Seven Things I Learned on Vacay & Banana Salad

Life is hard; food doesn't have to be #168 [vol5, 5.3]

Our college son gave us two short weeks before leading back woods hiking experiences in Colorado for the summer. This is on the heels of him sleeping 14 days on the ground the last two weeks of college. The first thing he does when we walk into our 100+ yo VRBO? Opens the windows. And one breaks. Mr. Intensity strikes again.

Here are six things I learned from our short vacation.

1. My outdoorsy son wants to be outdoors.

2. The City Museum in St. Louis is a boy’s dream. My oldest is almost 20 and the youngest is 11. The museum is almost a million square feet of exploring. Think McDonald’s playland but adult sized, multiple floors and a 5 story slide with antique architectural flair. Highly recommended.

   

   Pictures do not do justice for the City Museum.

3. Our family prefers non-urban vacations.

We walked to dinner the first night and ate al fresco. It had been a crazy week so I didn’t pack any food so we popped into a corner grocery for brekkie supplies. Was it the 6’5” 300lb security guard or the homeless people outside that made us feel uncomfortable? Once back to our place just before dark, one of the younger kids said, “I think I like outdoorsy vacations better.” We did have a window open. LOL

St. Louis is only 4 hours from LOU.

4. I was ill prepared for most everything. And it was fine.

Besides planning to go to the Arch, City Museum and booking VRBO, I’d found zero places to eat. I usually bring some food (do fruit snacks count?) Schaeffer tossed some fizzy water in a cooler just before we pulled out of the driveway…

5. I was ill prepared for a child to get ill.

Caroline had a stuffy nose that transformed into a fever. I brought none of my supplements or remedies. The guys went without us the first morning to the Arch, which the visitor’s center is completely new since we were here 15 years ago. They stayed about 3 hours and could have stayed longer, except Schaeffer was DYING to get to the City Museum.

Caroline and I met them at the City Museum at lunch. She started crying within ten minutes of being there (very unlike the stoic child). She felt so miserable and disappointed that she wouldn’t be joining her brothers at this super fun place.

5. I will bring my sheets the next time.

I know this sounds so extra: to bring my sheets. Here’s the thing - the last two places we’ve rented had poly-blend sheets on the beds. I’m used to sleeping in 100% cotton. And I sweat at night. Sleeping between poly-blend sheets is even hotter. I feel like I’m suffocating. Here’s an article to convince you further not to sleep on polyester.

6. Two days is not enough.

We went to a city near us thinking it would be a fun get away, which it mostly was. But by no means was it long enough. We enjoyed our togetherness but this wasn’t our favorite get away. We do, however, all heartily recommend the Arch and City Museum.

7. I brought chocolate & that was a win!

   

   We tried alllll the chocolate.

When I shared on social media my idea for a chocolate tasting, I learned that Tony’s Chocolonely is serious about fair trade chocolate. <Did you know most cocoa beans are grown by farmers in poverty?> That made me love them all the more!

Schaeffer loves YouTube mogul Mr. Beast and buying that sampler pack won me Mom of the Year. Most of our selection was milk chocolate and I definitely prefer dark. This activity was fun and recommended.

Welp, the window was repaired (by the third fix-it man) and Caroline didn’t have a fever on the second morning. We left St. Louis early Tuesday morning to high tail it back home for Schaeffer to star in Cinderella as Prince Charming.

What We’ve Eaten While He’s Home

• My college son requested falafel before coming home. I thought I would make it but instead we ordered carry-out while in St. Louis.

• We’ve eaten salmon and Philly Cheesesteaks like last week.

• I made pizza dough for Detroit Style Pizza but never got around to it so I turned it into bread per the recommendation of

  Pizza Every Friday
  then homemade Stouffer’s French Bread Pizzas.

• My daughter made chocolate chocolate chip cookies that were inhaled.

• Last, but certainly not least: BANANA SALADS. Think: Banana split but call it a salad.

Call it SALAD and it's instantly elevated to healthy.

I mean, we’ve got bananas, pineapple, nuts, and nourishing cream. I think it should be called banana salad. The second one I actually ate for lunch and added peanut butter and cottage cheese for more protein with all the other fix-ins. The cottage cheese and ice cream combo was interesting. I might have to eat it again to have a final verdict.

Just for Fun

I saw the meme on the left and took ping pong balls to the garden center where I work. I think the plant on the right gives Grover vibes.

Life if hard; food doesn’t have to be.

Julie

PS - In case you missed it, Beautycounter closed and here’s what’s next for me.