Kristin Hill Taylor

Seeking God as the Author of Every Story

Cheesy, breezy Wisconsin Dells

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Like so many things in the past two years, our summer vacation plans changed at the last minute. Truly, it’s hard to believe COVID-19 is still interrupting so many things. 

Ben tested positive for COVID the night before we were supposed to fly to Vancouver, where we planned to board a ship on Monday for an Alaskan cruise. We had to present negative COVID tests on Monday and had planned to test on Saturday morning before we left town. Well, the Friday evening test shook up all that. 

We ended up canceling our flights and cruise. Thankfully, we had travel insurance so we got the cruise money back the following week. I had to file an insurance claim, but, hopefully, we’re going to get our flights refunded too. 

Meanwhile, we talked through lots of other trip options and decided on Wisconsin Dells. That seems random, I know. But we had some criteria: We wanted somewhere we could drive to in 6-8 hours that would greet us with cooler, less humid weather. We also thought it would be fun to go somewhere we’d never been. We had both our moms with us, so I had to find accommodations for our party of seven. 

That’s how we ended up spending four nights at the Wilderness Resort in Wisconsin Dells after Ben quarantined for five days.

I’ll take you through our time there from June 29 to July 3. 

We left Wednesday morning and stopped for lunch at Monical’s in Mahomet, Illinois. When we arrived late that afternoon at the resort, we went to two of the waterparks on the property and ate expensive, mediocre burgers for dinner at the resort.

I decided to fully embrace vacation mode and proclaimed I wasn’t cooking or buying any groceries for this trip, so we started Thursday with a fun, delicious breakfast at Paul Bunyon’s Cook Shanty. Then we learned more about the area on an Original Wisconsin Ducks Tour, which I highly recommend. We spent the afternoon at three of the resort’s water parks. MACS – Macaroni and Cheese Shop – came highly recommended and we all really enjoyed it. We happened upon Kemp’s ice cream and ate it while overlooking the dam. 

We started Friday with another good breakfast at Mr. Pancake. Greg took the big kids bow fishing that morning. Cate was reluctant to go, but we convinced her it would be a worthwhile experience. Sure enough, she made the most of it! She shot a carp right in the mouth with her arrow – something the guide said he’d never seen in his two decades on the job. 

Grandmom, Gran Gran and I took Rachel to the Country Bumpkin Farm Market, which was a great surprise. I expected we’d spend some time there and then maybe find something else to do while Greg, Cate, and Ben fished. But we stayed there for a few hours until it was time to pick up the fishermen. Rachel fed some animals in the petting zoo and then played on all the farm-themed activities and play areas. We all reconvened for lunch at the Riverwalk Pub, which we picked because of its proximity to the river but ended up really enjoying. We walked and shopped around downtown. 

When we bought duck tour tickets, we actually got a dual ticket also good for a jet boat tour. We did that Friday evening – and got very, very wet! There were lots of feelings from certain people about this adventure, but, in the end, it was a fun time on the Upper Dells portion of the Wisconsin River. While I washed and dried some clothes, Greg brought Moose Jaw Pizza back to our condo. 

Our last full day started with breakfast at BJ’s, which was good food for good prices. We did the Take Flight simulator at our resort and enjoyed “Aloha” as if we were flying above it all. We played at three waterparks at the resort. Monks was another dinner recommendation and it was a great meal that started with delicious cheese curds and included amazing burgers. 

Overall, it was a fun time, especially on the heels of having to change our summer vacation plans. Wisconsin Dells is a touristy destination that reminds me of a smaller Gatlinburg or Branson. Our resort definitely got more crowded on Saturday, so I would recommend going on weekdays and leaving town before a holiday weekend. We were happy that’s how our Plan B vacation worked out. 

*****

While in Wisconsin Dells, I shared daily posts and pictures, so take a look at those, if you’d like more peeks into our vacation.

Adventuring in Arizona

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I’d been wanting to do a road trip in the west, but taking two or three weeks to cover all the spots also just doesn’t seem realistic. I’ve got a freshman in high school and definitely want to squeeze in some more family trips before she graduates. Plus we had some Southwest Airlines credit that expires in June. 

Given all those circumstances: Greg and I looked to see where Southwest flew and where we could go for Spring Break. We landed on Arizona. As we talked through destinations, we decided to fly into Las Vegas, so we could start with the Hoover Dam. (I know that’s Nevada, but, really, we were barely there!) We continued to Grand Canyon and Sedona so we could fly home from Phoenix. 

