We Made It!

Sam is officially the nicest kid I have ever met.

We left Red Wing at 6:30 Monday morning. He was really excited to get in the car (he's a big fan of anything involving "go") and remained happy the rest of the day. It was a long day. We stopped a few times for gas, and did stop for lunch, but we pretty much drove straight through until 4:30 that afternoon. Ten hours in the car is a long time for anyone, and Sam handled it beautifully.

He chattered happily about every truck we passed. We sang every song we know and read books. He took a nap and did puzzles. We had a DVD player from Uncle Bryce and Aunt Pat and Sam was just amazed by it! We were waiting to use it as a last resort and did end up using it for about an hour Monday afternoon. He didn't care for the headphones, so he watched Finding Nemo with no sound.

Sam really flipped out when we got to the hotel. He did not walk - he ran. Into the hotel, down the hallway, back and forth across the room. He couldn't stop laughing. It must have felt so good to be out of the carseat! Grandma Barb took him for a walk outside and then we all went to dinner. I could tell Sam was hovering on the edge of a breakdown but he held it together. He was so tired and overwhelmed but he continued to listen and use his manners all through dinner. As soon as we got back to the hotel he happily took a bath and happily went to bed.

Tuesday was a much better day. We got back on the road around 7:30 and made it to Denver by 1:30 (Central time). Again, Sam was a trooper the whole time. We were all tired and punchy and Sam remained well-behaved. We stopped for lunch right outside of Denver and Grandma Barb bought Sam a stick horse. Sam was delighted and immediately named it Apple. He has been galloping on that horse non-stop.

And so - we are here! We have no major plans for our visit. Grandma Barb and Grandpa Doug have to work, so Sam and I will pretty much do what we usually do. The only difference is every morning, afternoon/evening, and weekend, we will be spoiled rotten.

It's going to be a perfect vacation!