North Georgia Zoo & Farm (Cleveland, GA)
North Georgia Zoo & Farm is a great place to visit with your family, especially if your kids enjoy animals.
That turtle and zebra have familiar faces…. Thankful that the girls still occasionally “humor” me with the cheesy pictures!
Baby goats!
This porcupine has a fantastic breakfast, look at all those fruits & veggies!
The beaver is munching on his veggies too!
Beautiful animal!
Are you sure you don’t have another treat for me!?
Albino Kangaroo napping in the shade!
Singing dog, so wanted to hear it actually sing!!!
Brina loving all the animals!
Jake and Karlie waiting for the Animal Show to start
Soft….of course the girls wanted at least one when they found out that they sale them at this location
Fascinating to watch it run awhile!
A lot softer than we expected.
Sleepy Hollow with Cedar Creek Cabins (Sautee Nacoochee, GA)
Spending some time away over Spring Break. Playing “Spot It”!
Look twin bears in our cabin!
Karlie hanging out in the loft.
Easter baskets for the girls.
Ready for another great day in the cabin!
Rib Country BBQ (Helen, GA)
On a recent family trip to Helen, Georgia we stopped at Rib Country BBQ for dinner. Their BBQ smelled delicious as we were exploring downtown Helen. The girls ate a kids Rib Basket and Jake & I had a shredded Pork BBQ. The meals were very filling and delicious barbecue.
The restaurant had a choice of indoor or outside seating. Since it was a warm evening we chose to eat outside on the deck. A band was playing during our dinner which was nice. The kids loved watching all the tubers coming down the river past the restaurant. We set on a table overlooking the river.
The kids had so much fun eating dinner and watching the tubers go down the river that they asked if we could go tubing as well. We didn’t realized they were already tubing with the water still being chilly. Most of the people going down the river were fully dressed except for their feet which most have flipflops or crocs on which made me feel better about not getting fully soaked. Plus the tubes had the bottoms in so you didn’t have to have your backside in the water the whole way which should keep us warmer.
Overall: We recommend the food, atmosphere, service, and entertainment at Rib Country BBQ. If you enjoy ribs or BBQ this is a great place to eat. The price was reasonable too.
Muller’s Famous Fried Cheese Cafe (Helen, GA)
When my husband and I were visiting Helen, Georgia we decided to try out this small family owned authentic German or Czech food cafe. We decided to try it because some of our family heritage is Czech. Since it had a lot of dairy products on the menu Jake and I went together on our last day in the area. They are known for their “fried cheese” sandwiches. We have a child who cannot have dairy so figured if we wanted to eat at this restaurant it was a good day to do it.
We had the fried cheese sandwich as an appetizer. Even as an appetizer it was pretty rich and we ended up bringing the majority of it home. If you like cheese sticks you may enjoy this treat. It was a little much for us, but tasty. Jake had a Pork Schnitzel and I had a Chicken Schnitzel. We split a bowl of Homemade Goulash Soup with Beef.
Overall: We enjoyed the service and the quietness of the cafe. The meal was richer than what we were used to eating so we could not eat much, but the food was good. We typically do not eat a lot of fried food and brought some home to eat as leftovers. If you like rich and cheesy food than you may enjoy this restaurant. They are only open a limited amount of hours some days and closed others, check their hours prior to going.*
*We would not recommend this place if you have any member of your party with a dairy allergy as they would have limited menu options.
Inside of the fried cheese and ham sandwich
Homemade Goulash soup and Chicken Schnitzel
Travel & Vacation: Homewood Suites & Paddington Movie (Atlanta, GA)
Swimming at the pool
On a recent trip to Atlanta, Georgia we stayed at the Homewood Suites. The girls were begging to go swimming so on the first day we were there we wrapped up early and headed back to the hotel so they could swim. It was in the high 70’s that day, however, they had just filled the pool a couple days before we arrived so the water was freezing cold. Both kids got into the pool, but Brina was done after a few minutes. Karlie stayed in a little longer, although it wasn’t much fun swimming by herself. The entire time we were at the hotel we didn’t see one other person in the pool….I wonder why?!
