Thursday, August 28, 2008

weekend plans and a RAK

***
Edited to add:
We changed plans.
I noticed that Yellowstone is supposed to be rainy with a chance of @$%! SNOW! (!!!) So we opted to go to Los Angeles and spend a couple of days at Universal Studios.
I think I will like wearing capris more than a parka on my birthday, yes?

Keep these ideas coming! I am loving your suggestions!

***

Sunday is my birthday.
I want to get the "H" out of Dodge.

You know how every year after your birthday, you VOW that next year you will do something fun, just for YOU. Yeah, and then your birthday rolls around, and if you are like me, you end up making or buying yourself a cake, and hosting guests.

Well, this year I am going away.
Granted, I am bringing along the kids and husband, but at least we will be in a hotel, where someone else will make the bed. On my birthday.

We are only going to be gone a couple of days, so we settled on a destination that is fairly close.
We are heading to Yellowstone.
It was the best I could come up with on short notice.



Sam has never been, and neither have the kids.
I went when I was a little girl, and can still remember being a little freaked out about falling in the steaming sulphur pits.

I remember waiting forever to watch Old Faithful blow, and then it did, and I was like..."that's it?" And being kinda disappointed at waiting so long for something that was just meh.

Sort-of a foreshadowing of my life now. If I had only known...
Now here is where you folks come in.

If you had a weekend, and you could go anywhere you wanted to spend a couple of days...where would you go?

Bear in mind that we are the lucky ducks who have free flight benefits.
Throw me a bone here, and give me some more ideas for our next trip.
Or sell me on your fine city!
Somewhere fun you have been.

And when I get back (Tuesday) I will throw together some post-birthday scrapbooking RAKS to share with some random folks who leave me a comment.

Cause I am a giver like that.

26 comments:

Stacy said...

Check out Kalahari Resorts. They have one in Wisconsin, Ohio, and Virginia. I haven't been to one yet but we are going to the one in Ohio next weekend and I am so excited. My biggest thing is that you never have to leave the hotel...everything is indoors and under one roof. Great since I have little ones and getting them in and out of the car is the biggest pain in my a double s. Have a great birthday and a great weekend.
And just so you know...I've been a lurker for a few days...I found your blog linked through another blog, etc. etc. and I almost wet myself reading your post about going to the gym. I was seriously laughing that hard. I love your blog and it gives me great comic relief (especially when I'm at work.) Feel free to check mine out anytime, I will have to say that my life isn't quite as exciting as yours though.

JethRobyn said...

I love Yellowstone, that will be awesome. I'm sure your kids will dig the sulfur pots, and make fun of the smell. If I could get away anywhere for a weekend..um New Zealand..but I would need more than a weekend, more like a whole month or two. It's the most gorgeous/amazing/breathtaking place ever. I also miss the chocolate...such good chocolate. And meat pies...I have never had yummier meat pies...or juice, or fresh fruit.. so I mostly loved it for the food!!
If I only had a weekend, I would go to Yellowstone, or San Antonio. I hear San Antonio has good shopping and amazing scenery.

Scrappy Fit Chic said...

I love your blog. I read it all the time. You crack me up!! And your mother stories, love them!!
Anyways, I would love to win a RAK. Pick me, Pick me!
PS - I always want to do something fun for my birthday. But it's in January and it's always cold and nasty so we don't do anything fun.

Anonymous said...

It's Gretchen again;)
Any Great Wolf Lodge in the country! WHAT FUN!!! My clan had a BLAST there! The suites are so COOL and the water park is AMAZING!
And of course..there is always Indianapolis:) Im a bit partial to my hometown. The Indy 500 track is here and has a nifty museum where you can ride around the track in a van!!LOL And the zoo and Children's Museum both rock too! :)
If you havent been to Gatlinburg....rent a cabin somewhere in the mountains! Its SO beautiful! ok..shuttin up now

Cori Henderson said...

I hope your birthday turns out better than mine. I'm glad you get to go on a vacation. I had this problem last week when we were trying to decide where we should go on vacation. We decided "around here" places. Park City was great. Anyway, I hope you guys have fun. I seriously like Yellowstone and I bet your kids will love the sulfur pits.

Mag Family said...

We went to Lava Hot Springs in Idaho. It is a dumpy little town, but we had a lot of fun. They have a "hot spring" bath house type thing. They have good cafe's, it was inexpensive, and you can take your kids, even kika, and run the river as many times as you like. They also have an olympic size swim pool and it has 3 different size diving platforms. We love water, so this was ideal for us. Or you could invite us to go to Lake Powell:)

Anonymous said...

If I could go on a weekend trip (and have the airline part pretty much taken care of for me), I'd go to one of the following:

Santa Barbara, CA - very charming and absolutely gorgeous! There is an airport there, or you can fly into LAX and take the train up the coast to Santa Barbara. Lots of neat historic buildings and everything is spanish style. Definitely worth the trip!

Santa Fe, NM - really neat things to see and it is quite relaxing. Lots of neat shopping and galleries.

Seattle, WA - Do all of the fun, touristy stuff.

NYC - go see a broadway show, stay near Central Park, go for a walk with your honey.

Sanibel Island (Florida) - although not this particular week due to the hurricane. This place is gorgeous!

Florida Keys - sand, beach, relaxing, swimming, etc.

Denver - Lots of sports to watch. The Brown Palace Hotel is wonderful. Neat restaurants in LoDo (lower downtown).

Las Vegas - I don't gamble, but Hoover Dam is there, golfing, shows, etc. My kids loved M&M World. Go figure.

