Is it possible to be worn out from a vacation that’s only 17 minutes away? The answer is …. yes.

What an awesome weekend at The District in Prairie Trail.

Thank you to The District…thank you to all the incredible local restaurant and boutique owners…and thank you to the many of you who came up to me while we were there to say “How are you liking Ankeny?” “We’re following your adventures on Facebook?” “Are you going to move to The District”?

If you have friends coming into town…tell them to stay at the Residence Inn at The District. OMG. It’s awesome. Do you know what I really missed? A hotel breakfast, and theirs was tremendous…no, my daughter definitely did NOT make three to-go boxes.

Also…hands down, one of the best hotel pools I’ve ever been in. Big, clean…and you know when you forget you goggles and you open your eyes and immediately they start stinging due to the excessive amounts of chlorine? Not this pool…it was super clean, super clear…and no burning of the eyes!!! Loved it. (as an above ground pool owner, I can attest to how hard this is, and only an individual/group that’s committed to keeping the pool clean can accomplish this).

Upon checking in, we found this in our room.

Absolutely incredible. Everything was donated by businesses at The District….and they all had personal touches. A soccer shirt for my daughter…an A&R Workshop baseball kit for my son…pampering galore for my wife…

(my daughter is documenting everything apparently)

…and Purple Poppy Boutique for knowing I would be all about this.

Look Colleen…charcuterie (is that spelled right?)

Then off to Fongs…no wait, what’s this? A pitstop at Mainstream Boutique. My wife found a pair of jeans, and just had to have them. In her words “I never thought I’d own a pair of jeans like this”…and my daughter somehow sweet-talked her way into getting a new pair of earrings.

Then, off to Fongs. Chinese cheesesticks….Crab Rangoon Pizza…Honey Garlic Pizza…and of course, their Strawberry Fongade in a Tiki Mug. Guess who overate? It has two thumbs and goes by Kurt.

My son says “Honey Garlic is the king of pizzas” .

Saturday morning, and I wake up realizing “holy cow, never woke up in Ankeny before…check that off the list”.

If the Residence Inn breakfast wasn’t good enough, we walked approximately 45 seconds to “Rise and Grind Nutrition”…umm…can they please open at 3:30 in the morning and be on my route to work in the morning?  You get an aloe shot, a tea, and a shake…and it’s all so good.

I went with the Peach Ultimate Tea (which doesn’t taste like tea)  and the French Toast shake. not only delicious, but also nutritious. Look at me, a beacon of health.

My daughter went with a American Captain and the September Shake Special…which was the Chocolate Oreo Cheesecake Shake. When she wasn’t looking, I had some of hers. Don’t tell her…and don’t let her read this.

Then, it was off to the Operating Room…no wait, what’s this? Purple Poppy Boutique is open? PIT STOP…SHOPPING TIME! My wife discovered a great Hawkeye hat with the outline of the state of Iowa with “LOYAL” written in gold. She loves it. My daughter tried to sweet talk her way into another pair of earrings…but was denied! LOL.

Now, it was off to the Operating Room…where my son already was, staring in awe through the window. I don’t know who had more fun at the Operating Room…my kids or my wife. My wife is a bit addicted to any “coin pusher” game, but the Willy Wonka one is her favorite.

I knew she was in for the long haul when a coveted Golden Ticket became available. You guys, if you get the Golden Ticket and the other 8 cards, you get 1000 TICKETS!

After 20 minutes, I thought Jennifer was ready to give up hope…then she said, go get me a beer. We weren’t going anywhere for awhile LOL. Oh, and she did get all the cards needed for 1000 tickets. It was actually quite impressive!

Dexter now wants to sign up for pinball tournaments….

I found an Iron Maiden one…

…and my daughter housed me at SkeeBall.

Dinner time? You know it…Flavory Bistro. It’s our family’s favorite…and we adore Chef Lisa & Hector…and they absolutely spoil us.

Look at this gyro…I can barely describe it without using NSFW words.

Chef Lisa surprised Priscilla with a carrot cake with key lime frosting….and again, I can not describe this without a swear word. So ________ good.

Priscilla and Chef Lisa…BFFs. THANK YOU!

(Note: we couldn’t finish the cake, so I have to bring Lisa’s cake plate back to her…and then while I’m at The District tomorrow…I’ll grab some Lola’s for lunch).

Since it was right next door…I mean, how could we pass by without stopping in to Winestyles? Filled up a growler with Sangria from Jasper Winery. The crew at Winestyles is so nice and so knowledgeable. My wife is a wine lover…and she loves the selection and gifts. I will be back soon to fill up the growler!

We were sad to leave Sunday morning…but we know we’ll be back to The District at Prairie Trail soon. That was a long 15 minute drive home…we switched drivers at the 86th street exit LOL.

The only time we left The District on Saturday was for our daughter’s soccer game…and our friends, who were following along on FB & Insta were saying “it looks like you’re having a blast”…and they are/were right. Some of them had been many times to the The District…and some of them were now making it part of their next night now.

It felt so good to get away…even if it’s just 15 minutes away…and that’s the thing…it’s only 15 minutes away…and it felt like an absolutely vacation adventure.

THANK YOU TO THE DISTRICT AT PRAIRIE TRAIL…my daughter is in the process of accumulating all the thank yous we need for thank you notes. We had an absolutely awesome time…THANK YOU!