Our recent (and ever evolving) vacation guidelines:

Starring last week's trip to the Poconos with our good friends the Holmes.


1. Go somewhere with stunning natural beauty.



We have driven through Pennsylvania many times in the summer and in the winter, but never before at Fall's peak. Oh my. My expectations of what Fall should look like are forever set high.


2. Find lots of things to do outside. Like climb.


And hike. Preferably alongside a river. So W1 and L1 can throw approximately 500 pounds of sticks and rocks into the water.


Both of the above activities are engineered to make everyone very tired.


3. Find some fabulous food. A day trip to Philadelphia provided the ideal opportunity for Philly Cheesesteaks.



4. Sneak in a little history (or a lot if your kids can stand it). In Philadelphia we dragged them to see the Liberty Bell, Benjamin Franklin's printing office, and Independence Hall.


During this tour, L1 discovered that if he screamed, I would take him out of the room. Huh. We spent most of our time in the stairwell.


5. Do something new.


Thanks to the Holmes' and their GPS, we found our first geocache.

Feel free to follow, adapt, or completely ignore these guidelines.