A Sunken Garden Peek, Butchart Gardens Victoria BC

I just got back from an amazing trip to the Pacific Northwest.  We were in Seattle on business and my husband surprised me with a getaway to Victoria, BC.  What an enchanting place!  Lots to blog and brag about later. For now it’s late Thursday night, my kids will be  up early.  I’ll let a few of my photos speak for themselves.  Enjoy!

My Favorite Flower, The Forget Me Not Was Scattered Throughout the Garden

Happy Trails, Butchart Gardens, Victoria BC

For more great travel photos check out the Photo Friday Travel Blog Roundup @ Delicious Baby .

Embassy Suites, Deerfield Beach

I’m at the airport returning from a few days in Deerfield Beach, Florida.   Although I didn’t get a chance to bring the family this trip, it is so rare that I get out of the state,  I am compelled to take a minute to blog about Deerfield Beach  as a potential family travel destination.

Deerfield Beach is a sleepy Florida Beach town between Miami and Orlando.  There are a few chain hotels like the Hilton, Comfort Inn, and Embassy Suites, and a lot of little rickety mom and pop hotels.  Since I was at a conference of Dangerous Goods Trainers, I didn’t get out much, but I did get a look at the beach.  It was a very windy day, and liked like a fun place to para-surf.  The surfers were catching amazing amounts of air.  A young family bravely posed for a family picture on the rocks as the wind whipped through their hair.  It was high tide, so the beach was mostly for looking at rather than playing on.  The weather alternated between being rainy and windy to clear and muggy.  I enjoyed my few minutes of windy quiet.  I think my kids would have been a little chilly.

Some friends stayed at the Comfort  Inn at the end of Hillsboro Blvd.  They said that conditions were rather Spartan.  I did catch a glimpse of a slide as I drove by.  The motel was right on the beach, so it might be worth exploring if you’re a looking for a simple affordable place to stay with the kids. 

The conference took place at the Embassy Suites.  It was a gracious hotel with a nice pool located right off of the beach.  The food at the restaurant was good, and there were lots of fun places to lounge by the pool.  Apparently the concierge can set you up with all kinds of fun activities from airboat rides to snorkeling, to outings to Butterfly World, to a Funky Fish Kids Day at the hotel so Mom and Dad can have a break.

I stayed at a Comfort Inn in nearby Parkside.  The hotel was very cheap, about $150 for three nights.  The breakfast was delicious.  The motel was next to the freeway, the toilet ran a little too long, and there were tiny mystery bugs joining me in my room.  It was affordable, but I definitely got what I paid for! 

Would I take the family to Deerfield Beach?  If I was nearby for a conference, it might be a fun place to get some R&R.  I think I would pick a different season however.  October seems to be a little too rainy and windy to make family travel fun.

Happy Trails,

Bridget