Since moving to the U.P. of Michigan, it has been a challenge for our family to find a few favorite restaurants that serve quality, local food. I'd heard good things about Fitzgerald's, which is located about 45 minutes north of Houghton-Hancock on the shoreline of Lake Superior in Eagle River, MI, and decided to wager my Mother's Day dinner on it. We were fortunate to enjoy a gorgeous spring-time drive up north while the trees and flowers were just starting to bloom and arrived at Eagle River just before our 6:00 reservations.

We were pleased to be seated immediately at the large circular table that had been reserved for our family of five. The restaurant is known for its spectacular Lake Superior views at sunset and the host was apologetic that we did not get a table immediately in front of the windows. Since the restaurant is petite, though, every table in the room still has quite a nice view! The interior design is nothing fancy, but that is overshadowed by the friendly service and great food. They have made a name for themselves in recent years by expanding their craft beer list considerably, which made my husband one happy guy. I stuck with a glass of chardonnay and was pleased.

The menu is pretty basic, but all of the choices I've heard are very good. I decided to go with a local fish that I grew up eating in MN--walleye. It was served crusted with pecan flour and dressed with cherry butter and came with a side of garlic mashed potatoes and fresh green beans. My husband had the local whitefish with the same sides. Both were delicious! We finished our meal by splitting a sweet, cinnamony piece of bread pudding with creme anglaise. As it was a busy night, they'd run out of everything else.

Their kids menu is nothing special--burger, chicken strips, mac and cheese and a side. Though, if your kids enjoy barbecue or salads, there are some equally priced options on the 'adult' side of the menu that they would enjoy. While the fish entrees were pricier around $17-20, there were burgers and BBQ options fresh from the smoker outside that were much more reasonable and come equally recommended. Service is both fast and pleasant!

For families dining at Fitz's the best draw is certainly the calming view of the Lake and the opportunity to mess around outside on the beach before or after dinner. If your kids are as gullible as mine, you might be able to convince them to watch the lake awhile for whales spouting. ;-) Additionally, there is a tiny general store just up the street that you can walk to to get ice cream cones for dessert if you're visiting in the summer. Finally, be sure to stop and take a look at the beautiful waterfall just up the hill from the restaurant. The entire trip is entertaining, even if the Fitz' menu is somewhat limited.

I won't recap the highlights of every other review for this attraction at Universal Studio's Islands of Adventure; however, I wanted to give a few tips for families traveling with younger (or, as in our case, shorter/'fun-size') kids. Our 5 y.o. sons are just 41" tall and our 7 y.o. daughter is just 46" tall, so we were limited in the attractions we could take in as a family at this location. HOWEVER, we are still HUGE Harry Potter fans, so our trip to Orlando would not have been complete without a visit to Universal's Wizarding World! Since we knew that we would not be able to do two of the rides in this part of the park as a family, we quickly opted for the other activities we could enjoy.
First, we made sure to arrive as the gates opened and headed straight to the back of the park where the H.P. section is located....as did thousands of other visitors that morning! We visited in early March and were fortunate to have clear, calm weather in the low 70's--just perfect for the few outdoors lines we had to wait in. We took in the amazing scenery of the Hogsmeade village and Hogwarts Express train. Universal did an exceptional job aiding our imagination, down to the finest details in the shop windows. We were drawn to Zonko's (novelty shop) which is attached to Honeyduke's (candy shop) right away. We marveled at the chocolate frogs and, thankfully, picked up a box of Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans that kept us entertained while in line for Ollivander's wand shop experience. The outdoor lines for Butterbeer got long quickly, so we planned instead to try it when we had lunch at the Three Brooms. We jumped in line for Ollivander's right away. Since they take in groups of 20 at a time for the 7-minute show, it moves rather slowly. We sampled the "Every Flavor" jelly beans and laughed at the reactions we had as we tasted soap, grass, sausage and worms! While the presentation in the wand shop is a little hokey, it is still entertaining and our kids thought it was fantastic. One lucky person is selected from each group to take part in the ceremony and everyone is then ushered into the wand shop where they can choose a wand for purchase, if they like. There are, of course, tons of other H.P. branded souvenirs and general H.P. eye candy in the stores, such as the replica caged Monster Book of Monsters that snaps and growls at passersby. My son selected a nice time turner like Hermione used in an early H.P. movie, though he was clearly disappointed that it did not come with instructions for how to actually turn back time (aren't we all?)! One may also pick up a postcard in the shop and have it stamped for mailing from the Hogsmeade village via the Owl Post stand just outside the door. This area also provides a nice, large, covered waiting area if part of your group is exploring elsewhere in the village.
Of the three rides in this area of the park, our kids were tall enough to do the Flight of the Hippogriff, a roller coaster ride whose line meanders past Hagrid's Hut. I wish I could recommend the ride in this area, but sadly, the wait in line (40 minutes for us) was hardly worth it. The ride is both tame and short. In our opinion, it would have been better to spend a bit more time exploring the village than waiting for it. If you stay in a Universal resort/hotel, you may get a "Front of the Line" pass for this ride that *might* make it worth it.
As our kids were not tall enough for the Forbidden Journey ride in the replica Hogwarts castle, we chose instead to meander through the attached gift shop that, again, has some intriguing replicas and merchandise. Our kids particularly enjoyed seeing the replica Marauder's Map that shows vanishing footprints moving around the area.
After our exploration of the shops and windows, we headed to the Three Broomsticks for an early lunch and were delighted with the experience. I found Universal Studios, in general, to have healthier food choices than Disney Parks, and Three Broomsticks was no exception. Their menu offerings were hearty, tasty, and generally healthy. A particularly good deal is the platter for four that offers roasted meats, veggies and potatoes. We chose a few children's meals (mac and cheese, baked chicken and chicken strips, all served with grapes and apple sauce), a plate of fish and chips for my husband and shepherd's pie with a salad for myself. We also got a few glasses of both frozen and regular butterbeer. What a treat! The inside of the restaurant gives one the feel of dining in a very large, old British pub, and the delicious food makes for a satisfying experience. The butterbeer alone is something we'll be eager to visit again for!
After lunch, we looked a bit more closely at the Hogwarts Express train and bid farewell to our most favorite attraction in the Orlando area. Even though our kids were not old enough to enjoy two of the rides in this part of the park, they were more than thrilled to take in the experience through the other sights, sounds and activities offered there!

