indicated the end of Route 66. Any parents will remember the favorite Disney movie – Cars and route 66 was a main character in that movie. But technically, Route 66 ends at Santa Monica Blvd and Ocean Ave which is just a couple block North of the Pier.

Before we entered to the twilight zone of the Pacific Park, the amusement park on the pier, we walked around and people watched. Since we traveled during Winter, a lot of attractions were operated at the limited hour. We already missed out on the Carousel and we also missed the Aquarium. But I guess after San Diego, Miss J and Mr. Z were probably more interested in more relaxing things to do.

As the Sun slowly went down on the horizon, we headed to the Pacific Park for the Pacific Wheel ride. The view on the top was one of my favorite view. It’s amazing to see how huge the Santa Monica beach is. No wonder we didn’t make it to the ocean. It would take us a while to walk that distance with 2 kids.

At the end of the day, we had a great time in Santa Monica and will definitely come back again.

Check out other travelers Photo Friday at Delicious Baby.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Los Angeles With Kids: Santa Monica Pier & Pacific Park is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

A city rich with many museums and monuments like Washington DC will require a good deal of planning and time to explore.  For the tourist on a time crunch, a guided tour of the city is a great way to maximize your time. Sure, you can use the tried and true “hop-on and hop-off” bus tour. But it’s way more fun to try one of the unconventional tours offered in the city.

City Segway Tours

If you want to blast through the city and enjoy all the must-see attractions while looking cool, take the National Mall Segway tour. You may even learn a few new facts to boost your water cooler knowledge.

For even more fun, you can book the evening tour; there’s less traffic, and you can get an interesting view of the monuments after dark. You can stay at the Sofitel Lafayette Square and, from there, take a metro from McPherson Square to Gallery PI – Chinatown. (meets at 624 9th Street, NW)

D.C. By Foot

Lace up and get ready for an enjoyable tour that will also give you a hearty work out. D.C. By Foot is a free tip-based walking tour that is lead by an entertaining and knowledgeable tour guide.

The tour will take you from the Washington Monument to the Lincoln Memorial. Now, don’t forget to stretch and stay hydrated. The meeting point is not too far from the Mandarin Oriental Washington D.C. (meets at the northeast corner of 15th and Constitution Avenue, NW)

Bike the Sites

Another way to view the sights and get great exercise is to Bike the Sites with Bike and Roll.  It is a fun way to explore the nation’s capital without wearing out the soles of your feet. There are different tours for you to choose from.

The family will enjoy a chance of bike together with Family Bike Adventures tour. Also, since there are three different meeting locations, it might be a bit more convenient. The most recently opened location is at Union Station near the Washington Court Hotel.

See my full article at Oyster Locals.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Three Fun Ways to Tour Washington DC is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

One of the main reason we visited Los Angeles with our kids from our last vacation was mainly for my craving of Thai food. Yup! You heard that right. I just want to gorge myself with Thai food in Thai Town.

From the picture above, you might think that I took that picture in Bangkok from our trip to Thailand. But nope, that picture was from Thai Town in Los Angeles.

Thai Plaza and Silom Market is a main Thai shopping market with everything from food to household items. The store is packed full of Thai products and other Asian products you can think of. We didn’t spend a long time there because I know I can’t buy anything so why torture myself.

Thai Town in Los Angeles is a six-blocks stretch along Hollywood Blvd between Western and Normandie. You can tell that it’s Thai Town because you will be greeted by the Thai Shrine that is filled with colorful garlands, candles and lotus flowers.

The places we couldn’t miss in the visit to Thai Town are the Thai restaurants. The food in Los Angeles reminds me of home. No gimmick, nothing fancy, taste just like home. My brother who lived in LA for a couple years recommended me to Ruen Pair and I wasn’t disappointed.

Sorry there is no picture from Ruen Pair. I was just too busy eating!

After a big meal, we walked across the parking lot to another must-stop for me. Baan Kanom Thai is a perfect place to help sooth your mouth from spicy Thai food. This place has almost every types of Thai dessert that I have been dreaming and thinking about.

That’s one thing I love about visiting little ethnic town in major city like China Town or Thai Town here. It won’t give you the same experience as visiting those countries but I think it will give you a little glimpse. The signs are all with Thai letter and people is speaking Thai all around you.

So if you are looking for good Thai food in Los Angeles, head to Thai town and you won’t be disappointed. There are many more great restaurants in the area. But with our limited time, we could only eat so much in a day.

If you live in LA, please leave a comment for other great restaurants to share with us.

Check out other travelers Photo Friday at Delicious Baby.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Los Angeles With Kids: Taste of Thailand is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

The Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington DC is one of the best ways to spend Spring Break with your children.  This event offers many great family friendly activities for the whole family to go along with the world class selection of free museums.  If you plan to be in DC during the Cherry Blossom Festival week, check out these fun events

Tidal Basin Paddle Boat

During Cherry Blossom Festival month (Mar 10 – Apr 11, 2010) kids (and you) can enjoy the view of Cherry blossoms  along the Tidal Basin while riding a paddle boat.

Family Fun Zone from National Park Service

At the Jefferson Memorial – Each Saturday & Sunday from Mar 27 to Apr 11, 2010, the kids learn about the trees of the other national parks and practice writing in Japanese at the Family Fun Zone.

The National Cherry Blossom Festival Family Day

At the National Building Museum – Celebrate the opening ceremony of the National Cherry Blossom festival on Mar 27 with fun family friendly activities including hands-on activities, informative demonstrations, and exciting indoor and outdoor performances celebrating Spring and exploring Japanese arts and design.

National Cherry Blossom Music & Firework Show

At the Southwest Waterfront – On Apr 3, arrive early for family friendly activities and local musical group performances from 5 pm – 8 pm. Afterwards, enjoy the spectacular fireworks show from the Washington Channel. For the best view, head to East Potomac Park or Southwest Waterfront Promenade.

Both the Mandarin Oriental Hotel and the L Enfant Plaza Hotel are within walking distance to the festival area.

See my full article at Oyster Locals.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Washington DC with Kids: Family-Friendly Activities during the Cherry Blossom Festival is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Kissimmee Tourism. All opinions are 100% mine.

Kissimmee, FL is almost like the red headed step-sister of Orlando, FL. When people visit most of the attractions (if not all), they will be spending most of their time in Kissimmee chasing their childhood dream or fulfilling their children’s dreams in the theme park mega city.  Kissimmee is conveniently located to all major attractions and resorts that cater to all theme parks.

I have been visiting Kissimmee countless times since before we had children. You will think that I would have grown tired of all the rides and attractions there. However, this city never stops developing. This year, I’m even more excited to plan my trip back there again.  You also gain a new sense of excitement through your children’s eyes.

There are so many things you can do and explore in Kissimmee that it will take weeks to do it all.

Explore Theme Parks

I don’t know if you have heard about the brand spanking new The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Seriously! I think it’s one of the biggest new attractions for me. I have been stalking Universal Studio website for update on a weekly basis.  Ok.. Ok.. I have been checking on a daily basis.

Once we are there in Kissimmee, we can’t skip our favorite park – Disney Magic Kingom. It must be something in the air at that park that makes us feel so happy even with cranky and whiny kids!  It is a great place to feel young again.

Temperatures start to rise in spring and my kids are begging to go back to the Disney Water Parks. Last time, we visited the Disney’s Blizzard Beach Water Park.  So, this year we might try the Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon.

Beyond Theme Parks: Kissimmee Treasures

Before you non-theme park goers think that there will NEVER be anything for them, then you might want to rethink. We have been to Kissimmee where we only spent one day in a theme park and the rest of the time we enjoyed other attractions and activities.

For sport fans like Mr. Rojo, you will be in the baseball headquarter during Spring. You can catch the major league baseball players in action during their spring training and you will never know when you will catch that homerun ball.  You may also run into major league players at the ballpark to get signatures.

We also love to shop! Kissimmee has more options ranging from specialty stores at Disney Downtown market to the discount stores in the Outlet malls .  There maybe more shopping than your wallet can handle. So proceed with caution and don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Stay in Style

When it comes to accommodations in the Kissimmee area, I will say it will be up to your imagination. For us, we have been staying at the Mystic Dunes Resort & Golf Club so this year I want to change thing up and try out the Nickelodeon Suites Resort. I mean where else can you get green gooey liquid dumped on you and still have fun!

If you plan a group vacation, Kissimmee is a perfect location because you will have various choices of hotels, resorts and vacation rentals. I love the idea of renting a house with a pool to share with my family and friends.

Check it out for yourself

So why don’t you go check it out for yourself and see what Kissimmee has to offer? I know you won’t be disappointed to find great activities to fit your family style. You too can plan your dream vacation in Kissimmee!

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Getting to Know Kissimmee (Again) is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

As we are fast approaching Spring break in Atlanta, I can’t help but day-dream about our upcoming Spring break. This year is very different from last year.

The Fun Spring Break of Last Year

Last year, I started planning 3 months in advance for our Washington DC trip during Spring break. I had everything all planed out. We had a great week in DC hopping from one museum to the next and learned a lot about our country history. We enjoyed awesome times navigate the city using the public transportation. Mr. Z had become an expert in the metro and could recognize our stop. Best of all, we did all that on a budget.

Spring Break on a Budget and Time Constraints

This year? Well, knowing that we have limited time and fund I don’t have a big plan to take any trip. We don’t even have a week to spare for Spring break because I will use up all my vacation time in Thailand this Summer. So I have to be creative and try to find a way for us to still enjoy Spring break with this limited options.

Luckily, I was invited to a reception to South Carolina tourism event. I learned about various destinations within a driving distance from Atlanta that are also very affordable and fit into our time frame.

I learned that Greenville is only 2 hours North of Atlanta and I could relatively visit over the weekend. This small town of South Carolina has more fun things to do than I expected. There are Children’s Museum of the Upstate, the BMW Zentrum for automobile fanatic-son, the Greenville Drive – The Red Sox affiliate team for my baseball fan-husband and the Liberty Bridge at Fall Park for my photo adventure.

