I’m starting to think that vacations with a toddler are kind of like childbirth. Painful, exhausting and a ton of work but once enough time has gone by after your vacation you only remember the happy moments and think it will be a good idea to go on another one. Our mini-vacation to Tahoe this weekend was exactly like that (pictures of the good moments here). Here’s a little summary of the things we’ll selectively forget in the coming months.
- The road being closed at 11p just 16 miles short of our destination. We were at a stand still with the car off for 2 hours but were luckily stuck right next to a lonely inn in the middle of the forest, so we finally decided to spend an impromptu night there instead of in the car. It was a good thing that we did because the road didn’t open until 5a. As it was, Nicky was awake with us from 11p-2a. It was an adventure.
- Total meltdown by our over tired boy. After our epic drive up, we decided to put Nicky in daycare at the ski resort so we could enjoy a full day of skiing. Nicky had so much fun at daycare that he only took a one hour nap. On top of the awesome sleep the night before, he was a wreck. By 4p he had used up all his energy for the day and spent 2 straight hours screaming in the hotel before he finally admitted defeat and fell asleep.
- Nicky peeing on the hotel bed. After taking what was meant to be a calming shower with daddy in the middle of his meltdown, we let Nicky crawl on the bed naked for just long enough to grab a diaper out of the diaper bag. Maybe 10 seconds. That was all it took.
- Hiding out in the bathroom. To get Nick to take a nap the next day when we were in the hotel, we had to clear out of the room so he wouldn’t be distracted. But we couldn’t just leave him in the hotel room alone. So, Sam and I camped out in the bathroom until he finally passed out.
- The tubing place only taking cash. Sam heard there was an ATM just down the hill. Thinking it was at the hotel next door, he left Nicky and me to watch the tubers while he walked to get us cash. 45 minutes later he wasn’t back. By that time Nicky was bored, cold and hungry and I had realized Sam had left with the keys and Nick’s food and my wallet and cell phone were locked in the car. I was imagining that something terrible had happened to Sam and that I wouldn’t have any way of finding out which hospital they had taken him to or any way to get there. Turns out the ATM was a mile down the hill and Sam finally made it back with enough time before Nicky’s nap to get a few good tubing runs in.
What we will remember was there being so much snow that our car was buried the next morning; skiing tree runs through 5 feet of fresh powder with more falling from the sky to cover our tracks; Nicky not wanting to wear mittens, until he stuck his hand straight into a snow bank – after that he was just fine with mittens but didn’t want to have anything else to do with the snow; walking around after brunch exploring; and having so much fun tubing with daddy. All in all, a very memorable (and after one good night of sleep at home, I’m starting to even think fun) trip!
