Getting Away from It all in Sunriver

As has happened for the past three years, Sunriver Resort has offered a free night's stay with the purchase of gift certificate.  Since the gift certificate is around the same price as what we spend every year for our spa services, it is so worth it.  This year, they extended the time you could use the free night for a full year, so we chose the fall to have a get-away that really was a get-away (and not a fast there and back roadtrip with no R&R involved).  

I look forward to our Sunriver big vacations at Christmas so much, but tend to underestimate the restoring effects this place will have on my soul for these shorter weekend visits.  Even just checking into the lodge was magical on Friday night.

The two story condo units have been renovated since our last visit.  A bit more of a modern feel, but still uber cozy. 

On Saturday morning, Brayden slept in, while John and Mikayla made a trip into Bend to visit a former Dutch Bros employee they'd made friends with over the summer.  I had tweaked my back really bad on Friday - and while I was thankful it didn't lead to a headache, I was very glad for this hot tub to ease the discomfort.  As I'm typing this on Sunday morning, the pain is gone, so I think this did the trick. 

John took this from our back porch on Sunday morning - kind of a good sense of the view from both directions given the reflections. 

I asked if we could take a family pic on the way to walking to the lodge for breakfast this morning.  Brayden had only packed sweats - nice that we could hide that.  =)

 Mikayla is pointing out that we are, indeed, "lodge guests". 

 

Where we sat on the back of the lodge patio had a large Jenga game.  Brayden was just bragging how good he was at this...

And, yes, the next moment that leaning tower tumbled!

 

I have no idea what was going on with these two - but that was kind of the story with them all weekend.  It was like a 50% "so thankful that they love each other so much that they want to be in each others' company" and then 50% "so annoyed that each others' company constantly led to squeals, arguing, and chasing after each other".   I know, I know - this time like this as a family is fleeting and I should embrace every moment of their interaction - but, seriously, their antics are SO NOT PROMOTING A TRANQUILITY ATMOSPHERE.  I was thinking about it yesterday morning, when did it change that my vacations as a family are now with the thought in mind that we don't cater to the kids and expect them to act more like adult friends of ours than our own children?  They aren't there yet, let's just say that.  But, and I emphasize this vehemently, I am so glad they both had fun and interacted.  Our entire family needed this time together in a big way.

I wrote a little Instagram at my dissatisfaction at the Resort's extortion in prices for food that was good, but not worth a $60 bill for our family of four.  Seriously?!  I noticed that the two new restaurants they opened inside the lodge are both at one star for largely this reason on Yelp.  Not cool, Sunriver, not cool.  (But, given we had the extra gift certificates, it was a little easier for us to swallow.)  

A final parting pic of John and I by their iconic front entry waterfall.  Again, we so needed this.  The weight of Sydney's situation (she is lovingly being taken care of by the Whites this weekend), the recent purchases and sales of large money items to make things work for our family, helping Brayden navigate his junior year in academics, changes within the sales structure at John's work....yes - we needed a get-away.  Thank you Sunriver for being the perfect fit for us!