Painting through the National Parks

Winter Seabreeze

When WRAL reports an ice-storm (Elsa is ‘letting it go with the snow’) and you power could go out with frigid temps – I go to Hotwire to find a deal and head to the beach. Don’t get me wrong – I love snow…I lived in Montana for years – but ice is a slippery […]

Biltmore – America’s Christmas Castle: Part II

Antler Village is a bustling hub of activity for Biltmore guests. It includes the Biltmore creamery and coffee shop, several eclectic souvenir shops and the Biltmore Winery. Biltmore’s winery dates back to early 1970s, when Vanderbilt’s grandson William Cecil planted the first grapes at Biltmore. He had a vision of this American Chateau planting a […]

Biltmore- America’s Christmas Castle – Part I

Tucked away in the Blue Ridge Mountains in Asheville North Carolina – you’ll discover Biltmore. Sprawling over 8,000 acres in the shadow of the mountains, Biltmore is America’s largest home, a working farm and a place where time invites you to dream. Biltmore is one of the world’s finest works of architecture. It’s size is […]

Outer Banks: Sand and Light

The Saturday after Thanksgiving (2021), my mom and I enjoyed a relaxing morning enjoying views of the beach and placing our favorite board game ‘Trekking the National Parks’ The weather was frigid – not the best for walking on the beach until just before sunset. I love beach walks -just listening to the waves crashing […]

Outer banks – Corolla Dreaming

On Thanksgiving weekend (2021), my mom and I set out for what I call ‘the glorious edge of the world’ – The Outer Banks of North Carolina. We enjoyed several days enjoying the gorgeous and peaceful scenery of North Carolina’s northern Outer Banks from the seaside village of Corolla to formidable Hatteras Island. We checked […]

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Park

Saturday, August 7th My mom and I stopped by our favorite regional coffee chain Bixby for a coffee fix before hitting the highway a day trip to stunning Sleeping Bear Dunes National Park. I fell in love with the scenery of Sleeping Bear Dunes after seeing photos on a National Park travel page. The images […]

Grand Rapids

We left South Bend just before noon heading north to Grand Rapids, Michigan. We had hoped to stay closer to Sleeping Bear Dunes National Park, but unfortunately, we were unable to find lodging within an hour of the park boundaries. Grand Rapids seemed a good compromise as it has plenty of services (hotels, food) and […]

Touchdown in South Bend

August 6th “Coffee,” I mumbled as I got out of the bed on Friday morning. With our nonstop trekking, I had to remind myself what day it was or which city I slept in. We arrived at South Bend late on Thursday night after a full day in Chicago and I was grateful for a […]