Since we scrapped our pool time activity we decided to look for some other activities that we could do together that night. We headed back to the room to re-group and figure out what we wanted to do that evening. While the girls got dressed Jake and I made dinner in the hotel room. It was nice having one with a fridge, sink, dishwasher, microwave, and oven so we could eat at the hotel!
Jake found a movie theater nearby where you can get movie tickets for $3 each and they were showing some good kids movies so we decided to check it out. It was only a few miles away inside a open shopping mall and market. We chose to watch the movie Paddington with the girls at the Venture Theater.
It was a cute movie. I seriously cannot remember the last time our family went to the movie theater so this was a special treat for the kids. Usually it is so expensive just to go to the movies so we usually wait until it comes out on video. It was a nice activity for the four of us and only cost $12! The kids enjoyed the movie. Jake and I had a couple good laughs too. Thankful for a fun evening with the family. Sometimes even the best of plans don’t go as expected so it’s always a good idea to have a Plan B.
Ready for the movie to start
Karlie is focused
Our kids typically don’t sleep in very late so one morning after breakfast we spent some time playing games until the place we were going to that day opened. During the evenings after dinner if we had time and everyone wasn’t too tired we would play some card games too. It’s always a good idea to bring card games because you never know when you’ll have a few minutes of down time to relax and have fun.
Karlie relaxing on the couch at the hotel.
Brina setting up the game
It didn’t take them long to crash after a fun filled day in Atlanta!
The “Travel and Vacation” series is an insight into our trips together as a family and ways we relax. Life is short and we were thrilled to have the opportunity to build memories with family and explore of of the most amazing places during our time away. Explore with a good attitude, look for fun, and it will be an awesome trip jammed packed with positive memories. It is refreshing having some time away from the regular routine. Make it a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet new people and learn. You just might see or try something new that takes your breath away!
Travel & Vacation: Exploring the Fernbank Museum of Natural History (Atlanta, GA)
We’re having fun at the Fernbank Museum of Natural History!
We had a blast working our way through the various sections at the Fernbank Museum of Natural History. They had one section that was very interactive, a lot of science, experiments, brain teasers, heritage, and more. We ended our visit at what I call the “fun zone”. It was like a giant indoor jungle gym with lots of things to do, see, and learn about. They did are really great job with this museum. Our kids really enjoyed it. We made it through the entire museum, we were there when they opened and left as they were closing. It was a full day of fun and learning.
Brina making a huge bubble
Jake made an hour glass shape bubble, neat!
Whoa Dad! That’s so cool! They loved this bubble activity!
Karlie giving it a whirl!
Brina stretching it out a long ways.
Opps that one popped before she got too far
Wow, Karlie!
Awesome bubble Brina!
Brina flipped the bubble ring over her head and she was standing inside the giant bubble
Karlie had to try being inside a bubble. Pretty neat.
Karlie having fun with the bubbles
Brina and Daddy trying out the next activity
Jake helping Brina do this one!
This one was pretty cool because I could stand on the other side and watch her do the whole activity. Karlie trying to figure it out.
Karlie doing the activity while Brina watches.
Brina doing the “Mirrorly A Window” activity
Karlie sitting across the room chatting with Brina – super cool!
Brina talking with Karlie from across the room. Even though it was noisy with others doing various activities and they were across the room from each other they could hear perfectly fine speaking in their normal voices because the acoustics were set up to carry the sound perfectly.
Weather station. Brina watching the tornado
Brina and Karlie checking things out
Brina wanted me to go up with her into the huge tree house so she could show me some of the neat stuff they had. It was really nice play area for the kids.
Brina jumping onto the swinging bridge just as I was about to cross….crazy girl! She makes me laugh. At least her dramatic jump give me a little bit of a warning.
Brina found this book in the tree house library, she thought it was so hilarious she had to show it to me.
As I was talking with Karlie and looking around for a few minutes I went to find Brina. This is where I found her back at the library reading another book. It makes my heart happy when I see my kids reading voluntarily. Love catching Brina enjoying a good book on her own.