We recently took our family's first-ever trip to Disney and found that one of our best decisions was to avail ourselves of the military resort on the Disney property, Shades of Green. This hotel is available for military members and their families, whether they are active duty, retired, separated, in the Reserves, and the like. Check their website for specifics.

From the moment we arrived, we knew we'd made the right choice, not just because the price was right! We had a swift check-in and were immediately directed to the convenient parking garage attached to the wing of the resort where we had our ground-floor room. We parked the van, grabbed our bags and descended upon the very spacious room. We'd stopped at the grocery store after flying in with some quick breakfast and snack goodies because we knew the room had a small refrigerator and getting out the door in the mornings was key because we were able to use those Disney "Extra Magic Hours" due to having a room at a Disney property!

We had two comfortable queen-size beds and a sofa that flipped over to a nice, sturdy twin bed (not the usual bar-in-your-back pull-out), which my daughter quickly claimed. The large bathroom had two sinks on the large counter while the shower and toilet were in a separate part of the bathroom (so someone could be in the shower while others were using the sinks, which was very handy)! We had a beautiful view out over the golf course and a small patio area where we found one of the highlights of each day--watching the wild turkeys and peacocks roam around the area. It is handy to know that there are laundry facilities in each building (which is also where you'll find the microwaves) and a fair sized gift shop/BX with clothes, souvenirs, snack foods and drinks (including wine and beer).

We had a quick walk to the two main pools on the property, the warmer of which was the "Magnolia" pool, which has the adults-only hot tub nearby. There is a Mickey-shaped kids' pool and wading pool nearby with a good sized play structure adjacent that we used a few afternoons. There is also an activity room in the main lobby area that has XBoxes and Wii's, as well as a pool table and some other games. In the lobby you'll find a small area with kids’ chairs and continuously running Disney videos--so, if you're standing in line to purchase attraction tickets (which are sold at the military discount rate right there), your kids will be entertained.

There are a variety of places to get meals on the property, as well. The highest-end of these is Mangino's, an Italian-inspired restaurant open for lunch and dinner with a few 'to go' options, as well. Right next to this is a buffet-style restaurant called the Garden Gallery that serves breakfast and dinner. They have a fabulous selection of foods, including a kid-friendly buffet section. The evening we dined there it was "Carnival Night," with a few featured carnival-style foods, such as corn dogs and hot dogs (in addition to the regular/healthier offerings) and desserts such as cotton candy, caramel apples and snow cones, as well as the most talented balloon artist we've ever seen! The kids LOVED that meal and begged to go back every day! There is also coffee shop on the property that serves Starbuck's coffee and a sampling of pastries. Near the shuttle bus waiting area, there is also the "Express Cafe" with quick meal and snack offerings for fairly reasonable prices. There is also a grill-style restaurant and a snack bar located at the golf course, right next to the Mickey pool (known as the "Mill Pond" pool). These are the Evergreens and On the Greens, respectively. We enjoyed a delicious pina colada and a kids' colada there one warm afternoon. It is also possible to get room service at the hotel, though we never tried it.

One of the nicest perks of staying at Shades of Green was the free shuttle bus service to the various Disney Parks and water parks that consistently ran throughout the day. Additionally, we were located fairly close the Disney Polynesian resort, where we could catch the monorail or boat to either the Magic Kingdom or Epcot. There is a scenic little walking trail between the two properties that makes for a relaxing start and end to the day if you choose that route.

