So it is that time of year. Some of us have posted they are headed out or on their way. Anybody else taking a summer vacation? If so where are you going? How long are you going? Driving, or Flying?
I love this time of year, I love traveling. Unfortunately, we only travel once a year. So I plan and look forward to our one vacation.
We are going on a Carnival Cruise(Valor)sailing Aug 20. We are flying in to Ft Lauderdale Aug 19th, staying with my parents over night. We will drive our rental car to Miami. We will spend 7 nights on the cruise, and then spend 2 more nights with my parents.
Last year, we did our summer vacation in June. I think I like August better. It gives us something to look forward to by the end of the summer.
I even ordered some Disney luggage from Disney online...

By Karen~admin on Monday, June 12, 2006 - 07:51 am:

Well, I posted on another thread about my trip on the 24th, to visit my sister in San Francisco. I can't wait.

Jackie, have you decided on your shore excursions while on your cruise???

By Jackie on Monday, June 12, 2006 - 08:03 am:

The only shore excursion we are doing for sure is the Stingray tour in Cayman islands. Because of Faith being only 2 when we go,there is not a lot we can do. Some of the other tours are over 4 hrs long, and I do not want to do that with Faith. I mean, it is going to be hot and all, and I would not feel right dragging her around for 4 hrs in the hot, hot heat. We may just hang out at the beaches in the other ports.

By Trina~moderator on Monday, June 12, 2006 - 08:17 am:

We've rented a cottage on a lake in Maine for a week in mid August. It's only a 4 hr. drive. Other than that we'll be taking weekend trips to visit friends and relatives in NH and day trips to amusement parks, etc.. The kids and I spend a lot of time hanging out at home or at our local pool/park.

By Pamt on Monday, June 12, 2006 - 08:39 am:

We are going on vacation in July. We are driving to Atlanta, GA where we will spend 2 days. We are going to a Braves game, Coca-Cola museum, Jimmy Carter Presidential Library, aquarium, and maybe CNN studio tour. I used to live in a suburb of Atlanta so I may take DH and the boys on a little tour. We are also going to pop in and visit my best friend from high school who lives near Atlanta. Then, we are camping for 4 days at Stone Mountain, GA. There is a pool, hiking, and lots of indoor/outdoor activities there. Finally, we are stopping in Montgomery, AL (DH and I both lived there briefly at different times in our lives) to meet up with old friends from MO and to see a production of "To Kill a Mockingbird" at the AL Shakespeare Festival. I know it sounds like an oxymoron to have the words Alabama and Shakespeare Festival in the same sentence, but it really is top notch! They obviously do other productions besides just Shakespeare.

We also have some friends who are driving to every state capital (except they flew to Hawaii) in one year as part of a great homeschooling/RV adventure. They inspired us, so we are trying to go to every state capital by the time our oldest graduates college (gives us about 10 years). In this trip we will knock out Atlanta, Montgomery, we'll drive home through Jackson, MS, and then we live in the state capital of Baton Rouge, so that will give us our first 4.

By Mommyof5 on Monday, June 12, 2006 - 08:52 am:

We take at least a small family vacation every year. This year we are going camping. I have not camped since I was a kid and dh has really never gone. We are going in a tent to Michigan for 8 nights. I say a prayer every night that there is no rain or high winds that week.

By Kaye on Monday, June 12, 2006 - 09:17 am:

LOL Pam, we are trying to get to each state by time our oldest graduates (except alaska...they can do that alone!).

The highlight of our vacation is we went to two new states

By Debbie on Monday, June 12, 2006 - 09:52 am:

My brother is getting married in Huntington Beach, Ca. in August. We are going to stay at a hotel right on the beach for 5 days. After the wedding, we are going to Disneyland with my parents for 2 days.

I am also taking my boys down to Austin, Texas to visit my parents for a week in July. Dh doesn't have enough vacation, so he is staying home. We are going to a baseball game, the Children's museum and the schliterban waterpark. It should be lots of fun.

By Janet on Monday, June 12, 2006 - 10:06 am:

Trina, how do you find cottages to rent? That sounds like a fun idea (and I've never been to Maine...). Could you post a link?

By Cat on Monday, June 12, 2006 - 10:12 am:

No vacation for us this year. We've got so much to do here and no extra money, anyway. Dem's the joys of buying a new house! We don't normally take yearly vacations. Last summer we did go to Michigan for two weeks and it was fun. Usually family visits us, though. My mom loves coming here.

