A Mother/Teen Daughter Travel Blog
Bonjour! We are so excited that the time has finally arrived–our French exchange student is here!
We found out about the Share America program from Kristen Kucharski, writer of Glancer Magazine‘s Mom’s Little Black Book. We couldn’t be more grateful for this amazing opportunity!
Hey guys! It’s Brooke.
So on our way back from our incredible Southwest National Parks Tour, Jon, our guide, surprised us with an awesome stop along Route 66, saying our trip wouldn’t be complete without a nostalgic pit stop along this iconic route.
Not sure if it’s my Italian blood, but fine dining ranks right up there with breathing. Over the years, I’ve had significantly memorable experiences at many beautiful restaurants around the world, but there are only a handful that could be described as feeding more than just one’s appetite. Meson Sabika is one of those quintessential cuisines that is in a class all its own—an experience that feeds your soul.
Being a teen travel and life-style blogger is more than I could ever have dreamed of. Having the opportunities to travel all over the country and world have been such a blessing. I am grateful for each and every trip, journey, excursion and adventure.
But now it is time for me to give back. Since I began travel blogging with my mom, we have both said we want our purpose to be meaningful. At first we weren’t sure exactly what that looked like. Inspiring girls to travel and take risks seemed obvious at the time, and is still an aspiring goal. However, being an influencer, I feel there are more important jobs to be done. There are animals suffering, refugees ill and lost without homes, homeless people cold and alone, girls that cannot attend schools due to lack of hygienic products, schools that barely have resources for students to learn and the list unfortunately goes on and on. I have been asking myself for months, ‘What can I do to make a difference?’
And then fate took flight!
A few weeks ago my mom was contacted by another mom whose daughter follows Pedisnpassports. Her name is Gabi Frank, a 13-year-old girl from Downers Grove. She told me she has collected 2,000 books for children in the Caribbean through Pack for a Purpose and Sandals Foundation. I was so thrilled to hear about this noble charity and immediately wanted to partake.
Pack for a Purpose was founded by Rebecca Rothney and a team of a few wonderful volunteers. Their mission is “to positively impact communities around the world by assisting travelers who want to bring meaningful contributions to the destinations they visit.”
If you are planning a vacation, you should definitely go to their website and see if the community you are visiting is in need of any supplies. I mean what is better than going on an amazing vacation and helping people simultaneously.
Pack for a Purpose provides supply lists on its website for destinations in over 60 countries. The needed items range from school supplies, to personal hygiene, to clothing and all sorts of items (many other requested items). People all over the world are in need and if you are fortunate enough to travel, it is a humanitarian responsibility to give back.
So Gabi and I are asking for your help. We would like to collect 3,000 new and gently used books for children ages 3-6 years old for libraries in Jamaica. We cannot accept encyclopedias or textbooks.
If you are willing to donate a book or two, please email us at: pedis.n.passports@gmail.com or HLaw97@comcast.net as soon as you possibly can for shipping/drop off address informtion. We are planning to visit the students at their schools in Jamaica this fall.
Please spread the word and help make a difference one book at a time.
Sincerely,
Brooke Noelle
Something has changed within me; something is not the same…
Traveling to the American Southwest was so much more than superficially seeing the glory of a few National Parks. A deep and permanent metamorphosis occurred within each of us. Perhaps we now realize the tiny space that we occupy in the world or that nothing really belongs to us except the sky, the air, and our dreams.
No matter where we travel, these five events occur with 100% certainty. Although we plan diligently, try to stay organized, and healthy, we’d bet all our international currencies these things will take place on our next trip.
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Hi! It’s Brooke.
Just yesterday, a friend of mine said, “Brooke, you’re so lucky you get to travel so much.” While I am very grateful I have family that shares my passion, I really want to encourage teens who may not have family members that travel a lot, no matter the reasons.
For Brooke’s 8th grade graduation, I surprised her with a weekend in Chicago–the highlight being tickets to Hamilton and a magnificent stay at the Renaissance Chicago Downtown Hotel.
Traveling to Europe three times now, Italy is probably, no, make that definitely, our favorite European country. Perhaps, because we are Italian or just love the passionate culture, we will continue to visit Italy every time we venture abroad. I’m actually considering retiring there but just haven’t decided between a few locations: Cinque Terre, The Almalfi Coast, Lake Como, Lake Garda, Sicily or Capri…Decisions, decisions.
Pedis-n-Passports 