(Week 4 since you've been gone)
Holy Cow, I have a lot to write about! I've been busy busy and going going going!
Let's start with Friday, July 6th (Day 22)...
I packed.
And cleaned.
And packed.
And didn't really stress myself out, oddly enough. My version of packing for this trip was to put everything I owned into my 2 suitcases and various other bags. I definitely didn't forget anything because I literally did not leave anything behind. So packing was easy!
It was the road trip itself that was not so good.
There were 8 people going. My dad, my stepmom Kathleen, her son Justin, her two daughters Kelsey and Kourtney, my two boys, and me. Good thing my dad owns a 15 passenger van! (We tell Desmond it's a bus.) Pops and I had previously discussed how we were going to make the trip pleasant and comfortable for Dez and Dax seeing as how they were so little and not used to being in the car for very long periods of time. Dad came up with a very clever solution. He took out the back row of seats and put in a sort of table. Underneath this table you could store luggage and bags. On top we put a futon mattress with pillows and blankets. Voila! A lounge area where the boys could sleep through the night and for naps! It was a very cool idea!
We left at 8:00 p.m. on Friday night. I thought to myself, well this is perfect. We'll be able to sleep through the night and that will break up the long hours spent in the car. I was definitely wrong.
First off, let me tell you that both my boys are super easy to put to bed. I mean, I have zero complaints. Even when we go places and have to sleep in a different bed or place, they have no problem.
This, apparently, excludes riding in the car. Desmond thought that the lounge area was his personal bouncy house and would literally bounce off the walls. Dax was just not used to being put to sleep differently and was also having fun peeking up at the girls in the row in front of him. It took many attempts to put them to bed. But, after a couple of hours we were all snoozing in the back like little sardines!
Too bad it didn't last...
Dad had planned to stop every three hours. Drive three hours then get gas, drive three more hours then stretch and have a bathroom break. This was very helpful during the day, but at night it was awful. The boys would be dead asleep. Until the driver would turn off the engine. Then, POP!, both boys would be fully awake and smiling and laughing!! I was just baffled by their behavior! It was actually pretty funny. Then the car would start up and I'd have to start all over from scratch putting them to bed again.
Then morning came. Saturday July 7th Dax woke up with the sun, quite literally. We were in the car all. day. long. Apparently leaving the night before was a bad idea, because now, we had a whole, full day ahead in the car.
And, you know, as I'm sitting here typing about our adventures in the car, it really wasn't so bad. It could have been a lot worse. I left our house pretty prepared for temper tantrums and whining and boredom. I had a few tricks up my sleeve and had lots of help from everyone in the car.
I brought everything from balloons, to DVDs, glo-sticks, snacks, games, and new toys.
Finally, by early evening on Saturday, we made it!! And, boy did we sleep goooooooood that night!
Sunday July 8th was spent relaxing and recovering from our trip. We skipped church (What! I didn't pack our church clothes!) and took a long luxurious nap. We got to sit and visit and play with our family. We ate dinner and then had a derby race with Hot Wheels. Though this may sound like it was intended for the children, it was absolutely played for the adult males in my family. Silly grown-up boys.
See Dax helping?
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