Crowdsourcing College Care Packages & BIG, FUN NEWS!

When the time came for The Boy's first care package, I realized that I was stumped.

The excitement I had felt while creating fun packages for The Piglet and Decibel was gone. I really needed some help. I decided that I should hand it over to the experts. Our wise readers.

I figured they could help me create a care package so amazing... CONTINUE READING >> 

Whooo-hoooo! We WON the Motel 6 Ultimate Bucket List Contest!

Click in to see our winning entry - we're just as goofy as ever!

And we'll be going NEXT WEEK! Lots of fear conquering will be going on - a helicopter ride (gulp), putting our trust in mules as we ride on the edge down the canyon (gasp) and stepping out on to the out-of-control Skywalk (yikes)! 

Leave us a comment here - what do you want us to report on? Do you have any tips or suggestions?  Or a word of encouragement to get us ready for the mules (Veronica's pretty sure she's going to chicken out).

 Be sure you are following us everywhere to keep up with our adventure LIVE!  Facebook - Twitter - YouTube - Google+ - Pinterest - Instagram

Little Rock / Big Gem

Join us on a rip-roarin' tour of Little Rock, Arkansas!

We visited the Clinton Presidential Library, hit the Big Dam Bridge, witnessed history at the Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site and ate avocado popcycles at the River Market!

Then, we mounted Segways and... CONTINUE READING >> 

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Creating the ULTIMATE College Care Package – A GN Guide

Let's brainstorm and come up with ideas for college care package for our newly "empty" nested friends!

Our youngest, The Boy, was entering his second year in college. He was third kid that I had gone through the away-at-school process with, so I was starting to run low on the groovy care package ideas.

I really needed some help. I decided that I should hand it over to the experts. Our scholarly readers... CONTINUE READING >>

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Dreaming in a Tango Hotel in Buenos Aires

Late at night, when I'm in a particularly active R.E.M. cycle you can almost guarantee that you will find me dancing the tango in my soul, behind my eyelids. I must have a connection to the sultry dance from a past life. In these dreams I am as fluid as hot coffee and as alluring as the sweetest chocolate. Tango speaks to me.

I'd also never attempted it in real life. David, who calls himself a "circus bear attempting to balance on a ball" when it comes to dancing, was surely not going to indulge me in my fantasy of learning to tango during our stay in Buenos Aires. At least not as my partner.

But my circus bear can be full of surprises. He not only... CONTINUE READING >>

Follow Your Nose to Casale Monferrato, Italy

In many ways Casale is your typical medium-sized town of Italy. About thirty thousand souls reside around an ancient center with a wonderfully preserved medieval castle, several spectacular towers dot the skyline and at least one unique food item calls Casale home. Perhaps the biggest difference between Casale and other Italian towns is that the item is not a wine, olive oil or cheese, but a cookie.

A cookie that has remained unchanged for nearly a century and a... CONTINUE READING >>

French Quarter Pounder

Mention New Orleans and most folks conjure up visions of Mardi Gras, jazz bands, Bourbon Street or maybe even the world champion Saints, but we think of food. Crazy good food.

An incredibly diverse, yet unique style cooking has developed through the combination of several cultures down here at the bottom of The Mississippi River. Elements of French, Spanish, Caribbean, Cajun, German and Italian cuisine are all represented in what has come to be known as Creole.

Several of Creole's signature dishes are very similar to typical Cajun recipes and can share the same names and ingredients. Most start with “the holy trinity” of Louisiana cooking, bell pepper, onion, and celery. The names jambalaya...  read more

The Unhealthiest Menu on the Planet

In our never ending search for intriguing foods, a jackpot was hit with what has to be the mother of all unhealthy menus.

Heart stopping, artery clogging foods are favorites all over the world and the American Midwest is certainly no exception. In Michigan, it's Pasties in the U.P., cherry pies in Traverse City and the great Coney Island dogs in Flint. But for real gut busting nothing beats... read more

SoHo Appy Crawl

We take making a meal out of appetizers very seriously. Having them at multiple restaurants is even better. For this appy crawl, in the heart of Manhattan, we enlisted help from our middle child, 22, the black-wearing, taxi-flagging, fast-walking, free-lancing, f-bomb-dropping, urbanite New Yorker.

Feeling generous, we asked 22 to decide on three restaurants she’d been waiting to visit until Mom and Dad could be there to pick up the tab. She rattled off three so fast that we knew she must have been waiting for us to ask 22 to decide on three restaurants she’d been waiting to visit until Mom and Dad could be there to pick up the tab. She rattled off three so fast that we knew she must have been waiting for us to ask and next thing we knew she was at our hotel room. The girl is like the... read more

St. Croix Appy Crawl #1

We take making meals out of appetizers very seriously. Having them at multiple eateries is even better. For one thing, it forces us to walk off some of the food between stops, for another, we get to try several different places without destroying our credit rating. We decided to hit three brand new restaurants on the evening of the St. Croix Christmas Parade in Christiansted... read more

Traveling as a “Meat Avoider”

Like all the girls of my generation, I can recite the basic principals of virtually any eating lifestyle -- from the Cabbage Soup Diet to Adkins and all the crazy messed-up fads in between. And, chances are, I’ve tried it (fifteen years ago I dropped three dress sizes eating cream cheese and lunchmeat stuffed celery rolled in crushed pork rinds). David, though generally supportive of my dieting adventures, rarely fails to find the humor in it. He’s one of those “high metabolism” people. Don’t get me started. No really, don't.

In reference to my current dietary quest, my son has dubbed me a “Meat Avoider.” I suppose the title is apt. I would love to be a Vegetarian--or better yet, a Vegan. And for the most part, I almost am.

When I avoid meat and meat products, I feel healthier and holier-than-thou as a person. I hear the angels singing when I use soy milk in my latte. Jesus weeps as I consume a veggie burger. Yet I have learned that the answer isn't flogging myself when I’m not religiously...  read more