TSA Regulations for flying with children

http://www.tsa.gov/travelers/airtravel/children/index.shtm This is the government website with tips for traveling with children by plane. There are some helpful ideas here. My favorite is: "NEVER leave babies in an infant carrier while it goes through the X-ray machine." Even with that silly tip, the website is thorough and extensive in its rules and instructions. I will be going over this extensively as I plan to take my children on a trip to Hawaii this fall.

Burger King

While I am in no way a fan of fast food, I have recently made a fun discovery. The Burger King located on Santa Ana Canyon in Anaheim Hills has two indoor play areas. The playground is two stories. The best part of this is that the lower level play area is especially for toddlers and is set inside the dining room area. The toddler area is also quite small which is a turn-off to older kids. I'm really not sure how many other Burger Kings might have a toddler area, but it is worth investigating at your local BK. Don't forget to ask for a paper crown on your way out!

Newport 's Balboa Island and Peninsula

Sorry- I had promised to post every day- however my two year old was a little ill this weekend and we really didn't do much of anything.

I hope you don't mind so many beach posts but it is summer and where else would you want to hang out on a hot day but the coast. I wanted to post about one of my favorite hangouts- Balboa Island and Peninsula. I love both of these places but I must warn you - it gets very crowded in the summer. The last time we headed there we started off in the Peninsula. We parked in the Public Parking lot off Balboa blvd and palm. Make sure to bring plenty of coins and dollar bills. I usually take out my stroller and head over to Balboa Fun zone. It usually takes a while because we stop at the little shops along the way and of course to people watch. The kids love this. There are a couple of great little pizza shops, snack vendors and gift shops along the way. We have brought bread to feed the pigeons in the little plaza-but beware there are many and are not shy. Once we've looked around or have taken a ride on the Merry Go Round we love taking one of the Harbor cruises. You can either choose a 45 minute or 90 minute cruise. When I've been with the little ones we take the 45 minute cruise. We try to take the sea lion cruise - make sure you choose this one because the kiddos really enjoy it. The kids really get a kick of seeing the sea lions close up. Once we are done with this we continue our nautical adventure with a ferry ride across to Balboa Island and head over for some shopping and dinner. The ferry ride is usually a blast. It only takes a couple of minutes but let's say you don't have the time to do a harbor cruise- well then do the next best thing and take a quick ferry ride. They leave every couple of minutes and your kids will love riding the ferry. The best part is that children 5 and under are free.

Once we've landed on the Island we just take our time strolling through all of the fun shops on Marine Avenue. You have to make a spit stop on one of the shops that offer frozen bananas or Balboa Bars. They are the best and worth the wait. There are so many shops that trust me your kids will enjoy their stroller ride with all the many people walking around and all of the dogs. I've eaten at a couple of the restaurants there but I would say that one of my favorites is the Shanghai Pine Garden. They have great Chinese food and great service- One other things their prices are very reasonable- only a couple of dollars more than fast food. Usually after all this excitement the kids will usually fall asleep on the trek to the car. Trust me you and your kids will enjoy a fun filled day.

Irvine Park

Okay let me start first by saying how much I love this place... I know I say it all the time. I am a firm believer that you can love many places- that's what is so fantastic about Southern California- there are sooo many places to love.

Hmmm where should I begin? First things first- don't let the name decieve you, the park is located in the city of Orange not Irvine. It's beautiful and the beauty of this place is that you could stay for only an hour or two or stay for the whole day. My visits depend on my mood. Sometimes I've been there for an hour- once I stayed the whole day. My visit usually always starts with a pony ride. This is always the highlight of the trip for my two year old. Pony rides are available from 11 am to 5 pm on weekends and also on holidays. During the summer they are open every day except for Mondays. Pony rides are $4.oo each. As soon as we finish with the pony rides we walk over a couple of yards to the Irvine Park Railroad and the concession stand. I love grabbing an icee while I wait for our train ride. It's a 10 minute ride that goes past the two lakes and some really nice scenery. If I remember correctly the train rides are $4.00 also.

