One of my favorite things about visiting Colonial Williamsburg is the sheer number of artisans. From carpenters, bakers, calligraphers, cabinet makers, blacksmiths, to gardeners. Each has a special skill they proudly show to visitors who stop by to see them while touring.

The calligrapher shows you how your name would have been properly written in the 18th century – including how to hold the quill, dipping into the ink, and forming of your letters. It makes the new text generation seem like cheating in a way.

We also visited with the cobbler – who I still am not exactly sure what all they did in the 18th century. Everything I asked this particular cobbler was returned with, “shoes were bought off the shelf and were made in an assembly line fashion.” That part doesn’t sound very different from now, but their shoes sure do look neat. I’m sure there are major differences and I  just phrased my question wrong to this fella. Or the heat had gotten to him. Or something.

We just moved right along.

To the cabinet maker’s shop. I could live in here.

Such artistry and attention to detail. It is truly amazing.

I could just watch him carve wood all day.

So relaxing.

There is a display of different types of legs for each cabinet or piece of furniture and the cabinet maker explains how each would have normally been used in colonial times.

The pieces of furniture being made and the tools used to make them is something that you just have to see for yourself.

Simply amazing.

We were a bit late for the encampment program where you learn how groups of people survived during this period of the revolution. This is a definite must-do on our next visit.

The blacksmith explained so much of his trade. Again, such amazing attention to detail and hard, hard work.

This sweet lady is baking bread in a homemade oven of bricks, clay, and hay. The oven is heated to 600 degrees and then peel of bread is inserted into the oven. The fire is then allowed to burn down and the bread is baked.

The smell when she opened the door to the oven was heavenly.

Lastly, we visited the silversmiths’ workshop in town. He was making a small Jefferson cup when we visited, which he told us would take a silversmith approximately 40 hours to finish.

One cup = forty hours.

Mercy!

On display in the shop are pieces of silver and pewter that have been made throughout the years. Some pieces you can purchase and others are for display only.

I always love visiting all of the artisans of Colonial Williamsburg. They share their knowledge of their trade in a wonderful, inspiring way. It’s definitely makes you more aware of the amount of labor that goes into a chair that you sit in, a dresser where you keep things, a pewter candlestick, and even your shoes. And for that, I’m thankful.

© Robyn for Traveling | Add a Pinch | Robyn Stone, 2012. | Permalink | All Rights Reserved. Add to del.icio.us
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Post tags: camping, RVing, Traveling, Williamsburg

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We recently visited Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia for a couple of days and spent as much time as we possibly could in touring the area. The architecture, gardens, and craftsmanship from this time in our history is absolutely one of my favorites. The Governor’s Palace sits at one end of the property looking out on an area similar to The Mall in Washington DC with the Capitol situated at the other end.

It’s gorgeous.

Atop the gate sits the symbols of Great Britan with the lion and the unicorn. These symbols are repeated throughout Colonial Williamsburg and we searched for them like we do the Hidden Mickey’s in Walt Disney World.

When you buy your tickets in the Visitor’s Center to be able to enter the historic buildings on the tour, you can ask to participate in the Patriot program where you are given a red bandana to show special guides in Colonial Williamsburg that you are participating. Your job in the program is to search for clues and find answers throughout the area to help in the Revolution.

It is definitely a must-do with children. It kept our son engaged throughout the day and excited about the next clues.

Of course, I could have enjoyed an afternoon in the gardens. They are so beautiful and peaceful. I only wish mine looked nearly as good as these do. Well, without the use of gardeners and all.

Again, you can tell how much I loved the Governor’s Palace just by looking through the photos on my camera. I was a bit obsessed with photos of it.

We also loved looking in the carriage house at all of the carriages. There is signage denoting the use for each. The yellow was used by the Governor and his family and the blue was used for hauling items.

But seeing them in action was even better than seeing them in the carriage house.

Colonial Williamsburg also provides a carriage of sorts around the area. It sure helps when you are all the way at the Capitol and in a hurry to make it back to the Visitor’s Center, or at the Visitor’s Center and need to make a reservation for lunch or supper. It’s just a handy-dandy thing let me tell ya.

Although I thoroughly enjoy the leisurely walk down the streets enjoying all the stops and tours.

And especially catching the fife and drummer parade.

And the gardens and their visitors.

At the opposite end from the Governor’s Palace is the Capitol.

It is a rebuild of earlier Capitol building and bears the insignia of Britain.

Definitely be sure to catch the guided tour of the Capitol building. It is one of my favorite parts of Colonial Williamsburg and is packed with so much information. We especially learned a great deal during the discussion of voting privileges during that time.