I also learned about Columbia. Another great option for family weekend getaway from Atlanta. The Columbia CVB website shows various options that will be perfect for my kids like the Riverbank Zoo or the EdVenture Children’s Museum.

Now I just have to try to find out how to pull this off in the next couple weeks.

It looks like I might be able to make my dream Spring break comes true after all. Who knows my neighboring state will have so much to offer.

Check out other travelers’ dreams at Mother of All Trips: Mondays Are for Dreaming.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Dreaming of: Spring Break is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Well, hello. Yes. You are at the right place for The Q Family Adventures.

I have to apologize in advance for some funky things you will see on and off for the next few weeks at the Q Family Adventures blog.

It’s time for me to clean up the house for the Spring. I have had this blog for 2 years and this template has served our blog well.

But now, I just want something a bit different. Not too dramatic but still different. There are still a lot of work that has to be done. But we will tackle it one step at a time.

If you are an RSS reader, don’t you want to stop by and see what’s the new change?

Leave me a comment and let me know how you like the new change!

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Pardon our dust as we get ready for Spring! is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Our visit to Los Angeles was short but fully packed with fun things we did with our kids ranging from a fun visit at the Le Brea Tar Pit, an amazing theatre experience at El Capitan or a beautiful view of Los Angeles Sunset.

Another memorable visit on this trip was our quick stop at Santa Monica beach. It was such a short visit that I will have to go back one day to take advantage of many fun family-friendly activities available at this popular destination.

Our first stop as soon as we found the parking spot was the playground. The sandy playground is nothing fancy but it’s something that I absolutely love. Most of the structure in this playground encourages kids to be active.

Miss J couldn’t run fast enough to climb up this bar. And she was quite successful in go up there. We all know who is the Monkey in this household.

Mr. Z didn’t want to be outdone. He tried his hand on the monkey bar as well.

And after all these exercises, they still had more energy. I guess it was from a lovely and yummy lunch we had at Cha Cha Chicken. Thanks to the recommendation from Delicious Baby’s City Guide.

We decided to try out the biking along the Santa Monica beach bike path. I think it’s one of the best feature at this beach. The bike path runs along from Santa Monica beach all the way to Venice beach and beyond. The bike path was very popular with both tourists and local. So make sure to stay alert and don’t ride too fast. It can get pretty crowd and some turn can be a bit tricky.

We rented a family bike with kid seat attached at the back. It was a perfect way for kids to also enjoy the beach. After riding from Santa Monica beach to Venice beach, we took a quick break at the Venice Beach Skate Park. It was very entertaining watching many moves they could do. Amazing! Then it was time to head back to check out the Santa Monica Pier. Stay tune for more fun in Santa Monica.

Check out other travelers story at Delicious Baby.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Los Angeles with Kids: An active day at Santa Monica Beach is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Taking kids to a museum in Los Angeles can be hit or miss, depending on what kind of museums you visit and what mood your kids are in. Los Angeles might be known for glitz, but don’t let that fool you into thinking that the city is superficial. Your vacation in L.A. can be as educational as you make it. If your kids are in a good mood for adventure and learning, check out these museums:

Page Museum La Brea Tar Pits (5801 Wilshire Boulevard): Where else can you find the piece of history in the middle of the city? The Page Museum hosts one of the largest collection of Ice Age fossils, and that collection is still growing. Kids will love to walk in the park to check out the many tar pit displays. Stop by Pit 91 and you can see what the archeologist have to do to in order to get all of those fossils. Nearby, you can stay in Le Parc Suites hotel in Hollywood.

Los Angeles County Museum of Art (5905 Wilshire Boulevard): This art museum knows how to take care of family with kids — it was even voted one of the ”10 Best Art Museums for Kids” by Parents magazine. There are various programs available throughout the year and kids can bring adults in to visit for free. Plus, it’s located right next door to the Page Museum. Another option for a place to stay while visiting the Los Angeles County Museum of Art is the Petit Ermitage in Hollywood.

Griffith Park Observatory (2800 East Observatory Avenue): Part museum, part observatory, part planetarium – The Griffith Park Observatory will satisfy everyone in the family. Kids seem to be especially mesmerized by the Foucault pendulum at its entrance. As the saying goes, “the best things in life are free.”  You got it.  The best thing about the Griffith Park Observatory is that the admission is free for all.  Though, you will have to pay to watch the planetarium show. It’s just a quick car ride from the kid-friendly Magic Castle Hotel.

See my full ariticle at Oyster Locals.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Los Angeles With Kids: Best Museums for the young, inquisitive minds is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Do you see a monkey there?

Think she will make it to the top?

Well, she sure does make a progress!

Monkey reveal! It’s Miss J!!

She had a blast at the playground on the beach in Santa Monica. Yes, it’s on very single list of tourist attraction of things to do in Los Angeles. And I think it’s there for a good reason.

Santa Monica is a great place for a relaxing day for parents. Because it’s a perfect beach to just let kid be kid. Kids could probably spend hours in this playground alone. But that’s not the only thing you can do in Santa Monica. So stay tune for our full adventure day in Santa Monica.

Check out other travelers Photo Friday at Delicious Baby

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Santa Monica Monkey! is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Visiting Orlando with kids is typically a must-do vacation for any family with children. Parents try to save money by searching the web for the best deals because we all know how expensive this once in a lifetime trip can be.

However, there are more things to do with kids in Orlando than Walt Disney World. You and your family can enjoy an inexpensive visit to Orlando with these free family friendly alternatives.

Downtown Disney Marketplace – Experience the Happiest Place on Earth without paying for it. This Downtown Disney area is a perfect spot for a relaxing day. You will enjoy walking along the boardwalk and shopping in various specialty stores like Disney Mega Store and Lego store. Afterward, you can reward the kids (and yourself… go on… you deserve it…) with ice cream from the Ghirardelli® Soda Fountain & Chocolate Shop. It’s within a short distance from a value option of Disney ’s All Star Movie Resort.

Celebration Town – Escape from all the hustling and bustling of the tourist traps to this little picture-perfect town. It was carefully planned to be a place where kids could enjoy the simple life. The atmosphere of this quaint small town will make you forget that you are in the land of the mega amusement parks and gaudy t-shirt shops. You can stay nearby at the Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort.

Lake Eola Park – Visit downtown Orlando (and no, Kissimmee is not Orlando) and enjoy a nice stroll in the Lake Eola park. Kids will have fun feeding the live swan and other birds along the lake. For the active family, a walk around the lake will log you in at just under mile. If the pavement is too hard on your feet,  you can rent a paddle boat for a great fun in the lake. Also don’t forget to check the schedule for concerts or a plays at the Walt Disney Amphitheater.

See my full article at Oyster Locals.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Orlando With Kids: Free Things to Do Beyond Disney World is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

I have so many dreams of traveling with kids. Europe, Asia, South America and Africa.. The list is endless and I don’t know if we can do it all. But when one of the dream seems to be within reach, it makes the dream even more exciting.

We have been talking about taking the kids backpacking through Europe in the next few years when they will be old enough to take care of some walking without whining.

Tuscany With Kids

But last week, I entered our family photo vacation for a chance to win a week long stay in Italy. Tuscany to be precised. Now, I have to admit when we were talking about Europe I was thinking more about Rome, London, Amsterdam or something in that nature. I didn’t even think about Tuscany.

Now, that there is a chance.. I start to dig more and see what could we do in Tuscany with kids. Will they get bored? We are not wine connoisseurs. Will we enjoy a week out in this beautiful countryside?

The answer is YES.. Big fat YES..

Resources for Things to Do with Kids in Tuscany

There are many more things to do for kids in Tuscany than we can fit into a week. A great resources from Ciao Bambino gives us a good start.

I let my fingers do a little more work and found more information at Children in Tuscany. A great resources for various things to do with kids in Tuscany. Kids will love to climb the Leaning Tower in Pisa, ride the bike in Lucca, climb the bell tower in Siena, and tour the amazing Florence.

The winning prize is a week stay in Casa Cornacchi Country House. The location is perfect for a family home base to explore Tuscany.

Now, why do you care about my dream?

You can help me achieve this dream my dear friends. It’s relatively easy.

How To Help

1. Become a fan of Ciao Bambino – Ciao Bambino Facebook Fan page (so you can do the next step)

2. Leave a comment on my family photo – Our Family Vacation in Macau

That’s it!!! Each comment will give us one vote.

The contest will run until March 12th. So you still have time to help us out.

Cheer to the dream!

You can check out other travelers dream for this Monday at Mother of All Trips.

First photo by Giampaolo Macorig

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Dreaming of: Tuscany With Kids is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

A visit to Los Angeles with kids will not be complete if we didn’t visit the Page Museum – La Brea Tar Pits. It’s one of the best things to do with kids in Los Angeles. I have read about this museum from other travel blogger and put it on our to-do list for our quick jaunt to Los Angeles. After a fun day at the El Capitan theatre, it’s time for a bit of educational trip for the kids.

The Page Museum AKA the Ice Age Museum

The Page Museum La Brea Tar Pits is a research and educational facility and one of the best museum with the most extensive collection of extinct Ice Age fossils.

It helps that our kids have watched the Ice Age movies countless times. So it’s nice to be able to point out the extinct animals and they were able to make a connection. It took quite sometimes for them to grab the concept of ‘extinction’ because they still can see it on TV.

Perfect Size Museum for Kids

We went there during the weekday so it was very easy to find parking along the street. There is also parking inside the park and you can get the discount when you purchased museum admission tickets.

The museum itself is only one story. But the display and exhibition is very adequate to give you the knowledge about the ice age creatures.

With small size, it allows kids to remain engage without getting bored with the display.

The Coolest Things to See at The Page Museum

One of the coolest part of the Page Museum at La Brea Tar Pits has to be the Fish Bowl. The Fish Bowl is the area where researchers are working on the on-going project at the tar pits mostly cleaning and cataloging the fossils.

