Take some luggage.

And some snacks.

Add mom, dad and one red headed 2 year old wild woman.

Put them all inside one minivan completely wrapped in a TWIZZLERS candy theme.

What do you get? Our Twizzlers Traveling Family road trip to Boston, Massachusetts!

When we first found out that we had been chosen by Hershey’s Twizzlers to serve as one of their ten Twizzlers Traveling Families this summer, we were really psyched. To celebrate the Twizzlers Landmark Summer promotion, ten bloggers and their families would have the chance to go on a road trip (in a Twizzlers branded car!) to take in the sites and sounds of this amazing country.

Road trips are certainly nothing new to our family. In just the past year, we have traveled to Texas and also to Florida. We have road tripping down to a science when it comes to really long drives and a fairly young child. We knew that for our Twizzlers trip we wanted to have plenty of time to explore someplace new – and didn’t want to be driving for days on end.

Boston, MA immediately came to mind. Neither my husband nor I have ever been to Boston (we live in the Philadelphia, PA suburbs) and it has been on our list of places to check out for awhile.

Oh – I should also mention that my husband and I are also really into visiting historical attractions. (Translation: we are total history geeks.) We love wandering through battlefields, visiting museums, seeing old graveyards, you name it – we enjoy it… and if we have the time, chances are good that we will stop along our journey.

We managed to pack a TON of Boston fun into our vacation!

Some highlights:

Wednesday: We took a ferry from Hyannis, MA (on Cape Cod) to Nantucket for the day. How fun! We took a bus tour of the island, ate a great local lunch and even visited the Nantucket Whaling Museum.

Thursday: We took in some old time America by taking the Fenway Ballpark Tour. After that it was a short drive up north to Salem, MA. We visited the Salem Witch Museum and relived some high school history classes as we re-learned what events took place during the Salem Witch Trial hysteria. We ended the day with a tour of the House of Seven Gables – made famous by Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel.

Friday: This entire day was all about the history of Boston. We took TWO separate 90 minute walking tours of different areas in the city – and learned so much about the historical events that shaped the area. Lunch was a super tasty meal at Quincy Market and the day was finished off with a visit to the Boston Museum of Science.

Saturday: Our final full day in Boston! We started out early by checking out the Plimoth Plantation and Plymouth Rock. Then we headed east to take a tour of the Samuel Adams Brewery (very cool!). Our last tour of the trip was a Boston Duck Boat tour. We thought the Duck Boat tour was very entertaining and served as a wonderful summary of some of the other tours we took during our trip.

What a trip!

Of course, let’s not forget the hysterical looks and waves that we got from anyone and everyone as we cruised along the highway in our Twizzler mobile!

A former teacher, Devon is now a stay-at-home mom who finds excitement and adventure in scouting out the best deals on everything from food to electronics.  When she’s not road tripping with her fam, this ’11 Superoo is blogging on her site, MamaCheaps.com.

Big thanks to the Hershey Company for giving our family the opportunity to be a Twizzlers Traveling Family. Wonderful memories were made as we enjoyed time together and added some new sites to our family scrapbook! The Hershey Company paid for our travel accommodations and expenses.

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Travel with kids to: CA | CO | DC | FL | HI | IL | MA | NC | NY | OR | PA | TN | TX | VA | WA

The Liberty Bell. Our nation’s capital. The Golden Gate Bridge.  These are the type of landmarks families build their vacations around.  This summer Twizzlers (yes, the red twisty candy we all know and love) is encouraging families to take their own landmark vacations during their Twizzler Landmark Summer promotion.

Build your own landmark itinerary

Trekaroo always encourages families to travel, so teaming with Twizzlers in an effort to get more families to take the Great American Roadtrip was a no brainer. Twizzlers has tools on their site to help families to plan their own trip as well as helpful travel tips.

Giveaways, giveaways, giveaways

Twizzlers knows that you love a good giveaway so they have made sure families have multiple opportunities to win all summer long.  You can enter daily to win prizes such as a GPS, digital camera, national parks guidebooks, and the grand prize- a vacation to your favorite American Landmark!