Once we've finished our Icees and had our fill of train rides, we always head over to the OC Zoo. It's also located inside the park and what makes this little zoo so interesting is that all of the animals that are on exhibit are all native to the area or to the southwestern part of the United States. They have a couple of bears that are always fun to watch and they also have a couple of scary mountain lions that are also very interesting to observe close up. Admission is $3.00 per person- children 2 and under are free.

I usually buy some fast food or bring sandwiches and picnic in one of the many great areas to sit and just enjoy the outdoors. I usually also make sure to bring a loaf of bread to feed the ducks and geese.

I have never tried this but there are also bicycle and aquacycle rentals available by the old boathouse. It looks like a lot of fun but I just haven't gotten around to it. You can also bring your bikes and there are many trails to explore or just even to walk or hike.

Entrance to the park is $3 per car on weekdays , $5 on weekends and up to $10 on holidays.

Irvine Regional Park 1 Irvine Park Road Orange, CA 92862 (714)973-6835 or (714)973-3173 Locate Irvine Regional Park with Map Quest

Irvine Regional Park is located in Santiago Canyon, six miles east of the City of Orange. To reach the park, take the Newport Freeway (#55) to the Chapman Avenue East offramp. Head east on Chapman for approximately five miles. Turn left on Jamboree for one fourth a mile to the park entrance. Open: Nov. 1 - March 31, 6:00am to 6:00pm Open: April 1 - Oct. 31, 6:00am to 9:00pm Office Hours: Mon. - Fri., 8:00am to 4:00pm Sat. - Sun., 8:00am to 11:00am

San Diego Wild Animal Park

A couple of weeks ago on a Saturday the four of us headed down south on the 15 to the San Diego Wild Animal Park. We got there a little past 11 and the crowds were actually not that bad. Okay first things first- Make sure you bring great walking shoes, a great stroller, plenty of sunscreen and of course water!!! We did have to wait a bit for parking and parked a bit away from the entrance. You can either hike up from the parking lot or take the tram up to the entrance. We figured it would be more of a pain to take the tran with the stroller and decided to just hike up. It actually wasn't too bad since the weather was only in the low 80's. We went ahead and bought our tickets -( make sure you buy the one with the journey into Africa tour!!!)and decided since the line was too long for the season pass that we would upgrade on our way out. This is definitely the way to go.. If you live in So Cal I would go ahead and get the season pass. It's only 20 dollars more and you have access to both the Wild Animal Park and the San Diego Zoo. You also get two free tickets to either the Zoo or the Park. Just keep your ticket stubs and present them on the way out.. we waited all of 5 minutes.. It was easy and fast.

First thing we headed off to was the Journey to Africa Safari Tour. I would go there first. The lines tend to get long - sometimes up to an hour and a half but if you head there first you will get it out of the way. It's about a 20 minute ride that tours the animal enclosures. My two year old got a kick out of it and so did I. Make sure to bring a pair of binoculars for this adventure. After we finished the tour we just checked out the park. One of our favorite parts was the Lorekeet Landing exhibit. You can buy nectar in teeny cups and feed the little birds. They land on your head, arms, shoulders, etc... It was fun but beware, one of those little stinkers bit me for no reason. It kind of hurt a little but not enough to make me stop feeding the birdies. My two year old was squealing in delight. Your kids will love this.

We stopped and watched a couple of the exotic animals. The animals actually look happy. I think it's because of the enviroment they are in. We called it a day at about 3:30 because my hubby got sunburned badly. I can't stress enough to bring plenty of the sunscreen. It's a must. Oh almost forgot the food is not too bad. We ate at the Mombasa Island Cooker and the food was pretty good for theme park standards. Also if you like soft drinks make sure to buy the souvenir cup. I think it's 9 dollars but you get free refills throughout the day.. We had a great time and can't wait to visit again soon

San Diego Wild Animal Park

15500 San Pasqual Valley Road, 35 miles north of the San Diego Zoo and east of Escondido

Park hours (The Wild Animal Park is open every day of the year, including all holidays.)
Current hours//Park At Dark (now–September 3):9 a.m.–8 p.m. (grounds close at 9 p.m.)
Fall hours (September 4–December 6):9 a.m. to 4 p.m.(grounds close at 5 p.m.)

