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Packing Checklist
Need to pack in a hurry, here's a checklist.
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Petra, Jordan and Egypt, Part 2
After several days in Israel (see Part 1) and after a visit to the ancient mesa-top fortress of Masada, it was time to move on to Jordan and Egypt. First up, Jordan. Crossing into Jordan — the Allenby crossing is named after Edmund Allenby — from the time this area was colonized by the British. If you saw the movie, Lawrence of Arabia, you may remember this character as one of Lawence’s commanders. The Jordan River — where Jesus is thought to have been baptized. There had been a lot of rains and flooding in the winter of 2018-19 and some the meeting pavilions had been damaged. A lot…
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15 Items for your long flight
Stretch pants Soft top with long sleeves A light knit jacket or sweater — airplanes can get too cold — and this can double as a pillow Slip on shoes (for getting through security and quick off and on while in your seat) Warm socks — no one wants cold ankles (you might need or want support hose) A neck pillow — an inflatable one saves space Reading glasses Books, magazines Entertainment — loaded on portable devices is the best An empty water bottle to refill once you get past security A sleeping mask Ear plugs or noise cancelling headphones if you’re a high roller Healthy snacks — you can…
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The Best Way to Get to LAX
What’s the best way to get to LAX from the Inland Empire? One word: Metrolink! There are Metrolink stations all over Southern California…..they all end up at Union Station and from Union Station, there’s a continually running “FlyAway” bus going to LAX that takes just a quick few minutes. So, don’t bother your friends and family….just find one of the train cars that have the bicycle logo on the outside and you’ll have plenty of room to store your luggage while you just sit and enjoy the view. We usually just take the train to LAX the day before our flight takes off….just so we can relax in a…
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Total Eclipse of the Sun
Seeing the total eclipse of the sun in August 2017 was an amazing experience. Now that we’ve experienced it once, we’re going to try to see the next one that goes through the U.S. — I think in 2024. It’s totally worth the effort. Our extended family rented out a church girls camp near Ashton, Idaho. It was affordable and could sleep a huge family like ours! I love this quaint sign in Ashton. We ate there too — and, of course, had root beer! In the evenings, there were a lot of different games and activities for all ages. So, we’d heard about Big Judd’s and the huge hamburgers…
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Our September in Hawaii
I began a tradition of taking our college graduate daughters on a trip a few years ago. (I think we gave Danny money for Lasik surgery — buy Danny, get that PHD and, we’ll take you somewhere cool too.) I took Heidi to London and Paris back in early 2003 and April and I went to New York City when she graduated a few years later. Hayley graduated with a Bacherlor of Science degree in Nursing from Loma Linda last year. Her first priority was getting a job, but we knew after she got a few months in, we’d like to take her somewhere as well. Last year at our…
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Las Vegas Baby
Weekend in Vegas One thing I’ve learned about going to Vegas is you’ve got to have a plan….if you don’t, you end up just wandering the streets and watching the fountains in front of the Bellagio with every other drifting tourist. So this time, I got tickets to a few events a couple of months ago. We started our weekend in Vegas on Friday afternoon with dinner at Margaritaville.….not so much for the food as for the outside table overlooking the strip. People watching in Vegas is an extreme sport and we were not disappointed — European tourists, exhibitionists, lots of flirting, and tons of tattoos. After our…
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Sleepy Hollow at Riley’s Farm
We’ve celebrated several of John’s October Birthdays in Oak Glen, California at Riley’s Farm for their Sleepy Hollow Dinner and Fun Activity Night! We always have an amazing time. On the scary hay ride with Ichabod Crane We participated in all the contests…..pumpkin seed spitting (Ned was the leader) Apple Bobbing Oh, the Todd Girls…I think our family wins most of the prizes any year we happen to be there. Pumpkin Carving Pie eating and more
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Disney’s World of Color
Our family has been Disneyland annual passholders every year since about 1994. We generally buy the least expensive passes which, unfortunatley, include a lot of blackout days — especially during the summer. I don’t mind; The days that are blacked-out on our passes are the more popular days when the parks are more crowded anyway. So, I know Disneyland and the California Adventure parks REALLY well. Some of my favorite things in the two parks are: Soarin’ Over California, Toy Story Mania and Buzz Lightyear (we’re a very competitive family), the Mission Tortilla mini-factory & samples (we’re a very hungry family too). and the teacups. If I’m with the grandkids,…
