Twenty years ago Anthony and I married on St. John, USVI. Twenty years later we brought our kids to stay at the same hotel where we stayed, to eat at the same restaurants we ate and to swim in the same calm, blue waters we fell in love with over twenty years ago. There was change; new restaurants, more facilities at beaches, bigger crowds but remarkably so much stayed the same.
Cinnamon Bay 
Tagged: anniversary, family trip, family vacation, St. John, travel, trip, USVI, vacation
The American Trade Hotel’s building dates back to 1917 and was the headquarters for the American Trade Developing Company. At the time it was the first skyscraper in Panama. After World War II, the neighborhood started its decline and by the 1970s the building was abandoned and vandalized. Before being bought by a development firm in 2007, it was the headquarters of the Pentágono gang. The abandoned building used to be a crack house called “Castillo de Greyskul”. Some of the old gang members have been rehabilitated and work in the hotel.
Tagged: Casco Viejo, family vacation, Panama, photography, street photography, travel
We walked so many streets yet there are so many we didn’t. We enjoyed so many delicious bites yet I dream of the bites we did not. Our days and bellies were full, no minute spared, yet there is always more to be enjoyed, to be seen at dusk and dawn, to be tasted in the morning and night. 
Tagged: Casco Viejo, family vacation, Panama, photography, street photography, travel
Each family vacation is different. Not only with the changing of destinations but the changing of the kids. No two experiences will ever be the same.
Our trip to Panama was seven days, three hotels, the city and the beach, three bags and five backpacks. I didn’t need candy to distract them or false promises to bribe them, I didn’t hear moans of tired feet and legs or field endless questions of what was coming next. They were simply travelers, experiencing the new. They took each new experience as it came; hearing, smelling, tasting and seeing everything, drawing comparison to what was familiar and identifying what was new. They took the discomfort of being in a new country and not knowing the language and embraced it for the adventure that it is.
When we travel we come with expectations, plans, baggage, we leave behind routine, responsibilities and stress and we hope for renewal, fun and lifelong memories. This trip we came away with a newfound understanding that our kids have benefitted practically and spiritually from all our travels. We have left an indelible mark and planted the seeds of appreciation and gratitude of this wide, wide world. 
Tagged: Casco Viejo, family vacation, Panama, travel
Tagged: CA, California, Catalina Island, dolphins, family vacation, travel
Tagged: California, Catalina, Catalina Island, family vacation, travel
Tagged: Balboa Island, California, family vacation, Newport Beach, travel
Built in 1909 to dispose of the city’s sewage, Santa Monica Pier has experienced growth and change over the decades, with the addition of Pacific Park in 1996 making it the family entertainment destination it is today. 
Overlooking the city, soaked with sun, filled with art, the Getty Center is beautiful inside and out.
The water was so blue, the sky was so clear, the sun was so warm, the sand was so soft, the breeze was just right, the time was so needed.
Tagged: Atlantis, Bahamas, family photography, family vacation, Spring Break, travel
Our Everyday 