Then back up to the old Post Office building, we stayed for the reading of the Declaration of Independence and the firing of the canons and these guns. I have to admit I got a little teary-eyed during this part. I’m such a sap thinking about all that generations before us did for our country. And for us.

See, I get a little weepy just thinking about it.

If you’ve not visited Colonial Williamsburg with your family, you really should think about visiting. It’s one of my favorite places to step back in time.

© Robyn for Traveling | Add a Pinch | Robyn Stone, 2012. | Permalink | All Rights Reserved. Add to del.icio.us
Post Categories: Favorite Places, Guides, Traveling
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“Your on fire,” came over the radio as we left Charlotte on our way up the road. We both looked into the rear camera to watch the front tire of our tow vehicle rolling off and down through the guardrail and into the ditch on the side of the interstate.

The smoke was what my father-in-law spotted first as he and my mother-in-law followed along behind us in their RV. The smell was what caught my attention. Rubber burning. That smell never smells good.

Immediately, my mind flashed visions of pit crews in Daytona, cute little Luigi timing himself as he announces, “pit stop,” in Cars, and then the fateful scene where Ralphie and his Dad are changing the tire on their way home from buying their Christmas tree in A Christmas Story.

And I giggled.

Little Buddy, obviously upset from hearing, “your on fire,” wasn’t all the way caught up to the updated events and surely couldn’t read my mind to understand why I was giggling. He gave me a stern look usually reserved for parents toward their children in such events.

Within seconds, my husband had our RV safely stopped on the side of the interstate and he and my father-in-law were in the process of pulling the spare tire out of my trunk.

Twenty-three minutes later (exactly), with spare tire seated and our old, shredded tire bagged and stored in my trunk, we were on our way to the local tire store for a replacement.

The moral to the story? Well, here are some points I thought of:

1. Always have a spare tire and know how to change it.
2. It is a good idea to travel with others when you can.
3. AAA and Good Sam are there to help when you need it. Although we didn’t use them for our car tire, had it been our RV tire we would have definitely called them.
4. Have a good sense of humor when things happen. They can’t be helped and a good sense of humor helps in every situation. Really. It does.
5. Be thankful. Be thankful no one was hurt. Be thankful there wasn’t really a fire. Be thankful we had a spare. Be thankful we traveled with others. Be thankful my husband and father-in-law got it quickly changed. Be thankful it was on the side of the car opposite traffic so they weren’t in any great danger. Be thankful we didn’t have to use any Lava soap.

Thanks so much for all the well-wishes on Instagram and Twitter. Y’all are awesome.

Love ya,
Robyn (the official timer of tire changers)

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Post Categories: RVing, Tips, Traveling
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About 14 or 15 years ago, we made our first trip to visit Parkesdales Farm Market in Plant City, Florida while we were visiting for Sun-n-Fun in nearby Lakeland. If you happened to miss previous posts about Sun-n-Fun, it is a week-long airshow and convention for pilots held every spring. We try to go each year and have only missed a few since that first year we went.

Anyway, friends of ours knew how much my husband absolutely adores strawberries and were excited to take us to this market where their fresh strawberries are well worth the trip. With one bite of their strawberry shortcake and a sip of their strawberry milkshake, my dear husband was hooked.

The sign on the front of the market stand welcomes you to strawberry country, but honestly, you can smell the fresh strawberries as you hop out of the car. Of course, I can practically taste their milkshakes within 10 miles of the place when I know one is in my very near future.

Ordering only takes a few minutes if you time your visit right. If you arrive during the annual strawberry festival, then you’ll have a bit of a wait on your hands. If you go any other time, you may only have to wait a few minutes in the line.

But boy, is it ever worth the wait.

I will be honest with you though, if you have a sweet tooth, these milkshakes and shortcakes will fill them! I always mean to order a sugar-free milkshake, but get so caught up in being there that I forget until about halfway through  drinking it! My husband doesn’t mind though, he usually gets whatever I can’t finish.

We still have a hold out to the whole strawberry situation at Parkesdale’s though. Little Buddy started with their vanilla ice cream topped with whipped topping when he was a baby and that’s all he wants still.

It’s his tradition.

One that he’s pretty well set in his ways about – for now.

One of his favorite things is still to add a pin to the map. It’s amazing to see from where people have visited!

On the way out, my tradition is always to pick up a flat of strawberries and other produce.

It’s not one I plan on changing anytime soon either.

