Trips

🌴 What to Pack for a February Cruise to Costa Maya & Cozumel

A Missouri Girl’s Guide to Warm-Weather Adventures (and Escaping the Winter Blahs)

If you live in Southwest Missouri, you know February isn’t exactly “pool weather.” It’s that time of year when we’re all dreaming of sunshine, saltwater, and not scraping ice or snow off of our windshields.

So when a cruise to Costa Maya (hello, Mayan ruins!) and Cozumel (Playa Mia Beach Park, I see you) popped up on our radar, I started packing the same way I always do — with about five too many outfits and a weather app open on repeat.

Now, I have lost 30 plus pounds, so that required a whole new wardrobe.

Here’s everything I learned planning this trip — what to bring, what to skip, and how to actually enjoy the sun without overthinking your suitcase. (more…)

🌊 What to Pack for a 3-Day Trip to Niagara Falls (U.S. + Canadian Sides)

A Missouri Girl’s August Adventure: Staying Cute, Comfortable & (Mostly) Dry

If you’re heading from Southwest Missouri to Niagara Falls in August, get ready for one of the most breathtaking places in North America — and one of the wettest. It’s stunning, powerful, and a little chaotic (in the best way).

Between the U.S. side’s trails and lookout points and the Canadian side’s iconic skyline views, you’ll get the full experience — but you’ll also want to pack smart. Because the combination of humidity, waterfall mist, and 10,000 daily steps can humble even the most seasoned traveler.

Here’s exactly what to pack for three days in Niagara Falls during August — written by someone who knows Midwest heat and waterfall humidity all too well.

💧 1. What August in Niagara Falls Really Feels Like

August is warm — even hot at times — but the mist keeps things unpredictable.
One minute you’re basking in sunshine, the next your hair looks like it lost a fight with a spray bottle.

Average August temps:

  • Highs: mid- to upper-70s °F (24–26 °C)

  • Lows: around 60 °F (15 °C)

  • Feels like: a mix of pool day + wind tunnel

Evenings cool off near the water, so a light layer still comes in handy. (more…)

Cast Iron Pan & Walmart

Over the Weekend I had to question what year we were in… Here’s the story…

Saturday we wound up in Pawhuska, Oklahoma at The Pioneer Woman’s places… (the Merc, her new store, and of course the Lodge where she films her show). You are invited to the Lodge on the days that it is open, you just have to get a ticket at the Merc. We wanted to eat at the Merc, but we had to put our name on the list. It was a 2 1/2-3 hour wait to get in and we arrived at 10:45 a.m. We got our ticket to the Lodge and the guy told us we had plenty of time to go to the Lodge and come back. We were like 68 on the list and at about 15 you needed to head back this way. Cool. (more…)

Anchorage, Alaska Restaurants

Being “anchored” in Anchorage (see what I did there), we ate at a lot of restaurants in Anchorage. So, I think the best thing to do is just put them all together and let’s get started. It might take a while. 

Spenard Roadhouse

1049 W Northern Lights Blvd
Anchorage, AK 99503

We got into Alaska “late.” Late is relative because Anchorage is 5 hours behind Missouri. But being late on a Saturday night, a lot of places were closed. That was quite odd, but it has to be because of coronavirus. That’s the best reason I could come up with. We were staying in Midtown Anchorage. I wouldn’t recommend that. Another story for another day. (more…)

Whittier, Alaska

Thursday was my birthday. I kind of got to pick some of the day because of that. After we went to the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center, we decided to go to Whittier. Mom suggested that one. I was game. Anything fun and heck, we were in Alaska on my birthday so everything was fun, am I right!?!? We were only about 12 miles from Whittier so it was perfect. The day was a little wet and rainy which made it a little cool. But no complaints here because at home it was close to 100˚F. We’d take the upper 60’s for sure.

Mom and dad had been to Alaska before. They said that we had to go through a tunnel to get to Whittier. This tunnel was NOT the tunnel… this was a mini tunnel. (more…)

Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center

Guys, have I got the place to tell you about… The Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center! This place rocked!

So, as we’ve learned, my little loves zoos. I had higher hopes for the Alaska Zoo.

On Tuesday when we spent most of what felt like all day laying around the hotel room, I somehow found the Alaska Channel. I’m not sure if that is a hotel thing or if that is actually a thing. Either way, they were talking about different places around Alaska, including the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center.

It is about an hour’s drive from Anchorage to Girdwood where the center is located. You have gorgeous views and let me say this so even those in the back row can hear… IT. WAS. TOTALLY. WORTH. IT. (more…)

Alaska Zoo

While we were in Alaska, we made a trip to the zoo. My little loves the zoo. Honestly, I was very disappointed by the zoo. Heck, the little zoo we went to in Louisiana was much better than this zoo. I wonder if Covid-19 wasn’t part of the problem… but it felt like the zoo wasn’t maintained/kept up with. Most of the animals if they were out (to be seen) were laying down hidden behind tall grass… It was just weird. I hope in a normal year this is better, but I just don’t know. I’ve never been to Alaska prior to this. Guess that means I need to plan a trip in my future 🙂 haha. (more…)

Caribou Grill – Glennallen, Alaska

Our first full day in Alaska we went out driving through the mountains. I made mention that I wanted to go into the mountains and we entered this trip with very little plans. Especially since the Coronavirus has been affecting all daily life everywhere. But I wanted to see beautiful scenery and I wanted to go into the mountains. So, our first day, we did just that.

p.s. I love that at home we have deer crossing signs. Here they have Moose and Elk crossing signs. However, we didn’t see any moose (or elk) in the wild until the last day. more on that to come.

Supposedly you can drive to this glacier. The roads didn’t look right or looked like we were going to have to offroad. Have you ever tried offroading in a minivan? Me either. Not sure I want to either.

This was the Matanuska Glacier. The Matanuska is Alaska’s largest road-accessible glacier, and it’s just 90 minutes from Anchorage. It is 27 miles long and 4 miles wide. It is located 100 miles North-east of Anchorage on the Glenn Highway. It flows about 1 foot per day. (more…)

Talkeetna, AK: Denali Brewpub & Shirley’s Northern Lights Ice Cream

Once we got to Talkeetna and toured a couple of shops, it was time to grab some grub. Wow, I sound so barbarian… grub. haha… Maybe I should say that we spent “so much” time at The Patchwork Moose Quilt Shop that dad and hubby were hungry and tired of waiting. Hubby sent me a text to find the best place in town. I asked Lori where she recommended and her first place was Denali Brewpub followed by a pizza place. Since we had pizza the night before, we decided Denali Brewpub it was. We made it to the restaurant in shifts… The guys led, I was somewhere in the middle and my mom was close behind. haha.

Denali Brewpub

13605 E. Main St
Talkeetna AK

Okay, first off, it was a beautiful day. They had seating mainly outdoors although there was some seating inside. We pulled 2 tables together and enjoyed the beautiful outdoors! It was gorgeous!! The high was 74 degrees. That is actually way cooler minus the humidity from what we were experiencing back home. It was lovely to sit outside in the sun and enjoy! (more…)