First, let me say that I really had no idea I was torturing so many of you by not revealing what our boys’ “surprise” was. On Gratituesday when I was very vague again about what we were doing, that truly was because I had just spent part of forever at our hotel trying to get online and then stay online (my only complaint about our otherwise lovely hotel). Then, once I was finally able to post, my brain was so tired, all I could do was write, “we’re having fun – I’m going to bed”.
Now that I’m going to reveal what we’ve been up to, you are likely to say, “oh, is that it?” because really it was just a little getaway and a fun mini-vacation we surprised our boys with. That’s all. Ah, but it was fun. :)
I had been contacted several weeks ago by Corrie from Visit Omaha about sending our family to the Durham Museum and the Henry Doorly Zoo. We were thrilled with the opportunity! Matt and I decided to plan a little mini-vacation around these two visits, and then we decided not to tell our boys. We thought, why not surprise them?!
Sunday night right before bedtime (yes, the perfect time to spring a surprise on them so they would for sure never go to sleep – duh), we told them that they needed to go pack a back pack with clothes for over-night and be sure to include their swimming trunks. Well, their eyes lit up, but as you can imagine, they were hardly satisfied with so little information. We went ahead and told them part of what we’d be doing, and that we’d be staying overnight in a hotel, which is why they needed their swimming gear. (I had booked our hotel through Hotwire, by the way, and got a great deal!!)
Earlier in the evening, when I’d had the kitchen to myself, I had packed a surprise breakfast for them to eat on the road the next morning…
The next morning, the boys got up and dressed and we all loaded up. I handed them their breakfast bags and we were on our way to Omaha!
Our first stop: The Durham Museum. We really had no idea what to expect there, but wow were we in for a treat! After we ate our packed lunch in their nice lunch area, we got to explore everything from real train cars to an earth lodge to an “old time” grocery store – and oh so much more. We loved the Durham Museum and would highly recommend it if you’re ever in this area!
Malachi made a new friend while we were there, and carried on a lively conversation. I have to wonder what family secrets he shared.
Asa did his best to look like a wooden soldier on a train station bench. Except for the long hair and lack of uniform, I think he pulled it off quite well.
After we left the Durham Museum, we headed to the hospital to visit our friends whose son has been undergoing intense medical care for over a month. It was great to see them, and we are so thankful we could make that a part of our get-away.
From there, we told the boys we were headed to check into our hotel (which we were), but on the way, we stopped to surprise them with frozen yogurt from Red Mango. Have you ever been to Red Mango? Matt and I had discovered this fun treasure when we’d gone to the Weekend to Remember conference a few months ago. It’s so much fun and comparatively, a healthier treat than most!
The boys were able to choose from a large variety of frozen yogurt flavors, then stand in line to fill their bowl with toppings ranging from crushed candy bars to fresh fruit.
We hardly ever splurge on things like this, so yeah, this was fun!
From there, we checked into our hotel for a little pool time. Matt and the boys all had fun swimming. Me? I watched them from my very incredibly relaxing spot in the hot-tub. Ahhhhhhhhh.
After we dried off, we went out for a late dinner, then headed to bed so that we’d be ready to hang out with some sharks, gorillas and armadillos the next day.
To be continued…
Sounds like you are having a wonderful time with the family! I love vacations like these and look forward to reading part two! ;-)
Adorable! My husband is a traveling salesman and earns free hotel stays, so we occasionally are able to do little things like this with all nine of us. There is nothing cooler to the kids than the hotel pool!!! Mommy thinks it is disgusting, but I smile and take pictures and whoop it up for their sakes. Very cherished memories for sure!!
i remember seeing the freedom train in 1976 for the bi- centenaial at durham i saw it with my girl scout troup
Sounds like your having some wonderful family time. Enjoy! :)
Finally, the big surprise revealed. Sounds like everyone had fun and enjoyed their mini vacation. Can’t wait to read about part 2.
Oh, I love the Omaha Zoo! One of the best ones around. When my sister lived in Kearney, we spent a lot of time in NE and while we will never be NE fans (we did go to CU in Boulder) I do like the state.
Sounds great. We recently had a store similar to Red Mango open near us and it is appropriately named – Splurge! And yes I was very impatient to hear what you had been up to!
I would love to know how you used Hotwire for your family of 6. We are a family of 5, and I have never been able to figure out how to make sure the hotel will allow 5 in a room using those travel sites. Is there a trick? Thanks!
A few years ago, we surprised the children with a trip to Disney World (we live in the Midwest, so this was quite a surprise!). We woke them up at 4am and told them to get in the van. They had no idea what was going on! We had made a jigsaw puzzle out of card stock that revealed our destination, and then gave them a piece every 15 min. I think my husband and I had more fun with this surprise than the children! What fun!!!
I’d like to know how you find such great deals from Hotwire or any of the travel websites. Whenever I look on those sites, I always find better prices by booking directly with the hotel instead of through the travel sites. One of the first times I tried using a travel website, I booked a hotel on the site and then when I checked the hotel website, I found I could have gotten the same room for $30 less! I called customer service for the travel website and they told me I couldn’t cancel once I booked or change the price. I also tried calling the hotel to see if I could still get their cheaper rate and they said they couldn’t change the price since I went through a travel website and not directly through the hotel. Also, the hotel told me that the travel rules for travel websites are much stricter and if anything changes with my travel needs, it’s much harder cancel/change plans, whereas through the hotel it would be much easier. Ever since that happened, I have only used travel websites to locate hotels in a region in the price range I want and also to read reviews. Once I find a place I’m interested in, I book directly through the hotel and I’ve always found the hotel prices to be equal or cheaper. Does anyone know any tricks to finding cheaper deals that these websites claim to have that I don’t know about?
So glad you guys had a great time, Laura! Love the pictures! The boys look like they had a great time!
I can never find good deals on travel websites either. I always find better deals on the hotels website. I run into problems because there’s 5 of us and so many places have a limit of 4/room. Like I’m going to get 2 rooms when my kids are little (7, 5, & 2). I’d love to find some great deals on airfare for 5!
I would love to know how to use Hotwire and Priceline and some of the other discount hotel sites. Do you have any tips and suggestions as how to best utilize them?