Lauren Braden

Where to Find Snow Right Now (and How to Play In It)

For the powder heads among us, this past February was glorious. Across the lowlands of Puget Sound we awoke to an uncommon sight–snow flurries cascading from the sky, and there was enough to stick. And it kept snowing, then snowing some more. With school cancelled for days, happy kids went sledding at Seattle’s Gas Works […]

Read more.

Winter Outdoors: Ice Skating Rinks in the Pacific Northwest

Imagine skating in circles with your sweetie among gently-falling snow, a chill in the air and a mug of hot cocoa on your mind. Winter at its best. Got ice skates? If you don’t have a pair of your own, you’ll be able to rent them for the whole family at most of these outdoor […]

Read more.

Autumn Escape: Harvest Time in Hood River, Oregon

THIS WEEKEND!  Hood River Harvest Fest (October 11-13, 2019) is a classic fall festival that takes place right on the waterfront overlooking the Columbia River. Sample local apples, craft brews, wine, cider and artisan cheeses. Browse booths filled with local art and crafts. Enjoy live music and plenty of games and activities for the whole family. Kids […]

Read more.

Northwest Autumn Day Trips: Corn Mazes, Apple Orchards, and Pumpkin Patches

Thumbnail image for Northwest Autumn Day Trips: Corn Mazes, Apple Orchards, and Pumpkin Patches

Psst…. get our premier guide to fall travel – Autumn Escapes in the Pacific Northwest. Get inspired to spend your fall weekends combing rocky beaches, savoring the harvest, and hiking scenic mountain trails of Washington and Oregon. Get it here. It’s October, my favorite month in the kitchen and in the great outdoors. Let’s see… the past few days I’ve […]

Read more.

Four Autumn Weekend Getaways in the Pacific Northwest

Thumbnail image for Four Autumn Weekend Getaways in the Pacific Northwest

Psst…. get our premier guide to fall travel – Autumn Escapes in the Pacific Northwest. Get inspired to spend your fall weekends combing rocky beaches, savoring the harvest, and hiking scenic mountain trails of Washington and Oregon. Get it here.   I’ve saved some vacation days, and I hope you have, too. For fall lovers like me this […]

Read more.

Northwest Bookshelf: Exploring Northwest Nature with Kids

Thumbnail image for Northwest Bookshelf: Exploring Northwest Nature with Kids

  As a kid born in the 1970’s, my own childhood was free-range and mostly outside. Or rather, those are the vivid memories I have—on a bike, digging in the dirt, or playing with our dog in the park near my house. The reality is more mixed. We had cable TV and a Nintendo, and […]

Read more.

Six Oktoberfests in the Pacific Northwest

Thumbnail image for Six Oktoberfests in the Pacific Northwest

Psst…. get our premier guide to local fall travel – Autumn Escapes in the Pacific Northwest. Get inspired to spend your fall weekends combing rocky beaches, savoring the harvest, and hiking scenic mountain trails of Washington and Oregon. Get it here. Backdropped by the snow-capped peaks of the Cascades, Oktoberfest in the Northwest is the next […]

Read more.

Five Great County Fairs in Washington State

Thumbnail image for Five Great County Fairs in Washington State

It’s almost August, otherwise known throughout the USA as Fair Season! My childhood memories from the fair where I grew up in rural Illinois are coated in sugar. Puffs of blue cotton candy, popsicles colored like the American flag, a plate of funnel cakes dusted with a heavy coat of sweet powder. Go to any […]

Read more.

Great County Fairs in Oregon

Thumbnail image for Great County Fairs in Oregon

  I grew up in a small town in southern Illinois that had been settled by German Catholic farmers a few centuries ago. Instead of a county fair, we had a festival every August called Kirchenfest on the sprawling church parking lot, and my Dad was in charge of making the funnel cakes–platefuls of sweet […]

Read more.

Six Summer Day Trips from Seattle

Thumbnail image for Six Summer Day Trips from Seattle

Summer is nearly half over. Does the approach of August give you a mid-summer crisis, too? Six weeks of summer left until school starts again, and I feel it’s passing way too quickly. It always does here. So I pull out my calendar, and I start scribbling quick trips in. Here are six sunny day […]

Read more.

← Previous Entries