Karlie and Brina exploring the ocean section of the play area.
Baby turtle coming over to say “Hi”
Karlie on the look out
Brina and Karlie had a great time at the museum. The time went by quickly, but we squeezed a lot of fun into the day together.
Karlie thought it was so cool she could sit in a dug-out canoe like the Native Americans used to do so many years ago.
The “Travel and Vacation” series is an insight into our trips together as a family and ways we relax. Life is short and we were thrilled to have the opportunity to build memories with family and explore of of the most amazing places during our time away. Explore with a good attitude, look for fun, and it will be an awesome trip jammed packed with positive memories. It is refreshing having some time away from the regular routine. Make it a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet new people and learn. You just might see or try something new that takes your breath away!
Travel & Vacation: Fernbank Museum of Natural History (Atlanta, GA)
We’re ready to explore the Fernbank Museum of Natural History
On one of our recent trips to Atlanta, Georgia we visited the Fernbank Museum of Natural History. We had never been to the Museum, but were looking for fun and educational activities to do with the kids before heading home. Since it appeared to have some great items we decided to give it a try.
The girls were very excited to check out this museum. They have a variety of activities and events that you can do as well. If you get hungry during your visit there is a cafe where you can grab a bite to eat. We had packed our sandwiches before leaving the hotel so when we got hungry we headed out to the van for a picnic lunch then went back inside to finish exploring the museum. We had a lot of fun and spent a lot more time going through it than we initially planned. The kids probably could have stayed longer, but they were closing for the day and we had to get back home.
For more information, directions, and other details about the museum you can visit their visit at Fernbank Museum of Natural History. If you happen to be in Atlanta and it’s a rainy day this would be a great place to take your family. Plus you might see and learn some new stuff along the way too.
They had this massive dinosaur in the lobby of the museum. Pretty neat!
Hey who let the turkey inside!?
Checking out the different regions of the area.
Brina and Karlie having fun.
Cute fox, made you want to pet it!
Oh dear Brina, there’s a deer behind you!
That’s one big dinosaur footprint. Brina was impressed.
Brina checking out the dinosaur. Not sure I would want it running at me though.
Jake and the girls checking out the different dinosaurs.
Always something interesting to read and learn about
Brina looks small next to this one
Relaxing and having fun
Looks like a cute kid on the tail of that dinosaur. Silly Brina!
Hammerhead shark
Our crew at the museum
Sweet Karlie loving her time at the museum (if you look closely there is a racoon right behind her too).
That’s some strange looking dinosaurs.
They had a section on “Poison” and a presentation that we went to while we were there. It was very interesting!
Our family learning about different types of poisons and how they are used
Jake and Brina checking it out
Daddy reminding Karlie of the saying….What was it again “Red and yellow kill a fellow….”
This was a really neat book / display. As you turned the pages different items would show up and it was interactive too. Pretty fascinating! Brina especially liked the information on goats!
Brina, Karlie, and Jake playing a game to see if they can figure out what poison the dog ate and save it! They all 3 won! Must have learned something today!
The Astronomy Picture of the Day was on Saturn. Karlie’s favorite planet.
Went to an animal show and demonstration (love their huge frog on the wall, neat and colorful).
Brina always wants to interact and learn more about any living creature.
Karlie saying “Hi”
We finished a level. Where are we off to now Brina?!
The “Travel and Vacation” series is an insight into our trips together as a family and ways we relax. Life is short and we were thrilled to have the opportunity to build memories with family and explore of of the most amazing places during our time away. Explore with a good attitude, look for fun, and it will be an awesome trip jammed packed with positive memories. It is refreshing having some time away from the regular routine. Make it a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet new people and learn. You just might see or try something new that takes your breath away!
Travel & Vacation: Fernback Science Center (Atlanta, GA)
Karlie excited to be standing by the Apollo 6
We had the opportunity to spend some time in Atlanta, Georgia recently. Actually we have had 2 recent trips to Georgia in the past couple of months! Georgia is not too far away from where we live so it was nice to get away as a family for a little bit and hang out for a few days together.
