A week spent with nothing more important than to relax and have some serious fun has done me some good but it is now time to come back to the day to day routine. Last week was one where I washed not a single dish nor cooked a single meal and had someone to tidy up after me. My phone was ignored and forgotten, no e-mail or anything and it was absolutely fabulous.
I don’t particularly care for hotel rooms as the beds are never quite as comfy as home and there is never anywhere comfortable to sit but having someone else to make my bed and clear out the trash and dirty towels more than makes up for it. We ended up spending very little time in the room anyways as we had lots planned out and Mall of America rounded out whatever time was left.
I always love a good vacation, really who doesn’t, and this past week spent in and around Minneapolis was a blast. It was relaxing fun and full of shopping just as a great vacation should be. There were no arguments or moments of stress, it was calm and peaceful and packed with museums, amusement parks and family fun.
My husband, kids and I together with my husband’s siblings and their families all traveled down to Minneapolis for the week. Having all the cousins together is always a great experience particularly when they are willing to consent to a day at Valley Fair wearing matching t-shirts labeled cousin 1, cousin 2 etc just to make us Moms happy.
We had originally planned to spend our holiday in Toronto but decided on travelling to Minneapolis for this group vacation as the kids are all getting older and we don’t have much time left when getting all the cousins together is going to be quite so simple. We didn’t spend the entire week together as our family was the only one interested in visiting museums but we did do a number of great things together.
Thanks to our GPS I didn’t get lost in the maze of interstate travel during rush hour excursions in a city I don’t know well. For the most part it kept me on track with the exception of telling me to turn right when turning right would have sent us careening off a 50 ft drop; I obviously ignored that particular instruction.
The trip also gave us the opportunity to break in the new SUV we just purchased, nothing like putting 2,000 KM on a vehicle in the first 2 weeks. Well it gave us a good idea of what mileage to expect and it’s handling. This SUV also has a DVD player for the kids so the 7 ½ hr trip from Winnipeg to Minneapolis and back was actually quite pleasant.
Everything about this trip really seemed to work out perfectly not a thing went wrong the entire time and everything was great. Even the border crossing which during the summer often involves a rather lengthy wait was fast both directions. Whenever we travel to the states for a shopping trip or a holiday away I always love that moment when we cross back over the border, that moment of contentment of time having been well spent and the welcome feeling of being home.
