What is your natural instinct when something scares you? Do you cover your eyes? Scream? Run? Fight?

I hate being scared and my knee-jerk reactions prove it. Last year at the Boy Scouts’ haunted forest when the boys jumped out from behind the trees, I grabbed my daughter and used her as a human shield.

But, that wasn’t when she first learned about my impulsiveness. The poor girl once made the mistake of standing behind my bedroom door, underneath a white sheet and when I least expected it, she jumped out at me and screamed. I screamed too. I also hit her in the face.

Last week, my husband had just climbed the steps when I entered the dark hallway right in front of him. He said…something…who knows what it was…and it scared me because I expected the dark hallway to be empty. I hit him so hard in the chest that I thought, for a second, he was going to fall down the stairs.

Fair warning, if I hear something go bump in the night, I’m going to shoot it. Just sayin’. I can’t help the way I react.

This has never been more evident than a few weeks ago on a trip to Lake Erie. My family and I were taking a tour of a one-room cave. I was shoved up against the back wall with a large crowd between me and the only exit. My head was about six inches from the ceiling.

I looked down at my son who was staring at something above me when he said, very nonchalantly, “Mom, there’s a bat.”

I was sure I misunderstood.

“What, buddy?”

Again, he looked just past my head and calmly said, “There’s a bat.”

I turned around to see a mouse-like, winged creature within inches of my face.

I can only describe what happened next as half slow-motion, half George Constanza. I nearly trampled my own kids so I could get out of there.

What can I say? My motherly instincts are pretty awesome.

But, as I was getting ready to throw people to the side, the tour guide said, “It’s okay! It’s fake!”

The picture is so blurry because I was still shaking. You know, because of a Beanie Baby.

But, on the upside, I didn’t knock anyone out.

For the 16 years that my husband and I have been together we have made a trip, 2.5 hours north, to Cedar Point Amusement Park in Sandusky, Ohio every summer. It used to be us and a group of friends, but once we had kids it became a family getaway. We usually drive up on a Saturday afternoon, buy twilight passes for Saturday evening, all-day passes for Sunday, then drive home Sunday night. We never go anywhere but Cedar Point.

There’s a good reason for that. Cedar Point is awesome. If you like roller coasters, there is no better park in the United States. I’m not lying.

Amusement Today has voted it the best amusement park in the country for the past 13 years and BONUS! We can get there in under 3 hours. There are SO MANY great coasters at Cedar Point that it’s hard to say which one is my favorite. I’ve always loved Raptor, but Millennium Force is the most amazingly fast, smooth and exciting ride I have ever been on (watch this video to see it).

Maverick is the most unique and Top Thrill Dragster is quite a ride. And, I haven’t even come close to naming all of the coasters, let alone the other rides. My kids love roller coasters just as much as we do. Thank goodness, because I would hate to have to disown them.

But, there is one thing that’s wrong with liking Cedar Point so much; we never see anything else the Lake Erie shore has to offer.

This year we did things differently.

Do you ever feel like you have to take a break? That’s how I was feeling a few weeks ago. Like I was being pulled in so many different directions that I didn’t know which way to turn first. I needed a little getaway with my family to get myself centered again.

We drove to Sandusky on a Sunday morning and checked into our room at the Sawmill Creek Resort. This sprawling hotel is on well-kept grounds with a golf course on site.  The accommodations were nicer than where we usually stay for our Cedar Point trips, but if you take little ones, ask for a room near the lobby. It took us a long time to walk to the common areas like the pool, restaurants and gift shop.

The amenity most notably missing was that there was no wifi in the room. There was one dial-up source, but that meant that my husband and I couldn’t work at the same time (it should be noted, the blogger won that battle).

We had a 12:30 tee time that afternoon for the whole family and as we neared the very first green, rain came at us from every angle. With lightning suddenly striking, we floored our golf carts to the nearest shelter, which happened to be a storage barn.

After about 20 minutes, the rain slowed enough that we could drive back to the clubhouse and request a tee time for the next morning. They were happy to oblige.