Greg already had a surprise boys’ trip planned for Ben the first weekend of Spring Break. Considering those plans and flight availability and prices, we ended up scheduling our southwest road trip for Tuesday to Saturday. 

Admittedly, as the trip approached, I wondered if staying in three different places in the four nights would feel like too much. I also wondered if five days was too quick for a westward trip. 

I’m here to tell you: Take the trip. Sure, take this trip. Or take whatever trip it is you’ve been thinking about. This is one of my favorite vacations yets. 

I loved the different destinations and packed for them accordingly. We stayed in Sedona the last two nights, so that gave us a good place to regroup and repack. I brought extra, easy-to-pack bags (these specifically) so we could throw our dirty clothes in there rather than continually repack our suitcases. We used one for a snack bag in our rental car too. And now I like to keep them in my trunk for when I have to haul things in the house.

Five days for this leg of a westward trip was plenty. Yes, we hit the ground running, thanks to an early flight on Tuesday and a time change that put us in Vegas at 8:30 am Pacific time. We never really fully adjusted to the two-hour time difference and found ourselves ready for bed around 8 or 9 pm. We generally woke up around 6 am. 

I say “this leg of the westward trip” because I’m already thinking about the next trip. For our family, seeing the west with our kids seems to work well like this. 

Now, here’s what we did each day:

Day 1 – Hoover Dam

We left home at 3:15 am, flew out of Nashville to Las Vegas, and arrived at 8:30 Pacific time, meaning in time for a second breakfast with my friend Kayse. We ate a delicious meal at The Broken Yolk and wished we lived closer because our kids got along well.

Team Taylor headed about 40 minutes away to Hoover Dam, which was so interesting! We saw Lake Mead, did the Power Plant tour at the dam, and soaked in the warm sun on a windy day. I honestly didn’t know I would be so impressed with Hoover Dam and didn’t realize it was built during the Great Depression. We also got to stand in Nevada and Arizona at the same time!

We stayed the night in Kingman, Arizona, which had Radiator Springs’ vibes along historic Route 66. (Disney’s Radiator Springs was actually based on Seligman, AZ, which wasn’t too far away from us!) Kingman also gave us a delicious meal at El Palacio. We were asleep by 8 pm Mountain Standard Time after a long but good day.

Day 2 – Grand Canyon

We made our way to the Grand Canyon on Wednesday. It sure was, well, grand! My mind and camera really couldn’t capture the vastness. We started at the Visitors Center and walked to Mather Point and around Rim Trail to Grand Canyon Village. Then we rode the shuttle and got off at a few stops on the way to Hermit’s Rest. We walked 13,000 steps!

Some tips: I wish I’d packed reusable water bottles for everyone. We also should have brought more snacks and lunch options with us because those options were limited in Grand Canyon National Park. We did have dinner at Yavapai Lodge, where we also stayed the night

Day 3 – Bearizona / Sedona

We left Grand Canyon National Park that morning, ate breakfast right outside of the park at Foodie Club, and headed to Bearizona in Williams, Arizona. Yes, Bearizona is overpriced for a couple of hours, but we really enjoyed it anyway. It’s a drive-thru, walk-thru wildlife par. They seemed to rehab a lot of the animals. We saw lots of native animals and especially enjoyed the bears who were active and playing with each other. Rachel and the spotted jaguar shared a playful moment too.

We arrived in Sedona about lunchtime and ate at Sedona Pizza & Pasta then explored the Uptown area. Our Pink Jeep Tour that afternoon was the only activity we reserved ahead of time. It was such a fun outing! We did the two-hour Coyote Canyon tour and got to see Dry Creek and lots of red rocks. We had dinner at Oaxaca, which was yummy Mexican food with a southwest twist. Everyone was excited about the two-bedroom condo we are staying in after two nights in the tight quarters of hotel rooms.

Day 4 – Sedona

We had a great day exploring Sedona and ended the day with 16,000+ steps!

We started the day with a 4.13-mile hike on the trail that goes around Bell Rock and Courthouse Butte red rock formations. We enjoyed the scenery and challenge together. The condo we have been staying in is just south of Sedona in the Village of Oak Creek, so we spent a lot of time down in this area, which has worked out well. We got our fill of Uptown the day before.