Kids (and adults) were mesmerized by the whole thing. (I don’t think I can work in that fish bowl. Too much pressure with people watching.) They were able to see how scientists and volunteers are working and cleaning those fossils. We also stopped by the theatre room to watch the short movie about the history of the Page Museum. It’s very fun and engaging and I highly recommend it. It will provide you with the background and history of the museum in a quick and fun way.

The Active Tar Pits in the City

After we walked around the Page Museum, we headed out to the most popular spot in the whole park – Tar Pits in Hancock Park. The Tar Pit give us a glimpse to the real Indiana Jones wanna-be like myself. We visited in Fall so there was no working excavation going on at that moment.

Kids get a chance to see how the real tar pits look like as there are many fenced-off tar pits all around the Hancock Park. However, the most well-known one is Pit 91. Pit 91 is tar pit that has been reopened in 1969 and the excavation work continues until today. We saw the area where the volunteers carefully excavated specimen inch by inch during the Summer.

New Discovery at Rancho La Brea- Project 23

However, the work in Pit 91 is temporarily suspended. In 2006, there was a new discovery of new fossils during the parking garage construction. Twenty three boxes of asphaltic deposits were moved to the Page Museum for further work. Hence, Project 23 is born. The name of Project 23 came from the 23 extract crates.

So far, they have discovered over 700 measured specimens including a large pre-historic American Lion skull, lion bones, dire wolves, saber-toothed cats, juvenile horse and bison, teratorn, coyotes, lynx, and ground sloths. For the current news and update, check out the Excavatrix blog.

It was a great fun day with our kids. They really enjoyed the visit. I think the Page Museum La Brea Tar Pit is one of the coolest place to visit in Los Angeles with kids.

Disclaimer: We paid for our own admission tickets. I will always let you know if I receive the complimentary tickets. And there will never be any outside influence on how I write my post.

Check out other Travelers Photo at Delicious Baby.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Los Angeles With Kids: Page Museum La Brea Tar Pits is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

When it comes to flying, I don’t think I can consider myself a flight expert. But with a few international flights with kids under my belt, I think I have learned a few things or two over the years. As we plan a Summer trip to Thailand with our kids, I start to collect information and start planning. One of the first thing is to secure a ticket to fly back from the land of the free to the land of smiles.

Getting Cheap Tickets

There is a great article from Frugal Traveler on booking a flight the frugal way. What a perfect timing! So this post won’t be talking about how to score the cheap flight to Bangkok. Because quite frankly, I just use the Thai travel agent. I think they have provided the best price.

Things To Know Before Flying with Kids

Getting tickets is just the beginning of your trip. It’s something that I used to think that I can now relax and plan my itinerary on my destination and get to the airport with plenty of time to board my flight.

Oh.. How wrong was I!

There are a few things you must do before (way before) you trip to help ensure that you will have a smooth flight.

1. Sign up for that reservation notification – Flights DO change!

Once you have booked your tickets and received your reservation, go ahead and give them your information (email or phone) so they can contact you if there is any changes in your schedule. Trust me, you will want them to contact you. Or make it a schedule to check your reservation every other weeks to see if there is anything changes.

My recent trip to San Diego I didn’t know about the schedule change till it was closer to our departure date. By that time, I was too late to be able to assigned seats for us to sit together. I forked up a few more bucks for extra legroom so that at least one of us will sit with our kids.

And I just got off the phone with Delta to book myself and my kids on a new flight back from Narita to Atlanta. Why? Because the flight from Bangkok to Narita has new schedule and I will only have less than an hour for the connecting flight. Luckily, I received notification way before my travel date that we are able to get booked on the new flight and get a good pick of good seats.

2. Find the best seat and get it assigned

If you plan ahead and book your flight early, your chance of getting your seats together with your family and your kids is high. So don’t wait until the last minute. Go online and pull up your reservation to get the best seat you can get.

I typically use Seat Guru or Seat Expert to check out for the best seat. I have to say it doesn’t give much of the ‘Best’ seat but it will give you enough information to make a good decision.

I didn’t know before checking their sites that on one of my flight half of the economy class will be equip with power outlet. Traveling with kids in this digital age, power outlet is like pure gold. So I wouldn’t have known that with our economy class ticket we will get the privilege to have such amenity!!! Needless to say, I go ahead and get our seat in the front section to secure myself a seat with outlet. Now, if I know how to find it on the plane.

3. Online check-in but double check your gate at the airport

With the airlines charge you from checking your bag to checking in at the counter, it’s probably one of a must do before you leave your house heading to the airport. Checking in online will not only save time but money when you fly with your kids. You don’t have to wait at the counter and can proceed directly to the gate.

But one travel tip based on my own mistake is to double check your gate at the airport before you start marching down the walkway. We did that before.. Trusting in the accuracy of the boarding pass in my hand, we headed to the wrong gate. Luckily, the new gate wasn’t too far from the original one.

However, when we travel internationally I still need to check in at the counter. Since we will be checking in our luggage.

4. Find Things to Do at Your Airport Beforehand

There is no doubt that half of your travel time will be spending at the airport. And if you have bad luck like us you might get stuck at the airport for longer than you want.

So before you head out, do a little research to check out if your airport for your connecting flight or your departure flight has any family-friendly facility. There are several resources that compile an extensive list of children play area in the airport in the US and major international cities. The most comprehensive one that I have found is the Kid Airport Diversion guide from Cheapflights. But make sure to double check with the airport website for more update information.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Flying With Kids: Things to Know Before You Board That Flight is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

There is no doubt that when you visits Washington, D.C., you will have various choices of great restaurants. But what do you do when you just want to grab a quick bite (that doesn’t break the bank) and you have your little rascals in tow? Food courts are family-friendly and affordable alternatives to restaurant dining, and the food can be delicious! Check out these four food courts that are within walking distance of D.C. attractions:

Old Post Office Pavillion – For an alternative way to view downtown D.C. that isn’t the Washington Monument, you definitely need to check out the Old Post Office tower. Afterwards, you can enjoy your lunch or dinner right there at the food court on the ground floor. There’s sure to be something for every picker eater in the family. It’s only a couple blocks from the luxury W Washington DC hotel. 1100 Pennsylvania Ave. NW

Union Station DC - This huge food court will blow your mind with the number of choices it offers for lunch or dinner. Make sure you don’t get lost in the crowd and if you can, try to avoid the rush hour, which can get pretty crowded. After the meal, kids can enjoy exploring the station while you shop at the various stores. The Union Station is only a short walk from the Hotel George or the Washington Court hotel. 50 Massachusetts Ave., NE

Longworth Cafeteria – Touring Capitol Hill is a must-do for any visitor to the capitol. After a tour you can head to Longworth cafeteria, located in the basement of the Longworth House Office building. It’s a great place to rub shoulders with politicians as you stand in line for a variety of dishes. Just a couple blocks from the Residence Inn – an excellent kid-friendly hotel on the Hill. Independence Avenue and South Capitol Street

Ronald Reagan Building Food court - Top off your visit to the White House with a quick meal only a block away at the food court in the Ronald Reagan building. It is conveniently located within easy access to the metro station and the InterContinental The Willard hotel. 1300 Pennsylvania Ave NW

Check out my full artical at Oyster Locals.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Washington DC with Kids: Family Friendly Food on a Budget is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

As we are looking forward to our Summer trip to Thailand, I couldn’t help but look back at our old album from our last visit 2 years ago.

Both Miss J and Mr. Z were still so young. I didn’t know anything about blogging yet.

Still… I  remember those little moments like a peaceful dinner by the beach in Pattaya with my family. It all started out like what you would imagine seeing from the magazine. Then the reality set in. Mosquito came by and we moved inside to the comfort of air conditioning.

I remember Mr. Z ran wild in the replica building of the Sanphet Prasat Palace in the Ancient City. Even with all the heat, they could careless about that. They were just so happy to be able to run and enjoy the space.

Those were little moments that I still cherish and couldn’t wait to make many more little moments with my kids in Thailand. Summer couldn’t be here fast enough.

See other travel blogger’s Photo Friday at Delicious Baby.

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Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Thailand with Kids: The Little Moments is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

It’s not often for us who live in Atlanta to experience snow. But with the recent winter storm that swept through most the country, we got a chance to really enjoy snow in our own backyard.

It was a short experience indeed. As soon as the snow fell down and accumulated enough, we headed out to our backyard. Based on my past experience I knew we have to seize the moment. Otherwise, you won’t have any snow left to play with the next day.

Lucky for us, the next day was cold enough for us to enjoy a second round of Winter Olympic – Snow Sled in our backyard. I didn’t think Miss J will be a dare devil type kid. But she proved me wrong. She opted to slide down head first and even attempted to slide down with 2 lids. Oh! By the way, we didn’t have a sled so we just use the plastic container lid. Work like a charm!

And yes, we (or actually Mr. Rojo) were able to build a good size snowman. He was big enough to tower over Mr. Z and guard our backyard for a few days afterward.

The best part about snow in Atlanta is there is no clean up necessary. The heat took care of the snow a few days after. No snow shoveling to break your back.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Winter Olympic in Atlanta? is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Visiting Los Angeles with kids  was one of the last minute add-on itinerary to our week long visit to the West Coast. We didn’t plan to spend a lot of time in Los Angeles because we had so many things to do in San Diego from theme parks, zoo, museum and beach. But one of the plan that I added to our things to do in Los Angeles and looked forward to doing was watching a show in the El Capitan theatre.

The El Capitan theatre is one of the fully restored movie palaces in Hollywood. It was one of the original 3 theatres envisioned by Charles E. Toberman and Sid Grauman to create Hollywood theatre district in the early 1920s.  After the years of ups and downs, it’s currently operated by the Walt Disney company. Did I just say DISNEY? Yes, it’s the venue for many of Walt Disney Pictures‘ movie premiere. It’s a perfect place for kids to experience different kind of movie going.

The theatre itself is nicely decorated with all the detail. It makes you feel like you step back in time to the old glory day of Hollywood. The staffs were attentive and very helpful.

