The next few months are some of the best times to visit botanical gardens around you (or around the regions where you might be traveling).  Many of the gardens offer great hands-on opportunities, educational experiences and a relaxing and calming atmosphere.  Spending the day “smelling the roses” can offer the perfect experience for the whole family.

Louisiana - Jungle Gardens on Avery Island, Louisiana is 250 acres of landscaped and natural beauty.  You will get to see a wide variety of plants and even a number of wildlife species native to the region (including alligators, deer and raccoons).

Maine - The Coastal Main Botanical Gardens is located on 248 acres of waterfront property in Boothbay.  There are landscaped gardens, native wildflowers and amazing views.  You can also enjoy the walkways and stonework around the gardens.

Maryland - Brookside Gardens in Montgomery County is a 50 acre public display garden.  It includes several landscaped garden (an azalea, rose and children’s garden along with many others).  One of the best features is that admission is free.

Massachusetts - Heritage Museums & Gardens is tucked away in Sandwich.  The area offers a number of things to do and to see.  Enjoy one of the many museums or a ride on the Carousel.  The gardens are located on 100 acres and are spectacular when in bloom.

Michigan - The Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park is more than just a garden - it is an experience.  You will likely need four to eight hours just to enjoy the trails, landscaped gardens and amazing sculptures.  There are also a number of events held in the gardens throughout the year.

Minnesota - The Minnesota Landscape Arboretum in Chaska is on a mission to be a world-class landscape arboretum.  It is well on its way with more than 1,000 acres of gardens, landscapes, and natural areas for your browsing pleasure.  Take a stroll through the 12.5 miles of paths and trails or enjoy a drive or bike through some of the areas.

Mississippi - The Crosby Arboretum of Mississippi State University offers a chance to see native plant species and natural landscapes.  The Arboretum manages seven associated natural sites that total around 1,000 acres.  You can enjoy a self guided tour of the 104 acre Interpretive Center is made even more pleasurable by the trail signs along the paths.

During this season of renewal, take some time to “stop and smell the roses” or just enjoy the beauty that nature has been hiding for the lonely months of winter.

It is important (albeit not easy) that you travel with children to as many places as you can AND that you travel by a variety of transportation modes.  The formative years can be the most important ones when it comes to developing a desire to travel.  Take your children for a trip and make the whole experience one that they will treasure.

1.    Taking children on travel adventures will expose them to new people.  The more types of people that you children are exposed to when they are growing up the more likely they are to be accepting of people from different backgrounds than their own.  This will help them through life in business and in social situations.
2.   Taking children to new places will expose them to different cultures and different ways of doing things.  It is easy to believe that your family’s way is the only right way around.  Learning new ways to eat, sleep and live will broaden the minds (and hearts) of your children.
3.   Taking children to new locations will give them the chance to try new foods.  Every state, every region and especially every country will have unique cuisine.  Starting your children experimenting with new types of food from an early age will open doors throughout their lives.
4.   Taking children around the globe (or around the state) will open them up to educational opportunities that might otherwise be missed.  A drive to Florida could include a detour to watch the launch of the space shuttle.  Include a little history, science or trivia in each of your family trips and you may spark an interest in you children that might otherwise go dim and be forgotten.
5.   Taking children on family outings will create memories for the whole family that will carry over for lifetimes.  It will help to build family bonds and individual relationships.  Traveling can open doors to communications in the future that might be the thing that saves your children’s lives.
6.   Taking children on trips can teach them patience and understanding as they learn through seeing.  Being crammed together for any length of time can try the nerves of parents and watching you remain calm and find fun ways to deal with the close locations will help your children cope in the future.

Traveling can be an important addition to the memories and experiences of your children.  Take the challenge and travel with your children.  It may be that you get as much out of the experience as they do.

The rising cost of gas prices has many consumers rethinking every aspect of their lives – from what they eat to where they work and live.  Everyone is struggling to find new and inventive ways (or old tried and true methods) of saving money at the pump.  Family vacations are some of the first casualties of this finance war.

Instead of pushing the vacation on to the back burner, why not use some simple methods to have a great vacation even with higher gas prices.  There are a number creative ways to keep the vacation plans from breaking your bank.

 1.      Check with hotels in the area you want to travel.  Some are offering vouchers for gasoline to get you to stay at their locations.  You would be able to save the cost of the gas to get your vacation underway.

2.      Make a few budget adjustments to compensate for the higher fuel costs.  You can take out some of the activities that you planned to do or maybe downgrade your hotel to something a bit less costly.  Getting a location with a kitchen would allow you to cook in instead of eating out and that alone could save you a fortune.

