To Be or Air BnB

Our Atlanta AirBnb had it own chickens. Free fresh eggs!

This trip was a first for us. No hotel stays while on the road. No cheap motels. No hotel pools. No free continental breakfasts. Instead, we we're gonna enter the new millennium and stay at Airbnb's the entire time.  Now, we've stayed in vacation homes before. On the beach. But those always felt as much like a resort as anything. These would be different. We were gonna stay in residential areas. In people's houses.

So. Much. Room.

There were some definite advantages to staying in an Airbnb versus a hotel. 



Here's our list of Pros and Cons...

Our Savannah home away from home

All in all, everyone totally enjoyed our temporary residences. We may never go back to hotels again.  If only we could find an Airbnb with free breakfasts and a pool, we'd be set...

Savannah Smiles

Our final stop on this Woodman family adventure took us to the charming and picturesque town of Savannah, Georgia. A city both rich with tradition and troubled in its dark history, it proved to be a memorable time for all.

 Savannah is well known as one of the most haunted cities in America. So, obviously our first stop was a walking ghost tour through the historic section of downtown. Here we learned all about this city's disturbing past, from sweeping epidemics to mass deaths. And probably the most troubling, the overwhelming neglect and mistreatment of burial sites. There are untold numbers of buried dead bodies, unmarked, just about everywhere throughout this historic section. When your city is built on a  premise for several horror movies, bad things tend to happen.

After the initial creep out factor, we settled into Savannah and began to appreciate it for what it is, a beautiful, and very accessible town. Not only was it easy to get around, but with over 20 town squares and beautiful homes everywhere you look, there was plenty to see. The evergreen live oak with their drooping, curvaceous branches, draped in Spanish moss added yet another bit of Southern quality to Savannah's charm.

Forsyth Park

On our second day we met up with our friends the Kasparek family, who coincidentally happen to be swinging through town. This time another historical walking tour, only with out all the creepy stories.

Nina shows concern. Nadia, not so much.

Beach time

As an added bonus to this already enjoyable town, the beach was just a short 20 minute drive away. Tybee Island sits on the Atlantic just south of the popular destination of Hilton Head, South Carolina. Less crowded than most beaches, but with all the laid back vibes of any beach town, Tybee was the ideal destination for our family. The waves were big enough, but not too big. The water was clean and the perfect temperature. There were plenty of sea shells to collect. And, most importantly (to Norah) no jellyfish! On our 3rd day at the beach, a group of dolphins swam within 20 yards of us. What a great beach!

Let us not overlook our main reason for taking this trip in the first place. Nina had qualified to participate in the YMCA National Gymnastics meet to be held in Savannah. With over 1700 gymnasts from 71 different teams from all over the country, it was a big deal. Everywhere we went in town, we saw girls doing cartwheels, and handstands, and well, basically acting like Nina. The meet itself lasted for three days, with Nina competing one of those days. The competition was tough. Lots of teams traveled in large numbers. Nina was one of just 5 kids from her Y that made the trip. She performed well, and even managed to medal on bars, her worst apparatus typically. We were all very proud of her accomplishments.

Beaming with pride

Pandamonium

January 1st 2017. The Woodman family lounges around the house contemplating the new year that sits before them. "Hey, let's write down our resolutions..." someone says. Probably me. Sounds like something I would say. So we did. We gave it some thought, and throughout the day we all jotted down on the chalk board our hopes for 2017.
'I want to try new things.' I wrote.
'I want to try a new recipe every month' Jenny adds.
The 2 big kids added some sporting accomplishments to their lists, and we were nearly finished. With the exception of Nadia. She was new to this concept of setting long term goals. Or maybe she wasn't comfortable putting them in writing for the whole family to see. She struggled to think of anything. We tried to spark some ideas for her. And then finally she came up with something on her own. When no one was looking, she went into the kitchen and scribbled in chalk:

'I want to see a panda.'

Her sisters laughed. "That's not a resolution" one of them said mockingly.
But right away, I thought differently. It was the perfect resolution, I decided.
Clear. Specific. Attainable. Just the kind of thing we can handle.
Now, where to begin?

My immediate knowledge of pandas at American zoos were the original ones in Washington D.C. But a quick Google search lead me to three other panda exhibits stateside. San Diego, Memphis and Atlanta. Well...I thought, Memphis is close by. I guess we can hop down there at some point this year. We could make it work. Then fate stepped in and decided it for us. Nina qualified for a gymnastics meet in Georgia, and fittingly Atlanta was right on the way.

Hello Pandas.

Born September 3, 2016

Not only was the Atlanta Zoo the home of two adult bears (Lun Lun and Yang Yang) but as luck would have it, they had recently given birth to twin cubs. Baby panda cubs? Are you kidding me? Our heads were sure to explode with cuteness overload. Ya Lun and Xi Lun are the 6th and 7th cubs to be born to this pair. Like their older brothers and sisters, they will grow up and move to the Chengdu Research Base in China. But for now, they were out for all to see.



Zoo Atlanta, by any measure is a nice zoo. Not too big, but big enough. Beautifully designed, mostly shaded, and well kept. There were plenty of other cool things for us to see as well. Baby orangutans. Naked mole rats. We even fed the giraffes. But let's be real, we came to see the pandas. We didn't shell out a hundred bucks to see meerkats. (side note: let me remind everyone in STL how great and amazing and FREE our Zoo is)













Pandas spend most of their day sleeping, but we were lucky enough to catch them first thing in the morning, out and about and playing with each other. We stopped by their exhibit several times throughout the day to admire these adorable creatures.

Thanks for the inspiration, Nadia.
Now, what do you have in mind for us in 2018...?

Mission accomplished

Yes in Indiana, There Is A Santa Claus

Two parks in one

DEAR BLOGGER: I am 7 years old.

Some of my little friends say there is no such place as Santa Claus.

My Poppa says, ‘If you see it in ON A BLOG,  then it’s so.’

Please tell me the truth; is there a Santa Claus?

Wildebeest (★★★★★) and Mammoth (★★★★1/2)

Your little friends are wrong. They have been affected by the skepticism of a skeptical age. They do not believe except what they see on YouTube.

The Legend (★★★★)

Yes, in INDIANA, there is a Santa Claus. It exists as certainly as adventure and excitement and fun exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy.

Alas! how dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus.

There would be no childlike exuberance then, no delight, no exhilaration to make tolerable this existence. We should have no enjoyment, except in sense and sight. The eternal light with which childhood fills the world would be extinguished

Thunderbird (★★★★★)

Not believe in Santa Claus! You might as well not believe in water coasters! The most real things in the world are those that neither children nor men can see. Did you ever see a winged roller coaster before? Of course not, but that’s no proof that they are not there. Nobody can conceive or imagine all the wonders there are unseen and unseeable in the world.

The Voyage (★★★★1/2)

You may ride all the rides at the park to try and find this magic, but there is a veil covering the unseen world which not the strongest man could tear apart. Only courage, bravery and spirit can push aside that curtain and view the fun and excitement beyond.

Is it all real?

Ah, in INDIANA, in all this world there is nothing else more real and abiding.

No Santa Claus! Thank God! It exists, and it exists forever. A thousand years from now, nay, ten times ten thousand years from now, it will continue to make glad the heart of childhood.