Last week we earned the “enjoyed a family vacation with toddlers” badge.

It was our first excursion just us four.  It was last minute, low budget (low pressure), low expectations and quite fun!

I found a fantastic lodging deal on my favorite travel website, Travelzoo, it helped that we stayed Sunday and Monday nights.  We brought one pack-n-play for one kid, and made a little bed on the floor with blankets and pillows for the other.  We quickly figured out how to barricade the door so no one escaped and had a grand ‘ol time in a one room sleepover.

Our trip included a few vacation gems such as the playground on the beach at the lake a few blocks from our lodging – Whitney loved the sand and Dylan enjoyed climbing the big kid equipment.  Another gem was the grocery store across the street that supplied our picnic brunch items (bread, cheese, yogurt, pepperoni, and of course some cinnamon rolls). Then there was our drive into Nevada up in the hills looking for a park, and finding a beautiful hike through the woods with lake views and rocks to climb.  I had no idea the kids could follow a trail – much less enjoy it. It was fantastic!  Whitney wanted to be held a lot (looking back, I think she was in the early stages of an ear infection :(), but Dylan ran free with a huge grin on his face the whole time.  I have a feeling more hikes are in our future.

And hopefully more little family getaways.

*Disclaimer: of course, we did also have tantrums over chips at the restaurant, wrestling matches involving hostage iPhones, and a fair share of faceplants and poopy diapers….but with memories like this last picture, the dramatic parts seem so trivial.