3.      Stay closer.  Most people plan vacations for far away when there are many great activities and events right in their own back yard.  Search your community and state tourisms sites to see what great things you can do without going to far from home.

4.      Make it a group trip.  Traveling will cut all the costs because you will be dividing them among the group.

There are a number of ways to plan a great vacation even with gas prices climbing to record highs.  Instead of staying home, get creative with your getaway.

When you’ve done your homework for finding the best deals on hotels and flight packages, there are still savings to cash in on from the car rental. Car rental costs can become an outlandish expense if you turn to the wrong company or sign up for a package you don’t really need. Add mileage expenses, too much insurance and other fees, and you may be left with a bill that costs more than your hotel stay. When you’re working with a tight budget – or just want to travel smart – use some of these strategies to save on extra car rental costs:

1. Don’t pick up the car from the airport. Track down an actual office of your preferred car rental provider to avoid hidden surcharges, airport fees and higher-than-average rates. In many cases, you’ll be able to find a car rental company only a few blocks form the airport.
2. Shop online before calling the car rental company. Whether you prefer Hertz or Avis, go online to find discounts and deals from travel websites before you call the rental company. Few rental companies match the fares posted on budget travel sites and search engines, so it’s up to you to locate the best price before you get a quote from the service provider.
3. Fill up the tank before you drop it off. Most car rental companies will charge you an exorbitant mile-per-gallon rate for topping off the tank after the drop off. Head to the nearest gas station before dropping off the car so you can pay the average price of gas, and give the car rental company the receipt.
4. Review insurance coverage options. Most car rental companies offer a set of different types of insurance, but will ‘recommend’ one of the most expensive. If you have homeowner’s insurance, you may be covered for rentals as well. Take the time to consider your options, and avoid overpaying for coverage you don’t really need.
5. Book a package. If you’re using an online flight booking service, take a look at package options where the flight + car or flight + hotel + car options are all rolled into one. This can reduce fees and extra booking charges, and may even help you get a better rate for your trip.

If you’re heading to sunny Orlando for a summer vacation this year, don’t miss out on some new attractions, parades and concerts taking place throughout Disney World. Disney World drums up fresh activities and themed events every season, and summer 2008 calls for exciting events that continue with the Disney’s ‘Year of a Million Dreams’ theme. From Toy Store Mania at Disney’s Hollywood Studios to new sports events at the newly-expanded Disney’s Wide World of Sports Complex, here are a few noteworthy activities and attractions to add to your Disney itinerary:

The Wave at Disney’s Contemporary Resort
A new upscale restaurant at the Contemporary Resort, one of Disney’s most popular hotels, is making a grand entrance this summer with American-fusion dishes and a seasonal menu of specialties,. The extensive wine list and signature cocktails are making this a valuable place for food and wine lovers at heart.

Toy Story Mania! Ride at Hollywood Studios
Hollywood Studios presents the latest Toy Story attraction with a 3-D vehicle ride, the place to play the Toy Story Mania! Game as you shoot down animated targets and navigate through a real life game board. Toy Story characters come to life as you explore each stage of the game and tackle the latest challenge using your target-shooting skills. It’s fun for all ages and skill levels, and is sure to become a family favorite in no time.

Playhouse Disney – Live on Stage!
Another new attraction at Disney’s Hollywood Studios is the Playhouse Disney performance, a high energy, interactive stage show with a cast of characters from “Mickey Mouse Clubhouse” and “Little Einstein.” The performance features sing-along activities and is ideal for preschoolers and kindergartners.

New Sports Lineup at Disney’s Wide World of Sports Complex
The 220-acre Disney’s Wide World of Sports Complex has recently been expanded to accommodate even more space for gymnastics events, cheerleading routines, roller hockey and basketball games. This season looks to be one of the best ever, with an increased number of games and performances scheduled for the summer season.

Spring is a time for new life, great color and lots of flowers. It can also be the best time to wander through local and regional gardens. Many flower and garden clubs (and even cities) use the spring to host fairs and festivals that celebrate the wonderful blooms of the season. You can see some of your favorite plants used in new and exciting displays and you may even be able to expand your own collection at a reasonable cost.

1 The American Iris Society hosts a national convention each year (in 2008 it will be held in Austin, Texas). There will be dozens of gardens to see, plenty of irises to purchase, and all the information you could ever want about these amazing spring plants.