On this particular trip to Atlanta we visited the Fernbank Science Center for the first time. It is part of the same association as the Roper Mountain Science Center. It was already free admission, but since we are part of the association we were able to get free tickets to the IMAX shows throughout the day (we could go to as many as we wanted). We were only there for a couple hours so we just went to one of the shows. It is smaller than our local Science Center, but the kids still enjoyed learning and exploring the different items they had on display. The Apollo 6 was Karlie’s favorite while the animals were Brina’s favorite.
The Fernback Science Center is located at 156 Heaton Park Drive, Atlanta, GA 30307. Phone number is 678-874-7102. They also have an observatory open some nights and a library where you can relax and read some books (which the kids enjoyed). For current events, programs, and shows please visit the Fernbank Science Center website.
Karlie trying to get the light bulb to glow.
Jake and Karlie checking out the Apollo 6
Apollo 6 Command Module
If you look under the capsule you will see a series of holes. The holes were drilled to investigate how the heat shield held up after this capsule re-entered the Earth’s atmosphere.
Apollo 6 was the last unmanned Apollo mission and was launched on April 4, 1968. The purpose of the mission was to test, for a second time, the Saturn V rocket. At the time of the launch (one second past 7 a.m. EST) all five engines operated normally, then a series of sharp vibrations shook the rocket. Minutes later two of the five rocket engines shut down. For the next 80 seconds the Saturn V behaved like a drunk driver lurching back and forth, as NASA flight controllers decided whether to abort the mission or not.
After two earth orbits it was time to re-light a smaller rocket. CS-IVB, to stimulate injecting the rocket into a path toward the moon, but this rocket failed. Using a series of smaller rockets on the Service Module NASA scientists completed most of the planned maneuvers. The spacecraft was returned safely to Earth.
A monkey on the inside!
Brina working on her balancing and building skills
Her buildings with stood the Earthquake
Karlie and Daddy working together to build a giant carbon nanotube.
It was almost as tall as she was!
Pretty bird
The “Travel and Vacation” series is an insight into our trips together as a family and ways we relax. Life is short and we were thrilled to have the opportunity to build memories with family and explore of of the most amazing places during our time away. Explore with a good attitude, look for fun, and it will be an awesome trip jammed packed with positive memories. It is refreshing having some time away from the regular routine. Make it a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet new people and learn. You just might see or try something new that takes your breath away!
Travel & Vacation: Federal Reserve Bank, Atlanta Monetary Museum, & Zachary Coffin’s Rock Spinner (Atlanta, GA)
On the steps of Atlanta’s Federal Reserve bank & Monetary Museum (white building on the right side of the picture)
We had a lot of fun exploring Atlanta’s Federal Reserve Bank and Monetary Museum on one of our recent trips to Atlanta, Georgia. The kids didn’t believe us at first when we told them that we were going to a bank to learn about money. Although the more we talked about it the more interested they became.
In order to go into Atlanta’s Federal Reserve Bank and Monetary Museum all adults must present a valid ID such as a driver’s license or passport. You cannot carry any electronics, phones, cameras, purses, or other devices into the museum. They do have lockers next to the restrooms to put your items into if you need them. We just put my id in Jake’s wallet and that is the only thing we brought into the museum so he could carry everything we needed. The admission and self guided tour is completely free. The only thing we had to pay for was parking since it is near downtown Atlanta and there was not any free parking available at the time (it was just a couple of dollars for parking so it wasn’t too bad).
It would have been really neat to be able to get some pictures of the museum and some of the items we saw while there, but no photography is allowed. The employees were really nice and helpful. The kids learned some cool history about money.
Probably the kids favorite part was the robots toting the containers of money back and forth between the various rooms. It was fascinating to watch them carry the bins full or partially filled with money from one place to another. In some of the bins there may have been a million dollar or more in cash! Did you know that they shred about 10 million dollars of cash every day? These are bills that have been crumpled, destroyed, or otherwise deemed as unusable. You could see people physically counting the bundles of money as they came in as well which was interesting to watch.