When you are in Yellowstone, go to Jackson. Eat at Jedediah's House of Sourdough (best pancakes ever). You can buy sourdough starter and make your own at home, too. My kids loved that. If you eat at Bubba's BBQ, don't order the Babyback ribs. I know 3 people (separate trips) who did and they all got Beef Spare Ribs. They think City people are stupid like that.

Have a fun weekend!!!!!!! And Happy Birthday!

Jenn said...

SEATTLE, I love it there!! We have been twice, both times we stayed downtown. I love all the little shops, food stands, street performers. The list could go on and on. I even love the misty rainy weather!! The last time we went we took the ferry over to Victoria, so beautiful!! So there you go, Seattle is my choice. I hope you have a great birthday, probably better than mine, cause POISON was in town that day. I think Gary was mixed up and thought it was his birthday. So I spent the evening watching a bunch of burned out losers jammin out to an 80's hairband. No offense if anyone likes them, just not my cup of tea. I think I would rather fall in Old Faithful than be put through that again!! Just kidding, but have a swell time!! Jenn

Alissa103 said...

As a kid my family used to go to Hilton Head, SC. It's gorgeous. Lush. Beach. Pool. Bike paths. That sort of thing. There's a lot to do without a lot of that tacky tourist stuff that eats your money. I'm sure there's some of that, too, but it can be avoided. DH and I went back this summer and had a wonderful time! If you ever decide to go with the fam, let me know and I'll recommend a few places to stay. Anyway, if I had a few days and some free airline passes, I think that's where I'd go!

Alissa103 said...

Oh, and duh... HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!! :-)

cl said...

of course i am going to say the beach. we love the beach...any beach...wanna know why? cause the beach doesn't have ugly, cold, wet, depressing SNOW! i recommend oceanside or carlsbad or la jolla in california or if you want cooler water visiting lincoln city in oregon. BEE-U-TI-FUL! and happy trip to yellowstone and many lovely birthday wishes! i like yellowstone...if your nose didn't have to smell the sulphur and you didn't have to be paranoid about falling in the hot pots! we went there on our honeymoon, so it brings back happy memories!

Mag Family said...

Oregon. When Jeff and I went their it was beautiful. We stayed in Lincoln City right on the coast, they have a casino for you and Sam. Then we went down to Newport, it is about 10 minutes south, and they have an awesome aquarium, and lighthouses. They have a huge draw bridge and Newport is where the coast guard is stationed. They have an old fishing town and you can drive around and the roads and shops are right on the shoreline. It is pretty cool. We really want to go back and take our kids. If you go you need to eat at McMennamans Pub. Awesome fish and chips, and I hate fish and chips.

charmi said...

Umm we've been dieing to take a trip to alaska..though it wouldnt be a weekend trip..it would be more like a full week trip..but i've heard its all worth it !!..So hopefully maybe next year we may take a trip to Alaska !! Hope you have a great birthday & fun trip !!

Jenn said...

I forgot to tell you, McDreamy is from Seattle, that alone should send you there!

Anonymous said...

For a weekend trip I woul dgo up the coast Rte 101 to Hearst CAstle-I loved it as a kid and with the beach being right there seems kind of magical-My parents must have liked it to cause we went every couple years. The scenery is beautiful and there's some education to ... Have a wonderful birthday-mines in a few days too..

Anonymous said...

I remember waiting forever to watch Old Faithful blow, and then it did, and I was like..."that's it?" And being kinda disappointed at waiting so long for something that was just meh.

The same thing happened to me at Giza. All my life people have talked about how indescribably huge the Pyramids are ("you can see them from space!"), and I expected the sort of thing that when you're standing at the bottom, you can't even see the top because it's so far up.

When we actually got there, I thought, these must be scale models or something. They were about 20% of the size I thought they'd be. Same with the Sphinx - not hundreds of feet tall like it looks in photographs.

Anonymous said...

I would suggest my hometown of St. Louis MO. You can go up in the Arch. Take the kids to the City Museum or Six Flags. Catch a Cardinals Baseball game.

Michele M
michelestamps2@yahoo.com

jennifer said...

Happy Birthday!

I'm jealous that you are going somewhere. We haven't been able to this year. But if I could, my first choice would be somewhere that kids are not allowed! LOL! No, really, here in Tennessee the best weekend trip are to Chattanooga or Gatlinburg. Lots of nature and stuff to keep the kids happy.

Hope you have fun!

Meg said...

Hey, I'm from St.Louis too! And they forgot to mention the zoo and Science center is FREE!! And they are both cool and so much fun for the kids. And if you're ever there you HAVE to eat at Lion's Choice. I live in Utah now and totally miss it.

I know you don't know me, but I love your blog! You can check mine out if you want. I have crazy boys. I just died laughing at your cruise post, since I'm having a baby in a couple days. Please never go private!

Janet O. said...

Chicago is nice this time of year...and I'm bored...lol

Wendy Lojik said...

Happy Birthday and have a great time!

Anonymous said...

You always make me laugh and make me feel like I'm not as insane as I think I am!

Anonymous said...

Outer Banks! You know you wanna!!!

Sara said...

Since we just got back a few hours ago from Disney I've got to say DISNEY WORLD!!!

Weekend wise? I'd say....
Great Wolf Lodge.
Las Vegas!!
Bahamas.

scrapping4twins said...

Well Happy Birthday! Since I'm in Florida - I like to go over to Naples for a little R&R getaway! Love the beaches there! Also Sanibel Island (not far from Naples). Being in Florida - I'm partial to the beaches!

Melanie said...

I love Yellowestone. Have a wonderful time. Make sure to check out the sulfur pots. Your kids will have so much fun!