2 Macon, Georgia puts on the pink for the annual Macon Georgia International Cherry Blossom Festival. The city is filled with around 300,000 flowering Yoshino cherry trees that have made it the “Cherry Blossom Capital of the World.” The celebration goes on for days and includes air shows, parades, tours and much, much more.

3 The Biltmore Estate in Asheville, North Carolina is always a wonderful place to see, but during the spring it becomes breathtaking. At the Biltmore Festival of Flowers you will find more than 100,000 bulbs (tulips, daffodils and hyacinths) on display. There are also a number of springtime activities for your enjoyment.

4 Historic Garden Week in Virginia is celebrating 75 years this season. The week opens around 250 of some of the most beautiful gardens and historic homes for public viewing. There will be formal gardens, herb gardens, cottage gardens and almost any other garden that you can imagine. This year it will be held from April 19 to April 27.

5 Gardening Days at Mount Vernon offers some spectacular blooms and displays. There is also a chance to purchase plants propagated from historic cuttings. It’s a great way to take a piece of American heritage home to your own garden.

6 The Festival of Houses and Gardens is held in Charleston, South Carolina. Tours offer visitors a chance to see the interiors and amazing gardens of around 150 historic private homes throughout the city. It is held during the peak of the city’s blooming season so the colors and the atmosphere of the time is one you won’t soon forget.

Spring offers a great time to get out and enjoy the fresh colors, fresh air and amazing festivals and tours that are held around the country.

Christmas
Colonial Williamsburg has been drawing visitors to its Christmas celebrations since 1936.  Today the town fills with elaborate decorations (hand made from fruits, vegetables and evergreens), special events, and fireworks.  It all starts on the first Sunday in December when the officially Grand Illumination takes place.  Although most of the activities are not historically accurate (colonial Americans didn’t celebrate Christmas), it is still a wonderful time for the whole family.

Thanksgiving
The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade is an icon of the turkey holiday.  In 1934 Macy’s and Walt Disney Productions introduced the first Mickey Mouse balloon.  Live broadcast of the much loved event started in 1979.  Over 2.5 million people line the streets and brave the weather to see the amazing spectacle.  It takes more than 4000 volunteers and even more performers to bring it to life.  And at home, cooking Thanksgiving meals, more than 44 million viewers use this parade to kick off their holiday season.

4^th of July
What better place to celebrate America’s birthday than in the city of its birthplace.  Philadelphia does not take its place in history lightly.  The birthday celebration lasts for over a week and ends with a fireworks display that will leave you talking for the rest of the year.  There is something for everyone (and every age) for you to find.

Fat Tuesday (Mardi Gras)
It may not be the first and it may not be the wildest in the world, but Mardi Gras season in New Orleans is certainly a site to behold.  All the lavish costumes of the parade revelers are enough to keep your draw dropping on their own.  Add in the party atmosphere of the city and you can’t help but scream for beads.  The best way to experience the full effect of the extravagance is to attend a Mardi Gras ball.  Most societies only offer tickets to members, so it helps if you have someone on the inside.

New Year’s
In 1886 the Valley Hunt Club began the tradition that would be come known as the Tournament of Roses Parade.  It was designed to be a celebration of the amazing contrast between the ripening oranges in California and the piles of snow in the north east - it was a way to proclaim this paradise to the world.  It has now become America’s New Year Celebration as well.

The United States is filled with holiday magic.  No matter which holiday you want to celebrate, you can find a city that specializes in that event.

The holiday season seems to be the time to travel, and if you have kids it may not be something that you look forward to doing. Kids can be a challenge on a rainy day locked up inside a large home. Trap them in a car for hours on end and you could end up pulling your hair out. If you’ll take some time to plan ahead, not only will the travel be easier but it may be so much fun that you want to do it more often.

1. Make it a team effort. Let the kids help you plan, prepare, and pack for the trip. This gives them some ownership in what ends up in the car so they are less likely to complain when you pull out pretzels for a snack instead of candy.
2. Pack some easy snacks. Things like chocolate or cupcakes will make a mess, plus all that artificial sugar will pump up your little ones at a time you don’t want the energy. Stick to more nutritious snacks. Keep it to pretzels, apple slices, and things of that nature. Keep the drinks small unless you want to be stopping every thirty minutes or listen to the whine of “I got to go” all the way to your destination.
3. Map out the adventure. Plan at least one stop for every two hours on the road. This will give everyone a chance to stretch out and go to the bathroom (a requirement in our home is that if the car stops everyone gives it a try ). Pick some places – rest stops, community parks, fast food restaurants – that have play grounds for the kids to expend some of their energy.
4. Keep them engaged. It’s okay to bring along DVD’s or MP3 players to keep the kids distracted, but eventually they will lose interest in these. Play some travel games to help them lose track of time. It’s even more fun if you play some of them as a family team instead of competing against each other.
5. Pack a set of clothes for everyone – you never know what might come up. Make sure you put it in the car some place that is easy to access. Buried under all the other luggage will NOT be convenient.
6. Travel when the kids are napping or asleep (this is especially good for kids that are still locked into car seats). If you have a sound sleeper, then you can move them into a hotel room if the driver needs a break. Other wise, you might tag team an all night drive and arrive at your destination without the kids even knowing you went any where (this is how we do our drive to the beach).

