Tag Archives: family travel

Little Man is Now Chasing the Coffee, Coffee and Coffee

Posted on February 20, 2017 | 2 comments

2017 is in full swing. I’m still trying to put my arms around the fact that my son is almost one already. Where has the time gone?! It seems like yesterday I was Introducing Travel and Coffee, Coffee and Coffee to Someone. We have visited numerous shops, though confined to just Michigan. He smells the home brewing pretty much continuously.

The little man still heads with me to the coffee shop in his car seat, though now with his eyes always open. He loves looking at Biggby Coffee. Graduation to the next car seat, thus I having to carry him in is upcoming in the weeks ahead.

I’d also like to think he is crawling towards and chasing the cup now because it is filled with coffee deliciousness. ☕☕☕

This year will bring the two of us walking into coffee shops together and further away ventures. I look forward to him being more inquisitive as to what the coffee cups and drinks are. I’m sure he will get into anything and everything at the coffee shop as he is now doing at home ha-ha. Still hoping for that first word outside of dada and mama to be coffee!

To all of the coffee adventures that lie ahead. We hope to see you out on the open coffee shop road.

2 Comments

Posted in coffee, coffee shop, family travel, Michigan

Tagged coffee, coffee shops, family travel, kid travel, Michigan

Introducing Travel and Coffee, Coffee and Coffee To Someone

Posted on June 26, 2016 | 10 comments

2016 has indeed brought a little traveler and future coffee drinker into the world. Well at least he is smelling the coffee. Give it time haha.

The father and son time “Out on the Open Road” has begun. Shorter trips to start, taking him on weekend morning trips to semi-local coffee shops. Got to venture a little bit! Little Cruz Man (one of his many names) and I are enjoying the sights, smells, sounds and quality time at the coffee shop. Pictured here is our recent venture to Lafayette Corner Cafe in downtown South Lyon, Michigan. Lots of latte deliciousness. He was awake shortly after this shot so got the chance to soak everything in. 🙂

To different but new and wonderful coffee adventures ahead! We hope to see you out on the open coffee shop trail.

10 Comments

Posted in coffee, coffee shop, family travel, Michigan

Tagged coffee, coffee shop, family travel, kid travel, Michigan, road trip

Hanging Out With Dolphins Along The Las Vegas Strip

Posted on June 16, 2016 | 7 comments

Real live dolphins hanging outside along the Las Vegas Strip you say? You bet. Head to Siegfried & Roy’s Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat tucked away within The Mirage hotel. On a hot summer afternoon day we headed to the back of the resort near the main pool to this Vegas sanctuary.

We could have signed up to be a trainer for the day, gone on a VIP tour, or done yoga with the bottlenose dolphins. We decided though to just hang out with them below ground and pool side. There play area is an expansive pool and 2.5-million-gallon saltwater tank.

The trainers fed the dolphins fish and ice while putting on a show. Lots of bottlenose smiles were to be had. We were in a relaxing environment amongst many kids and families. It didn’t even feel like we were on The Strip.

Well without further ado, some cute photos of the dolphins we saw.

Some other notes:

Checkout the white lions, white tigers, leopards and more while visiting.
Cost is $22 for adults, $17 for children 4-12 and those 3 and under are free.
There are two gift shops on site to explore.
Who knows you might even see Siegfried and/or Roy while you are there.

The dolphins had as much fun as we and everyone else did on this day. A recommended stop for families. Checkout the Siegfried & Roy’s Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat page on The Mirage website for more information.

What other hidden family friendly gems are there along The Strip that you would recommend?

7 Comments

Posted in Las Vegas, Nevada, travel

Tagged dolphins, family travel, Las Vegas, Nevada, The Mirage, The Strip, Vegas

An Updated Travel (and Coffee) Bucket List

Posted on May 5, 2016 | 13 comments

It’s been over four years since I made my first travel bucket list. Boy does time fly. Alaskan Cruise done. Small-town holiday carriage ride check. Driving all of the Great Lakes Circle tours to completion, off to a great start. Besides that though I have not had the chance to do anything else on the list.

That isn’t to say I haven’t done anything. The last four years have been great. Lots of travel yes, but I have also gotten married, purchased a home and recently our first child was welcomed into the world. More on that wonderful addition in an upcoming post. 🙂 I have also become obsessed in a good way with a thing called coffee and I now look at the coffee shop as second home.

Keeping all that in mind my priorities have changed. While the things at the top of my original travel bucket list will stay, this edition will feature more items close to the homestead, a lot involving coffee and also ones related to family and kid travel. As with any list like this it is always a work in progress.

Well as I like to say, without further ado:

Visit places significant to my family history, local and far.
Take my boy on our first father-son coffee outing. That will be the first item that gets crossed off. Down the road, have our first father-son day road trip.
Experience every new independent coffee shop that opens, soon after opening within an hours drive from home. Sorry no chains.
Visit coffee hotbeds in the states that I have yet to dive into specifically Seattle and Portland. Northwest coffee trip anyone? Could throw Vancouver in there too.
Really dive into Ann Arbor and Detroit, exploring the hidden, unknown gems outside of the tourist trap type places.
Hawaii and the North Shore. Watched the short-lived FOX show North Shore a while back and have been clamouring for a visit there ever since.
Complete all the Great Lakes circle tours and checkout every lighthouse along the way.
Drive from Miami through the Florida Keys to Key West.
Consume a bowl of New England Clam Chowder from as many locales in Cape Cod as possible as an adult. A favorite childhood memory with my dad. One I hope to share with my son one day. It would be just us two, my wife is not a fan of the chowder haha.
Kayak to Turnip Rock in the thumb of Michigan.
Hang out along and explore the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.
Explore the coffee scene internationally, specifically London and Wellington.
Attend a Denver Broncos home game with my son (my favorite professional sports team). I’ve been to a lot of Bronco road games but never set foot in Mile High Stadium, now Sports Authority Field at Mile High. This is bucket list item #1.
Go winery hopping with the wifey on the west side of Michigan or up by Traverse City.
Have an Irish coffee in a small-town in Ireland on a cool morning day.
Take a hot air balloon ride in San Francisco, Napa Valley and Sonoma with my wife. Winery hop.
Have gained on this some. Capture pictures of all 50 welcome-to United States state signs. Rats, would be a lot further along on this if I took pictures as a kid haha.
Visit a coffee plantation, where the magic all begins.
Watch a barista competition up close.
Walk the Santa Cruz boardwalk in California holding my wife’s hand on one side and my sons on the other.
Spend a weekend at Mackinac Island in Michigan. Can’t believe I have never been there.
Complete or at least attempt a food challenge seen on Man v. Food Nation.
Drive the Tunnel of Trees in northern Michigan in Autumn.
Enjoy a family, fun-filled weekend on the Lake Michigan beaches in Michigan.
Spend a day at an independent coffee shop, side-by-side with a barista(s) learning the ins-and-outs of coffee-making.
Return to Disneyland, Disney World and other theme parks this time with my wife and the little one in hand.
Experience a lot more of what New Zealand has to offer, starting with Wellington.
A general item, go up-top the tallest buildings in as many big cities as possible to capture the views from above.