If you are ever in the area, be sure to check out Parkesdale’s Market in Plant City, Florida. Parkesdale’s is the largest family-operated strawberry and citrus farm in Florida, harvesting over 3 million pounds of strawberries each year. Now that my friends, is a whole lotta strawberries!

Parkesdale Farm Market

3702 West Baker Street

Plant City,  Florida 33563

(888) 311-1701

Have you found a favorite farmer’s market in your travels? I’d love to hear about it.

© Robyn for Traveling | Add a Pinch | Robyn Stone, 2012. | Permalink | All Rights Reserved. Add to del.icio.us
Post Categories: Camping, Favorite Places, RVing, Traveling
Post tags: camping, farm, Florida, market, Traveling

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Even though the summer doesn’t actually begin until June 20th this year, Memorial Day weekend is the unofficial beginning of the the summer season around here. For many people, the weekend is full of grilling, picnics, playing by the pool or boating on the lake, and camping. Regardless of the activity though, we always love to spend it with friends and family remembering those who have and who currently serve in our armed forces.

Our family will be camping at the lake this Memorial Day weekend and as I put together my menu and grocery list, I thought it would be the perfect time to share a few of my favorite camping tips and recipes with you.

Meal Planning Tips

The extended three-day holiday weekend is the perfect time for camping and is ripe for relaxing if you plan ahead.

• Know the number of guests you’ll be feeding for each meal. I always like to plan on two more than I know will be there, just in case!
• Plan for quick, healthy snacks everyone can grab and go so no one is cooking all through the weekend.
• Pack a small travel cooler to take along with you on the boat, for a picnic, or to pack drinks in for a quick excursion.
• Keep a list of your meal plan handy to help in meal preparation.
• Include other families in your meal plans if traveling with others. It is fun to work together to prepare meals as well as to trade out which meals you will provide and which ones they will handle.

Breakfast Ideas

I love to plan for a breakfast that I know everyone will enjoy. I also like one that will stick to everyone’s ribs throughout the morning of playing in the water, hiking, and other adventures we may find ourselves enjoying. These are a few that I’m planning for this coming weekend:

Lemon Blueberry Pancakes – these pancakes are easy to mix together and everyone gathers around the griddle as we cook them in the mornings. Be sure to include your zester in your camping kit for these beauties.

Homemade Granola – I love to make a few batches of homemade granola before we leave for our trip. We can easily add it to a bowl of yogurt with fresh fruit in the mornings or grab a bag for a snack later in the day. Store at least one batch in individual zip top bags for snacking and the remainder in a larger airtight container for larger meal preparation.

Breakfast Salad - Breakfast salads have become one of my favorite meals while camping. We start the day filled with protein and greens and tons of energy for other activities.

Lunch Ideas

Generally, we’re out and about at lunchtime so I like to pack a small cooler with drinks and items that we can enjoy a picnic lunch on the boat. Here are a few of my favorite lunch items for camping.

Herbed Tortellini Salad – I like to make this salad at home and pack into an airtight container into the RV refrigerator for our trip. Then, we just grab and go for a quick lunch.

Applewiches – These were a favorite afternoon snack growing up and make an excellent lunch on the go when camping. If you’d prefer not to assemble the applewiches, just grab a few apples, little travel packs of your favorite nut butter, a knife, and you’ve got a great lunch!

Sandwiches – we also like simple ham and cheese or peanut butter and jelly sandwiches when camping. If we have leftover bacon from the morning, a BLT seems to always find its way into lunch, too.

Supper Ideas

Now when I start planning for supper, that’s when it really gets fun. My husband loves grilling out when we are camping and loves to smoke pork, beef, chicken, and fish! I have to be careful not to over plan for suppers we love it so much!

Hamburger Sliders with Spicy Cilantro Lime Spread make the perfect addition to any camping trip! I can’t imagine going camping or celebrating Memorial Day without a good burger and this spread takes the standard burger to a whole new level.

You can easily make your ground beef into patties and store in an airtight container or wrap tightly in aluminum foil prior to your trip. For added flavor, go ahead and add the minced garlic and Worcestershire sauce to your ground beef as you are making your patties. The hamburgers will be full of flavor when you cook them!

You can also go ahead and make your Spicy Cilantro Lime Spread ahead of time and store in a small mason jar or other airtight container until ready to serve. Both the hamburger patties and spread will need to be kept in a refrigerator or well-iced cooler until you are ready to cook them.

BBQ Ribs with Mama’s Coca-Cola BBQ Sauce are a staple for celebratory weekends. The slower you let these babies cook, the better they are to eat. They practically fall off the bone. Be sure to have plenty of napkins for these ribs!

