A hotel scavenger hunt

Every year, Karen Parr and a friend take their now 12-year-old daughters to spend an afternoon at the Pfister’s Lobby Bar for a splash of holiday cheer.

The foursome have done this for four or five years in a row and have documented the annual event with photos, including some with the iconic Pfister lion statues.

As the girls got older, Karen thought they could explore the hotel a bit on their own. In doing do, she hoped also they would they find excitement in the independence of a parent-free roam.

And Karen and her friend could have a few minutes for a grown-up drink and chat.

Ingeniusly, Karen decided to create a scavenger hunt list for the girls that would keep them focused while having fun. She wrote her list on the back of a Pfister coaster:

5 floating angels

4 dead men

3 swooning ladies

2 fainting couches

And the definition of the word “concierge” 

Indeed, the girls had a blast finding the objects and images and the scavenger hunt has become a part of the group’s holiday tradition.

One fainting couch found!

The Pfister hotel, however, was already a tradition for Karen. She stayed at the hotel with her mother the night before her wedding and with her new husband on her wedding night.

Her mother also stayed there when she came to Milwaukee for Karen’s baby shower and Karen still treasures a photo taken in the lobby from that visit. (Little did she know at the time  that the unborn little girl would be her lifelong Pfister date.)

“The Pfister lounge feels like my mom’s living room. I like going there – it’s formal and elegant yet casual and warm and friendly. Just like my mother. And that’s why I keep going back,” says Karen, who is originally from Erie, Pennsylvania. “I love the formality and the chance to dress up a little.”

And for the record, concierge means “Keeper of the keys.” Now go find the rest of the items on Karen’s list.