MPLS, MN

Last weekend we took a couple of days off work and ventured north to Minneapolis, MN for a little family vacation to visit my brother. We had an uneventful 7+ hour trip up on Thursday night. That is until Gracyn woke up as we were getting into town (at 1:30 in the morning...) and didn't fall back asleep until 4:30 AM. By this point Justin and I had been up for almost 24 hours and were on the verge of packing up and heading straight home sans sleep. I declared that I hated vacation and we were never traveling with a small child again - ever - and that my life was over. Not really, but all I wanted at this point was sleep.

Justin talked me off the anti-vacation ledge just as Gracyn was drifting off to dreamland. We snoozed with the baby in our bed for a few hours and woke up ready to tackle the rest of vay-cay. Even though the first night was a little rough, we ended up having a pretty good time and it's always fun to see my brudder.

Killing two birds with one stone blogpost, I'm linking up (and posting wayyyy to many pictures...) to recap the top 5 highlights of The 2014 Oakley Family Vacation!

{ONE :: Minnesota Children's Museum}

Friday morning, we braved what seemed like National Field Trip Day and joined a bazillion other kids at the Minnesota Children's Museum. I remember going there as a kid although a lot had changed since then. We would have gotten more out of it if Gracyn were a little older since most of the exhibits were for school-aged kids. Poor thing almost got trampled 2318 times but we had fun and made it out alive.

{TWO :: Royals vs. Twins}

The went to the baseball game Saturday afternoon after the most delicious brunch at The Lyndale Tap House. The Royals were awful and terrible but the Twins have an awesome stadium in the heart of downtown Minneapolis so it's always fun to go, even when your team loses. And Gracyn snuck in a nap which was good for the soul - she was a happy camper the rest of the day.

{THREE :: Food, Glorious Food!}

This city does have some pretty legit places to eat. My bro even cooked us a delicious meal one night. Brunch at The Lyndale Tap House, street tacos at the Midtown Global Market, pizza at Pizza Luce. All awesome.

{FOUR :: Culture and Shopping}

On Sunday, there was a family day at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts so we went and walked around and got cultured. After being civilized, we went to the cluster fuck that is the Mall of America and did a couple of power-laps around that monstrosity.

{FIVE :: Just Keep Swimming...}

Gracyn's first time swimming! She was apprehensive at first and only wanted to sit on the side of the pool with me. We dangled our feet in the water while Justin swam in front of us. She watched him like a hawk and finally decided to give it a try.

Told you, wayyy too many pictures but I can't help it. We're making memories, people!

8 comments

  1. that first picture is so precious, i can't handle it. and love all the other pics, especially the swimming ones! too cute.

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  2. LOVe all the photos! Baby G. is becoming a traveler - she'll get better! Good memories and a great idea to write them down! Cheers to more vacations!

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  3. Stopping by from the link up. That looks like such a fun family trip and that children's museum looks like something my son would love. The first swimming pictures are adorable!

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  4. Children's museums are so much fun! I can't wait to take my little one as soon as he starts walking.


    Elise @ Harvey Ever After

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  5. Children's museum G would love (and rated high in the country, or was in college anyways) is.....Lincoln!!! :) So many great exhibits she would LOVE at her age.

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