One of the thing I always love about watching a movie at this kind of movie palace is the pre-show. Kids enjoy listening to the live music which I think much better than just watching the advertising on the screen.

We went there during Thanksgiving and we were able to enjoy Holiday Spectacular pre-show. I think I was enjoying the show more than the movie itself.

After the show, we also walked around and checked out the display of the behind-the-scene information about the movie. We even saw some of the costumes used in the movie. Yes, it’s the 3-D movie but I guess they will need the real costumes to make it more realistic.

The ticket cost might seem to be steeper than your typical movie ticket but I think it’s well worth the experience for a visit on special occasion.

After you exit and still want more Disney experience, you can stop by Disney’s Soda Fountain and Studio Store for some quick snack and shopping.

Disclaimer: We paid for our tickets ourselves but we were very lucky to receive 2 free tickets from a complete stranger while we were waiting in line at the box office to a VIP section. So we only bought 2 extra tickets for our family.

Check out other travelers Photo Friday at Delicious Baby.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Los Angeles With Kids: The El Capitan Theatre Experience is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

The Superbowl may be over, but Miami’s party reputation still isn’t going anywhere. Don’t let that discourage you from planning a family vacation to Sunny Florida, however! Miami is more family-friendly than you think, and has gorgeous weather this time of year. Here are some ideas for a fun-filled day with your kids in beautiful Key Biscayne:

Miami Seaquarium – The Miami Seaquarium might not be the biggest aquarium, or even the best, but its location on Key Biscayne overlooking the water gives it a definitive edge over the competition. The aquarium’s modest size is perfect for a fun day that won’t tire you out, and offers several live shows to keep you entertained throughout. Your choices include the Top Deck Dolphin Show, Killer Whale & Dolphin Show, Flipper Dolphin Show and Sea Lion Show. And if your kids want a more intimate experience with the dolphin, check out their swim-with-the-dolphins program for an adventure in the water!

Crandon Park Beach – Pack your picnic basket or grab a quick lunch and stop by the Crandon Park beach for a leisure break at one of Miami’s top beaches. The white sand and perfect waves are guaranteed to keep everyone in a good mood. But if swimming does get old, the Crandon Park Beach Amusement Center is there to provide kids with endless dry-land entertainment, ranging from a carousel, outdoor skating rink, splash fountain and playground.

Read my full article at Oyster Locals.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) A Family-Friendly Day in Key Biscayne, Miami is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

As we plan our Summer trip to Thailand and check out the ticket price, I am SO not prepare to spend more than $1,000 per ticket to get there but I digress..

Traveling to Asia might seem like an out of reach for many families due to high cost in ticket. But don’t let that prevent you and your family from enjoying and learning about the East culture. A trip to any Asian grocery store will give you a glimpse and will provide you with a fun day of exploring.

We are very fortunate to have lived in Atlanta where there is a big population of Asians and countless opportunities for us to enjoy Asian cultures without living town.

Every once in a while I take my kids to the Asia/International Supermarket like Super H Mart or Assi Supermarket in town. This mega supermarket sells all things international but mainly focuses on Asian.

Our first stop has always been the food court within the market itself. This is a great place for you to try out different food without breaking the bank. I have been craving Korean food – Kimchi Fried Rice for a while. So I was so pleased to taste it in the hot stone bowl.

I ordered Ramyeon – Korean Instant Noodle soup for Miss J. Yeah.. It’s something we can probably make it at home but where else can I serve it up in this cool hot pot for her.

Environment sure does help encourage kids to try new thing. Even though, my kids are 100% Asian (Thai and Filipino). They still don’t know how to use chopsticks nor do we use it on a regular basis. I was so proud to see her eating her noodle with chopsticks and she seemed to have a lot of fun with it.

After the meal, it’s the fun part. The walk around the store is my favorite part and my most dangerous part. I tend to grab everything I can find. Japanese rice cake in multi-color looks too good to pass up. The mochi ice cream (which I finished it before I could take any pictures) is a different take on ice cream. Thinking of it as rice cake with ice cream filling.. Yum!!!

If Mr. Rojo wasn’t there with us and encouraged (nagged) us to go home, I probably would spend hours and hours there and filled up my grocery cart to the brim.

This is one of the best way for us to introduce our kids to Asian cultures before the big trip. It might not give them the real perspective but it sure will open their eyes to the new things.

Super H Mart and Assi Plaza (Lotte Plaza) has several stores in various states.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Cheapest Way to Visit Asia with Kids is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

With so many cut back and changes in airlines industry, it’s safe to say that delay at the airport or for your flight is something we have to plan for. If your flight is on time and you don’t have any delay, consider it’s a blessing.

Our recent flight from Atlanta to San Diego was a blessing. Thanks to some of the travel tips I have gather from more experience travelers. We didn’t encounter any issues at all.  Actually, I took it back. We did had an hour delay due to the glitch in the system. It was a blessing that we were able to arrive on time after all that delay.

However, the return trip was a total opposite. We had a connecting flight at Washington DC. After we landed and headed to our gate for our connection flight to Atlanta, we found out that there was a mechanical issue with our plane so we would have to wait 4 hours before the next flight. FOUR … FOUR hours in the airport on Thanksgiving Day nonetheless!!!

So how did we survive 4 hours delay at the airport with 2 kids? Here are travel tips to kill time without killing each other.

1. Explore

Airport is a big place. It’s like a city of its own. Since we just got off from the plane, it’s a great way to stretch out your legs as well. We walked around to check out the shops. But this could only last for so long. The little legs needed some rest. Plus we each had to carry our own carry-on so it was time for the next plan.

2. Stake your claim

Our next move was to find an empty and quiet area that we could sit back and relax. The area near our gate was too busy so we looked around a bit to find totally empty gate. We found our home away from home for the next 3.5 hours. A quick meal at the gate was all we did before the kids moved on to the next activity.

3. Play that game

This was the time to take out all those games and toys that we had been carrying around. We started from the card games which they really enjoyed. Then moved on to their personal Leapster games. Ah.. I couldn’t praise enough of how much I love Leapster® Learning Game System. It’s a life saver to many of our trips.

4. TV online

By the 3rd hour, there were only so many games they could enjoy. So I moved on to our next action plan – TV shows. Ok.. so the cat is out of the bag, my kids watch TV a lot during the weekend. They are Star Wars the Clone War fanatic. Luckily, we were traveling during the FREE Wifi Week. I was able get the internet access and get a few new episodes from Hulu. We didn’t bring any of the movie DVDs with us this trip. So Hulu definitely saved the day for us.

5. Stretch and clean up

Finally, we could see the light at the end of the tunnel. It was time to pack up and get ready for our flight. We did another round of running and walking to stretch out our legs. We brushed teeth, washed our face and changed the kids into their PJs since the flight was now so late that we would arrive at around midnight. They were all ready and hopefully went to sleep on the plane.

I can safely say we survive and it wasn’t as bad as I imagine.

So how about you? Have you had any other experience with long delay during your trip? What other tips you can share?

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Family Travel Tips: How to Survive 4 Hours Delay at the Airport is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

On the last day in San Diego, after we made a quick stop at Cabrillo National Monument we made the trek up the highway to San Diego’s Zoo Wild Animal Park.

We should have arrived much earlier than we did. But after a grueling itinerary with non-stop visits to Legoland, San Diego zoo, Science museum and Sea World. I think it took a little toll on us. So we took it easy that day.

The Wild Animal Park is part of San Diego Zoo but is located in Escondido about 45 minutes from San Diego. So plan your trip accordingly. We chose to visit Wild Animal Park on the last day in San Diego so that we could continue our trip to Los Angeles from there.

The Kilimanjaro Safari Walk

When we first arrived at the park, I thought we were in Disney Animal Kingdom park. The park looks really clean with shaded path. After picked up the map, Miss J went into guide mode and studied the map.

Our first stop was the gift shop! Yeah.. Not such a good beginning but we forgot a hat for everyone. And we knew we would be doing a lot of walking in the Sun. So shopping it was.

With the size of the park and knowing my kids’ energy level, I knew we had to lower our expectation. We wouldn’t be able to explore the whole park so we settled to only a few spots. First of, I saw the schedule for Cheetah feeding so we marched down the path heading to Cheetah’s area by following the Kilimanjaro Safari Walk. But it was almost at the totally opposite side of the park. But that didn’t mean that we didn’t stop to enjoy feeding ducks near the Congo Fishing Village.

I have read many reviews about the walking concerns for family and I agree. Know thy children! For younger kids, I would suggest a jogging or umbrella stroller. It will be much more pleasant for the whole family. I saw several moms pushing strollers along the path. Looked like a great place for a workout.

So did we make it for the feeding? NO!

In light of trying to get it there, I actually missed the Cheetah area and kept on walking. By the time, I turned around the feeding was done.

Now, on to plan B.. A quick ice cream stop was in order. We stopped by in front of the entrance to Journey Into Africa and sat down to enjoy our ice cream before got in line for a ride.

Journey Into Africa

If you have limited time and can only do a couple things, THIS is the one I would highly recommend. It’s a no gimmick safari ride that takes you to habitats where animals live together just like in the wild. There is no fancy story of chasing a poacher.

The ride was really educational and informative. I really love our driver who gave us great information. Now I know what make Wild Animal Park different from other typical zoos. The park is big on animal conservation and strives to provide a safe habitat for wild animals.

We rode on a tram along the fence-in area. It’s not really safari experience but hey.. we are in California so what do you expect. Even so, I still think it’s one of the closest experience we can get here and provide us with more understanding on what they are doing in the park.

Little Break for Little Ones

By the time, we were done with the ride, it was late in the afternoon. We decided to hike back to the entrance. It was quite a walk. Then we stumbled upon a staff who provided a much-needed distraction for kids of all ages with the bubble station. He was creating a huge bubble using special solution and allowed kids to forget about that long walk. This shows how family-friendly this park is. I love all this little details that they think of for family with kids.