By Tonya on Monday, June 12, 2006 - 10:20 am:

Our vacations are going to consist of Michigan Speedway for NASCAR is June and August. The guys are going in June and we are all going in August plus my BIL his GF and his 3 kids. Jade will be a rookie in August but she will have a blast. Plus we went to Chicago this past weekend to se my best friend it was awesome and we will go to Indianapolis for my brother to race is Sept. and camping in July. So we have something for every month.

By Kym on Monday, June 12, 2006 - 10:20 am:

Pam, that's a great idea, hmmm I'll have to start thinking about that one!

As for us, we are heading out of Southern AZ with a rented camper trailer, 1st stop Flagstaff, then off to Lake Powell for 4 days, than heading to Durango colorado area, and then back to Lake Powell for a small family reunion. We are renting the trailer so we can test it out for purchase, we camp alot throughout the year. We are looking forward to some nice long hikes, swimming, skiing and mtn biking! And two weeks off!
I also have two biz trips, one to boca raton fl, last week and one to San Diego CA so for me thats two mini vacations too! The one in CA is a business retreat at a spa

By Yjja123 on Monday, June 12, 2006 - 10:26 am:

We are going to Orlando for a week in July. Hopefully! Hubby said everyone should plan on a hurricane that week Since it is the 4th attempt at a vacation, I am hoping we are past our unlucky streak. We will take the boat and go out on the lake. We have 2-3 days planned that we will go to Hard Rock Hotel and Universal Studios.
In December, we will go on our 10 day Cruise to the Panama Canal. That-- I cannot wait for!

By Tink on Monday, June 12, 2006 - 10:38 am:

We'll be spending the week before the 4th of July camping a couple of hours away at a lake. We do this annually with some other families in different areas around the state. At the end of July, we're spending five days in and around Santa Cruz. We'll hit the Boardwalk, Capitola, and spend a couple of days in Monterey. A group of us are discussing spending a few days on the Delta in a houseboat in August but I don't know if that will ever move past the planning stages.

By Kate on Monday, June 12, 2006 - 10:49 am:

Disney in August.

By Melanie on Monday, June 12, 2006 - 11:31 am:

We are heading to NH on Wednesday for a week. I have my 15 year high school reunion this weekend! When we get back we will be off to Tahoe for a month. I love summer.

By Bellajoe on Monday, June 12, 2006 - 11:33 am:

Well, since my dh is building the house, we really won't be having a vacation this year. The last one we had was Disney in the fall of 2004 and i REALLY NEED A VACATION!
We are trying to think of a smaller vacation to have towards the end of the summer. Perhaps a weekend in Hershey, PA.


We will probably go to either Kings Island or Cedar Point sometime after the house is done.

By Luvn29 on Monday, June 12, 2006 - 11:44 am:

As everyone should know by now, with Janet's early send off (teehee!), we are leaving Friday for our vacation to Myrtle Beach, SC. We'll stay Friday night with dh's sister who just had her baby, and travel on to Myrtle Beach Saturday morning.

Last year was the first year we ever had a real family vacation. And we decided to do it again this year. We book our oceanfront two room suite in January, and pay on it a little at a time, so it will be paid off completely by the time we go. It has a kitchenette which saves tons of money on food. You couldn't afford to eat out the entire time. And by planning for the vacation ahead of time, I find tons of coupons, not to mention the ones down there, and we save lots of money by cutting out on eating out, renting movies, buying things we really don't need. And the kids don't mind, because they enjoy our vacation so much, and they know that this is the only way it is possible for us to do it.

Before our first trip last year, we used to make several weekend trips to Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg TN since it is only about 2 1/2 hours away. We cut those out, so right there is a ton of money saved. We do still get season passes to Dollywood and Splash Country Water Park, so we will make day trips down there this summer, and a weekend trip to Dollywood's Christmas Festival.

By Colette on Monday, June 12, 2006 - 11:50 am:

Janet, go to cyberrentals.com for cottage rentals. We are going camping quite a bit, probably mainly in Vermont and then we are planning a trip to Prince Edwards Island.

By Janet on Monday, June 12, 2006 - 01:36 pm:

Thanks, Colette!

By Paulas on Monday, June 12, 2006 - 01:39 pm:

Oh Colette..when are you going to PEI??? It would be so neat to meet someone from here.

