August 11 2009 by Retro to Now Road Trip
The Monteith family hit the road as the winners of Best Western's "Retro to Now Road Trip" contest.
We had an afternoon flight so plenty of time for another swim before we had to pack up and leave. The flight was easy; as road trippers we obviously don't fly often and I have to be honest wasn't too keen on it. Especially flying into NYC right after the small plane flew into the helicopter. That was lovely news as I was waiting to board the plane! Happy to report not even major turbulence. We had plenty of time for lunch at JFK and then our last leg home. I crawled through the door and headed upstairs to bed claiming, "I'll unpack in the morning!" The kids however, not being tired, were like "see you tomorrow we're watching the Disney Channel". Another great vacation completed!
I would be remiss by not thanking the people who made this great memory making vacation possible!
AAA- Great plans, great gifts, and a great company!!!
Best Western- Obviously the "Best" hotel!
Hertz- Who facilitated our first car pickup which was very easy and started us off on a great trip.
Volkswagen- Great car with all the amenities a family could want! And, a very helpful gent who dropped the car off and met us at the hotel so we could go all the way to the airport in "our" new car. The kids were even allowed to watch a DVD on the way to the airport.
Our Friends and Family - who voted for our photo and gave us the chance to go on the trip!
Thanks to everyone behind the scenes this was a dream come true for a big Army Family!
Vonnette
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August 10 2009 by Retro to Now Road Trip
The Monteith family hit the road as the winners of Best Western's "Retro to Now Road Trip" contest.
Last day of the road trip and the kids are still going strong. We let them swim in the morning in case we came back from the falls late. Which was a good call as we ended staying for the fireworks. We never thought we would be there that long, but time flies when you are having fun!
Niagara was like that. We had been there several times before and I actually thought it would be a short day. We decided to purchase the discovery ticket that gives you entrance to everything. That was sooo worth it! We started out at Cave of the Winds. Absolutely phenomenal! I would recommend always starting the day there, A. you are going to get soaked and you need all day to dry off and B. it gives you a whole new appreciation for the power of the falls. Basically you take an elevator down to the bottom of the Bridal Veils which is the small part of the American falls. You then proceed to walk up into the falls as they crash down on the rocks. It is called Hurricane Deck and while I have never been through a hurricane I imagine that is what is feels like. The force is amazing and the kids loved it. It can be a little scary too; Scotty did not really dig it and clung to the rails as his sisters ran in and out of the spray. I clung to Madie not wanting a stray big wave to knock her between the slats, you know - that mother in me.
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August 7 2009 by Retro to Now Road Trip
The Monteith family hit the road as the winners of Best Western's "Retro to Now Road Trip" contest.
The big drive!
So this was the day of the big drive. Even by our standards this was going to push the max driving range for the kids. Eight hours or more in the car - all the way from Boston to Buffalo! Good thing the Volkswagen Routan is so well-equipped; that DVD player sure is handy.
The day went alright only one good melt down which Bryan managed to capture on video. The kids are going to rue the day they have fits when Dad has the camera. We also were planning to stop for dinner in Syracuse and meet our cousin Rob. Dinner was very enjoyable; as we met at "the Dinosaur BBQ" in Syracuse which has great food and you can sit outside and watch the "choppers". Plus, the roar of the motorcycles muffles anything the kids can attempt.
After dinner we were within striking range of the hotel so we all knew we would make it. It's also so nice to know there is a comfortable room waiting when you arrive. Let me tell you - Best Western never looked so good as last night after ten hours of traveling! What a treat it was too! The hotel is brand new and the beds were super comfortable! We were all just super tired. Tomorrow the last day of the trip and we are off to see Niagara Falls!
Vonnette
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August 7 2009 by Retro to Now Road Trip
The Monteith family hit the road as the winners of Best Western's "Retro to Now Road Trip" contest.
Boston is one of our all time favorite cities and we were happy to have an excuse to visit it again. The kids made a few stipulations after having me drag them all over for the last four days. No walking and nothing historic! I hated to break it to them that they would have to spend the entire day with their eyes shut!
We started the day by meeting Madie's God Father, Dale, at Bunker Hill. The kids overlooked the fact that we were starting the day at a key piece of history because we were meeting Dale there. I have found that when dealing with my kids it's all in the delivery - we weren't visiting Bunker Hill, we were meeting up with Dale. The two oldest also decided to walk the 250+ stairs to the top of the monument to see the view of Boston - so there went the no walking thing.
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August 6 2009 by Retro to Now Road Trip
The Monteith family hit the road as the winners of Best Western's "Retro to Now Road Trip" contest.
Yesterday was spent doing what everyone should do when they go to the city; at least a little bit: Shopping! Times Square has changed so much since I used to come to town. It is way more family-friendly. We started out by going to M&M World. The kids were just mesmerized by how big everything was. There was actually so much shopping they sort of froze and in the end I had to pick out their souvenirs for them. We also walked up 5th Ave, into FAO Schwartz (of course) and peeked into Central Park. I am known for putting too much into a day so instead of doing much exploring in the park I told the kids we would come back another time. We then jumped on the subway and headed back to Times Square so we could see the Toys R Us. This store actually has a Ferris wheel inside the store. So we all rode the Ferris wheel, bought our souvenirs (with help from mom) and headed back to the hotel to pick up "our new car" as the kids keep saying.
The "new car" is a fully-loaded Volkswagen Routan and getting it was every bit as exciting as the kids thought it would be. There are buttons for everything! As soon as they pulled the car in the kids all took turns trying out all the seats and deciding who would sit where - they all tried to claim the driver's seat. I had to remind Teddy that I would be sitting up front with Dad.
