Tales from the Parsonage: Family Vacation?

Jesse and I have always loved vacation. We have a saying that we use while on our various adventures whenever we're staying up too late or eating way too much ice cream or spending a little more than we should on something... "we can do this. we're on vacation."

And so we approached this year's vacation with the excitement and sense of adventure that we have in the past. Except for one thing. We had a 2-year-old with us. Our itinerary was intense. We planned to try camping for the first time ever, go to the most remote, least visited national park in the country, visit friends, attend a dedication of my baby nephew, and stay in a hotel with an indoor water park.

Did I mention we had a 2-year-old with us. And not just any 2-year-old. This girl is finicky about her routines, does not sleep well away from home and can scream so loud in the car that your ears ring for days afterward.

But we tried it. And we (mostly) succeeded. We camped in the back of the van instead of trying to sleep in the tent, and we came home early, trading a hotel stay for 2 nights in our own beds so we could all get some sleep before we had to go back to work.

A friend of mine warned me about this a while ago. She said - we don't call them "vacations" when the kids are with us. We call them "trips." Yes. I think that pretty much sums it up. This was a trip. Not the relaxing, adventurous vacations Jesse and I have had in the past. We don't regret our aggressive travel schedule, but we were definitely ready to be home when we returned!

A stop in Duluth on our way up the North Shore

The boat ride to Isle Royale National Park. The girl was a trooper!

We passed a group of men hiking at the park who looked at Raya and said "Good for you for bringing her here!" I guess they must not see many toddlers on the island...