Author: dadcation

spring break in Florence, Tuscany

We arrived by train in Florence and navigated the throngs of tourists toward our AirBnb, a unit requiring climbing several flights of wooden stairs with steep rises. Its exterior doorway opened onto a sidewalk maybe 6” wide before a curbed one-way street where Italian men liked to exceed 40 mph, […]

Jean Louise, aka “Scout”

After losing Winnie last fall, several months passed before I would even contemplate looking at, or for, another dog. But sometimes, I’d look at rescue dog websites or talk to friends I know who volunteer as foster dog parents. We even went by the Humane Society one weekend a few […]

We were the “Somebody” to feed Phil!

Shortly before we went to Italy for spring break, we watched Phil Rosenthal’s travel/dining episodes for Florence and Venice so that we could visit some of the portrayed restaurants, and I also started following his instagram page. A few days after we got back, we saw this post, inviting followers […]

Father’s Day weekend in Birmingham

Traveling and seeing live music are 2 of my favorite activities. Three Father’s Days ago, I saw Kenny Rogers at Chastain. Last year, we toured Hiroshima. Two years ago, we saw U2 in Philadelphia–combining both loves in a Father’s Day extravaganza. In that vein, we loaded up the Model X […]

spring break in Italy: Venice

We arrived at the Milan train station at 7am and arrived in Venice just before 10. I couldn’t wait to lead my family out of the train station and toward the Grand Canal where we could stand and look across the water at the most beautiful city I’ve ever visited. […]

spring break in Italy: Milan

The children’s Christmas present this year was our first international Spring Break; we landed on April Fools Day in Milan and dropped off our bags at our AirBnB by the Galleria del Corso before walking 500 feet to the beautiful Milan Cathedral. We’d pre-booked tickets to explore the inside of […]

10 days in Colorado’s National Parks

Last Summer, we flew into Denver for over a week of exploring the national parks in Colorado; I wrote a partnered post with Hanes but never fully described the “rest” of the story, so here it is. After we landed, we headed south toward Great Sand Dunes National Park, which […]

the 2019 Mom 2.0 Summit in Austin

I was excited to go to my 4th Mom 2.0 this year for several reasons: 1) I hadn’t been to Austin since 2012 (the first Dad 2.0), and I’d read there are several great speakeasies and dive bars that commanded my attention. 2) my bride had never been, and I’ve […]

a 3-day weekend in New Orleans

It’s been a decade since I’ve gone to New Orleans for anything that wasn’t a) Mardi Gras, b) an Alabama football game, or c) a Dad 2.0 conference. All 3 of these are normally cold events in January or February, so a trip in late March for some warmer weather […]