Go Anyway Travel Blog

06/05/2025

Our family recently made an exciting announcement. After a suspenseful and stressful final round of IVF, we're expecting Baby #2! And pregnancy has not stopped us from continuing to travel safely, with strategies in place to mitigate uncomfortable symptoms. Read more below about my experience road-tripping while pregnant!

Our family recently road-tripped through South Dakota, Wyoming, Colorado, and Nebraska — but beforehand, we made a big announcement.

05/08/2025

Watching your baby grow into a toddler is a magical (albeit, exhausting) experience. For our family, a visit to the children's museum increases that magic with minimal added exhaustion. Here's our take on the museums we've visited throughout the past couple years.

The other day, I asked myself a big question: “what are my happiest memories?” Among several great contenders, I was surprised to note one day in particular: My daughter’s first visit to the Omaha Children’s Museum.

03/11/2025

If you live in the Midwest, chances are you've set foot in the Mall of America at least once. But have you checked out the aquarium? We took our two-and-a-half-year-old daughter a couple weeks ago, and she was in awe. So, I've updated my round-up of aquariums to include helpful details for families who are curious about visiting. Check out the link below and scroll to the section on SEA LIFE Aquarium:

Some babies love puppies. Others love teddy bears. But for our baby girl, it’s all about fishies. It’s hard to say why she’s so delighted by shiny scales and flippy fins, but we’re pretty sure our family trips had something to do with it.

01/31/2025

If you've been struggling through the past two weeks of chaos, I'm right there with you. I took some time to clear my mind by finishing this post about our first trip as a family of three. It covers all the ways we adjusted our traveling style to accommodate a little one. I hope it provides an informative, or at least distracting, reprieve.

In 2022, as the leaves began to brighten and curl, we started planning our first trip as a family of three. My husband and I took plenty of adventures together as a couple: Paris, Chamonix, Key West, the Pacific Northwest, the Appalachians, the Rockies, and many more.

01/03/2025

My blog is back! I'm so excited to share the wild ride our family has taken while planning a trip to Duluth, Minnesota, and then actually taking that trip. Check the comments for the trending TikTok version of this story (while you still can)!

So, it makes sense to re-enter my “Go Anyway” space with the imperfect and chaotic story of our family trip to Duluth, Minnesota. If this trip were a board game, it would be littered with “lose a turn” squares, along with extra points, just when you least expect them.

09/18/2024

I've been quiet for a few weeks, but Go Anyway Travel Blog is still very much on my mind! Lately, I'm navigating a time-consuming election job along with being a toddler mom. But, rest assured, I'll be back with more content in just a couple of months. For now, enjoy some photos from a short trip we snuck in to Center Grove Orchard! Our daughter was the right age for many of the activities, although she was a bit hesitant about the corn pool and some of the animals. She loved putting apples in our bag to take home!

07/09/2024

As parents, we're pretty lucky when it comes to common difficulties with raising a toddler, like naps, bedtime, and eating fruits and veggies. With periodic exceptions, our daughter sleeps well, and she even loves broccoli. However, her tastebuds have become gradually more selective throughout the past year. This was evident on our trip to Disney World in March. We found a reliable selection of food she liked with some trial and error, but we also racked up a surprising list of snacks and meals she pushed away in disgust. Check out my latest blog post to learn what she liked, what she didn't like, and some tips for feeding toddlers at Disney World!

Soft pretzels, pizza, macaroni, ice cream. They all sound like winners when it comes to feeding a toddler at Walt Disney World, if not the most healthy winners. But if you have a toddler, you know that chaos is the norm, even when it comes to the most toddler-friendly foods.

06/24/2024

It's not often us Midwesterners get a chance to wear our Minnie and Mickey ears so close to home! Over the weekend, our Iowa family dusted off our ears for the Disney100: The Exhibition at Union Station Kansas City. We enjoyed viewing a wide variety of unique Disney items, including several live-action props, as well as a wealth of information about Disney movies, music, and parks.

This museum-esque exhibit isn't geared toward toddlers, but our almost-two-year-old certainly enjoyed the props, images, and special effects. We enjoyed reading as much information as possible, while we took turns chasing an excited little one. All-in-all, we had a great time! If you visit with a toddler, I would highly recommend popping into Science City at Union Station — especially the Let's Play area for children three and younger. Both Disney100 and Science City are located in the same building, along with food and other fun!

06/17/2024

This dad requested a relaxing, travel-free Father's Day, so we spent our Sunday around home! However, we did venture out to a few spots in nearby Ankeny: Good Day DSM for amazing Vietnamese coffee, The Operating Room - Pinball Bar Arcade for games, and Magee's Irish Pub & Eatery for delicious Beyond Burgers and cheese curds! Our almost-two-year-old is just barely old enough to wander around the arcade with us, and she loved sitting on her dad's lap while we played some Mario Kart. Happy belated Father's Day, all!

06/07/2024

I'm back! After a short hiatus to help get out the vote before Iowa's Primary Election, I'm excited to finally share my latest blog post: a round-up of aquariums our family has visited throughout the past two years! Of all the adventures we've taken together, aquariums are near the top of our 22-month-old daughter's list. Most recently, she had a blast at the National Mississippi River Museum & Aquarium! Read my post below to find out how things went in Dubuque and at three other aquariums we've visited!

What we loved, and what was missing, on several family visits to the aquarium Some babies love puppies. Others love teddy bears. But for our baby girl, it’s all about fishies. It’s hard to say why she’s so delighted by shiny scales and flippy fins, but we’re pretty sure our family trips had ...

05/13/2024

How did we spend Mother's Day? Traveling, of course! We spent the weekend in Omaha revisiting the Omaha Children's Museum and Old Market Omaha, and we enjoyed some vegetarian-friendly food and relaxed live music at Get Real Sandwiches. We also discovered Sonny's, an outdoor spot to listen to live music and hang out with family (including energetic toddlers)!

It's always so hard picking out photos to share that don't include our daughter. I'm intentionally excluding her name and face from my blog, so you'll have to trust that she had a blast! I'll be sure to share more details in an upcoming post about children's museums, as well!

05/02/2024

If you're planning a Disney trip any time soon, you'll want to swing by ALDI USA ASAP! At the moment, they've got inexpensive Minnie ears along with Minnie/Mickey clothing, water bottles, shoes, backpacks, and wallets! Plus the cute pillows pictured here. I don't have any kind of partnership with Aldi, but I do regularly slow down the "Aldi Finds" aisle so I can meticulously examine each item. 😅