Visiting Daddy

This month and last, Pete has been working at a hospital in southern Minnesota. So much closer than New Mexico! We’ve had two opportunities already to visit him at his new location. The first was during Ella’s spring break in April and the second was last week when we surprised him in the ER waiting room! I think it’s pretty clear how excited these boys were to see each other.

Pete stays in a hotel when he’s not at the hospital, so we all had a lot of fun visiting him. Of course the favorite is the pool!

Not only is there a pool, there’s also a giant water slide! Sadly, our first visit was in the middle of the week, which we soon learned is when the slide isn’t open. This guy was a little sad about not being able to play on the slide.

We played basketball instead!

We also visited the local library, which has a pretty fantastic play area. Farmer’s Market, a little puppet theatre, a picnic table and fishing boat.

Our drive back to Duluth took us through St Cloud where there happens to be a Chuck E. Cheese’s. One of Ella’s friends recently told her about the magical land of Chuck E Cheese’s, so when she saw a sign on the way to see Daddy, I took note. Three days later, we made a lunchtime stop and completely made her day. Ella isn’t overly fond of having her picture taken right now, so I don’t have many photos of her. Sam, however, doesn’t seem to mind. He first enjoyed a nice drive with Stuart Little.

And then took a spin in a cup of hot cocoa with Ella.

As well as a trip on a train.

I adore this picture. Sam was a little scared of the movement of this little Noah’s Ark, so he held onto his big sister. She’s always there to protect him.

Yeehaw!

Our second trip, when we surprised Daddy, was just as the weather was starting to warm. Sam was thrilled to crawl through the green grass!

This girl climbs anything she can. This is also why we take her to climb at the Y a few times a week!

Pumba! These little warthogs ran all over when we were on safari in Kenya a few years ago and our guide called them all Pumbas. So yes, we do have a fondness for this big guy.

Pete was working nights during our visit, so we tried to go out during the day to give him a little quite time at the hotel to rest. It was nice enough for a long walk and a picnic! Sam was sharing his chocolate with Ella, which was fairly adorable to watch.

He enjoyed a bit as well.

Messy face and a dirty shirt, but I just can’t resist his sweet cheeks!

 Does it feel like spring where you are? Or is it starting to feel like summer already? Today we soaked in the sunshine and 55 degrees! The buds are popping out on the trees and the grass is turning green. We love it!