We are planning a trip to Nova Scotia/PEI this summmer. We fly out on July 22, overnight in Ottawa and arrive on the 23rd. We have rented a beach cottage for the first two weeks. The last week we will base out of DH's parents (the only part I'm worried about). We plan to visit PEI and the southern part of NS. I want to take DS to Meteghan. It's an Acadian community he will be studying in second grade.

We fly home on the 12th of August.

By Colette on Monday, June 12, 2006 - 03:44 pm:

I am not sure yet when we are going. Dh's family owns some property in Tignish so that's where we'll be. I don't know when it's available yet though.

By Dana on Monday, June 12, 2006 - 09:44 pm:

No family vacation for us. However, today at my dr visit, I was scolded for doing too much and sending my bones too far out of place. I looked at him, looked at the baby and laughed. He then proceeded to write me a script of no "daily life activities" so I will have a vacation of my own w/ a house cleaner and sitter for the baby while my back heals! So vacationing at home this summer

By Dawnk777 on Monday, June 12, 2006 - 10:49 pm:

Hee hee! I'm ON vacation! (Isn't it nice my parents gave us a hand-me-down laptop, when they got a new one?)

I'm sitting in a hotel in Rapid City, South Dakota! We drove here, over 2 days, spending the first night in De Smet, SD, so we could see the Laura Ingalls Wilder homestead, on Sunday! It was awesome and had a lot of hands-on stuff for the kids. In the little schoolhouse, my kids were the oldest kids, but they loved it anyway!
Oh, having a few farm animals to pet, didn't hurt, either.

Today, we went to Wyoming to see Devil's Tower! I get to add one more state to my list! We did the path around the tower and took tons of pics. We'll post pictures, when we get home.

We also did the Spearfish Canyon Scenic Byway. IT was gorgeous, with big hills filled with pine trees. Words cannot describe it!

Tomorrow, we are going to see Mt. Rushmore and the Mammoth Dig, in Hot Springs.

On Wednesday, we will drive out to see the Badlands.

It is so interesting to see the prairies and Black Hills, and mountains in WY. It just doesn't look like WI, out here! It has been lots of fun finding out where everyone else is from, too.

Our hotel has great beds and pillows, but the lobby breakfast isn't that good. There is a great restaurant up the street, where we will eat breakfast tomorrow.

By Wandilu on Tuesday, June 13, 2006 - 12:35 am:

Well,one of my dd's recently got a big house with a nice pool...so that is part of my "vacation".And my other DD is moving to Florida in a week or so.So,after I quit crying,at some point this summer we hope to go see her new home.

By Eve on Tuesday, June 13, 2006 - 08:07 am:

We have so many house projects, that we really shouldn't spend money on a real vacation. We almost rented a house in Martha's Vineyard, but we're still on the fence. We may do something last minute. I'm still thinking vacationing in February is pretty nice. We are planning some small trips though. We would like to go camping and go to the beach. As long as DH takes some time off, I'll be happy.

By Beth on Tuesday, June 13, 2006 - 08:11 am:

We went in April to North Carolina. We have done a few small things the last few weekends. Travel to family and such. Then dh and I are going on our Cruise in Dec. We have done so much these last few weekends. Our summer is winding down now. We may have a couple of day trips here and there.

By Breann on Thursday, June 15, 2006 - 04:32 pm:

We took our "summer vacation" last month. We were gone for 10 days. Spent half the time in San Diego going to the beaches and sea world, and the other half up in anaheim doing Disney

We have vacation again the first of august, and we are thinking of going back to San Diego for a few days. We have year passports to SeaWorld, and we are dying to see the new Believe show, hehe.

By Christylee on Saturday, June 17, 2006 - 12:22 pm:

Last weekend (Friday to Monday) we drove to San Antonio. Friday we went to Seaworld and saw the Believe show with Shamu and then went to the waterpark, Saturday we hit the riverwalk and the Alamo, Sunday we went to Fiesta Texas, and Monday BACK to Seaworld for all the shows including Believe again.

We had a great time it was Me (30) mom (48) Sister (16) and my five year old son. We drove and mom and I are planning an adult trip back soon.

Breann - the Believe show was AMAZING, words couldn't describe it really.

By Kernkate on Saturday, June 17, 2006 - 12:26 pm:

We will be renting a cottage here in NEPA the week of August 18th. Its not far from our house but we did it last year and had a great time.