Hershey Story Museum (Hershey, PA)
Learning about the Hershey Chocolate Company
Our family recently visited Hershey, PA. It was a short visit, but we had a lot of fun. The Hershey Story Museum was very interesting. It was neat learning about Milton Hershey and the history of the Hershey company. We made delicious treats in the Chocolate Lab, took a stroll downtown ,and went in a few small shops. Thankful for the an opportunity to visit this beautiful area. Maybe next time we go through town we can check out more fun family activities.
Mr. Hershey’s deposit on his Titanic ticket, he ended up not going because a business matter came up.
Inside the Hershey Museum is beautiful especially around the Holidays!
Hershey’s Cut Glass Torchere
Hershey’s for Health anyone!?
You can get tickets for the Chocolate Lab and make delicious chocolate treats!
Pick up a tasty treat at the Santry Cafe at The Hershey Story Museum!
It was cool clear day so we took a stroll in downtown Hershey.
You can see the Hershey Amusement in the background behind Chocolate Avenue!
The street lights are giant Hershey kisses!
Hershey grounds complete with bushes!
Beach Fun at Huntington Beach State Park (Murrells Inlet, SC)
Enjoying the rain on the beach!
We had a wonderful time on the beach at Huntington Beach State Park. It was a mix of sun and rain! The rain didn’t stop us from heading to the beach for some fun in the sand and water. We stayed at the Huntington Beach Campgrounds, it was a nice walk to the beach. Access to the beach wasn’t too far from our campground and it was pretty quiet. Only a few families were on the beach near us. If you walk further down the beach it got a little bit more crowded especially on the nicer days. Thankful for an opportunity to get away together and enjoy some time at the beach.
Digging in the sand and watching the little critters
On the run
Fun on the beach
Birds, Sand and the Atlantic Ocean
Sand art
My crew
All smiles
On the move
Atlantic Ocean
Dusk walk on the beach
Sun is going down and the rain clouds are moving in now.
Enjoyed our time at Huntington Beach
Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center (Portage, Alaska)
Our family had the opportunity to visit Alaska on our summer family vacation. We flew into Anchorage, Alaska and took a bus tour form Anchorage down to Seward, Alaska to meet our cruise ship. On the way to Seward we stopped to visit the Alaska Wildlife Conservatory Center, Mile 79 Seward Highway, Portage, Alaska 99587.
It was a cloudy and drizzly day, but that didn’t stop us and the area as well as the animals were still amazing. The landscape was beautiful even on the cool rainy day. Thankfully it was a light mist not a downpour while we were at the Wildlife Center. The kids loved seeing all the animals It was a neat place to stop and soak in some of the animals and information about Alaska. I would recommend it especially for families with kids. There is a little bit of walking, but not a lot.
Gorgeous views of the mountains and animals lounging in their pen
Deer in the headlight look…..
Life is rough…..eat and nap!
Beautiful view of the mountains (even gorgeous in the mist that day)!
The animals were very content and well cared for at the Wildlife Conservatory!
Brina attempting to run a bobsled
Little Kitty!
On the move!
Makes neck hurt just looking at those antlers this guy has to support!
Peaceful stream flowing through the pasture for the animals
I know the snow on those mountains must be cold, but the snow, mountains, and fog really were amazing!
Karlie and a very large bison hide!
Checking things out!
They had a neat bridge overlooking the bear pends which made it easier for people to see them.
Black bear relaxing for a few minutes!
Thankful for an opportunity to spend time with my family seeing this beautiful place and animals!
Travel & Vacation: Welcome to Disney’s Animal Kingdom (Orlando, FL)
A day at Animal Kingdom with these two chickies!
The girls and I went to Disney’s Animal Kingdom in Orlando, FL recently while Jake was at a conference! They were very excited to check out all the animals in the park. We packed in a full day at Animal Kingdom. We arrived early and were one of the last few to leave at closing. The crazy thing is we still didn’t get to everything we wanted to do, but we definitely did a lot. It was a great day with my girls. Both girls LOVED it, but Animal Kingdom was probably Brina’s favorite place to visit (which isn’t a big surprise for those who know her).