The most important thing to remember when taking a road trip with kids is to be flexible. Plan a few extra hours into your travel time so that you don’t feel rushed if you end up stopping more than you wanted. Make the trip TO the destination as enjoyable as the destination itself.

Williamsburg, Virginia is not just an amazing city with a fascinating grasp on history. It is a city that offers visitors a chance to step back in time. There are live, interactive tours that reveal colonial life. Colonial Williamsburg is one of the top tourist attractions in the state and it is just one of the many activities available in Williamsburg and the surrounding areas. There is plenty of fun for the whole family.

It will take at least a full day to experience all that Colonial Williamsburg has to offer. There are several tours available that will take you through places like the Great Hopes Plantation and on an Orientation walk. You can also tour the museums in the area that help tell the story of the region.

Try to plan you visit around one of the many events hosted by Colonial Williamsburg. There is the annual storytelling festive that will entertain you for 3 full days. Labor Day Weekend is an unforgettable experience for war buffs and history fans.

There are several plantations opened to visitors. The Berkely Plantation is considered the home of the first official Thanksgiving in 1619. Sherwood Forest Plantation was the home of President John Tyler and one of the most complete plantation grounds in the United States. The Shirley Plantation tells the story of the Hill-Carter family which includes eleven generations of history.

Historic Yorktown offers 18th century homes, museums and much more that help capture the 300 years of history. The riverwalk is the perfect place for strolling. The waterfront has been restored to its seaport status and now the new docks welcome cruise ships and personal watercraft.

Historic Jamestowne will give you a first hand look at the activities in the first permanent English settlement in North America. The Visitor Center offers exhibits and film presentations that give the background to the area’s beginnings. A walking tour will offer the chance to see some of the earliest buildings in Virginia (including a church tower that dates to the 1690s). The Glasshouse is the place to watch glassblowing demonstrations. If you are a history buff then you can’t miss the APVA Jamestown Rediscovery excavation. Archaeologists are in the process of uncovering the remains of the 1607 James Fort and you can get close enough to feel as if you are a part of the event.

There is so much more to do and see around Williamsburg, Virginia, but the history is what keeps the visitors coming back for more.

Every road trip with children seems to involve that dreaded chant of “are we there yet?” Children everywhere are under the impression that mom and dad have arrived at the destination and just not shared the information with the kids. It can be exhausting for the parents and end up ruining a perfectly good trip. Instead of getting upset when the chant starts, find ways to avoid the “are we there yet” all together.

1. Make a fold out map for the kids, complete with symbols for stops that you will make along the way or major landmarks that you will pass. Give them stickers to place on those stops and sites. Challenge them to find certain sites or items (city limits signs, historic marks and things of that nature). The map will keep them busy and informed about the trip.

2. Plan a movie time experience during the trip – complete with movie snacks and a new release rented from the local movie store. Be sure to save it as a surprise so that you can spring it on the kids when they begin to get tired of traveling. Include headsets with your portable DVD and the adults in the car will be able to have an actually discussion during the movie.

3. Keep the kids engaged in the travel experience. Let them research the trip before you leave and find interesting points along the path that you are taking. Use those points as breaks where you can get out and walk around, or use them as “mile marker” so that the kids know how far they are from the destination according to the information they discovered.

4. Play along the way. Bring along travel games or make up games that will keep the kids occupied during the trip. The more they have to keep them busy the less they are likely to be concerned about arriving at the destination. Make the travel as much fun as the destination and you will never have to hear those dreaded words again.

Traveling with kids is often challenging under the best of circumstances. Sitting for long periods of time, feeling out of control and just being bored will often lead to whining – usually involving the phrase “are we there yet.” With a little planning and a lot of patience the whole family can survive the next road trip with out having to worry about that phrase tagging along.