Category Archives: Travel

Family Travel // Île d’Orléans + Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré

November 6, 2015

Hello again!
I am back and sharing some more of our travels in Canada.  While visiting Quebec City, we visited a few surrounding sites like Montmorency Falls, and today I’m sharing with you our explorations on Orleans Island, (or Île d’Orléans in French) and Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré.
Île d’Orléans is a cute little Island across the St. Lawrence River from Quebec City.
There is one way onto the island over a bridge, and when you enter the Island and go counter clockwise, you see some of the quaint gorgeous little homes on the beautiful island countryside.  There is a beautiful view of Quebec City from one end of the Island in the area referred to as Sainte-Pétronille.
There are a few little restaurants on the island, and my kids loved going to the Chocolate store.  The island is also well known for their country grown strawberries if you are on the island during strawberry season, be sure to pull over and grab a basket from the local fruit stands.
The Cathedral of Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré is about 20 minutes outside of Quebec City.  It is stunning, and massive in size.  People have been gathering at this shrine for over 350 years dedicated to Saint Anne the grandmother of Jesus. It holds beautiful artwork, paintings, stained glass windows, and mosaics.  It also holds daily mass.
The grounds and surrounding areas were also beautiful and nice to walk around.
Norah’s Outfit
Gap Kids Denim Jacket
Gap Kids Floral shorts (similar)
Gap Kids Grey Top (similar)
Navy Saltwater Sandals
Ezra
Sweater- Nununu
Converse All Star High Tops
Thomas
Loved by Hannah and Eli Tee
Puma Shoes
If you’re in the Quebec City area in Canada, I highly recommend visiting Île d’Orléans + Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré!
Thanks for following along our adventures!  Feel free to check out more of our Family travel posts here.

Family Travel // Quebec City Canada

October 29, 2015

We recently took a trip to Canada among other amazing places (more to come!), and made a two day stop in Quebec City, Canada. I actually lived in Quebec City a few summers as a young girl as my Father was finishing his PhD.  It was fun to think that I was exploring the same town as my children at the very same ages!
Quebec City is a beautiful town that lies beside the great St. Lawrence River.  It is the oldest still existing fortified city in Northern America.  If you would have blind folded me and dropped me in the center of the old city, I would have thought for certain that I was in Europe!  Especially with everyone speaking French.  It is a beautiful city with a lot of history!
My dad (or Papy to my kids) was also in town for a conference, so it was fun to be able to explore around town with him.  He has spent a lot of time in Quebec with work over the years, so it was nice to have him along to give us the grand tour.  My kids really enjoyed running around town with him.
My Outfit: (affiliate links)
Top: H&M (similar), Skirt H&M (similar), Bag: Baggallini Horizon Crossbody, Sandals: Black Birkenstocks
Place Royale was a gorgeous little town square.  It was really like stepping back in time, and has the oldest stone church in North America built in 1688.
We spent the day exploring Old Quebec City.  Such charming little cobblestone streets with restaurants and shops, it feels really European.
We stopped and ate lunch at a cute little restaurant called Cochon Dingue (Crazy Pig).
We had not one, but two people recommend to eat here, my friend from back in Utah and my cousin who lives in Montreal.  It was extremely kid friendly, and the kids menu was extremely well priced, for around 7 Canadian dollars you could get a three-course meal for the kids including a drink.  My kids loved the homemade macaroni and cheese, and the fresh grilled salmon.  The little pig shaped sugar cookies were adorable, and they even brought out a box of prizes for my kids to choose from before we left!  I highly recommend it if you are traveling to Quebec City, especially with kids!
My husband and I weren’t too hungry, so we decided to try the Poutine.  While in Canada, right?!  If you’re not familiar with Poutine, it is french fries with cheese curds and gravy drizzled all over it.  I for one, think it’s nice for a few bites, but turns out I’m not a huge Poutine fan.  My husband really enjoyed it.
Later on that day, we visited the Fortifications of Quebec City and the Citadel.  We got there a little late, so we weren’t able to go in, but we were able to walk around near the walls a bit with views of the St. Lawrence River.
If you’re ever in Quebec City, here are the top places I’d recommend visiting:

 

We stayed at the Best Western Premiere Hotel L’Aristocrate.  It was very clean, new,  and a great price, and only about a 10 minute drive into Old Quebec.  We booked the room off of booking.com which gave us a a great deal, even when we booked the day before our arrival and it was very reasonably priced for a Four Star Hotel.  It also has great freeway access and is close to the Aquarium.
Quebec City was so amazing to explore with our kids, it really made me want to take them to Europe someday, I know they would love it!  I of course loved the European feel, and when we stopped in the park to enjoy a moment in our day we were able to pause, and find joy in the amazing opportunity we had to visit such a beautiful historical city with our little family.  Exactly the kind of memories we hope to be making often!
Thanks for following along our adventures!

Adventures // Love with Food

October 21, 2015

This adventure is brought to you by Love with Food.  Love with Food is a subscription snack box that starts as low as $7.99 a month, and helps you discover guilt-free organic and all natural non-GMO snacks delivered to your door!  For every box sold, they donate a meal to a food bank –No Kid Hungry!  Join us to help end child hunger one meal at a time!
Get 40% off your first Tasting Box or 50% off your first Gluten Free box.
 Thank you for supporting our sponsors that help keep Armelle Blog up and running, all thoughts and opinions are my own.
The kids have been out of school for Fall Break, so as we do, we decided to head out for an adventure!  
We love a good adventure, and Antelope Island is always one of our favorite places to hike, run around, and discover!  We packed up our Love with Food Snack Box and headed out for some fun!
We decided to mess around at the salty beach, and then hike to Buffalo Point!  We took a little break at the top to lay down a blanket and have some snacks from our Love with Food box.  Something my kids were really looking forward to when I told them we had some special Love with Food snacks!
My kids of course loved all of the snacks, and it was fun for me to discover new snacks for my kids and enjoy some we are already familiar with and love!  I also was happy to see some coupons in the box so we can buy some of our new favorite snacks next time we make a grocery store run.
My kids love the large rocks at the top to climb and explore. My little Thomas was a lion, a lizard, and a cheetah all within minutes!  I love to watch them imagine and play!  Like I always say, nature is the BEST babysitter!
The views of the top are just picturesque and it felt like we were at the real ocean, and not the Great Salt Lake!
We also saw some Buffalo and Antelope grazing around the island, always a big highlight for my kids.  Of course they always have to observe with their binoculars!
We just love that we live in such a beautiful state, and are able to discover and explore such beautiful places in our own backyard!
Outfit Sources:
Norah: Winter Water Factory Jumper c/o
Thomas: Grumpy Bear Tee- Loved by Hannah and Eli c/o
Ezra: Lion Cub Tee- Loved by Hannah and Eli c/o
Keen Newport H2 Hiking Sandals (affiliate)
Backpacks-  Babiators c/o