Of course, Trekaroo had to get in on the giveaway action as well, so stay tuned as we give away fabulous Twizzler prize packs to 10 lucky Trekaroo families throughout the summer (psst- our first giveaway will be here on the blog on May 30th).

Cruisin’ in the Twizzlermobile

This summer, keep your eyes peeled for a super cool minivan decked out with a Twizzlers wrap cruising down the interstate.  Ten lucky bloggers ( including Superoos MamaCheaps and Minnemom)  have been chosen to travel to landmarks around the country, starting in  Rhode Island and ending in Seattle. Each family will take a 5 day road trip to a famous landmark and chronicle the journey on their blogs as well as the Twizzler website. I am thrilled to announce that my family is one of the lucky families!!!

My family will start in Orange County, CA and head up the California Coast (one of our country’s finest natural landmarks) to the Golden Gate Bridge. We are very excited for our road trip, especially since we haven’t been to San Francisco since we moved from Northern California almost 3 years ago. Of course, we are also excited about the massive supply of Twizzlers which will be accompanying us along the way.  I am still trying to convince my husband to walk around the streets San Francisco in a suit made of Twizzlers.  If you see us on the road, flag us down and I will throw some Twizzlers your way!

Follow that Twizzlermobile!

We encourage you to follow all of the bloggers as they take the mighty Twizzlermobile across the country.  As each blogger completes their leg of the journey, Trekaroo will be sharing a road trip itinerary which takes families to the featured destination each bloggers is visiting. We hope these will encourage you to make your own family road trip plans.

The journey kicks off in a few days as we follow Audrey Mc Clelland of MomGenerations.com and her family as they leave Rhode Island for Washington DC.

Let the Landmark Summer begin!

Disclosure: I have been chosen as one of the Twizzlers Traveling Families.  My trip (gas, hotel, food, and incidentals) is being paid for by Twizzlers. I have received no other compensation and opinions stated are entirely my own.

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Sharlene Earnshaw (aka doubleadventure) is Blogger-in-chief for Trekaroo and the blogger behind Double the Adventure.

Travel with kids to: CA | CO | DC | FL | HI | IL | MA | NC | NY | OR | PA | TN | TX | VA | WA

Life with four kids, isn’t always easy or blissful.  Occasionally, it’s pure chaos mixed in with some insanity (on my part).  When my husband and I decided to make to move from San Luis Obispo, CA to Dallas, TX, we knew it was going to be a lot of work.  Flying that distance with our kiddos wasn’t really an option, but a big road trip was!

I had two visions for what a long road trip would be like:  one being a lot of fun- well-planned activities and destinations with six smiling faces eager to embrace life and our love for learning.  The other vision was of complete misery- four cranky kids asking every minute the phrase that makes my skin crawl, the phrase no parent can avoid, “Are we there yet?”

Determined to get as close to the first picture in my head as possible, I decided to embrace the Boy Scout motto, “Always be prepared!”  Even though I strive to be, I am not always the most organized person.  If I told you I was normally Ms. Organization, my husband would probably be the first person to comment on this post calling me out.  However, my desire for a positive, successful trip encouraged me to plan ahead and think through what I packed and why.  Fortunately, our road trip was a hit!  My kids were happy and entertained the entire trip.  Only once did my 7 year old ask when we were going to get there!  Most of all, we enjoyed each others company, laughed a lot, and know we could do it again!  Here are some things we did:

#1  Organize, Organize, Organize.

One of my pet peeves while traveling are the toys, books, uneaten food and trash that accumulate and float around the van.  Determined to have as clutter-less a trip as possible, I wanted everything that entered the van to be in some sort of container or organizer.  Luckily, there are some amazing backseat organizers on the market today. The biggest thing to consider before purchasing any organizer is how much space you have in your vehicle to dedicate to the container.  If you can’t afford one, or don’t want to spend your money on an organizer or two, or in our case, five, don’t worry, you can make your own!  Just measure the space between the seats and find a tote or box lying around your house.  You can even cut up a box you aren’t using, cut dividers out of it, and tape tape them into a box or tote to your unique specifications.  It might not look pretty, but will definitely do the job!