So, there we were at 1:00 in the afternoon, and our plans were rained out. THIS is why you should stay at a hotel with an indoor pool. Between swimming and a trip to Walmart for snacks, we still managed to have a fun-filled day.

The next morning, we hit the putting green at 7:45am. Luckily, the weather was cooperating.

The course was beautiful and we, mostly, had it to ourselves.

The kids were even getting along.

After 18 holes of golf, we drove to the Miller Ferry in Catawba, where we pulled our car right onto the boat.

Then we climbed to the top level and enjoyed the ride to Put in Bay, which is a small Lake Erie island.

We started the afternoon with a tour of the Heineman Winery and Crystal Cave. The cave is the world’s largest geode and you can stand inside of it! I felt like Superman.

A tour of the winery followed, where my homemade-wine-making-husband had vat envy. These don’t look like our five gallon jugs!

Before we left the winery, we stopped for a glass of wine and the kids got grape juice. My daughter loved it…

…but, my son was unimpressed.

To distract him, we walked across the street to Perry’s Cave Family Fun Center and the Butterfly House.

We saw some gorgeous flowers and exotic butterflies.

This one hitched a ride.

By this time, the kids were getting tired. Okay, so was I. My husband insisted that we wait for a tour of Perry’s Cave, but let’s just say there was some serious whining going on. It was so HOT, which is why I am really glad we waited for that tour.

Perry’s Cave is deep underground and naturally air-conditioned at a delightful 50 degrees. It was dark, damp and kind of freaky, but it felt so good! Warning! Low ceiling!

After that, we were rejuvenated! The kids really wanted to run through Fort Amaze’n, which looked far too complicated for me. I, instead, watched from a viewing stand. The kids were sent in with a challenge to find four letters, stamp a card, then exit within 5 minutes. If you could do that, you got a free pass for a rock climbing wall.

It turned out to be too difficult for the kids as well. My husband jumped in to help our son and our daughter ended up crawling under the partition after about 15 minutes of trying to get out.

Because our golf game had been postponed until that morning, we didn’t have as much time on Put in Bay as we would have liked. We took a quick drive around the island, before taking the ferry back to Catawba.

Beautiful, isn’t it? Bet you didn’t know that Ohio looks like this.

After dinner, the kids somehow had enough energy to go swimming, which put the cherry on top of a very full day. We loved our visit to the Lake Erie shore and there was so much more we could have seen. I guess that just means we have to go back next year!

The next morning, we woke early and made our annual drive to Cedar Point. We spent all day on roller coasters, then changed into our bathing suits for some of the water rides. My son thought it was hysterical when I got completely drenched. Truth be told, I kind of did too.

We always have a fabulous time and this year was no exception. Cedar Point makes me feel like a kid again.

And, as an added bonus, the prize from the ball toss game made an excellent pillow for the ride home.

The good thing about amusement park prizes is that they don’t even mind if you snore.

A BIG thank you to Cedar Point and Lake Erie Shores and Islands for accommodations, ferry passes, a round of golf and attraction tickets!

Just after my husband and I got married, we bought our first new car. It was a 1997 Mercury Mountaineer. After 14 years and 145,000 miles, I’m still driving that SUV. I have had it so long that they don’t even make Mountaineers anymore. I might as well have an Edsel.

Even though my car has a rear door that won’t open, a horn that doesn’t honk, a CD player that won’t release my CD’s, a liftgate that slams down on your head and a speedometer that barely lights up at night, I didn’t think I was missing out when everyone around me went through two or three cars in the last decade and a half. After all, my car is comfortable, it has needed minimal repairs, I feel pretty safe in it and we have used the heck out of the abundant cargo space.

But, it is becoming more and more apparent that Bessie (as we lovingly refer to her) is beginning to show her age; not to mention that she only gets about 9 mpg. It is time that we start looking for another car.

I want something with more seating than the Mountaineer’s five seats, I want safety, good mileage, cargo room, towing capabilities, comfort and it has to fit in my garage. That is key.