Not Your Typical Petting Zoo – Petting Kraal

We have been to many petting zoos in the past but definitely not this type of petting zoo. Most petting zoo you will meet goat, chicken, rabbit and other smaller creatures. But here you meet Kraal. Kids were nervous at first to get up-close and personal with big deers. But they were all very tame. Plus we read them the rules before we got in. Definitely, one of unique experience we had!

Our last stop of the day was the Conservation Carousel. This African theme carousel was a great fun to end our day!

So I have been wondering before visiting the Wild Animal Park as to what is the different between the Wild Animal Park and San Diego Zoo and whether it’s worth a trip.

My verdict

For family with younger kids, they might enjoy San Diego Zoo more. But for family with older kids, it’s SO WORTH it!! My kids absolutely loved the safari ride experience. They also begged us to get on the balloon ride but we stood ground on that request. :)

I just wish we had more time to spend and explore. It’s definitely worth extra money to buy the Journey Into Africa ride. There are so many other parts of the park that I wish we had time to explore.

Family Tips:

• Arrive early because this park is huge. You will be able to explore more.
• Bring stroller for younger kids.
• Stop for frequent break with bigger kids. This will allow them to enjoy walking a bit more. There are many interesting things to see and check out along the path so the walk wasn’t that bad.
• Go on Journey Into Africa!

Disclaimer: I received complimentary tickets from San Diego Zoo’s Wild Animal Park. However, this post is based solely on my experience and my opinion without any outside influence.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) San Diego With Kids: Wild Animal Park is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

I haven’t participated in Mondays are for Dreaming at Mara’s Mother of All Trips for a while. But it doesn’t mean that I haven’t been dreaming of places I want to visit with my kids.

My current obsession with K-dram (aka Korean Drama) has sprung a new destination for my Dreaming of Series – Seoul, South Korea.

Seoul is probably one of the destination that is not on the top list of many travelers. If you look at most of itineraries to Asia, you probably see Japan, China, Thailand, and India in most of those list. However, South Korea seems to be at the bottom of the list. I’m guilty of that as well. Until now..

After watching many series of K-Drama and starting to know more about Korean’s culture. I’m dreaming of a visit to check out many sights I have seen from my shows.

N Seoul Tower and Namsan Cable Car

It seems to be a very popular destination. A trip on the Namsan Cable car will take you up to N Seoul Tower where on a good day you will  enjoy a view of Seoul’s skyline. Kids will love the ride up the cable car for sure. But they will also enjoy a hike and play at the surrounding park.

COEX Mall and Aquarium

COEX Mall is an underground mall in Seoul and is one of the largest shopping center in Seoul and one of the largest underground mall in Asia. This mega shopping center reminds me of Siam Discovery in Bangkok. It consists of hundreds of shops, COEX aquarium, Mega movie theatre and Kimchi Field Museum. Talking about all-in-on stop for the whole family.

The Palaces (Goong)

The Joseon dynasty built ‘Five Grand Palaces’ in Seoul. The main palace – Changdeokgung – will be one of my top destination to visit. Kids will probably enjoy the changing of the guard ceremony at the Gyeongbokgung Palace. The other 4 palaces are Changgyeonggung, Deoksugung, Gyeongbokgung and Gyeonghuigung.

Shopping Markets

Shopping and Asian culture is like a pair of chopsticks. It goes together and can’t live without one another. Seoul is no different than other major cities in Asia like Bangkok, Tokyo or Beijing. Shopping is a big part of the city. There are several notable markets that I will definitely have to check them out.

Dongdaemun Market is probably one of my favorite to check out. What with opening from 10:30 am to 5:00 am.. This non-stop shopping area will be my best friend on a sleepless night.

And if you are looking for more high priced retail with brand name attached then Myeongdong will suit your need. It’s located at the financial district and is popular among young people so you can expect a great fun nightlife.

Insadong market will be perfect if you look for more arts and antique products. This market is where traditional and modern Korean artworks are sold. It’s also a great place to sightseeing and enjoy a leisure walk

Banpo Bridge

This might not be on many of Must-See list from major travel sites. But this one is purely for my own indulgence. Any fan of the popular K-Drama, F4 will remember this scene very well. I am determined to check them out when I visit Seoul. Plus I think my kids will get a kick out of a fabulous Rainbow Bridge fountain show as well.

Most of all, I’m dreaming of many great meals there. The Korean food has become my new obsession so I can’t wait to try them all out in Seoul.

Check out other travelers’ dream at Mother of All Trips.

Photo Credits: yeowatzup, hyku, ysjjhfox, jaytong

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Dreaming of: Seoul, South Korea With Kids is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Sunset photography is probably one of the hardest thing I have tried so far. During our West Coast trip, I had only 2 chances to capture the Sunset.

Our first Sunset was in Hollywood at Griffith Park Observatory. It was such a great place to visit with amazing view of the City of Angels.

The sunset view became more special when you share with someone you love.

The next day we went to Santa Monica in the afternoon. The Santa Monica beach was a great place to spend a day with kids. There are lot of fun things to do. The view of the Sunset was also amazing.

As we were leaving, we turned around and found this view of the Santa Monica ferris wheel during the Sunset. The lights were on and the fun had just begun.

Check out other travelers Photo Friday at Delicious Baby.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Chasing Sunset in Los Angeles is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Food is one of the 3 main component in our travel – what to do, where to eat and where to stay. I think we have covered a lot of what to do in San Diego in the past few weeks.

But it’s so typical of us that we didn’t get to taste as many great places as we would love to. Spending a whole day in a park certainly cut our chances to taste out many restaurants on our list.

Nevertheless, we were able to finish off a couple and would love to share with you.

Covette Diner – Family Fun Food

On our first night, we made a plan to meet up with my lovely blogger friend, Coleen from Travel Mamas. Coleen is a San Diego resident so I trust her in guiding us to a great place to eat. And she didn’t disappoint.

We met up at the Covette Diner in Liberty Station. It’s their new location in a revitalize History Navy Training Center. The place is a giant fun house for kids and ahem.. adults too.

As soon as you stepped in, you knew this is a place where kids can enjoy and adults don’t have to worry about melt down. The staffs are friendly and very well into the character of the 50s theme.

There was a dance break for all of us to enjoy and join in if you dare. :)

The food was also pretty good.. Ok.. I didn’t pay that much attention to the food to be honest because I was already full from the huge appetizer plate and milkshake.. Ah.. The milkshake is what they are famous for. You can order it so many ways that I think Starbucks will not want to compete with their combination. And if they don’t have it in the menu, you can even create your own creation!

While you wait for the table, or the food or after the food, little ones can enjoy the arcade type area with fun games.

Overall, it was a great fun experience especially sharing with good friends. Thank you Colleen for the recommendation.

The In-N-Out Experience

In-N-Out Burger joint is the local fast food joint that I have heard so much about. Whenever I talk to my neighbor who moved from Southern CA, they always talk about how much they miss In-N-Out. So we just have to give it a try.

The place reminds me a little bit of Krystal burger but with more clients and better burger. We went there during dinner time and the place was packed.

The menu is very simple but we learned after the fact that there is a secret menu! Hmm.. Next time, we might have to try that out. The price is very affordable for everyone. But burger is burger. Don’t expect that this will be a healthy choice for the whole family.

The burger itself is ok but I guess for the price it makes a better alternative than McD. The burger does taste better and seems with better ingredient than your typical fast food burger joint.

But don’t take my word for it. I’m not a big fan of any burger by nature. I still don’t get why the Varsity is so popular in Atlanta. It’s a good stop when you look for a quick meal that don’t break the bank. Another big plus is you don’t have to worry about if your kids will behave here. It’s a burger joint after all.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Fun Food in San Diego is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Photo by IFRC/Eric Quintero

There is no doubt that everyone has heard about the devastation that happened in Haiti. I also have no doubt that many of you have already donated or helped in any way you can.

This past week, I have seen yet another reason why I LOVE my blogging community. I can see from big time blogger to mommy bloggers to travel bloggers trying to do anything they can to help raise both fund and awareness to help Haiti.

Many of us have limited fund and I certainly know that. This year doesn’t start off on a good term for us as Mr. Rojo is currently unemployed. However, even with that I couldn’t possible complain. We are still fortunate enough to have food on our table, home to rest at the end of the day and good health in general.

So after participate in the text donation to the Red Cross, I still think that I can do more. I can give more.

How You Can Help

I will follow the foot steps of many bloggers out there like Aye & Jack at Got Passport or Crystal at Money Saving Mom. So for every comment that leave on my blog this week, I will donate $1 per comment to the American Red Cross – Haiti Relief and Development.

Photo by IFRC/Eric Quintero

So come on.. my reader. I know I have a few. I might not generate 25,850 comments like the Pioneer Woman. But I hope that you guys will leave several comments.

There is nothing to lose for you. I would love to hear from my lovely reader. Please help spread the word. :)

Want to Do More?

Check out Got Passport post for up to date information about how you can. Remember to donate to the established organizations. There are too many scams out there so donate responsibly. :)

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Help For Haiti is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

When we visited San Diego, I had done a lot of research on where to stay. Originally, I was leaning toward VRBO because we would be there for a while. I wanted to have space and didn’t want to feel like boxing in to a 4 wall hotel room.

However, budgeting was also a big factor. The VRBO tends to be more expensive when you rented for just one family. It makes more financially sense if we travel with a couple more families to share the cost.

So I looked for another option – extended stay hotel and suites. This hotel type tends to cater more to family and business travelers with free breakfast, suite room and other amenities.

After careful consideration with pro and con with both options, I narrowed down my choice to Homewood Suite Liberty Station. I contacted them and was able to get a discount rate. This was the only compensation I received in term of discount but not FREE.

Location Location Location

This hotel is conveniently located merely 5 minutes from the airport. I think it took us longer to ride the bus to our car rental office than going back to the hotel. It’s right across the river from the airport at the revitalized urban village created from History Navy Training Center in Liberty Station area.

The hotel sits right on the bank with the walking/jogging trail along the river. Kids enjoyed running along the trail after breakfast. It was such a great spot to just sit back and relax.