Parking is 8 dollars...

Little Tokyo

First off let me start by apologizing for not updating this in the past couple of days. I have made a vow to myself and to my faithful readers that I will not let more than two days pass without a new post. There's a couple of places I want to blog about but I will start off with our fun outing yesterday. We headed off to visit Little Tokyo in downtown Los Angeles. It's one of only 3 Japantowns left in the United States.

It's easy to find since it's only a couple of blocks away from City Hall. We went on a Saturday and while it was busy- there wasn't wall to wall people and we actually walked around without a stroller. First thing is Parking. There are a couple of parking lots around Little Tokyo but we used the one directly in front of The Japanese American museum on 1st street. It's a 5 dollar flat rate for the day. The parking lot is perfect because you only have to cross one block and you are there(and trust me you don't really want to cross any streets in downtown LA unless you really have to)

We were hungry so we headed off to eat first. We ate at Oiwake. It's a great little place in the Japanese Village Plaza. The prices are very reasonable and they are family friendly. My kids and I both ate from the buffet and my husband ate some sushi. This place is great except you have to hike up a staircase but its well worth it. After we finished we headed off to do some window shopping. There are many shops that specialize in Japanese products- if your kids love Hello Kitty- this is the place to be. My daughter picked up a Hello Kitty purse that would cost about 10 dollars at the mall for 1.99. The merchants are friendly and even gave the kids lollipops. I wish I could say we did more like visit the museums or try out one of the bakeries but we didn't. You really need a full day and not just a couple of hours. I promise I will return with Little Tokyo Part 2, but for now I hope you might be a little curious about this great place and visit for your self....

For more information visit www.visitlittletokyo.com

Aliso Beach

Last Thursday, the gang and I headed to Aliso Beach. It's located at the southern part of Laguna and it's a great little place for a beach day. There is parking but it is limited so I would suggest that you either get there early or in the late afternoon. Also bring plenty of dollar bills. The parking meters only accept dollars and quarters so be prepared. Parking is a dollar an hour.

I think this is a great family beach because everything is so accessible. I've been to beaches where you have to trek down for a ways or there are no restrooms nearby but Aliso is perfect because the sand is literally 100 feet away from the parking lot, there are nice clean restrooms with working showers and all this within a short walking distance, which makes it easy to bring a cooler, chairs, etc.. We had a great time and headed north to Downtown Laguna and finished off with some people watching and a great sunset view from the Jack in the Box on PCH. It was a fun, cheap day that the kids will not soon forget.

Aliso Beach Park - next to the Montage Resort

31131 S. Pacific Coast Hwy

Laguna Beach, CA 92652

Disney's California Adventure

New and improved! Now family friendly!

Yes, when DCA first opened there was very little for children to do there. Disney quickly became aware of this and created A Bug's Land themed after the film A Bugs Life. There you can find attractions like Heimlich's Chew Chew Train where kids will love the oversize eye-candy and getting sprayed with the scent of watermelon! There Tuck and Roll's bumper cars (slow and gentle), Francis' Ladybug Boogie (a version of the teacup ride) and Flik's Flyers (think Dumbo). There is also the "It's Tough to be a Bug" 3-D movie, which can be a bit too scary for little children. There are also water play attractions, tractors to climb on, agriculture exhibits to interact with and a meet and greet featuring Flik and Princess Ata!

Another great area for children is the Redwood Creek Challenge Trail. Note that several play sections of this area have a 42" height requirement but there are things for the real little tikes to play on also. Nearby is the S.S. Rustworthy which is another interactive water area. If you are careful, you won't get all that wet.

The park also features Disney's Electrical Parade which plays every night during the summer and Friday through Sunday nights the rest of the year. DCA is open until 9 PM during the summer and 6 PM during slower periods.