Sometimes, I like to go ahead and make Mama’s BBQ Sauce and keep in an airtight container in the RV refrigerator. It saves a lot of time while we are camping, but the sauce only takes a few minutes to come together if making on the go!

A warm potato salad with bacon and onion goes perfectly with these ribs, as does a fresh cabbage slaw.

Steaks – it’s hard to beat a good steak while camping. You can smell them cooking on grills all around beginning about 4 or 5 o’clock in the afternoon. That’s a sure signal it’s time to head in off the lake and start our own supper. My recipe for the perfect steak is as simple as it can be. You can add a few scrubbed potatoes that have been wrapped in aluminum foil to the grill and toss together a quick caprese salad for a full meal in no time.

Dessert Ideas

Strawberry Pretzel Salad combines the perfect amount of salty and sweet with creamy and crunchy! Made ahead and kept in the refrigerator, this salad will be an easy and refreshing dessert.

If refrigeration is of concern, I would choose fruit, brownies, cookies, or a cake that does not require any refrigeration throughout the trip. Here are a few of my favorites:

Chocolate Marble Squares

Cream Cheese Pound Cake

Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies

Drink Ideas

Lemonade is always one of our favorite drinks while camping. It’s nice to prepare individual pint mason jars filled with lemonade and pop them into the freezer. Then, within a few minutes of pulling one of of the freezer,  you have a frozen lemonade that is always a refreshing treat!

Water is probably the one thing that we drink the most of while camping though. We keep jugs of water on board as well as individual bottles that we can easily carry with us and refill throughout the day.

I know that sounds like a lot, but with a little planning, the meals you enjoy while RVing will be some of your favorites!

© Robyn for Traveling | Add a Pinch | Robyn Stone, 2012. | Permalink | All Rights Reserved. Add to del.icio.us
Post Categories: Camping, RVing, Tips, Traveling, Uncategorized
Post tags: camping, RVing, Traveling

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What is it about planning a trip? My wanderlust tendencies grow stronger at just the mention of a trip and as I start planning – fuhgeddaboudit. I might as well declare myself useless in all other major projects. I become smitten with the entire process of planning and preparing and then drive everyone batty with all of the details.

At least I admit it.

We’re in the process of planning a trip out west this summer. My husband has business obligations in Colorado and we decided it would make a wonderful time to load up the RV and travel along.

We made a similar trip a few years ago with stops in Nashville and St. Louis where we then hopped on I-70 W with stops in Topeka, Denver and then on to Breckenridge. After Breckenridge, we stopped in Taos, Amarillo, and a few other amazing places.

While the trip will be somewhat similar on the way out, we’re  planning on driving on to Yellowstone National Park for a visit and to spend some time in Montana and Wyoming. We haven’t visited there in about five years and there are so many breath-taking and inspiring things to see and do there that we don’t want to miss.

I’d love to hear about your “must-see” spots in that area so I can include as many of them as possible in my planning.

And you know I’m going to share tons of RVing and camping tidbits as we’re planning and then along the way.

Happy Trails! (Corny, I know. I just couldn’t resist.)

Love ya,
Robyn xoxo

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Post Categories: Camping, RVing, Traveling
Post tags: camping, Traveling

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The boys, meaning my husband and Little Buddy, are just wrapping up a big overnight camping trip with my son’s Cub Scout group. My husband came home from a week full of meetings, grabbed their camping gear and they set up camp near our local regional airport.

I went out for a little while last night to take a couple of extra chairs to them with the hidden agenda of checking in to make sure they didn’t need me.

Of course, they didn’t.

They had big plans for the evening of skits to be performed, cooking supper over the campfire, and of course S’mores and Dutch oven cobbler to be devoured.

But bright and early this morning, I headed back out for their big breakfast of pancakes and bacon. As I rounded the corner to the area where they were camping, I swear I could already smell the bacon cooking. And let me just say, if you’ve ever smelled bacon cooking over a campfire, you know the smell that I mean. Bacon just smells better cooked out in the wide open spaces. The smell just hangs in the air tempting you with every breath you take in.

I don’t think I was the only one that loved the smell, those boys did away with that bacon before I could blink twice!

I’m going to begin sharing more about our camping and RVing here in Add a Pinch Traveling. I plan to begin providing some tips we’ve learned along the way, more great campgrounds we’ve discovered, and information on recipes we absolutely love. We’ll see where it goes from there!

I can’t wait to hear what you think!

