Hotel Living

Living in a hotel is much better than expected. I thought it was going to be miserable, but it's really not. Nathan, Kathryn and I start our day with the continental breakfast then he plays around the lobby for a little while before heading back to our room. It's a two bedroom suite, so it's not like we're living in much less space than we're used to at our house. We only use two of the bedrooms at home anyway.
I think we make up the majority of hotel customers, so Nathan pretty much has the run of the hallways. Literally. Nathan thinks getting breakfast each morning is fun, so he asks if we can go get breakfast several times a day.
This is how I transport two kids and groceries.
Then there's the pool. How many kids get to go swimming daily in January?
This is the best part about having a pool.
In addition to swimming, he has lots of room to run around and play and wear himself out. He crashed on the floor while I was making dinner one night. And when I say, "making dinner," I mean I was making us ham sandwiches. Not having a full kitchen is great, meals are simple and not much is expected of me.
Nathan shows Baby Sister airplane pictures and bobbles. Just what every little girl loves.
She's not going to know what baby dolls are.
The room has one chair to sit and eat at a table and Nathan claimed it as his own. It's funny because we couldn't get him to stay at the table and eat at home.
We've got plenty of toys here to make him feel right at home.
Hotel life is treating Kathryn pretty well, too.
Nathan just can't leave Baby Sister alone. He goes up to her and says stuff like, "Hi sweet girl." and "Whatcha doin' pretty girl?" He hears me say this stuff to her all day so he joins in. Baby Sister is going to have some serious self confidence.
My favorite compliment that Nathan gives Baby Sister is, "Baby Sister, you're gonna be the best baby." He made that one up himself. I love it.
Here's Baby Sister being the best baby.

Hotel Living

Living in a hotel is much better than expected. I thought it was going to be miserable, but it's really not. Nathan, Kathryn and I start our day with the continental breakfast then he plays around the lobby for a little while before heading back to our room. It's a two bedroom suite, so it's not like we're living in much less space than we're used to at our house. We only use two of the bedrooms at home anyway.
I think we make up the majority of hotel customers, so Nathan pretty much has the run of the hallways. Literally. Nathan thinks getting breakfast each morning is fun, so he asks if we can go get breakfast several times a day.
This is how I transport two kids and groceries.
Then there's the pool. How many kids get to go swimming daily in January?
This is the best part about having a pool.
In addition to swimming, he has lots of room to run around and play and wear himself out. He crashed on the floor while I was making dinner one night. And when I say, "making dinner," I mean I was making us ham sandwiches. Not having a full kitchen is great, meals are simple and not much is expected of me.
Nathan shows Baby Sister airplane pictures and bobbles. Just what every little girl loves.
She's not going to know what baby dolls are.
The room has one chair to sit and eat at a table and Nathan claimed it as his own. It's funny because we couldn't get him to stay at the table and eat at home.
We've got plenty of toys here to make him feel right at home.
Hotel life is treating Kathryn pretty well, too.
Nathan just can't leave Baby Sister alone. He goes up to her and says stuff like, "Hi sweet girl." and "Whatcha doin' pretty girl?" He hears me say this stuff to her all day so he joins in. Baby Sister is going to have some serious self confidence.
My favorite compliment that Nathan gives Baby Sister is, "Baby Sister, you're gonna be the best baby." He made that one up himself. I love it.
Here's Baby Sister being the best baby.

Paw-Paw & Nathan's 3rd Annual National Park Tour

In January 2008, Steve went TDY to Las Vegas for two weeks. Nathan and I joined him and Paw-Paw flew out for a few days to babysit Nathan so we could go out. We also (excluding Steve) took a trip to the Grand Canyon and Hoover Dam while he was there too. Paw-Paw had so much fun with Nathan after that trip that we decided that he should take Nathan to a national park every January.

Here they are at the Grand Canyon when Nathan was 9 months old.
Hoover Dam.
Paw-Paw and Nathan went to the Smoky Mountains in January 2009.

They kept the tradition alive and went to the Badlands this January while he was here visiting. It was so cold that we decided that their trips don't have to be in January anymore. They can take their trips whenever they want so they can actually enjoy the outdoors. It was unbelievable cold and even more unbelievably windy.
Nathan hates the cold just as much as me, if not more. He's still talking about how windy it was that day.
Here is Baby Sister at the Badlands.
As we were driving around Nathan kept saying, "Look! There's a bad land. Look! There's a bad mountain."
Nathan's commentary on the Badlands.

