Tag: Minneapolis

Home Sweet Hotel

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Welp, we live in a hotel. This should be interesting.

If you missed the previous post, here is what you need to know…Will’s contract was unexpectedly terminated five weeks into his assignment. In the two weeks that followed he accepted a new contract for nine weeks, we moved out of our rental, and set up shop in an extended stay hotel.

It’s been a little over a week since we moved into our new digs in the Twin Cities, and so far so good. However, we have found that there are significant challenges to hotel living, particularly cramming our lives into 540 sq. feet.

Currently, we are staying in a one-bedroom “suite”. All that really means is that there’s a door, albeit an important one, to the bedroom and bathroom. Amenities include a little kitchenette with a fridge/freezer combo, microwave, and a two-burner stove. The kitchenette also includes the basic utensils, dishes, pots and pans, and most importantly, a wine opener. Certainly more than adequate for a hotel stay, but somewhat lacking for a 9-week residency.

I’ll admit the kitchen is the hardest thing for me to get used to. I absolutely hate that we don’t have an oven and most of our meals come out of the microwave. Wife fail. But we are making it work and really, 9-weeks of lean cuisines can’t kill you, right? RIGHT!?

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Where the magic happens a.k.a. where the cat sleeps all day

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Living room and office space. Complete with coffee table/tote full of clothes.

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Kitchenette with state of the art microwave and non-functioning dishwasher. #blessed

Even with the teeny tiny living space, we’ve been pretty happy with our experience so far. There’s definitely a downside to hotel living, but some of the perks are pretty great too. A few of our favorites being:

  • Breakfast every morning
  • Dinner or snacks every Monday – Wednesday night
  • Free coffee ALL DAY (I have abused this privilege with abandon)
  • Housekeeping and linen swap 2X a week
  • Indoor pool and hot-tub (key for a cold MN winter)
  • Coin-op laundry on site (granted $4/load is not cheap and requires a lot of quarters)
  • Dog run area

The other great thing about the hotel is the location. We are right on the edge of Minneapolis/St. Paul and close to area attractions and hotspots. We haven’t had a chance to do much exploring yet, but we’re hoping to maximize the next 7 weeks and take advantage of everything the Twin Cities have to offer.

Hopefully, we’ll have plenty of adventures to report back soon!

Stay tuned…

 

3,500 Miles

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Things have been pretty hectic in our household lately. I recently started working from home, which is great, but it’s certainly been an adjustment. As I try to navigate my new role we are also in the midst of moving out, putting our things in storage, and dealing with a 10-month old bulldog puppy who I swear is trying to break me. And since we really love to pile it on, we figured, why not take a road trip!?

Real Talk: I am a HUGE Beyoncé fan. When she announced the Formation tour I damn near lost my mind. I didn’t care which city or what date, but I was going to see that show. Since my husband is amazing, he agreed to go with me to her show in Minneapolis. That way we could visit my family for a bit while we were there. Two birds, right? And because we just love being trapped in a car together for 24+ hours, we decided to drive. And so begins our latest adventure…..

The trip from Boise to Minnesota was fairly uneventful. We’ve driven this route many times (and really, North Dakota doesn’t have much to look at). We busted out the drive in two days. 13 hours one day, quick stop over in Montana, and then 11 hours the next. Whew.

We spent some time at my parent’s house before heading down to the Twin Cities for the concert. Our hotel was in the Nicollet Mall area of Minneapolis – if you’re staying in the Twin Cities for the first time I highly recommend this area. There are tons of restaurants, theaters, museums, and nightclubs all within walking distance.

First things first, the concert was ah-mazing. Except for that whole 1.5 hour severe weather delay….yeah that happened. There was lightning, seats were evacuated, we drank a lot of beer. But when Bey finally hit the stage it was totally worth it. Best. Concert. Ever.

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The next day we recovered in the hotel room, ate some fancy burgers, and wandered around before heading to the Twins game. Now, I’m not a huge baseball fan (and the Twins really suck this year), but trust me when I say, going to a game is worth it just to see Target Field. The stadium is immaculate and there’s so much to see and do – and eat! We stuffed our faces with the usual: beer, brats, dippin’ dots, and more beer. Sports! Yay!

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When it came time to head back West, rather than taking the same old boring route back home, we opted to add a day to our drive and take the southern route through South Dakota and Wyoming. Best decision ever. On day two we stopped at Mount Rushmore – a first for both Will and I. People always say it’s underwhelming, but to quote my husband:

“How can that be underwhelming!? It’s faces carved into a f—king mountain!”

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So yeah, Rushmore is cool.

We also stopped at the Crazy Horse monument – about a 30 minute drive into the park from Rushmore. Construction on the monument has been slow going and so far the only thing that’s done is his face. But man, it’s going to be HUGE when it’s done – which the information desk told us could be another 15-30 years. Even though the monument is nowhere near completion there is still a lot to see. The museum on site has an incredible display of Native American artifacts, pictures, and history. Don’t tell Will, but I liked this stop better than Rushmore.

The rest of the drive was uneventful, but absolutely gorgeous. I have a new appreciation for Wyoming after this drive.

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Eight days and 3,500+ miles later, we made it back to Boise in one piece. Totally exhausted. Totally drained. Totally worth it.

Until next time,