In all, we found Shades of Green to be a very relaxing resort choice that took a lot of stress out of the whole Disney vacation process at a very reasonable price. While it doesn't have character-themed everything everywhere you go in the hotel as you would find at the other Disney properties, it makes little difference in the overall quality of our experience. We encountered nothing but the friendliest and most helpful of staff, from front desk attendants to shuttle bus drivers and waiters. Depending on when you plan to go during the year, you might find that they have a special promotion or rate available, so be sure to ask about that, as well. We highly recommend this on-resort property if you have military affiliation and want to save yourself some money and stress while doing the Disney thing!

We recently spent the weekend visiting the Indianhead Mountain Resort and the Wakefield/Bessemer/Ironwood area. This review is solely for the ski resort itself, not the lodging. The Indianhead Resort is located conveniently off Hwy 2, between Wakefield and Bessemer, MI, in the Upper Peninsula. My husband and I skied for 1/2 a day with our 7 year old daughter, while our twin 5 year old boys attended 1/2 day ski school. We then all skied together for a bit after lunch. We found the cost of lift tickets and kids' ski school to be quite reasonable (coming from Colorado, where prices are pretty high) and the mountain to be quiet, well-groomed and with a nice variety of runs for young skiers and families. Advanced skiers would likely be entertained for awhile, but not long; however, since our kids are still learning, the terrain was perfect and the runs were uncrowded. Snow conditions, of course, will vary every year and every weekend, but the mid-January weekend when we visited, they were perfect! The mountain offers a pomma lift and a few different two- and three-person chairlifts that service green, blue and black runs. The black runs we visited were nowhere near as hairy as those we ski in Colorado, but are great confidence-builders for kids.
The lodge has ample seating and a small restaurant that serves a variety of hot foods, deli items and snacks. Their chili is very tasty and we all recommend the cheese curds!
The kids' ski school program did not seem as rigorous as others our kids have attended (much more down-time/indoor time than on-snow time), but it was still a good option for families that have either very young skiers or young children who need care while the others ski. The attendants were friendly and the activities were age-appropriate for kids up to about 6 or 7.
While I cannot recommend staying at the lodging on the mountain at Indianhead, there are plenty of hotel options in Bessemer, Ironwood and Hurley, just a few miles down the road.
Finally, I encourage you to check out their website for weekend and other specials, which they run frequently, to get the most bang for your buck for a family ski trip. There are a handful of ski resorts close to one another in this area, too, so it is certainly possible to try a couple over the course of a weekend and be happy with the variety. All you need to do is hope for good snow!

Our family had the opportunity to head over to Marquette for the famous Noquemanon Cross-Country Ski race and spend a couple of days in the 'bigger' city, visiting some restaurants and the children's museum. We hit it right when we picked the Holiday Inn for our family's hotel for the weekend. The U.P. of Michigan is somewhat limited when it comes to hotels, so this really is one of the top options.
I am a member of their (free) Priority Rewards program, which is worth while to sign up for before your stay as it grants you a speedy check-in and some hotel restaurant/lounge benefits. I had our keys and freebie coupons within seconds, grabbed a couple of their fresh-baked chocolate chip cookies that were offered in the lobby and we were on our way to our room.
We found our two-bed room to be spacious, clean and quiet, with ample cable TV stations and free wi-fi. We had two full-size beds in our room, but there are several room/bed configurations offered. Our three kids can still share a bed, but I noticed that a roll-away could have been brought up, too. The bathroom was on the small side, but that's not where we chose to spend our hotel time anyway! =)
We, of course, had to head quickly down to the feature by which nearly every kid judges a hotel's worth--the POOL! The pool at this Holiday Inn is excellent! The pool area is spacious, clean and warm, and includes a large hot tub and sauna, as well. The pool itself is much larger than standard hotel pools and is kept at a *perfect* temperature--not too cold and not too hot. We were able to get in without squealing about the chilliness and still play for a couple of hours.
As is standard policy for Holiday Inns, kids eat free with almost any room rate they offer, which is a wonderful bonus for families! Additionally, my Priority Rewards freebie was a free hot breakfast from the restaurant each morning. The free selection is fairly small, but you also have the option to deduct $3 from any other breakfast you choose. The restaurant itself is undergoing some renovation, so it is a little outdated, but the food was fine (about Perkins/Village Inn quality) and the service was good. My kids enjoyed enormous plates of pancakes each morning to start their day off right!
A tip if you choose to stay here in winter is to see if you can get a room that faces away from Hwy 41--while the road noise is not too noticeable, there are frequently snowmobiles that go through the parking lot which are fairly loud. We just kept the room fan on at night for white noise as we always do, but lighter sleepers might have issues with that.
Finally, the Holiday Inn is nicely located on the Hwy that runs right to town, so you are just a couple of miles from the Children's Museum, the waterfront areas and downtown. Thanks to the awesome pool here, this hotel is our first choice when we visit Marquette for an overnight stay.