This day of exploration that unfolded as we went along asl included a brief swim in their clothes for Rachel and Ben, lunch at Tortas de Fuego in Village of Oak Creek (although there’s another Sedona location too), site seeing at Chapel of the Holy Cross and Airport Scenic View, dessert at Rocky Road Ice Cream Co., an impromptu scenic drive to Tuzigoot National Monument in Camp Verde, some downtime at the condo, and delicious dinner at Colt’s Grill in Village of Oak Creek.

Day 5 – Sedona / Phoenix

We enjoyed a little more of Sedona on this last morning of vacation before we began the trek home via Phoenix. We hiked 2.43 miles on the Baldwin Trail near Cathedral Rock. It was a great hike with ups and downs, flat sections, a quick detour to see Oak Creek, and lots of beautiful scenery. We had 7,000 steps by 10 am!

*****

I took a lot of pictures (of course!) and I shared them on Instagram and saved the posts in a Southwest highlight. Be sure to check them out if you want to see more of our adventures.

Another way we make traveling rewarding is using our Capital One Venture credit card. There are travel discounts and rewards. We get a higher percentage back in rewards when we make travel-related reservations, can cash rewards in to cover travel purchases, got reimbursed for our TSA Pre-Check application when we used this card as payment, and can book hotels and rental cards often with discounted rates directly through the credit card website. Win-win, I tell you. (Learn more here!)

Taking a [spring] break

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I needed a change of scenery. After a year with a lot of days at home, I wanted to see a different backdrop to our everyday life. So we went to St. Pete Beach for Spring Break last week. So did a lot of other people. 

We planned the getaway in February when we were in the throes of covid, quarantine, snowstorms, and my mother-in-law staying at our house while recovering from heart surgery. I knew then my girls, who gave up their spaces, deserved a treat. I knew my boy needed different ground on which to roam. I knew I needed an adventure and my husband needed a break from his work, which has been incredibly busy even in a weird year. 

Greg went hunting two times. We all went to Busch Gardens one day. My girls and I went shopping one morning. But mostly we hung out at the beach, moved to the pool, and then went out for seafood. It was a welcome routine that looked different from our life in landlocked Kentucky. Plus I read three books. (See more about those here.)

I thought having covid restrictions would make Busch Gardens more enjoyable, but that wasn’t the case. It was crowded and took us more than an hour just to go through the temperature check at the front gate. And then we waited almost as long for pizza and chicken fingers lunch. We had to buy admission tickets in advance, so the crowd couldn’t have surprised Busch Gardens. But somehow it seemed to have. Many concession stands weren’t open, which meant the lines were long at the dining options available. And I’m going to wait a while before having to wear a mask at an amusement park again. 

Even so, we had a good day at Busch Gardens. The lines for rides really weren’t that bad, other than the Cheetah Run roller coaster, which we would have wanted to ride had the wait not been nearly two hours. I particularly loved Cobra’s Curse (which we all went on) and also rode the thrilling Kumba with my big kids. 

I didn’t cook all week, which was a good plan because our hotel kitchen was teeny tiny. But, goodness, we ate well so I’m going to tell you more about that. Unless noted, the restaurants are in St. Pete Beach.

  • Hurricane at Pass-a-Grille Beach — My shrimp tacos were good and there’s a rooftop option with great views. 
  • Caddy’s — We met my cousin Jen here and I ate coconut shrimp. It was a family-friendly place and the kids’ food was served on a frisbee. 
  • Shell’s Seafood — We ate at the Tampa one after we went to Busch Gardens and we all enjoyed our meals. 
  • Snappers — This is a little more upscale food-wise than our usual, but we still wore shorts & T-shirts and loved it. Greg and I really like the different food choices. I ended up getting Coconut-Cashew Crusted Mahi-Mahi, which was delicious! The kids’ pizza and grouper were also good. 
  • Crabby Bills — We loved the casual waterfront atmosphere. There’s an outdoor, rooftop option too. The hush puppies were really good.
  • Ice & Cream — We went there three nights in a row to enjoy delicious homemade ice cream & some unique flavors. I ordered Dreamsicle in a waffle cone every time. 
  • Fo’ Cheezy Twisted Meltz — The girls and I happened upon this when we walked from our hotel to the Corey Avenue Shopping District so we stopped on our way back as it was almost 11 am. It’s a fun restaurant with tasty sandwiches. 

Our break was welcomed and enjoyed thoroughly. Of course, we were glad to get settled back in at home for the last six weeks of school, soccer season, birthday season, and whatever other ordinary adventures come our way.