Vacations are Hard Work

This week we took Henry to Duluth for his first vacation. Well, we took him to Milwaukee last summer to visit Auntie Allie, but he was barely 6 months old and spent most of the time in the stroller or car seat. This was going to be first trip that he could really experience and so I planned the crap outta it.
When Henry became obsessed with Thomas & Friends trains right after last Christmas, I bought him his first Thomas DVD, like, the next day. One of the "previews" was for A Day Out With Thomas and once I figured out that Thomas would be in Duluth, I bought tickets and hoped he would still like Thomas eight months later. (No worries there, Mom.)

My dad with all of us at Split Rock in 1999:

 me sporting a particularly fashionable, over-sized windjacket

My parents used to take us to Duluth over MEA Break (a four day weekend away from school each fall in Minnesota) when I was growing up. They always took us to Tobie's on the way for treats and then to Glensheen Mansion, Split Rock Lighthouse, the haunted tour on the William Irvin ship, Grandma's Restaurant, Canal Park and I'm sure a bunch of other places that I've forgotten about without pictures to remind me. I loved those trips and I wanted Henry to experience the same places. I even made our reservations at the same hotel my family used to stay (mostly because they offered separate bedrooms so that Hank could sleep easier).

I made copies of all our confirmations, printed out driving directions, created an itinerary, bragged about my organization on Facebook - aaaand then promptly forgot all of it at home. Oops. Luckily, what I remembered as epic road trips in the Kelly Bus is actually barely a two hour drive (how did I not know that Duluth was that close?! We can't even get to the cabin in two hours...), and I had basically memorized all my maps so it was a breeze drive.

"Hey Momma....I see you!"

 The trip kind of halted after that. First, Henry freaked out at the hotel. Even the carpet was something to cry about, The kid walked along the wall in the long hallways because that's where the carpet was a solid color :: the patterned strip in the middle was apparently not an acceptable walking surface. He loved the elevator, but only the pushing-buttons and walking-in-and-out parts because he whined and cried once we were "trapped" inside the car for the rides up and down. And the actual room? Forgetaboutit. He cried a panicky cry whenever the door latched and kept trying to get out. Plus, that perk about having the extra room with a door to close for him to sleep was all but worthless. He screamed and screamed until we finally dragged his Pack 'n' Play into our room where he promptly fell asleep to the glow of the TV set while Dan and I sat on the bed and tried not to move so we wouldn't wake him up. Naptime should be better though, right? Well, sorta. Until I look over from my spot on the living room couch and realized he wasn't sleeping so much as spying on me through the cracked door. You can see him in this picture...hand over the edge of his Pack 'n' Play and just a peek at his little sleepy face.

It was exhausting trying to keep him happy. We got our fair share of judgmental looks as he screamed from his stroller while we walked down Lake Avenue, and I felt slightly guilty as he ate nothing but Mac 'n' Cheese and chicken fingers for three days. I never realized how hard parents have to work to make vacations great for their kids. And we only did it with one :: I can't imagine how my parents kept the five of us happy and fed in Duluth each autumn. Those trips are some of my favorite memories with my family, but I guess I've never fully appreciated them until now.

                                                         ...

Henry met Thomas. Henry skipped (okay, tossed) rocks in Lake Superior. He watched a boat go under the aerial lift bridge. He had a blast at the hotel pool, which we all know is a vacation highlight for any kid. He had a caramel roll from Tobie's. He played at the same playground park that my siblings and I did almost twenty years ago (even if they demolished the wickedly awesome wooden castle and replaced it with "modern" play equipment). And then he slept the whole drive home. The trip had a lot of crying, caused scraped knees and ended with two tried parents. But it was perfect.