It was a perfect location as our home base to explore San Diego. It’s about 10-15 minutes from SeaWorld and Downtown area.

Enough Room for Everyone

We booked the 2 bedroom suites. The room has 2 bedroom and a living room with full-size kitchen (microwave, dishwasher, refrigerator and stove). Typically, when we traveled in a tight budget, extra room might not be necessary but it’s really NICE to have. Having a separate room for the kids allow us to put them to sleep sooner and provide us with some much needed rest.

The kitchen is a great feature to have when traveling with kids. However, this trip I didn’t even cook once. There are just so many places I want to try in San Diego!

Make-Your-Own Waffle, anyone?

I think one of the big plus in Mr. Z’s book was the Make-Your-Own-Waffle station at the breakfast area every morning. The hot breakfast had spoiled us that I had a hard time with continental breakfast when we went to LA.

This was definitely a factor to consider when looking at the accommodation. Free breakfast not only will help save the money but also time as well. Just think about the time you will spend driving out to eat. Another budget friendly option will be to buy your own breakfast like cereal or simple breakfast bar and enjoy them at your hotel room.

Another little feature that I love is the outdoor fireplace. It’s a perfect place to relax after a long day from sightseeing. There is also an outdoor pool but we went there during Winter so it’s too cold to enjoy that amenity. But I’m sure if we let them, my kids will be the first to jump in no matter how cold that is.

All Things Consider

So even though we received discount rate during our stay, when looking at the current rate available online ($159/night for 1BR Suite), I would consider staying there again when we visit San Diego. Here are the reason why.

• Convenient location and close to airport (but we never notice any noise from the airplanes)
• Free HOT breakfast everyday
• Free light dinner meals 4 times a week (Mon-Thu)
• Free parking (downtown area hotels typically charge $20-$30 for parking per day)
• Great outdoor fire place to hang out
• Nice area and walking trail for kids to run around
• Friendly staffs

Disclaimer: I received discount hotel rate from Homewood Suites. However, I paid the total cost out of my own pocket and this post is based solely on my experience and my opinion without any outside influence.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) San Diego With Kids: Home Away from Home @ Homewood Suites Liberty Station is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

It’s always hard to plan a visit to a city and try to fit everything you want to do and visit during a short vacation time we typically have. Our San Diego trip is one of those trips.

It was probably partly my fault that I split our trip to San Diego and Los Angeles. I couldn’t resist it. I would die if I didn’t get to eat Thai food in Los Angeles when I was that close to it. Anyway, with that plan our original 7 days in San Diego was cut down to only 5 days.

It’s definitely NOT enough to enjoy San Diego in a slow family style pace but we took what we can get.

The Fun Science Center

During our day to visit San Diego Zoo, I was able to squeeze in another fun visit to Reuben H. Fleet Science center. It’s paid to plan ahead and check out the museum hour so we knew that we could spend a whole day in the Zoo and still have plenty of time to check out the Fleet Science center.

This fun science museum in the heart of the Balcoa Park might seem small when you first got in but don’t let the size fool you.

We received complimentary IMAX movie tickets so we had a couple hours before the show started to check out the whole center.

The first floor has the open floor plan where there are various hand-on exhibits for kids to touch, feel and play with. Mr. Z and Miss J hopped from one to another like a kid in candy store. I didn’t even think they like science that much. Guess I was wrong.

After checking out most exhibits at least twice, we headed upstairs for more fun stuff.

Fun for Little Ones Too

Mr. Z headed to the Kid City. It’s a great room for younger kids to enjoy a kid-size city ranging from grocery store, library, phone booth or the factory.

Kids can enjoy a quiet time (ok.. not so quiet when other kids are enjoying their fun nearby) at the reading nook, play with the magnetic board, build a huge lego set or climb up the factory. I literally  had to drag Mr. Z out from that room to check out what Miss J and Mr. Rojo were up to.

Let’s Build It

We headed to Block Buster! room… Man oh man.. What a fun room. It’s basically a room full of KEVA planks that you can build on several tables provided. I mean the imagination is your possibilities. There are a sheet with example of what you can build and let me tell you.. This room is as much for adults as for children. I saw several couples enjoying building the KEVA planks themselves with no kids in sight.

The KEVA planks are surprisingly easy to use to build amazing structure. Each KEVA plank is uniform in size and shape, made from maple wood and measures 1/4 inch thick, 3/4 inch wide and 4 1/2 inches long. Structures are built by stacking the planks in an infinite number of ways, no glue or connectors necessary.

If I didn’t keep track of time, I bet we could have gotten lost in this room and miss our IMAX show.

Experience Under the Sea

I am typically not a big fan of IMAX theatre just because I can easily get motion sickness. The thought of sitting there with things moving already gives me nausea. But I’m also not one to refuse free tickets. :)

I’m glad we picked the Under the Sea movie. The show takes you to the journey under the sea with a great narrator with some humor comments.

I was concerned about how long Mr. Z would be able to sit still for the whole show. To my surprise, he was so mesmerized by the whole show.

In the end, we all had a great time at the Reuben H. Fleet Science center. It’s a perfect place for the whole family even for the littlest ones. Thank you for inviting us to visit.

Disclaimer: I received complimentary tickets from Reuben H. Fleet Science center. However, this post is based solely on my experience and my opinion without any outside influence.

Check out other fun Photo Friday from other travel bloggers at Delicious Baby.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) San Diego With Kids: Reuben H. Fleet Science Center is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

On the last day of our San Deigo trip as we packed our car and ready to head North to visit Wild Animal Park, we made a quick detour to visit Cabrillo National Monument.

Mr. Rojo’s friend highly recommended us to visit the Point Loma Lighthouse. Since we started out the day early, we figured why not.

I’m glad we did

The Cabrillo National Monument is located at the tip of Point Loma Pennisula. It provides us with a great view for the San Diego skyline even though that day it was a bit foggy (probably from dust and pollution).

Locals said it’s a perfect place to watch the ships as they arrive back at the port. We didn’t have time to do that but we did enjoy the view.

We stopped by the Visitor Center and got the pennies pressed to add to our collection.

We checked out Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo Statue and took a few pictures. We even spotted a couple hikers walking along the trail.

But we didn’t walk up to the Lighthouse. Let’s just say whining ruin it all. Maybe next time!

So we got in the car and ready to head to our original destination, but I saw the sign for the Tidepool access and overlook. Another detour was called for.

We parked and got out to enjoy the early day at the coast. We saw several surfers braved the cold water in the early morning for the ride. Ah!! What a beauty.

I think we could probably spend a lot more times there if we didn’t have places to go.

Kids would love to stop by the Lighthouse, walk along the bayside trail, check out tidepool and enjoy the San Diego view.

Even with so little time there, I still think it’s a great place to visit.

Family Tips:

• Arrive early in the morning so it won’t be too hot if you plan to hike along the trail
• Stop by the Visitor Center to get a brochure and learn the history of the park
• Check out the lookout points and see if they can spot any surfers
• Wear comfortable shoes and outfit for the trail hike

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) San Diego With Kids: Cabrillo National Monument is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

As we say good bye to 2009 and give a warm welcome to 2010, I can’t help but look back at our family adventures that we have done through out the year.

I have to warn you that it will be a long post so why don’t you go grab a cup of coffee, get yourself comfortable and come back to join me as we walk down the memory lane together.

March – Gatlinburg, TN

We start the first quarter with our last minute trip that we planned with a group of friends. That was the first time we ever vacationed together but it won’t be the last for sure. 5 Families, 10 adults and 11 kids in one house for 2 days was a great fun. The only thing I wished we could change is to stay a bit longer. Kids had fun Snow Tubing down the Ober Gatlinburg and we had a nice and a bit scary scenic drive along the Great Smoky Mountains.

April – Washington DC

During Spring break, we went on a road trip to Washington DC. A full week in our capital city allowed us to enjoy introducing the kids to great history. We hit the ground running the first night checking out the Cherry Blossom along the Tidal Basin at night. The next day, we covered 2 museums in one day!!! The Natural Museum of American History was a big hit even though we only spent a couple of hours in there.

Yes, there are more things to do and see in DC BUT I couldn’t help planning a day trip to Baltimore. The Port Discovery Children’s Museum was a perfect escape from all the museums. It let them loose and be kids once again.

Back to DC, we had a little mishap to visit Capitol Hill so we just took it in stride and enjoyed our DC by Foot tour. By far, it was one of the highlight for me. A visit to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and Lincoln Memorial gave me the sense of  deep appreciation for this country.

Another break from our museum visit was called for the next day. So we hopped on the Metro and checked out many little (or not so little) furry friends at the National Zoo.

The last day was not at all the least memorable. We spent time checking out the Air and Space Museum.

May – Disney World, Orlando, FL

At the beginning of Summer, we headed down to the land of Mouse to celebrate Mr. Rojo’s Birthday. There was no other places he would rather be than Disney World.

We had a great time in Disney’s Animal Kingdom even with a rain storm at the end of the day. Our friends came up to celebrate with us and we enjoyed our hot Florida day at Disney’s Water Park.

Orlando is not all about theme parks so we spent a leisure day wandering and shopping at the Downtown Disney.

July – Outdoor Adventures

We stayed close to home in the midst of Summer. But we did challenge ourselves to new adventures. We started off slow by hiking closer to home.. really close to home. Then we took another step out of our comfort zone to plan a camping trip. Camping in the backyard was another baby step before the real off-site camping. We did it and it was a blast. We also learned a few tips for our first endeavor.

September – Camping by the Lake

We did our first off-site camping at the campground by the lake nearby our house. Kids were a trooper in helping out in the camp and they enjoyed fun activities. Mr. Rojo got over (just a tad) his camping phobia.

September – Asheville, NC

What a month of stepping out of my comfort zone! After a camping trip, we headed North to Asheville for me to attend my FIRST Blogging conference. I was nervous! Asheville was such a beautiful town to visit. Good food.. no.. GREAT food!!

We continued our outdoor adventure by hiking up the Chimney Rocks. Then a quick visit to Biltmore Estate confirmed that I want to go back there again.