After we drove through the Badlands, we had lunch at Wall Drug. Nathan hadn't been there since his first birthday and it was Baby Sister's first time there. You can't live in South Dakota and not visit Wall Drug.
I don't even know why I was looking at the menu. Nathan eats the same thing all the time.

Chowing down on chicken and french fries.
Nathan and Baby Sister. Doesn't Nathan look so grown up?
Here he is posing for a picture for Paw-Paw. Nathan is still talking about "Wall Drud," but only because Paw-Paw bought him a couple of new airplanes there. Paw-Paw told Nathan that he could pick out a couple of new airplanes, so Nathan grabbed one in each hand and started walking to the register and told Paw-Paw to get the rest that were on the shelf. Typical Nathan.


Baby Sister had a good time too.

This is for everyone who thinks I'm just being a baby when it comes to the weather here, here is a semi truck on its side that was blown over by the 60 mph winds that day.
Later that night, we went to the Firehouse for dinner. Nathan didn't want to wear the hat, he preferred that Paw-Paw wear it.
Kathryn and Paw-Paw were exhausted from such a fun day.
Just what every little girl needs to compliment her wardrobe, a coonskin cap. Nathan got one of these on his first visit to Wall Drug too.
Here is Nathan sporting his coonskin cap almost two years ago.
The national park trip is originally Nathan and Paw-Paw's thing, so I suggested a yearly beach trip for Kathryn. I think that will be more her style. We'll see if we can make that happen.

Paw-Paw & Nathan's 3rd Annual National Park Tour

In January 2008, Steve went TDY to Las Vegas for two weeks. Nathan and I joined him and Paw-Paw flew out for a few days to babysit Nathan so we could go out. We also (excluding Steve) took a trip to the Grand Canyon and Hoover Dam while he was there too. Paw-Paw had so much fun with Nathan after that trip that we decided that he should take Nathan to a national park every January.

Here they are at the Grand Canyon when Nathan was 9 months old.
Hoover Dam.
Paw-Paw and Nathan went to the Smoky Mountains in January 2009.

They kept the tradition alive and went to the Badlands this January while he was here visiting. It was so cold that we decided that their trips don't have to be in January anymore. They can take their trips whenever they want so they can actually enjoy the outdoors. It was unbelievable cold and even more unbelievably windy.
Nathan hates the cold just as much as me, if not more. He's still talking about how windy it was that day.
Here is Baby Sister at the Badlands.
As we were driving around Nathan kept saying, "Look! There's a bad land. Look! There's a bad mountain."
Nathan's commentary on the Badlands.

After we drove through the Badlands, we had lunch at Wall Drug. Nathan hadn't been there since his first birthday and it was Baby Sister's first time there. You can't live in South Dakota and not visit Wall Drug.
I don't even know why I was looking at the menu. Nathan eats the same thing all the time.

Chowing down on chicken and french fries.
Nathan and Baby Sister. Doesn't Nathan look so grown up?
Here he is posing for a picture for Paw-Paw. Nathan is still talking about "Wall Drud," but only because Paw-Paw bought him a couple of new airplanes there. Paw-Paw told Nathan that he could pick out a couple of new airplanes, so Nathan grabbed one in each hand and started walking to the register and told Paw-Paw to get the rest that were on the shelf. Typical Nathan.


Baby Sister had a good time too.

This is for everyone who thinks I'm just being a baby when it comes to the weather here, here is a semi truck on its side that was blown over by the 60 mph winds that day.
Later that night, we went to the Firehouse for dinner. Nathan didn't want to wear the hat, he preferred that Paw-Paw wear it.
Kathryn and Paw-Paw were exhausted from such a fun day.
Just what every little girl needs to compliment her wardrobe, a coonskin cap. Nathan got one of these on his first visit to Wall Drug too.
Here is Nathan sporting his coonskin cap almost two years ago.
The national park trip is originally Nathan and Paw-Paw's thing, so I suggested a yearly beach trip for Kathryn. I think that will be more her style. We'll see if we can make that happen.