Sun Valley

Last week we went to Sun Valley.  J had a conference there, and I decided to tag along with the kids about halfway through the week, since it was just a short 2.5 hour drive away.  We had a really nice apartment next to the main lodge with 2 bedrooms (one was a loft), 2 bathrooms, and a full kitchen.  The second bathroom (upstairs off the loft) was even large enough that we could put Hadley's pack'n'play in there, so everyone had their own room, more or less, which is what we need for naptime!  Here's the lodge - our apartment was in the trees to the right.

It also had a back deck where Owen and I played with bubbles while Hadley slept.

The first afternoon was rainy, but we decided to go explore the Sun Valley resort grounds anyway.  There was pretty landscaping with swans and such.  It was considered the off-season, so it almost felt like we had the place to ourselves!

The grounds also included a few restaurants and stores, outdoor ice skating rink, heated swimming pools, and lots of hiking trails were easily accessible across the street.  

I was imagining quite a fun week, but it was to be memorable for other reasons...  Two sick kids!  Owen was already fighting some cough/cold that made him irritable, lethargic, and appetite-less.  And by the second night, Hadley was vomiting.  Awesome.  Two days later, I took her to the doctor (on my birthday!), and she was diagnosed with rotavirus, which apparently could have been absolutely miserable if she hadn't had the vaccines.  As it was, I just had to watch her after every feeding for signs that it wasn't going to stay down.  I think there were a total of four vomiting episodes, and the rest of the time she was either asleep or grouchy.  So, our wonderful Sun Valley experience was marred by illness.  The weather was perfect, but we were pretty much stuck inside.  Boo!  The silver lining was a cuddly baby.

J and O did manage a few hikes (usually with more than half on J's shoulders), and we did a family hike on the way out of town.  The area has ties to Ernest Hemingway, and there was a little memorial on the hike.

Owen's favorite part was hitting sticks with other sticks.  Glad we traveled over 100 miles to do that!

We even broke out the baby backpack again.  Owen dozed in it a lot, but I don't recall his face getting quite so squished!  I think she enjoyed the hike.  :)

The good news is we'll be heading back to SV in a month, so I have my fingers crossed that lightning won't strike twice, and we can enjoy everything more!