#2  Girl Or Boy, They All Need Toys!

Have you ever given your kids a small bag, asked them to pack it with their own toys for the trip, and they stuff it so full that they can’t play with any items inside that bag without them all spilling out?  That’s what happens in our house every time, so this time I decided to pick which toys and books I wanted my kiddos to have on our trip.  I gathered their favorites and placed them neatly in the organizers.  Here are some suggestions for items that will keep them busy and happy for hours on end.

• Books
• Action Figures or Army Guys, Cars, Dolls (only a few and only their favorites)!
• Coloring Books and Crayons (a zip lock baggie of crayons for each child).
• Etch-A-Sketch or Magnadoodle
• A Small Notebook and Pencil For Each Child
• A Small Zip Lock Bag Of Legos For Each Child

#3  Surprise, Surprise!

One of my friends gave me a great idea ahead of time to pack little surprises for my kiddos that I pull out at random times (ie:  when we’ve been driving in the desert for a few hours, and the kids are starting to get restless).   When I pulled out their first surprise, they were so excited, it was like Christmas!  They laughed and played with their new toys for at least an hour without stopping!  The little surprises cost only a dollar each and my budget was $10 total.  I shopped in the dollar section of Target and in the arts and crafts area for kits that were on sale.  Here’s what I bought:

• Window Clings (We bought race car designs).
• New Books (Hardback for my younger kids and an easy reader for my 2^nd grader).
• Color Wonder Markers & Coloring Books
• Hot Wheels Or A New Music Toy
• A Kit With Foam Sheets  & Foam “Robots & Space” Stickers

#4  Less Is More

This one is a bit obvious, but it has to be said.  Packing light is the key to room under everyone’s legs to stretch out, versus stuff crammed between seats & piled so high, that the kids are practically sitting with their legs criss-crossed in front of them!  If you’re planning on camping, here’s a link to an excellent and thorough list of items you’ll need.  If you’re planning on staying in hotel rooms, remember that many hotels have laundry service or a laundry area, so you don’t need to pack 7 pairs of everything!  Of course, check the weather forecast before you pack and plan on layering your clothes.  For the summertime, I use the 5-4-3-2-1 rule.

• Five pairs of socks and undergarments
• Four short sleeve shirts
• Three shorts and pj’s
• Two, long sleeve shirts and jeans,
• One sweatshirt, raincoat, pair of sandals, tennis shoes or hiking shoes, and a fancier outfit for going out!

#5  Plan Your Route

Check Trekaroo for some excellent suggestions for places to visit in route to your destination!  If you have some extra time, plan for at least one fun stop a day.  It makes a big difference in your children’s attitudes if they’re able to run and play for a few hours and will make a huge difference in your peace of mind as well!  If you have an android phone, Trekaroo is gearing up to launch their Android App making Trekaroo mobile, hooray!

#6  Drive At Nap Times & At Night

Make it a second honeymoon and enjoy some quiet time in the car with your hubby!  We love to drive for a few hours while our kids are asleep and talk together about our plans, how the day went, etc… without distractions.

#7  Pack Snacks!

Some great kid and car-friendly items are:  fruit snacks, fresh fruit (apples, grapes, peaches, and plums), pre-cut veggies (carrots, celery, jicama, bell pepper, broccoli), trail mix (we make our own with pretzels, raisins, rice chex’s, almonds, walnuts, coconut, and a few M&M’s) , and whole wheat crackers.  For the fruits and veggies, bring a small ice chest to keep them fresh.

#8  Time Can Fly With Books On Tape!

My mom used to check out books on tape for us, and I’m happy to continue this tradition for our kids.  The library offers an amazing selection as well as downloadable books and cd’s for portable devices such as iPods, mp3 players, and iPads.  Check your local library for selections!

#9  Pre-Program Your GPS

If you are visiting several different destinations and you have a portable gps,  program the addresses into it before you begin.  As long as the satellites up in the sky are sending your GPS the right information, you should never get lost.