The kids had a little “quiz” or worksheet they filled out as we explored. It was a neat learning activity and the kids loved it. At the end we picked up a bag of shredded money to take home (which the kids thought was awesome)!
We did get some pictures on the outside of the Federal Reserve Bank though to help us remember our adventure that windy day in Atlanta. You can locate the Atlanta’s Federal Reserve Bank and Monetary Museum at 1000 Peachtree Street, NE Atlanta, Georgia 30309. If you are already at the Federal Reserve Bank you should check out the rock spinner is directly across the street from the Federal Reserve Bank.
Across the street from the Federal Reserve Bank was the Zachary Coffin’s Rock Spinner (pictures below) which fascinated the kids as well. As we were waiting for the stoplight to turn so we could walk across the street I happened to read the description on the rock spinner and mentioned for the kids to come over to see if they could move the huge boulder. They of course thought it was so cool they could spin such a massive rock!
Large Federal Reserve Building in Atlanta
Where’s Waldo…I mean Karlie, Brina, and I outside the building? If you look for the specks in front of the statue that looks like spots of “Red, White, and Blue” that’s us!
Our family visiting the Federal Reserve Bank in Atlanta
Zachary Coffin’s Rock Spinner! Once the girls starting spinning the rock other kids stopped to try it out too!
Zachary Coffin’s Rock Spinner – is a kinetic sculpture that helps you understand about the transformation of one’s relationship to mass. This particular boulder weighs 22,000 pounds and would normally be considered immovable, however, with a little art and engineering this huge boulder becomes something fun to move and play with (both for kids and adults). There is a plague next to it saying “Take it for a spin!” YES, you can spin it, stop it from moving, and switch directions, but no climbing is allowed on the boulder (for obvious reasons).
Making is move…
Brina and Karlie trying to see how fast they can get it to move
Who knew that a spinning boulder could provide so much entertainment!? If you are already in the area it is something neat to check out – Zachary Coffin’s Rock Spinner The kids thought it was neat!
The “Travel and Vacation” series is an insight into our trips together as a family and ways we relax. Life is short and we were thrilled to have the opportunity to build memories with family and explore of of the most amazing places during our time away. Explore with a good attitude, look for fun, and it will be an awesome trip jammed packed with positive memories. It is refreshing having some time away from the regular routine. Make it a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet new people and learn. You just might see or try something new that takes your breath away!
Travel & Vacation: Cute Panda Bears and Wildlife Show at the Atlanta Zoo (Atlanta, GA)
Panda Bear content to relax and eat bamboo
The panda bears were one of the girls favorite animals to visit at the Atlanta Zoo. I think the big fascination was watching the twin panda cubs. It was a little harder to get a picture of both of them at the same time, but the kids loved watching them eat and play. The Wildlife Show on birds was pretty neat too. Of course the girls went up after the show to ask more questions about the birds. The zoo worker was really great with the kids and patient in answering all the questions. On the way out the girls wanted a picture with the gorilla. It was a great day at the zoo.
You can read more about our adventure at the Atlanta Zoo on my Travel & Vacation: Visiting the Atlanta Zoo (Atlanta, GA), Travel & Vacation: Lions, Tigers, Seals, Reptiles, Bears, and more at the Atlanta Zoo (Atlanta, GA), and Travel & Vacation: Orangutan Easter Egg Hunt at Atlanta Zoo (Atlanta, GA) blog posts.
Looking pretty cute!
Look out, showing some teeth this time. Watch out! They may look cute and adorable, but I think it would not be a good idea to pet them with teeth that size.
Someone found an Easter pinata
Loving the bamboo
Peeling the bamboo stick apart, eating some pieces, and putting the other pieces on his belly for later.
Crunchy, but delicious
Good stuff
Panada’s look so cute
Checking things out around the pen
Heading towards some more goodies
Twin panda’s in their cage. One sleeping on the log and the other one eating some bamboo
Relaxing and chewing on some bamboo
Bird Show in the Wildlife Theater at the Atlanta Zoo
Getting all their questions answered
Brina giving Willie B a hug
Karlie and Brina enjoyed the Atlanta Zoo
Karlie all smiles
