What do you do?

Happy Anniversary, Jeffrey!  Yep, I'm a little early, but we have to take a free weekend where we can get it so we decided to celebrate now.  And what better way to celebrate than a weekend away!  A weekend away at a Castle!  

Cool, isn't it?   We had a plan.  No internet service, no cell service, no television. It screamed quiet weekend away.  Until we checked in and spent the first hour staring at each other, trying to figure out what to do.  I mean really, if I took away your computer, your phone, your cable television and your radio for three days...where would you start?  And how long until you've gone crazy?

So what to you do?  We started with games.  I won Battleship (barely) and Jeff won Name 5 (barely, but with style!).  An evening of games got us through the first few hours.

So the next morning, we decided to get out and enjoy the fresh air for the day.  First stop, food.  Second stop, Cedar Falls.

We really did see the falls.  I just liked that picture better!  After the falls?  The suspension bridge.  It was beautiful.

On a side note, I learned Jeff hates suspension bridges!  Who knew?  But now that I do, I won't make that mistake again!  Thankfully, he was a good sport about it.  After the bridge, I thought I should do something to make it up to him.  So a trip to the Wind Chime Shop was next.  Really, he does love the place.  It wasn't for me!  We did manage to find a few Christmas presents along the way too.  And this little guy....man, it must be the time of year for turkeys.

We'd now made it more than 24 hours without technology.  No calls, no texts, no emails.  That's when we stumbled upon dinner.

Amazing pizza and 4G internet service!  For one hour, we became that couple we make fun of when we're out.  You know the ones.  The couples that sit at a table, completely immersed in their phones and totally unaware of anyone else in the restaurant, including those at their own table.  But I got to touch base with the boys and answer a few studio emails.  Jeff got to check emails and do a little "Google"ing. 

Then it was back to the Castle for an evening of peace and quiet.  Oh, I almost forgot...we weren't actually staying at the Castle.  We had decided on something a little more rustic.  It was on the Castle grounds, but you had to drive to reach it.  This is the Frog Prince cabin in Fairy Tale Village.  A bed, a bathroom and a coffee maker.  Those were our requirements and this was perfect.  With the cold temperatures, the heat was a bonus! 

The second technology free evening was much easier.  A movie on Jeff's laptop helped that considerably :)  I know that's cheating, but we haven't managed to sit and watch a movie in months so it was like a vacation for us.  

After another great nights sleep and brunch at the Castle, we started off on a trek to Moonville.  If you haven't heard of it, google it.  It's a beautiful, historic railway town...or at least it used to be.  It was a great hike and the pictures were beautiful. Too many to post, but here's a peek.  Unfortunately, we didn't find the ghost!

We did manage to find a great cup of coffee and an antique mall on our way out though.  It was later afternoon before we finally managed to make it to Old Mans Cave.  Safety warnings and caution tape covered the place.  You couldn't look left or right without seeing a park ranger.  Yet the number of people "off trail" was amazing.  Some people have to learn the hard way.  Still, it was an amazing afternoon hike.

After a second night of pizza and internet, we headed back for one last evening of quiet.  I have to admit, I was getting used to it.  It's easy to forget the outside world when you have no connection to it.  It was the best anniversary present!  

Today we headed home.  We both had sore calves and smiling faces.  Nine years later and there is still nothing better than a quiet weekend away with Jeff.  Thank you for a great weekend of smiles and laughter.  

Oh, and when we get another free weekend, this is what I would like you to build....