Pretty bird….was the first comment I heard from the girls as we entered the park.
A pair of beautiful birds perched on the branch.
Having a blast!
A Wallaby eating its morning treat. At first we thought it was a kangaroo until further investigation. Must be in the same family though because there are similarities.
Karlie and Brina in front of a gorgeous waterfall in Animal Kingdom.
Starting to get more crowded. The tree in back is the “Tree of Life” and has over 300 animal figured carved into it. Very fascinating to see up close.
Hanging out in line. They were troopers even in the longer lines. We took the time to get something to eat and drink whenever we spent a decent amount of time standing in lines. Thankfully, it wasn’t the busiest season so at Animal Kingdom the longest line we waited in was the Kilimanjaro Safari for an hour in the Africa section which was well worth the wait (I will be sharing more about that safari in a later post).
Big black fish swimming right beside us.
Going through the waterfall as we head into the Tree of Life for the “It’s Tough Being a Bug” Show!
Bug Eyes!!! They are ready for the show! Such a great show and one of their favorites for the day. Wish we had time to do it again!
Africa was one of their favorite places to visit while in Animal Kingdom. It had great music, the Kilimanjaro Safari tour, Lion King, and more fun activities to do.
Musical entertainment shortly after entering the gates into the Africa section. They had people playing on and off all day. Fun upbeat music.
Karlie trying out her musical talent!
Brina going all out!
Swinging around on their jungle gym!
Another one taking a rest!
Rodrigues Fruit Bats hanging around at Animal Kingdom. Wonder what they eat….if you guessed fruit you are correct. All the ones in the section we visited were male. Did you know that their bat wings are made out of similar material that our eyelids are made out of? They were fascinating to watch!
Beautiful tiger lounging peaceful and keeping a watchful eye on the visitors.
This tiger was literally on the other side of the glass from us. It’s fur looked so soft, not sure it would have been a good idea to pet the big cat though!
Deer enjoying a rest in the shade.
Love the colors on this feathered friend.
Mesmerized by all the activity above them!
So much fun. They were on the go and soaking all the cool animal sights in throughout the day.
Mount Everest at Animal Kingdom. The mountain is the host for the Expedition Everest roller coaster. We all agreed that it was probably a little more than we wanted to do, but it was super cool to watch!
They had a blast! Waiting for the bus to take us back to the resort. Thankful for an chance to spend the day with the kids at Animal Kingdom and all the fun memories as well as activities we did that day!
Travel & Vacation: Leela Palace – Bangalore, India
The Leela Palace in Bangalore, India
Matt and Jen took us to the Leela Palace on the last day we were in Bangalore. You know how sometimes you save the best for last…..well this was it. The Leela Palace was AMAZING! They had every kind of food you could think of to eat from Indian Curry, to Roast, Pasta Bar, Salad Bar, Cheese Bar, Breads, rows of Desserts and so much more. Some of the best food I have eaten, it was delicious and the palace was beautiful. If you are in Bangalore I highly recommend that you check the Leela Palace out!
They had row after row of desserts. It was difficult picking the ones you wanted to try because all of them looked AMAZING!
Yes, that huge beautiful artistic piece in the middle is made up of………..chocolate!
They had a separate supervised play area for the kids. The kids could play, watch a movie, eat, read, run around, play a game or many other awesome activities.
Gorgeous Birds of Paradise flower in their garden.
Even the bugs in India cannot resist a pretty flower!
The Leela Palace such a beautiful place to visit in Bangalore, India
Jake & I in front of the gold elephant on the garden gate at the Leela Palace
One of the large entryways.
It almost looked too pretty to eat…….but I did it anyway and it tasted awesome!
Jake and I were thrilled that we had the opportunity to come visit his cousin Matt and his family while we were in India. It was wonderful meeting many awesome people and eating their tasty food. A lot of great memories were made on the trip. Hopefully, some day in the future we will have the chance to bring the girls with us. I know they would love the adventure!
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!
