If you're planning to travel this summer, are you taking a trip or a vacation? One isn't necessarily better than the other, but it's worth making the distinction. A trip is a type of travel with an agenda. There are scheduled events to plan for. Places to be or people to see. Lots of moving around. Trips can be exciting and fun and fulfilling, but they don't usually leave you feeling rested. If you've ever returned from someplace and said, "I need another vacation to recover from my vacation," you weren't on a vacation. You were on a trip. A vacation is much less …
Coffee with Kim & Jason: 5 Ways to NOT Ruin Your Next Vacation
You're invited! On Saturday, June 22nd at 10:00 am CDT, come join us at our kitchen table for a virtual cup of coffee and a casual conversation. We'll be speaking from experience as we share 5 ways to keep from ruining your next vacation, but we also want to hear from you! What have you learned while traveling, and how do keep Adultitis from coming along for the ride? You'll be able to chat with fellow members and have the chance to ask us questions live. Hope to see you there! 👉 Register Here P.S. If you can't attend the event live, but still have a question, feel free to …
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What Good Is A Bag of Fish Heads
I never realized how valuable a simple bag of fish heads could be. As I mentioned last week, our family had the opportunity to spend two weeks in the Pacific Northwest, where we explored Seattle, the Olympic Peninsula, and a little taste of Canada (eh?) We did a lot of fun things, some of which cost money, of course. A surprising gem in Victoria, British Columbia, was Miniature World. (I have always been a sucker for tiny dioramas and hand-crafted doll houses.) One of the bigger splurges was $135 to experience a 30-minute horse drawn carriage ride. It was totally fine. We had a great …
Why Do Buffalo Roam?
"Roam" by Jason Kotecki. 30 x 24 Oil on canvas. Original is SOLD. Prints and canvas reproductions available here. Starting at younger and younger ages, kids are expected to begin thinking about what they want to do with their lives. I feel bad for them, because between increasing homework loads and more demanding extra-curricular commitments, they are given less and less free to time to figure out who they are, and what lights them up. No matter how old you are, a little space to roam can make a big difference. After three grueling years producing his show Sam and Friends, Jim …
How to Not Ruin Your Next Vacation
Ever have one of those vacations that, when it was over, you said, “I need another vacation!”? Sometimes we spend all our time lounging around and feel disappointed that we didn’t see more. But more often, we rush around trying to see and do everything, and wind up returning to work depleted, wishing for a re-do. You’ve taken time off work. You’ve probably invested no small amount of money. Don’t be the reason your vacation fails. It almost just happened to us. Last summer, we got passports for all the kids so we could take a road trip into Canada. Kim and I asked our favorite …
Did You Know Your Car Has This Weird Standard Feature?
"Follow No Maps" by Jason Kotecki. Made with Photoshop. Prints and other goodies featuring this image available here. I was talking to a woman after one of my speaking engagements and she told me about an unusual bug her car possessed. She explained that sometimes, while she was driving with her kids in tow, her car would suddenly take on a life of its own. There was nothing she could do to control the direction it was headed. No matter how hard she jerked the steering wheel left, if the vehicle wanted to turn right, it went right, with the kids erupting into a frenzy of excited, …
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Living a More Adventurous Life is as Easy as ABC
My friend Dave (a recent Adultitis Fighter of the Month) has Mondays off. They started becoming a little stale, so he decided to shake things up. Although he's an avid traveler, Dave realized that he actually explored very little of his home state of Wisconsin. One day, he pulled out a map, landed on a city named Amherst and set out to make a day of exploring this unfamiliar town. Next week, he went to a city that started with the letter "B" (Babcock), followed by Columbus, and has continued his quest through the alphabet. (He's currently on "H".) Most of the towns are quite small, but they …
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A Little Bit Crazy
Our family just completed a 17-day road trip that spanned 11 states and 3,800 miles. We traveled with three kids, aged 7, 5, and 2. And we did it in a Ford Edge that was packed with just two suitcases, one cooler, a diaper bag, two computer backpacks, two strollers, one tote filled with food and another filled with swimming paraphernalia and sunscreen. We did this because we are insane. Actually, that’s just a lie I repeated multiple times so people wouldn’t feel bad. It makes it easier for folks to justify why they could never do such a thing, especially if a deep-down part of them …
Secrets of Travel and Tinkering
When I was in high school I became aware that a career in art might require me to move to a big city. The prospect of travel frightened me. At that point, I had never been on a plane, and had only visited a few neighboring states. I wondered, How would I find my way? How would I navigate an airport? How would I stay safe? Looking back, from a well-established speaking career that has required a lot of travel, I can only smile at what was mostly fear of the unknown. Because now I’m really good at it. I know how to pack smart and light. I’m savvy about what lines to avoid. I’ve learned …
Laura Ingalls Wilder and My Broken Remote
I’ve recently been lamenting the fact that our TV's remote control is on the fritz. It’s not a battery issue, it’s just the power button that seems to be on strike. I’ve pegged my youngest daughter (the two-year-old) as the prime suspect for its early demise. Although I have no hard evidence, she is often seen secretly holding the remote, and the power button just so happens to be the only red button in a sea of black ones. I'm just saying. Regardless of the culprit, my frustration joins the chorus of a gazillion other parents who have crooned, “This is why we can’t have nice …
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