I drove a Chevy Tahoe a few years ago and fell in love with it because of its ample space. Actually, there was too much space. I would have needed to tear out my garage door and raise it a few inches in order to park my car.

When Ford contacted me recently to test drive a vehicle from their media fleet, I immediately wanted to try the Expedition. Can you tell I like roomy cars?

Unfortunately, because of my garage door, I knew there was no way I could end up with an SUV that big. I looked at Ford’s website and chose an Explorer instead. It had six or seven seats (depending on the model), plenty of cargo space and best-in-its-class highway mpg. With fuel close to $4 a gallon, that’s a no-brainer.

The Explorer didn’t disappoint when we recently took it on a trip to Lake Erie. It had all of the above and a whole lot more. As much as my must-have list of features are important to me, I found that it’s the little things that make one, BIG impression. I had no idea what I’ve been missing.

Let’s have a look, shall we?

Cup holders – What? Cup holders are a big deal. I have spilled enough drinks in my car to know this. The Explorer had two, DEEP cup holders in the center console AND each door has a cup holder as well. It was the same way for my kids in the back seat too. That meant my husband and I could have our hot coffee safely stored and have a water bottle in the door instead of rolling around on the floor.

BLIS® with Cross-Traffic Alert – See that little car in the side-view mirror? When another car is in your blind spot, it lights up for you and warns you not to switch lanes. Awesome.

Push Button Start – Say you have your hands full with grocery bags, or you just got a manicure…cough…me…cough…you can open your door AND start the car without ever needing to dig the keys out of your purse. The door unlocks when you’re within range and you push start the car. I loved this feature. Also, my purse is a mess.

Powerfold Seats – You don’t have to remove either row of seats to add to your cargo space. With the push of a button you can stow the seats. It is completely easy and effortless.

Heated AND Air Conditioned Seating – Sure you’ve had your hind end warmed, but have you had it cooled? Mmm hmm. Need I say more?

Who knew that your navigation system could tell you the speed limit of the road you’re on? Not me.

Um…that’s a power outlet. Heating chili at a football tailgate just got a whole lot easier.

Collision Warning with Brake Assist – The Explorer is so smart that it will keep a set distance between you and the car in front of you and will slow down automatically. You don’t have to mess around with cruise control. This was my husband’s favorite feature.

Remember how my original list included cargo room? The back of the Explorer held FOUR sets of golf clubs, a full-sized cooler, a smaller cooler, a backpack, a duffel bag, an enormous suitcase and an exhaust fan. My husband doesn’t just like white noise for sleeping, he likes jet engine noise. Oh, and there was also one surly preteen and an impish nine year old.

Folks, I could go on and on. I was so impressed with the handling, the padded seatbelts my kids wore across their chests, the ability to turn off the passenger side airbag (my car doesn’t have that capability) and so much more. This is one incredible vehicle.

And, as soon as Bessie tells me she’s ready for the salvage yard, I’d like to park an Explorer in my garage. Oh, and I tried…it fits.

I haven’t had much time to tell you about the BlogHer ’11 Conference, because my job is to read what everyone else is saying about the BlogHer ’11 Conference and, whoa Nellie, do people say a lot. At least 99% of the reactions have been positive, so I have that going for me.  It’s hard enough to read thousands of comments, but if they were negative, I would likely be reading them from the corner, in the fetal position while sucking my thumb.

Since I am swimming in a sea of post-conference reports and tweets, I know that I’m not going to get around to writing a glowing post about my wonderful weekend. Therefore, I have decided to use visuals to describe how stellar my trip was.

This is what I found on my bed in San Diego after a hard day of work at the conference, which was also the night before I would be speaking in front of thousands of people. Nervous poop much? Thank goodness the convention center was big enough that I had entire bathrooms to myself. I digress. Those are rose petals left by my roommates. And, see that pillow on the right? That was personalized for me by one of them too.

This is what I found on my unmade bed, when I returned to Ohio. This is my dog’s “baby”. It is covered in dirt, fur and hardened dog slobber.

And that, boys and girls, sums up my conference experience quite well.