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August 4 2009 by Retro to Now Road Trip
The Monteith family hit the road as the winners of Best Western's "Retro to Now Road Trip" contest.
Left Philly this morning, what a great city! We had not had a chance to see this city before and after the day we decided we definitely need to go back.
From there we headed to New York City - which is always so cool because you see the city skyline as you drive in so it was very fun to point it out to the kids. The kids were just amazed at all the activity and lights. The hotel was at the best vantage point for the kids, right by the M&M World store. There is a huge screen with M&Ms doing crazy things. We were outside the hotel for about 20 mins. while we were unloading and it was the quietest the kids had been the whole weekend!
We are staying at the Best Western President Hotel at Times Square - what a hotel!!! It was a great end to the retro portion of our trip as we walked into our room and it was all white (white tables, walls, couch, linen) and black. Not the best for a mom though. "Oh my gosh kids go wash your hands and don't touch anything!" Actually it was very fun for the kids as they have never seen anything that modern. There was also a box waiting for us from AAA. Inside was DVDs and electronic car games. The kids don't have any electronic car games, so getting them to sleep was a chore.
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August 3 2009 by Retro to Now Road Trip
The Monteith family hit the road as the winners of Best Western's "Retro to Now Road Trip" contest.
Gettysburg was a blast! We thoroughly enjoyed the nice weather. We also got the chance to talk to some of the actors that reenact the battles by accidently wandering up to their campfire! The interaction between the kids and the actors was the highlight of the trip. The men truly seemed exhausted from a whole day of maneuvering, but the kids sat down and chatted up a storm. Asking questions that are extremely important to a nine-year-old like, "how can you sleep if a bug crawls on you?" The funny thing was, we thought we were at reenactment campfire discussion advertised in the National Parks Service newspaper, but when we left
found the "real" campsite discussion not too far from where we had been!
On our way out of Gettysburg we paid tribute to "Sallie", the 11th Pennsylvania Infantry Regiment's mascot. Their historical marker has Sallie lying at the feet of her soldier. Great story and if you ever visit Gettysburg, go see her.
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August 3 2009 by Retro to Now Road Trip
The Monteith family hit the road as the winners of Best Western's "Retro to Now Road Trip" contest.
The Monteith Clan arrived at Gettysburg today! The first leg of the trip was pleasant as the kids were very involved in the car games AAA sent them. They even had invisible ink games that I played with in the car when I was a kid. I am sure they will have no problem doing the first half of the trip with no in-car TVs because the assortment of games AAA sent is perfect for all my kids. Every family should try this next time they hit the road - unplug that DVD player and pick up some car games!
After arriving we went immediately to the visitor's center and saw the movie about Gettysburg. We then went to the National Park side of the visitor's center and signed up for the junior ranger program. We love this program as it is a very economical way to see the park and get a souvenir. The programs are very informative and the kids really have to pay attention and work to fill out the books, but in the end they all receive a badge which they can add to their collection. We try to do the programs whenever we are visiting a National Park.
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August 3 2009 by Retro to Now Road Trip
The Monteith family hit the road as the winners of Best Western's "Retro to Now Road Trip" contest.
OK so it's a little later than I had hoped to leave on the great adventure. We were hoping to get out at 9:30 but its 10:00 - oh well. I managed to find my backpack from when I was a kid and went on road trips with my parents and grandparents. It actually still has all the postcards I got when I was a kid! I threw it in the car so my kids could look through it. Their one comment was, "Ewwww it stinks!" Ok, the slight odor of mildew maybe there!
I also managed to grab all my music from the 50s, 60s and 70s that my parents used to listen too. Teddy informed me she does not like Buddy Holly, but, oh well - kid torture in a car is an amazing thing. I also grabbed some of the music I liked when in college like Ace of Base, etc.
Our rental car is packed with probably more than we should take. It was so convenient that Hertz let us pick up the car yesterday so we could get a jump start on packing! Well, the van is packed, we are ready to go and the kids have already started to fight! What's a good road trip without kids fighting though, right?
Vonnette
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August 3 2009 by Retro to Now Road Trip
As grand prize winners of the Best Western and AAA "Retro to Now Road Trip" sweepstakes, the Monteith family will hit the road and tour some of the Northeast's most famous cities and landmarks in a way most modern day families don't - in a standard family van, without access to a CD player, cell phones or other technology. While traveling in the vehicle, provided by Hertz Rental Car, video games and DVDs will be replaced by road games and paperbacks to keep the children - a five-year-old, eight-year-old and nine-year old twins - occupied. The journey will be guided by a TripTik® Travel Planner provided by AAA.
Midway through the journey, the family will switch to "now," with all familiar and modern amenities returning. In addition the family will drive a fully-loaded 2009 Volkswagen Routan, the only minivan in America with German engineering. Features include power sliding doors, U-Connect Bluetooth cellular phone wireless connection, DVD navigation with wide touch screen, built-in single-disc AM/FM/CD/DVD/MP3, USB connection, 30GB hard drive, music storage feature, Sirius Satellite Radio and rear view backup camera.
Follow the Monteith family on their "Retro to Now Road Trip". Their first blog post is below. Check back to see how their retro to now journey progresses!
Preparing to Go Retro
One day and counting. The kids are so excited. They have been packing for the last month. Every time I am looking for something I find that it has been stashed in one of many bags that is for the big trip! Tonight is the moment of truth though as I go through the kids bags and explain to Madeline (5) that she does not need to take all her Barbies on the trip and Scotty (8) does not need to take all of his favorite stuffed animals. Teddy and Katie are always within limit but I sometimes find that after they "help" the younger kids pack their favorite items are stashed in someone else's bag so they don't have to carry it!
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