Second Annual

They say all things happen for a reason. I guess the Copperleaf lost my reservations for a reason. The reason being that we needed to see the difference between The Copperleaf and The Paper Valley for ourselves. HUGE difference!

The Copperleaf wins hands down for personality, comfort and customer service. The Paper Valley is so impersonal, and their walls are so thin, I thought I would go mad from all the maid carts rolling around in the halls!

Things The Paper Valley offers that I really liked were the free internet kiosks in the lobby, and their bathroom layout is much nicer with more towels and their fridge is bigger.

The Copperleaf wins in every other category. Better maintained elevators, much cleaner hotel, more curteous and attentive staff, semi-private spa-pool, a livingroom with a pull-out couch/bed that is adjoining the bedroom. Free breakfast (we paid $18 for a Paper Valley brunch that left me with food poisoning!), Free Gourmet Coffee, more comfortable beds, and more water pressure in the shower (very important to me!).

Next year, I am going to make reservations 3 months in advance, and I am going to call them every other week to be sure they have kept that reservation!

As for entertainment, we started out at Good Company for dinner Friday night, which is always yummy. Although Bonnie had an "Episode" there that still concerns me. I think the gal really needed this down time!

Barb and I walked down College Ave for a bit while we let Bonnie get a good nap in. We found a place called Mill Creek that boasted "5 Decades of Music Videos". We were the only ones there, and the bar tender makes a very good drink. She told us to come back when it is more crowded and louder. We assured her that we would!

Then, we went and joined our Aunt Shirley at BJ Clancy's for Karaoke. I was dubious at first. There was an awful lot of country music fans and elderly folks mixed in with a few younger folks. They twisted my arm and got me up to sing a few songs, which was fun.

Bonnie and I were joking about how we would be sharing a bed like we did as children, when a nice looking guy in his mid 30's got up and sang "I'll Be". I asked Bonnie if he could come back to our room and sing that to me all night. And then I said "Hey! We could make a Sister Sandwich!" which lead to many many more sandwich jokes throughout the weekend.

Bonnie and I drank a shot of Bailey's in honour of our Mommy. 25 years have passed, and she is still in our hearts and in our minds.

After we left Karaoke, we walked back down to Mill Creek. Holy CRAP! What a transformation! The place was just THUMPING! Everybody was dancing and singing at the top of their lungs and having a great time! We joined right in and had a blast!

We were back to our room by 1AM, and in the hot tub by 1:30. Only trouble with that was that the hot tub was VERY hot, which heated up my own core temp, and brought on a night long hot flash, so I didn't sleep very well.

On Saturday, after breakfast at Perkins (We couldn't get it together in time to do the free breakfast down stairs by 10AM) Bonnie had to head back to Oshkosh for the afternoon to handle an obligation regarding son Jeremy.

We booked a suite at the Paper Valley since The Copperleaf didn't have and rooms available for Saturday. The main problem with that was we had to wait 3 hours for check-in time. Barb and I wandered up and down College Avenue, enjoying The Farmer's Market, and exploring the stores and museums. It would have been more fun if we weren't both dying for a nap!!!

We checked in to The Paper Valley and tried to take a nap, but there was so darned much noise going on, I only got about 15 minutes.

Bonnie returned at about 4:30, and we brought all of our belongings up stairs to our room. She needed to unwind a bit, and then we went to KFC for dinner. I know many of my readers are saying "Really? KFC?" Well, we don't have a KFC in Oshkosh, so this was a real treat for us!

From there, we went to Walmart for yummys. By the time we came out, the sky was angry and dark. We got to the Paper Valley Parking structure just in time before it started pouring. The perfect atmosphere to try to take a REAL nap! So we all crashed out for an hour as it rained cats and dogs.

By the time we were ready to hit the pubs, the rain was ending. We started off at the Durty Leprechaun for a few drinks, and Bonnie's daughter had decided to meet up with us as well for a bit.

Well, who could resist? We had to go back to Mill Creek to see if they were doing anything different. And on the way there, we were saying "I'm surprised they didn't play any Michael Jackson last night." Just as we got our drinks, a Michael Jackson video came on and the crowd went insane with approval! That was followed by Prince. Mister VeeJay really knows what this old lady wants to hear!

We turned in a little early on Saturday, and went back to our room to play Catch Phrase while unwinding with wine coolers. To our shock, there was a knock on the door, and it was The Consierge asking us to quiet down! REALLY?

This morning, I ran down to the Starbucks for coffee and tea for all of us, and after we all showered, we went down for the brunch. My guts are still rolling!

We were home by noon today. Oh it feels so good to be home! I missed my boys. I missed my kitties. I missed my BED!!!

I almost wish I had taken tomorrow off work just so I can recoup! I am one tired lady! But it was worth every minute!