I enjoyed learning from and meeting new bloggers. And oh.. yeah.. we took the kids with us. So I learned a few things along the way to have a great business/family trip combo.

November – San Diego and Los Angeles, CA

We ended our 2009 adventures with the most memorable trip for the whole family to the West Coast. It was our first flying trip in a couple years. With all the changes in TSA that going on daily, I was very nervous.. Alas, we made it without lost child.

Mr. Z couldn’t stop talking about his visit to Legoland. I still have several posts I will do for our visit.. We didn’t even scratch the surface yet.

Whew, still with me? What a year we had!!!

As I look forward to the New Year, I don’t know if we will be blessed to be able to afford that many trips again. We already know we will go back to Thailand next year. I still would love to add a couple trips within the US if we could manage. Who know?

Hope you guys will stick around to see what adventures we will get ourselves into. :)

Happy New Year 2010! Have A Great Year Ahead!!

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Our Family Travel in 2009 is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

You might have noticed a break or a rather long absent on my blog. It’s the same time every year that I tend to check out and unplug from the Blogosphere and focus on family holidays.

I hope everyone has a great time with their family and friends during the Holiday season.

I really don’t want to do the year-in-review to sound like a broken record. But I couldn’t help to look back at my accomplishment this year.

Plus, January will be a mark for my 2nd year for The Q Family Adventures Blog. Happy Birthday to ME!! :)

Why I Blog

I first started blogging purely for  my own selfish reason. I want to find a way to document our family vacation trip.

The first year in blogging was in no specific direction. You will find me talking about our grocery saving, 5K Walk or even our fun day outs. I was just out there by myself with no sense of community or friendship.

What a Year

Then this year, after a quick break in the beginning of the year I started blogging again with more direction. I setup my goal to focus my posts more on family travel and activities around town and to be a great resource for other families who look for ways to travel with kids in a budget.

This time, I ventured out to the world of travel bloggers. I have met (online) so many great travel bloggers with different travel styles from Adventures travelers, RTW travelers, Family travelers, Solo travelers and many more. I have found a great community that embrace me as who I am. It might sound so cliche but I have found my tribe.

Later this year, I even attended my first Blogging conference. There I have found and met other fabulous bloggers friends IRL. It was a great conference where bloggers from different niches (travel, food, money, mommy, music.. or whatever you want to call yourself) got together and learned from each other.

I have also seen a lot of dramas played out over Twitter and Blogosphere. BUT what I have seen more is how bloggers rally together to help each other or people who is less fortunate from a mom who is fighting for her life to a group of blogger raise fund to build a school in Cambodia.

Looking Forward

It has been a year of many many first for me. And I’m looking forward to next year.

I’m looking forward to meet many more blogger friends who I have stalked for a long time.

I’m looking forward to share our travel stories and tips to our readers.

Most importantly I’m looking forward to get to know more and hear more from my readers.

Hope You Have a Great NEW YEAR!!!!

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Happy Holidays and Happy Anniversary is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Welcome to the Trekaroo Kids Mobile – San Diego Edition!!

What is it you might ask?

Well, it’s a brain child of Trekaroo – a ultimate family travel resources – to connect bloggers and travelers to share their insights at specific destination. And this stop I have chimed in on my recent acquired knowledge about San Diego. So go ahead and scroll down to learn tips, info and valuable resources about how to make your visit to San Diego a fun one.

Trekaroo families  have been voting for their favorite kid-friendly activities and hotels in and around San Diego.  We’ve tallied their votes for 2009 and here’s the line up!

Top Activities for Kids in San Diego, CA – voted by parents

Top Kid-friendly Hotels in San Diego, CA – voted by parents

Living in San Diego leaves local families little excuse to stay home.  These moms bring you their personal recommendations of the best places to take kids in their hometown.  Want the local scoop?  Here it is!

Bridget Smith, the author of The Unauthorized Legoland Guidebook not only shared with us her Top Tips for a Legoland Adventure with Toddler and Preschoolers, but now gives us some great ideas about Fun Things to  Do After Visiting Legoland, California. Bridget spent countless hours in Legoland one year and made more than full use of their family’s season pass to bring us the blow-by-blow of making the most of your visit to Legoland.  Follow their family’s other adventures on her blog:  Family Adventure Guidebooks

The Q Family  isn’t local but lives to travel.  If you have 5 days to spend in San Diego, here’s their list of the Must See Attractions with Kids in San Diego. This is a family who’s constantly on the go!  The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog chronicles their adventures with wonderful photos, fun stories and helpful tips.

Balboa Park is a wonderful urban park that families love.  But when hunger strikes, Carolina has a list of Kid-friendly Dining in Balboa Park.  She is the mom behind the blog Kids Go West.  As a public school teacher, mom and freelance travel writer, she shares her insider tips on all the totally awesome places to go with kids in her home state of California. Bookmark her blog if you’re heading to California.

Rockinmama loves to mix fun and learning.  She recommends these 5 Fun and Educational Kid Activities in San Diego.  On her blog Rockin Mama, she writes with great humor about pregnancy.  She also write prolifically about parent-friendly products.  If you’re looking for the inside scoop on new products for parents out there, this rockin mama’s got it.

Amie O’Shaughnessy of Ciao Bambino brings us San Diego: Favorite Family Hotels . Ciao Bambino is a one of Trekaroo’s favorite partners because we share a common passion – inspiring families to travel.  Ciao Bambino provides tips and advice around all things related to traveling with kids and is a guide to the best kid-friendly hotels.

Sarah Wyles runs Toddler’s Travel – a local baby equipment rental company for visiting families.  Naturally, she’s a guru on Fun Activities for Toddlers in San Diego.  Instead of lugging all those bulky items on the plane, rent it when you arrive from Toddler’s Travels.

Colleen of TravelMamas has the scoop on the 5 Best Family-friendly Restaurants in San Diego County.  Her blog, Travelmamas, gives tell-it-like-it-is tips about traveling with kids.  Relying on her own family’s experience as well as the advice from other traveling parents and experts, she gives loads of practical advice on traveling well with kids.

La Jolla is one of the most beautiful suburbs of San Diego and La Jolla Mom shares with us her list of Things to Do in La Jolla With Kids. Her blog La Jolla Mom has become a meeting place of sorts for local moms looking to connect.  Her Family Fun section is full of popular and off the beaten path places to go with kids.  Hop on over and see why La Jolla is a town you must stop at when visiting San Diego.

Other Resources for San Diego, CA

• All 104 Activities for kids in the San Diego County
• Kid-friendly hotels in and around San Diego County

Which Hotels came up at the top?

Top Activities for Kids in San Diego, CA – voted by parents

Next stop, Denver, CO (that’s right, the launch of Colorado is coming soon)

The Trekaroo KidsMobile is a blog carnival with a twist. It’s designed to provide a unique opportunity for mom and dad bloggers to be featured on Trekaroo while

1) expressing their unique point of view

2) getting a web of link exchanges.

Join us for one of our next stopovers.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Trekaroo KidsMobile Travel to San Diego is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

I’m long overdue for this post… But it’s better late than never, right?

I have been nominated to participate in Tripbase’s “3 Best Kept Travel Secrets” game by our great Adventure Travel friends, Dave and Deb of The Planet D and my travel Twitter friend, The Word Wire.

“The aim of this game is to unite travel bloggers in a joint endeavor – to create an amazing list of top travel recommendations across the globe to share with the entire online travel community.” – Katie from Tripbase.com.

So here are our 3 Best Kept ‘Family’ Travel Secrets

1. Kids do NOT need a lot of toys to entertain themselves

Yes, when you travel with kids you MUST prepare some busy travel bag for them. But you don’t have to go overboard. A few toys that they love and a couple new toys will be suffice. Sometimes it’s better to use whatever available in your surrounding to distract them from boredom.

Our recent air travel, I was able to entertain Mr. Z for almost an hour with the safety document. He loved to study the whole thing. He sat there quietly and listened very carefully to the flight attendant during take off. He then continued to study all the exits and informed me that I had to put the mask on myself first before put it on to him.

2. Kids love to carry their own bag

I don’t know about yours but mine were looking forward to carrying their own carry on luggage even before our trip. I made a point to show them their luggage. I let them walk around the house a couple times to get used it but after that I put it away (you don’t want them to get tired of this new excitement before the trip). I also let them pick out their own outfits.

So if you plan any family trip, I strongly suggest considering having a carry on for each kid (probably will work best if your kid is already in school). It will give them the sense of responsibility and make them feel like a grown up. Plus who doesn’t want to save $20 per bag to check in the luggage.

3. Best souvenir is the one they make it themselves

Last week, I was talking about one of the best souvenir we bought from our San Diego Trip. It’s not only a cheap and very affordable souvenir but it also gave the kids a chance to see the whole process of making their own souvenir.

They picked what style they want. They pushed the coins in. They turned the wheel (a little bit of work out here). And voila, they had their own penny to put in their collection.

Now, I’m supposed to tag other bloggers to join in this fun. But since I’m so late to the game, I’m not sure if there is anyone else left that hasn’t been tagged. Here are my nomination and sorry if I double tag you. :)

- Jen @ Two Kids and a Map
- Mara @ Mother of All Trips
- Colleen @ Travel Mamas
- Bridget @ Family Adventure Guidebooks
- Jody @ Have Kid Will Travel

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) My 3 Best Kept ‘Family’ Travel Secrets is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

When we travel what we got back after each trip is always a really great memory, but no matter how good we are trying to be financially we tend to pick up a few things or two as our souvenirs. There is no doubt that this habit tends to be the reason we blew our vacation budget.

Penny Collector Souvenir

During our San Diego trip, I have found a new family best budget friendly souvenir for our kids.

The Penny Pressed souvenir is the best souvenir that won’t break your budget.

This little machine will cost you merely 51 cents for each penny pressed. The kids enjoyed turning the wheel to press their penny. Each machine will have different styles for you to pick from.