Another great thing about DCA happens every October, Mickey's Halloween Treat. This is a separate ticketed event that happens on specific nights which means a limited number of people are allowed in. The lines to the rides are super short. Adults and children are able to go trick or treating around the park and there is special entertainment and decorations everywhere. This years dates are October 4, 11, 18, 25, 29, 30, 31 - 6:30-10:30 p.m. and October 5, 12, 19, 26 - 7:30-11:30 p.m.

Tickets are already on sale to the event for annual passholders and Disney Visa cardholders. Advance price is $24 per ticket, regardless of age. Day of the Event the tickets go for $39. Call 714-781-4400 for information and ticket sales. Your children will love this!

(c) Disney Publicity Photo

Great tips for Vancouver BC

Here are some tips submitted by Alien Citizen for your travels in Canada: Vancouver Aquarium Then there is the Vancouver Aquarium in British Columbia. From sea lions to whales to jellyfish it was fabulous! Everything you could ask for from an aquarium and it's located at...Stanley Park which is one of the most incredible parks in the world. It's huge and has several other diversions in addition to those at the aquarium These include a miniature train ride, a farmyard, a pool, and a water park, among other things. They have events there all the time as well. And the bus system in BC is so fabulous that you never have to drive. Not just buses, the Skytrain is also a significant part of the wonderful public transportation system there that keeps the city so clean. Altogether a great vacation for a family. Burnaby Library If you like libraries then try finding out which is the absolute largest or most beautiful one for miles around. I always do this in a new place and Burnaby library, right outside of Vancouver, was no disappointment. It is both large and beautiful with glass walls looking out on green outside and over the beautiful architecture of the building inside. The largest in BC is of course the Vancouver Public Library which, oddly enough, I don't think we ever visited. Hope this is helpful. Enjoy!

Let me know!!

I would like to post more fun places to visit and not just limit it to Southern California. If you have a great place where you took your kids and want to share it please drop me a line at mom@daytrippingmom.com . I would love to post up your review. If you are a hotel/place of interest drop me a line and I will gladly link you up. Thanks again and happy summer!!

My second favorite beach city- Santa Barbara

The past couple of days have been pretty hot in Orange and LA county - It doesn't really feel that way when we have our AC cranked but my husband Mike and I figured that we wanted to enjoy the outdoors but not in this type of weather.. My husband is not a very spontaneous kind of guy but he suggested early on the 4th to pack a bag and head out to Santa Barbara. I love Santa Barbara- Okay I love all of California- but I really have a place in my heart for beach towns. Laguna being my favorite followed closely by Santa Barbara. It is truly a beautiful city with the beautiful architecture, gorgeous scenery and lots of things to do and see. We all enjoyed the drive and it took us only about an hour and forty five minutes to get from the OC to Santa Barbara. Once you get into Ventura County the drive just is so lovely. Our two year old let us know throughout the ride- oh pretty- oh look mommy the pretty agua(beach)- I love the way the 101 is side by side with the ocean from Ventura to Carpinteria. The weather was great and the first thing we did was headed over to the Santa Barbara mission. I had been there before but this was the first time we actually had the chance to tour the mission. It was just amazing to be in such a beautiful old building. It was also just great to learn all about the way the Catholic missionaries lived and how the Indians in the area also lived. It's also a great place for photography. If you are a shutterbug then this is a must stop for you. The kids enjoyed looking at the mission and my two year old loved exploring the ground and so did we. The best part is also that the doorways of the old mission fit double strollers. Yipee!! I never knew I would one day get excited about this but yes it is very exciting when something is stroller accommodating. Once we finished our little excursion we headed over to Goleta to explore the area. Goleta is the town next to SB and is actually where the campus of UCSB is located. It was just fun to drive around and explore the area. We finished with a cruise down State street. We did a little window shopping and had dinner at CPK- There are so many shops and restaurants on state street you can spend all day exploring the street. It's so much fun to just people watch and window shop. Those two activities actually took up most of our day. Santa Barbara is just amazingly beautiful. You have to check it out for yourself and see why they call it the American Riviera. I will definitely be posting more about this beautiful city since we plan on going there for a little getaway this summer.

