Weekend Getaway

Once upon a time there was a boy and a girl, young newlyweds, who liked to travel all over the great state of Minnesota for weekend getaways. This was long before their life was complicated with nap schedules and baby gear and obnoxious car riders. Before all of that, the young boy and girl picked random destinations, packed up without a plan or or any forethought of how they'd spend their time, and simply go. Sometimes these trips were duds, saved only by their ingenuity to create fun out of any circumstances; and other times the weekend getaways were chalked full of interesting outings. Then the day came when the young boy and girl couldn't easily escape on these spontaneous trips. You see, they were no longer newlyweds; they were parents. 

Meet Dave and Angie, the long ago newlyweds notorious for their random getaways, and their two sons, Spencer and Ashton.


Sometimes that easygoing, carefree lifestyle seems so long ago; and other times I feel like it was just yesterday. Dave and I like to incorporate that part of ourselves into our present life, but it's just trickier now. Where once we packed lightly with one small duffel bag, now we lug a big suitcase, a pack 'n play, a bag just for toys and books, snacks, the list goes on and on. Where once we didn't have to pay notice to the time of day, now we are prisoners of the clock, everything planned around naps and meal times. Even with these restrictions (and many more), we still make it a point to have small family trips.

This winter has been especially brutal with the Polar Vortex visiting so often, so we opted for a trip that allowed us to escape for a moment, perhaps pretend it's the middle of summer instead of smack dab in the middle of this long, cold winter. We checked into a hotel with an indoor waterpark and only emerged briefly to hit up Cabela's (somewhat begrudgingly on my part since I'd rather be just about anywhere than that boring store). The trip lived up to the boys' excited anticipation; and I'm fairly certain they would have been content simply staying in the hotel room and playing the day away.


Packing his toy bag.



Sack lunches for the long car ride.

Our hotel suite. 

I couldn't resist the natural window lighting.

The main event. 









After supper dessert back in our hotel room.

And, yes, you can add too many bubbles to a jacuzzi tub. Lesson learned.





The bedtime set-up. That faux-curtain separates the boys.



Chilling with Daddy until little brother passes out. Then he retires to the pull-out couch.



Our turn to relax. Except the once all-nighters barely made it to 10:00 p.m.



Pre-breakfast buffet cereal for those little tummies that just cannot wait.



Next up on our getaway list? Camping!! Well, once everything thaws and it's safe to be outside longer than thirty seconds anyway.