Ever since Gideon's Bakehouse opened at Disney Springs in 2021, I've heard nothing but good things about its massive, ½-pound cookies. But the bakery is known for having hourslong lines, so I've never visited myself.

Recently, I shopped at Lowe's and Home Depot to see which home-improvement store would be my go-to summer shopping destination.

I've been writing about my family's travels for over a decade and traveling for even longer. I'm also an introvert who gets easily overwhelmed by crowds and finds energy in moments of quiet solitude.

But even as a seeker of alone time, cruising remains among my favorite ways to explore the world.

For months, I've been trying chain restaurants in search of the best meals and deals for my family. Recently, I put two of the most famous chicken-wing chains to the test: Hooters and Buffalo Wild Wings.

I ordered the same meal at both chains to see which served the tastiest wings, appetizers, and sides. Here's how they stacked up.

We love getting breakfast together on the weekends, so we decided to visit Bob Evans for the first time to see what kind of value we'd find.

Here's how our visit to the famous chain went.

Millions of TikTok users have viewed Caesar-salad chicken-crust pizza videos in which creators share recipes and promise the viral dish tastes fresh and flavorful. Plus, it's fairly low-carb and high in protein, especially when compared to a typical pizza.

I was excited to check out the deals from seafood chain Red Lobster since it has family meals ranging from pasta to crab legs on its menu. Plus, with the debt-laden chain reportedly considering filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection earlier this year, I was wondering if its food would be such a great value after all.

So, instead of cooking dinner on Taco Tuesday, I headed to seafood chain Red Lobster to try its family taco meal deal.

It's been over seven years since my husband and I chose to relocate our family from Maryland to Florida. It's a decision I've never regretted once, but living in the Sunshine State is very different from life in the Northeast.

Since I live with two teenagers who'd eat McDonald's for every meal if I'd let them, I tried to find the fabled $12 "dinner box" at my closest Mickey D's locations.

It's been nearly a decade since I shopped at Gap or Banana Republic, but the retailers — both owned by parent company Gap Inc. — have been mall staples for as long as I can remember.

I recently visited both stores at my local Orlando mall to get a sense of the value each offers. Here's what my experience was like.

The multigenerational trip, for which one of my mother-in-law's best friends tagged along as her travel partner, proved to be an unforgettable memory for all of us. My kids left the ship feeling like they got to know their grandmother — who lives far from our Florida home in Pennsylvania — even better, and so did I.

Since my family started visiting chain restaurants for the first time about a year ago, we've dined everywhere from Ruth's Chris Steak House to Bahama Breeze.

I've never seen customers lined up just to get a table at any of them until we visited Olive Garden on a Friday night.

Recently, I visited Aldi with a $60 grocery budget to see what I could put in my cart. I bought ingredients for three nights' worth of dinners as well as several gluten-free pantry staples.

Here's what it was like shopping for my family of four on a limited budget.

Here's what it was like to order, pick up, and eat a family meal from Cracker Barrel, and why I'd definitely order a to-go dinner from the chain again.

A few months ago, I decided alcohol was no longer serving me. Tired of seeing the way booze affected my relationships and left me feeling anxious and exhausted, I chose an alcohol-free lifestyle, and I haven't back. Recently, I took my first vacation since choosing a life of sobriety.

Our choice wasn’t completely about the way the school handled a bullying issue or the excessive amount of homework my kids were coming home with (although those were part of it). One of the biggest motivators for the change was our desire to teach our kids through travel.

When my husband and I started toying with the idea of taking my teenagers on a whale-watching expedition cruise, we had no idea what to expect. While we’d cruised on several major cruise lines in the past, hopping on a 100-passenger ship run by National Geographic and Lindblad Expeditions felt far different than anything we’d done before.

A little over a year ago, a Costco warehouse opened about 40 minutes from my home. I canceled both my BJ's and Sam's Club memberships without hesitation and gladly embraced weekly drives to our new Costco. I can honestly say I've never looked back.

We've tried various chains including Ruth's Chris and Olive Garden, and have found some impressive dishes while making our rounds.

But our recent visit to the upscale steak-house chain The Capital Grille blew us away. It may just be our best chain-restaurant experience to date.

As an annual passholder and a journalist who covers theme parks, I spend a lot of time at Disney World.

My whole family used to have annual passes as well, but as my two teens have gotten older, they're not as excited about long days in theme parks.

Still, my husband and I love going together. I recently paid over $1,000 for us to spend a full day (from park-open to park-close) at Disney World.