© Robyn for Traveling | Add a Pinch | Robyn Stone, 2012. | Permalink | All Rights Reserved. Add to del.icio.us
Post Categories: Camping, Traveling
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We just rolled back in yesterday from a two week trip to Daytona, Florida for Speed Weeks 2012. It starts the week before the actual Daytona 500 with various races that we like to watch,  practicing for the different races, qualifying for them, and then the actual big race of the Daytona 500. It’s the opening race week of the season which will run through November – one of the longest seasons of any sport.

Did you happen to see this year’s race?

Regardless if you are a NASCAR fan or just live anywhere but under a rock, I bet you at least heard about it. There were a few things going on that caused it to be a bit news-worthy.

• Race included a woman driver for the first time ever – and the woman was Danica Patrick (double news!)
• Race was rain-delayed for the first time ever
• Race was on a Monday for the first time ever
• Race was at night for the first time ever

Oh, and yeah, there was the thing where a race car crashed into a jet dryer and caused a big KABOOM for the first time ever.

That definitely was news!

I’ll share more about our trip to the races soon.

I’m still going through 585 photos or so from our trip to avoid doing what seems like 585 million loads of laundry from said trip.

I promise, I’ll dig out from under it all soon so I can show you all of the cool things we saw. It was pretty interesting indeed.

© Robyn for Traveling | Add a Pinch | Robyn Stone, 2012. | Permalink | All Rights Reserved. Add to del.icio.us
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Post tags: daytona, Florida, Traveling

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Every year when we visit Daytona for the NASCAR race, we like to take little “field trips” to learn more about the area. We usually have a stop planned for our little side excursions, but we also like to just get in the car and drive to discover something new. Through the years, we’ve found favorite spots and activities like our eco tour in St. Augustine, the walk on the beach in Amelia Island, a trip to Kennedy Space Center, driving on Daytona Beach, and a few others.

This year, we made a short drive to Ponce Inlet for lunch and a visit.

The area has the best of both worlds with the beach on one side and the inter coastal waterway on the other. We spent most of our time along the waterway.

It was so relaxing to watch the fishing boats as we walked along the pier.

After a leisurely walk around the pier, we were ready to enjoy our lunch inside.

The restaurant Down the Hatch had actually been recommended to us by family who had eaten there before. Let me just say, if you are ever in the area of Daytona – you have got to go! It is so worth the 20 or so minute drive the coast to visit Ponce Inlet for lunch at Down the Hatch. Their Southern Clam Chowder was out of this world delicious!

I don’t think I can live without it until next year when we come back!

Down the Hatch

4894 Front Street
Ponce Inlet, FL 32127

Be sure to grab a table by the window and watch for the dolphins as you enjoy your lunch.

One of the tallest lighthouses in the United States is also located at Ponce Inlet. Climbing to the top is a great excuse for revisiting the area so that no one thinks I’m just coming for the chowder.

Ponce de Leon Inlet Lighthouse

931 South Peninsula Drive
Ponce Inlet, Florida 32127

http://www.ponceinlet.org/

Do you like to just get in the car and drive when you travel? Where have you discovered lately?

© Robyn for Traveling | Add a Pinch | Robyn Stone, 2012. | Permalink | All Rights Reserved. Add to del.icio.us
Post Categories: Guides, Traveling
Post tags: Florida, Lighthouse, Restaurants, Traveling

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There is something about walking into Disney’s Magic Kingdom anytime of the year, but when the park is decorated for Christmas – it is even more magical!

A few weeks ago, my family celebrated my son’s birthday with a trip to Walt Disney World. Luckily, they were just beginning the Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party while we were there.

If you’ve never heard of Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party, it is a special event held at the Magic Kingdom park in Walt Disney World on selected nights during the holidays. To attend the event, you purchase tickets specifically for the party. The park is closed early to all but party attendees and Disney World rolls out the red carpet for the Christmas season – or I guess I should say they roll out the garland, twinkle lights, and fireworks!

The official time of the Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party is normally from 7:00 PM to midnight; however, you can be admitted earlier into the parks with your ticket. Just ask at guest services about early admittance times. You’ll definitely want to get there as soon as you can to not miss a second of the fun!

Many of our favorite rides are open during the party with lines so short you can just walk right on.

Here is a list of the rides that have been open the last few times we’ve visited for the Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party, of course you’ll want to check the schedule when you purchase your tickets for the event.

(...)
Read the rest of Disney’s Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party

© Robyn for Traveling | Add a Pinch | Robyn Stone, 2011. | Permalink | All Rights Reserved. Add to del.icio.us
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