Santa Ana Zoo

Summer is here and with it comes children that are home for the summer looking for fun things to do. I'm going to do my best to post everyday to offer some alternatives to the obvious options like the movies, library or the mall.

One of the first places you should make a stop on your summer adventure journey is the Santa Ana Zoo. I'm a big fan of this little zoo. First off because it's conveniently located right off the 5 and 55 fwy interchange and second because it's inexpensive and a great way to spend a morning or afternoon.

The first plus of this little place is that parking is free!! Yippe I'm all for things that are free. The second is the admission prices. Adults are $6 children 3-12 are $3 and of course two and under are free.

One of the first places I head to is their farm area. They have a duck/chicken/turkey area(kids love to just sit and call to the lovely birds, the goat area where you can feed and pet the goats(don't worry they have a hand sanitizing area) and a livestock barn area where you will find your Old MacDonald type of animals- cows, pigs and horses. My two year old has been known to break into her favorite song as we cruise the barn. There is also a train that takes you on a little tour of the park. I believe that the ride is $3.00 and it's a must when visiting.

Once you've had your share of farm animals head over to the monkey section. This will be the highlight of your trip. They have various types of monkeys. I can't exactly tell you what kind but there are plenty of monkeys to be seen. There is also an elephant ride that really to me is the only downside of the park. Sorry don't mean to be a party pooper but in my opinion these majestic creatures shouldn't be giving "pony rides". This is really the only negative thing about the zoo. It really is a great little zoo.

Almost forgot the kids also liked the aviary and I did as well. You are surrounded by a beautiful garden and of course some pretty cool birds. On a hot summer day it's also about twenty degrees cooler than the rest of the park and a great place to take a seat and take it all in. If you have some downtime this summer make sure to check it out. If you are planning a vacation to the park with the famous mouse and are looking for fun things to do make sure to make a littl pit stop at the Santa Ana Zoo.

Santa Ana Zoo- 1800 East Chestnut Ave, Santa Ana, CA 92701
Mon-Fri 10am to 4pm
Sat and Sun 10 am to 5pm
714-835-7484

The OC Marketplace and Centennial Farm

Have you ever been low on cash but yet wanting to do some cheap shopping and something that won't drain your pocketbook?. Is it a Saturday or Sunday and you are bored as can be? Then my friends I have a great suggestion for you. Yesterday I was experiencing all of the above and decided to go out to the Orange County Marketplace. It's an open-air market located on the grounds of the Orange County Fairgrounds in Costa Mesa. Okay, you can call it a swap meet or flea market but it's really not your typical swap meet. For starters most of the customers come from south Orange County. Let's just say that about half of the cars in the parking lot are European imports. Secondly there is preferred parking. Yes, you can have preferred parking at a swap meet!! I was a bit baffled at first by this too but it's not that much farther to walk from the free parking. Lastly, it's close enough to the beach that you get a nice breeze, even on a hot summer day. The merchandise varies from 99c toiletries to new oak bedroom sets. There is something for everyone there. There is no hard selling going on and the environment is very family friendly. There is heavy security and the marketplace has strict regulations for it's vendors, including the fact that they must stay open until closing. Admission is $2 and children under 12 are free. There are wagons available to rent at the entrance to transport your little ones. The OC Marketplace is closed for a month from July to August duing the OC Fair. I'll post on the fair later this month. The Centennial Farm is also at the OC fairgrounds. It is open year-round and has free admission (except during the fair when your fair admission also admits you to the farm area). The farm is located just do the left of the main entrance to the fair as well as being just outside the rear entrance to the Pacific Amphitheater. The Centennial Farm is a real working farm. They have cows, chickens, sheep, goats, pigs, chickens and other animals. You can get up close and pet many of them. There are live demonstrations during the week. Call (714) 708-1619 for schedule information and hours of operation.