#10  Eat Your Meals In The Car

One of my friends gave me a very helpful suggestion.  She told me to eat most of our meals in the car, that way when we stop, we’re not wasting running around time, by sitting and eating!

#11  Stroller

If you’re not planning on off-roading or hiking on your road trip, I highly recommend purchasing or borrowing umbrella strollers.  They are extremely compact, take up barely any room, and come with sun visors.  If you have more than one child, they even make links to connect the two together!

#12  Water To Go

We always pack our reusable water bottles and purchase gallon size jugs at rest stops to refill them.  On average, we spend about $3 a jug which refills a family of 6’s water bottle about 2 times, versus $1.29 per water bottle per person a few times a day!  It’s a huge savings!

Good luck on your road trip, and happy travels!

Heather Reed (aka slofamilylife) is the Texas Destination Guroo for Trekaroo.  Her passion for travel stems from adventures she took growing up with her family.  She and her husband are thrilled to be exploring the globe with their four children and incorporating their love of learning into every adventure!

Modesto is located in the heart of California’s agricultural center, surrounded by nut tree orchards, fertile fields, and sprawling cattle farms.  Area residents will tell visitors that it is these roots in farming and ranching that make Modesto what it is: a great place to raise a family, with the feeling of small town living amongst a big city’s conveniences and population.  Centrally located to San Francisco, Sacramento, and Yosemite, Modesto offers more than just a rest stop for travelers.

The Hilmar Cheese Factory, just four miles off highway 99, and in a small farm town outside of Modesto, is a perfect place to stop, stretch the legs, grab a bite of gourmet food while learning a little bit about dairy processing.  The factory’s visitor center features interactive exhibits geared towards children which are packed with information summarizing how cows are milked, where the milk goes, how cheese is made, and what is done with dairy by-products.  Put together a picnic basket of foods, cheeses, and beverages from local artisans, or place an order in at the café, which makes gourmet sandwiches, Panini, salads and a full range of child-approved kids meals.  Eat inside or outdoors on the patio, near the waterfall on one of the many picnic tables, or just head back down the road with goodies in hand.  Admission to the Hilmar Cheese Factory Visitor’s Center and its exhibits is free.  Kid’s meals are $3.50 – $4.50; à la Carte items vary in price.

When considering making an overnight stop on a longer road trip, look into lodging at the Doubletree Hotel, which is conveniently located in downtown Modesto.  Check in during afternoon hours, and then head to dinner at Harvest Moon, an independent, quirky restaurant whose food makes it local favorite.  While praised for several menu items (Neil’s Toss salad, the Blue Moon Burger, and the Deluxe C Crab Sandwich), our family’s favorite indulgences are the sweet potato fries served with honey mustard dipping sauce and Spicy Thai Sticks with peanut sauce, which are always moist and savory.  Little diners will enjoy that most kids menu selections are typical kid favorites, but parents will appreciate that the meals are true made-to-order foods — often simply smaller, less daring versions of the adult selections.  While there is no kid’s menu listed, the servers have the standard-issue choices memorized.

Within walking distance from Harvest Moon is Modesto’s recently built cutting-edge Gallo Center for the Arts where patrons have said that there is not a bad seat in the house.  The annual production of “The Nutcracker” and shows that highlight the local child talent are some of our family’s favorite shows.  The Gallo Center for the Arts has been a stop for national tours, wonderful kid-friendly artists, and plays including the Golden Dragon Acrobats,  Madeline and the Bad Hat, and even The Imagination Movers.  If a children’s show is not in the line up, stop off instead at the Brenden Theater for a movie, which is just across the street from the Doubletree.

Before continuing the adventure down the highway, stop in at The Great Valley Natural History Museum, only one mile from the hotel.  The museum is small enough to explore within an hour or two, and will provide a bit of educated playtime prior to getting back into the car.  Upon entering the museum, visitors will learn about the Native American Indians who once resided in the area, the habitats and their animals that make up the Central Valley, the Tuolumne River Watershed and it’s amazing salmon population, and the critters that live in Modesto’s backyards but often remain unseen.   The Discovery Room at the rear of the museum includes a wall of terrariums housing reptiles, amphibians, and arachnids; a food web creator; many puzzles and the space required to assemble them; and interactive games to explore.  In an outer building, a world’s worth of exotic wild animals are on display in the Great Animal Hall. Admission to the museum is $1 per person, or $3 per family; 6 and under are free.