I really love the styles they have in there as it represents the place we visit. I would really love to take the picture of some of the pennies we have but it’s just too hard to take the picture of that little pennies.

This is not anything new. We have done this in the past. But what make a big difference in this trip was we purchased the collector book. It was a great way to store the pennies we had from each location and the kids were so looking forward to finding the machine whenver we visit a new park. Just see how many we have collected for just one trip. Ok.. We let them pick 2 pennies each. Even with that, it will be just less than $5 per kid and they can go back and look through them.

This post is part of Photo Friday. Check out other travelers fun Photo Friday at Delicious Baby.

Hosted by Cecily and Rachael

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) The Best Budget Friendly Souvenir when Travel with Kids is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

During our visit to San Diego Zoo we had so much fun especially interacted with the animals at the zoo. They were the most active animals we have seen at any zoos. Maybe we were lucky or maybe they are just that way.

But instead of wasting your time writing and describing our experience. How about meeting one of them?

The Gorilla duo – mommy and baby – were a hoot. The mom was very playful and funny. One minute she was hugging her baby and the next she pushed the baby away. Guess it’s the PMS. :) Kids were all giggling and had a blast from this show.

This is my first time trying the video. So please let me know if you have any feedback. Would love to hear from you guys!

Disclaimer: I received complimentary tickets from San Diego Zoo. However, this post is based solely on my experience and my opinion without any outside influence.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) San Diego With Kids: Meet San Diego Zoo Star, The Gorilla is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Christmas and Holiday season is already under the way. I have to admit that it’s the time that I tend to lag in my blogging. I do hope that you guys will understand. What with lot of fun things to do around town, shopping and preparing for Christmas. And I still have a long list of things to do. It doesn’t mean I don’t want to blog. I do.. I do.. I have many posts I want to write about our recent trip. And yet, I couldn’t find a great motivation to sit down and write it up.

In the mean time, enjoy our day out in our little town. We had a blast over the weekend to 2 fun events.

Breakfast with Santa

First up, our kids’ school Breakfast with Santa.

I admitted that I was a snob in the past. I thought.. yeah.. Breakfast With Santa at school.. how fun could that be. Well, I was in for a surprise. The PTA at our school did an amazing job.

There were free photo with santa, the Christmas carol throughout the event, and various kids crafts and activities for them to enjoy.

Christmas Parade

Then, after a quick stop at home to refuel we bundled up and headed out to join my local mom group for our first ever Christmas Parade.

It was FREEEEEZING!!!

However, the kids had a blast. Typically, we were the spectators but this year we were in the float.

They loved throwing candies to other kids and waving and saying ‘Merry Christmas’.

Ah.. What a joy! Now, you know why I can’t write up any post. I’m still thrawing myself. :)

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Oh the Joy of Christmas… is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Me: Guess where we are going in San Diego?

Mr. Z: Where?

Me: Legoland

Mr. Z: Squeak… Squeal… Jump… and start it all over again

That’s the reaction I got when we first told him we will be visiting Legoland in San Diego.

I have to admit that I was a bit skeptical about Legoland at first. I have read mixed reviews from parents that the park might be more for younger kids. But boy!! were they wrong!

Legoland by far is one of our kids’ favorite theme park.

The Little Park That Could

One of the thing that I was hugely mistaken was how much time we will spend at the park. See! We have done Disney countless times so I thought we could probably enjoy Legoland in half a day and have enough time to visit their new Aquarium next door.

Big mistake! We arrive a little bit after 11 am so that should give us plenty of time, right? Wrong! There are just so many fun rides and attractions for kids (umm.. and adults) to do. I mean just walking around and admiring the amazing lego creation will take us hours.

Plus there are more rides that my kids can enjoy even with height requirement.

They must be parents with kids

I love little things that make our visit enjoyable like the waiting area for kid while parents wait in line.

Basically, during a long line Legoland has a special section that looks like a play area equips with what else but Lego tables with lots of legos for kids to play while the parents stand in line. Then when the parents get closer to the on the ride they can meet their kids.

No fuzzy and whinnying kids in a long line. Genius!!

Why didn’t I see more of that from other parks.

Big Kids, Little Kids

I should have studies the map more thoroughly so we would start of in the right direction. Miss J tried to tell me but I was too busy taking picture. :)

For younger kids in their toddler years, I would suggest to turn right and start counter clockwise once you get in the park. There are more rides for their age range

For older kids, the left turn is the way to go. The Castle Hills and the Adventure Land are full of fun roller coaster rides and excitement for them.

Prepare for Some Sweat

Yes, we went there during November. But there are few attractions that you will have to work out that muscles. I’m not complaining because it was a great way for family to work together as a team.

The highlight of attractions with some fitness built-in has to be the Fun Town Fire Academy. Get ready for some bicep workout.

The Low Point

The low point of the day was that we didn’t have enough time to enjoy Legoland as much as we like. So I’m pretty sure that we will come back to visit them in the future. Maybe Spring or Summer time might be better bet so we could take advantage of many water funs around the park.

We basically skipped the whole Pirate section because there are too many water attractions.

Stay tune for our kids’ pick on their favorite rides and attractions from Legoland.

Disclaimer: I received complimentary tickets from Legoland California. However, this post is based solely on my experience and my opinion without any outside influence.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) San Diego With Kids: Legoland California is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Today is launch day of Passports with Purpose Fundraiser. I would like to invite you all to take a small journey with me and found out about amazing prize that I have in store for you.

What is Passports of Purpose?

Passports of Purpose is a fundraiser event created from amazing travel bloggers Debbi @ Delicious Baby, Pam @ Nerd’s Eye View, Beth @ Wanderlust and Lipstick, and Michelle @ Wandermom. Last year, they with other travel bloggers around the blogospher and their readers had raised over $7,000 for the Heifer International organization.

This year we aim higher and we hope that our friends, readers, family and anyone who has come across our blogs will help us raise $13K for the AAfC to build schools in Cambodia

Who is AAfc?

AAfc or American Assistance for Cambodia is an independent nonprofit organization dedicated to improving opportunities for the youth and rural poor in Cambodia.

Founded in 1993 by American journalist Bernie Krisher, AAfC operates interlinked programs across Cambodia in the areas of education, health, rural development, and technology.

Why A School?

As a parent and a person who grew up in third world country, I have known first hand how important education is valued in these countries. Parents of all social status are working hard to send their children to school for better education. Education for us is the one main gift we could give to our children that will stay with them forever.

Living both here in America and in Thailand, I have known how lucky and privilege we are to have free education and easily accessible to various helps from the government. People in other part of the world are not so lucky.

So a program to help build a school in the rural area seems like a logical and perfect choice for us to get behind. School will give them better chance in life. A ticket or a way to get out of poverty. A way to better their chance in the future.

How it works?

Each participant blogger (that will be me), will provide prize or prizes at the prize of $75 or more and will blog about it (so scroll down, don’t skip this post). But you can find the complete list about the prizes at Passports With Purpose website.

For each $10 in donations that you make to AAfC, you will will be entered to win a prize (or prizes) of your choice. The fundraiser begins on November 30th and closes on December 21.

All proceeds go directly to AAfc.

The Prize – $100 Gift Certificate to Buckhead Life Restaurant Groups

I know when we travel there are pretty much 3 main things we think about. What to do? Where to sleep? and Where to eat?

So today, I have one of the three figure out for you.

The Buckhead Life Restaurants group is a group with several restaurants that will fit any type of foodies. Their restaurants range from Sushi, Steak to American Diner and many more.

So how would you like to have $100 The Ultimate Dinning Card to Buckhead Restaurant Group?

Check out their website for the complete list of their restaurants and see which one will satisfy your craving.

There is no expiration date on this gift card so you can use it anytime you like.

Now, this is not the only prize you can win so go to Passports With Purpose page to check out more amazing prizes you can win.

How to Win

It’s easy! For each $10 you donate, you will be enter for a chance to win any prizes of your choosing. So you can donate $50 for 5 prizes or $100 for 10 entries to one prize that you want.

Remember that each $10 you donate will go directly to help build a school in Cambodia. It’s for a GREAT cause. It’s a season of giving so please please be generous.

Thanks for reading my feed. Please stop by to say hi or leave a comment! :) Passports with Purpose: Win Prizes from Travel Community is a post from: The Q Family Adventures Travel Blog

Being born and raised in a thrid world country, I know first hand how important education is for any family regardless of your status. It’s the only thing that most parents want for their children. It’s a ticket to a better life. It’s a way to better their future. It’s in many ways a gift they could provide that will last a lifetime for their children.

When a group of amazing travel bloggers, Debbi @ Delicious Baby, Pam @ Nerd’s Eye View, Beth @ Wanderlust and Lipstick, Michelle @ Wandermom got together last year to start ‘Passport With Purpose‘ fundraiser program, I was too new to join and participate. I was too ignorant to get involved.

But this year, I will not let history repeat itself.

This year even I’m still not that organize to provide amazing prize that will wow you.

This year I might not have enough time to talk it up till the last day.

I hope and I pray that you, my lovely readers, will help me raise money for Passport with Purpose. Because this year, they will donate all proceed to build a school in Cambodia.

Go to Passport With Purpose website to read in more details on what way we are doing to help raising the fund.

Read this post about how we will help build the school and what exactly organization we will work with.

Here are some of the important things I think you will want to know.

• All funds go directly to American Assistance for Cambodia (AAfC), which is a non-profit 501(c)3 registered in the U.S., and is the organization that will oversee all aspects of building the school.
• Each participating blogger will procure a prize valued at $75 or more and post about it on their blog. A complete list will appear on the Passports with Purpose website. Last year, prizes included travel gear, camera equipment, multi-night hotel stays, and more.
• For each $10 in donations that you make to AAfC, you will will be entered to win a prize (or prizes) of your choice. The fundraiser begins on November 30th and closes on December 21. (Complete rules appear on the Passports With Purpose website)

Please come back on Monday (Nov 30th) as I announce my prize for you to enter. I hope you all will be ready to donate for amazing prizes from travel bloggers around the world.