Mini-Vacation Recap

My grandma came to stay for nine days last week. Her sister lives in Archibold, Ohio, home of the Sauder Village (more info on that here, if you're interested). Since my dad had that week off from work, we decided to take advantage of driving two-and-a-half hours to drop my grandma off at her sister's, and we went on a two-day "vacation" that went something like this:

Tuesday

I had originally planned on getting up at 6:15 to work on some schoolwork so that I wouldn't fall behind while we were away. Instead, I slept an extra 30 minutes because I just couldn't bring myself to so much as sit up at such an ungodly hour.
I did get a bit of schoolwork done, regardless, and even got a half-hour walk in on the beast of death treadmill. I finished packing, took the fastest shower in history (my history, at least) and ate some breakfast before starting the journey to Archibold.



When we arrived, we stopped at my aunt's house for a bit to relax and catch up before going to the Barn for lunch. It's kind of a tradition to get the buffet at this place; a tradition we have yet to break.

The food was alright, but the salad was (and always has been) my most favorite.

Of course, it doesn't look near as glorious as it tasted. The croutons are sublime, and the poppyseed dressing is totally worth drooling over (...which I did). Let's be honest, everyone likes the toppings better than the leafy greens. ;)

After lunch, we checked into our hotel (read: the most gorgeous inn I have ever seen) and returned to my aunt's house for a while. Later, we went swimming at the inn, then went out to a local diner.

It was a cute little place! The lighting wasn't the greatest, and there was no music but there was a little jukebox hiding away in the back so music was available, but for a price.

After dinner, we went on a more in-depth exploration of the hotel.

Soooo thankful for these!

oh hey, wooden replica of The Last Supper  O.O

Random pond, just chillin' in the hallway.

I didn't snap very many photos of the lobby/entryway, as the lighting was horrendous. 

Our room was my favorite part, anyway...

On the far wall directly across from the main entryway was a sliding door that opened to a patio that led to a pathway which led to a pond with a nice fountain.

In the room, we discovered some complimentary cookies that took all of my willpower not to eat.

Dad stuck them in the ice pail so the younger kids wouldn't find them. xD

Because we were short on beds, my sister and I both had to sleep on a roll-away. My only complaint is that I was stuck with the one closest to the patio door -- i.e. the natural air conditioning. With three blankets and a sweater it was still a pretty chilly night for me. >.<

Wednesday

Breakfast was held in a special room close to the pool. What caught my eye was the plethora of pastries on display...

Much icing...such sugar...

A cinnamon roll with LOADS of icing (my favorite!) and slice of blueberry coffee cake <3

And this was the first time I had ever found granola amongst the cereals! Therefore, I had to get some of that as well.

#granolaandpeachporn  ;)

It was all so deliciously sweet; but alas, I could not finish.

the remnants of a fantastic dessert breakfast.

After breakfast, we went to the Historic Village. There were loads of attractions (40 in all!) and we weren't able to see all of them. I was glad to see that they had added on so much since the last time I was there - about a decade ago, no joke - and I was really glad to see some of the things that I saw when I went for the first time...

The first time I saw this, my dad had to lift
me up so I could see inside.

But I guess there were no criminals to bust
lately... Either that or he escaped. 

Short as it was, the train ride was actually really fun! It was freezing though, so I was quite thankful it didn't go on for very long.

In the Village, there was a museum with hundreds of historical bits and bobs, including...

The coolest bike ever(!!!)...

A snazzy milk truck...

A carriage almost like the one from The Aristocats...

The classiest baby booties I've ever seen...

The next thing on my wishlist ;)...

A fancy phonograph...

And a vintage horse-drawn fire engine!

One of my favorite locations was the trader's tent. Here, we learned about fur trading, and how fur could be used to make things in the early 1800-1900s. In particular, I found this guy to be pretty intriguing:

It's not every day you get to see a black bearskin. Or a skunk skin. That, however, was not an attractive photo; a skunk hanging from the ceiling may be a bit too disturbing for some.

Once we left the Village, we went to the gift shop where I found a lot of modern things, such as a giant Beanie Boo...

I have the normal-sized version of this guy^^

...I also saw a plethora of (i.e. total of five) owl Beanies, which may have excited me a bit too much

I kind of want them all now.

Also, (non-Beanie Boo-related) I found this:

Gloriously relevant. Incredibly tempting. Painfully expensive. 

Thursday

We arrived back home. Actually, we left on Wednesday after having another dinner at the Barn (buffet ftw!) and saying our farewell to my aunt and Grandma. So all in all, not much out of the ordinary occurred on Thursday.

While it was short, and not what most people would classify as a "vacation," this was exceptionally enjoyable and I wouldn't mind going again. And again. And again and again and again. 

...Maybe not that many times, but you see what I mean. ;)  If you're ever in the Archibald, OH area, check it out! You won't regret it, I promise!

I should probably note that I am in no way sponsored by the Sauder Village. Nor do I own any of the products photographed in this post. Except the foods that went in my belly...those are technically mine. 

~JK