Enjoy a visit to Modesto, which is almost surely somewhere along the route of your next California road trip adventure!

Melana Denyer is a mom to two busy grade-schoolers and one dance-focused tween.   She and her friend Heather Doyle (mom to an active 9 year old and a friendly tween) team up together to form Miss Birdie, the chirpy, excited mascot of Modesto.FindandGoSeek.net, a website devoted to keeping tabs on anything and everything fun and exciting to do with kids in the Modesto, California, area.

Travel with kids to: CA | CO | DC | FL | HI | IL | MA | NC | NY | OR | PA | TN | TX | VA | WA

Born and bred in the UK & Germany, travel is in Anna’s blood and she has traveled extensively throughout Europe, Asia, Australasia and America. Now the mother of three young children, she is the co-founder of adventure travel specialists www.tourdust.com.  This is a story about one of their many journey’s as a family.  This time their travels had taken them to North Carolina.

After spending a few weeks by the ocean, the Great Smokey Mountains were beckoning, so my husband and I packed our three kids into the car and headed to Asheville for a mountain adventure.  In a bid to recapture our backpacking youth, we stayed in a hostel and enjoyed exploring the town with its chilled vibe and great eateries.

Having had our fill of the town, we donned out hiking boots and headed out to the great outdoors.  We soon found ourselves on the Blue Ridge Parkway, a beautifully scenic road taking you up past amazing views.  But here is where our problems started.  You see, we British don’t spend anywhere near as much time on the road as Americans – from our house, you drive in any direction for more than about 7 hours and you hit the sea.   A long drive for us is 2 hours- you get the picture.  Driving along a scenic road was all well and good, but the road was quite long and after driving for a couple of hours we were unsure when to get out the car and where to go for a hike.  Add to that the kids were glued to Backyardigans on loop in the back of the car and I was starting to know all the words to the Volcano Sisters.  Ouch.  After about 5 hours in the car and only a couple of short hikes we returned back to the hostel a little frustrated.  What we needed was a darn good stomp.  No cars, no people, no Backyardigans.

The next day, we decided to do something a little different. Our guide book mentioned a placed called Cataloochee; an abandoned valley deep in the heart of the mountains.  Sounded interesting, so we packed a picnic and headed off.  I’ll spare you the shrieks (mine) as we drove round hair pin turns on unsealed roads.  After a few hours, we arrived safely.   As we drove in, we saw one other car driving towards us.  He flagged us down – “go to the third house on the left, look out the back door and you’ll see a black bear and her cubs”, he said.   Not sure what to expect, we followed his instructions and sure enough, saw our first wild bear.

I should probably step back and explain a little about this special  place. Cataloochee was abandoned in the 1920’s to make room for the establishment of Great Smoky Mountains National Park.  Houses were left still standing, as was the school and the church.  It is an eerie, yet beautiful place.  The houses are full of snake skins and wild turkeys graze in the meadows.  Nature plays the lead here.

We had been told about a hike to one of the more isolated houses and decided to follow the path into the woods.  The path wound its way through the trees and we were quiet to listen for the birds and animals.  It was heaven after the day previously in the car.  We had no tv, no engines, and no tantrums.  Every now and then, the path was blocked by a stream rushing along and everyone had to take off their shoes and socks and wade through. These were not small streams!  The water came up to my knees, but we had a great time finding stepping stones and rocks to climb on.  It was a real adventure.

After about an hour and a half, we reached the abandoned farm house and ate our sandwiches on the veranda.  What a feeling- not another living soul for miles and miles.  In the days of cell phones and Facebook, it’s not easy to find this type of peace. Well, with three children under 4 it’s not easy to find peace either.  But in a snatched few hours, we did.