Car Trips

Do you do long car trips with your kids?

My immediate family lives about 7 hours away. Seven hours of adult driving – it’s about 8 or 9 driving with kids. It’s a very long day to say the least.

I’ve tried multiple ways of making it a fun trip for everyone. And let me just say… the driving is not going to be the fun part of the trip. It’s just not, so accept and move on. There are a couple of ways to make a little less painful:

• More than one adult (or teen). Wow! This alone makes the biggest difference. Everything is easier. I know this sounds basic, but for the single moms out there, it is worth paying for someone else to come along. If, you know, you can’t rope someone into coming along for free.
• Non-sugary snacks and drinks. You’re already trapped in the car with a two year old… adding sugar is just scary.
• DVD player – with movies they haven’t seen before. Sadly, the old standbys won’t prevent sibling slap fights, no matter how beloved.
• A map of city parks. Just accept that you will have to stop for an exercise break at least twice (if not more)… and do you really want your child running around a rest stop? I swear the Cuddler heads straight for the freeway every single time. Small town city park is much safer and has play ground equipment.
• Map of the long route. Interstate highways are faster, but more boring. And expensive. Take the local highways instead. Easier access to parks, restaurants that have picnic areas (not a drive through), cheaper gas and much more interesting sights. One of these days we’re going to dig for dinosaurs while heading to our summer camp. Can’t do that while driving along the interstate and you save no time.
• Wipes – for kids and your car

Last, don’t have a time table. Don’t try to beat your time or make plans at a certain time. Doing the car trip with little kids and a time table is just a recipe for screaming frustration. To paraphrase Sally, Don’t drive to get to a good time, drive to have a good time.

Olden Days

What did people do with toddlers on trips before lap top computers, Ipads and netflix? Because I may have gone crazy without them... 

Illness Continues...

Or, Wherein I praise God for the writers of Finding Nemo.
Of course, the cuddler gave me his stomach virus, just in time for the annual preparations for the trip to the ol' homestead. I spent much of the weekend sanitizing myself so that Lala wouldn't be the next victim just in time for Santa's visit. Or rather, our visit to my parents house.
We're leaving tomorrow morning. That should have meant me packing, doing laundry and cleaning in preparation for the long trip. Instead I napped most of the day. As usual, I'll be rushing around in a panic tomorrow morning, leaving the house in a state of disaster and probably forgetting something important - not be realized until at least 100 miles away - like my wallet.
So far, the presents have been wrapped or packed. Snacks have been purchased. The kids have clothes to pack, although I do not. And they still need socks. We never have enough socks. No cuppies or food additives have been packed and the car hasn't been cleaned out for the trip. I also need to install the DVD player, get dog food and some how give the dog sitter the keys. And someone gave the cuddler a frosted sugar cookie, so he'll need a bath. All done before 10 am tomorrow.

New Room

Over Labor Day weekend, my family installed a new laminate floor in the spare/storage room. It was completely cleaned out and made ready for a new occupant... the cuddler. It was easier to move the crib than the bed that Lala is in. Plus, if the cuddler goes home, it will be easier to turn that room into a playroom. Does anyone remember when children did not need a "playroom"? Well, I don't know how they did it - because I feel like I'm drowning in a tidal wave of toys! Lala only got a few new ones for her birthday and it's still overwhelming. Anyways, the room was completed and it is awesome to have the space. Now the kids can actually run around without crashing into anything else.

That weekend also meant trying to figure out what to do with the kids. The only safe space for them was a blocked off living room where they tripped over each other and got into hair-pulling fights. Not fun. Instead we went to the zoo, for the entire day. And when we got home, no new floor. Crap. Next day, church for three hours. No new floor. Double crap! Labor Day itself - thankyoujeasus! the children's museum is open! New floor done. I wonder if I can claim the $100 I spent keeping the kids occupied as part of total cost of the floor for tax purposes?

The next day, school started. I fell asleep about 10 minutes after getting the kids in bed every night. On Thursday we were running out of fresh food and I was dreaming of grocery shopping. I knew how exhausting the start of school is for me... but somehow I always think I'll do better.

Saturday we went to the parade for the local festival. Lala was very scared of the motorcycle drill team and I had to teacher how to cover her ears when there is a loud noise, but the kids really liked it. At least, the cuddler sat in his stroller the whole time without screaming to get out... which is a good sign. Luckily, he has experienced candy at my house because the frickin' clowns kept trying to give the cuddler tootsie rolls. Who gives a baby tootsie rolls? Lala won't take anything from a stranger, so all the candy ended up in the diaper bag for mommy to give away at school. Perhaps I should start thinking about plans for Halloween... Lala won't talk in front of strangers, so I'm think that saying "trick or treat" 10 to 15 times might be a bit difficult.

New Car

For our camping trip last weekend, I rented a small SUV. Man... it was so much more roomier than my current compact car. It felt open and breezy. I could fit the new double stroller in the back, and put other stuff there too! In the same back space! The only thing I didn't like about it was that the driver could (and did!) lock the keys in the car. Luckily, the rental company could unlock it remotely, but that's still a problem for me.

I lock myself out of tons of stuff all the time. My house, my classroom, etc. I would be really screwed if my car wasn't configured to make it nearly impossible to lock without keys being in your hand.

Anyhoo, I'm really loving the idea of having this small SUV. Enough that I actually looked it up on Costco and made an appointment to look for one (did you know that you can buy a car via Costco? It apparently knocks several thousands of dollars off the price... they wouldn't tell me how many, but rumor has it that it is a big number in car salesman speak), plus the sales people are desperate for a sale. I've been trying to talk myself out of it for the past three days. As someone who will soon be paying over $500/mo for daycare, it seems like a rather silly move to put myself in debt. Plus, who knows if I'll have a job next year? Please, help me pray for strength to resist. I really want a new car.

Sick Day

Yesterday, Lala threw up at day care. I picked her up and she seemed a little down, but otherwise fine. We all came home and had naps and then dinner. Lala did not eat, but then again, she hasn't eaten dinner for the last three days (breakfast, lunch and snack are all eaten)... so, was it because she was sick or because she just wasn't hungry?

This morning we dropped the baby off at daycare and took off to the beach. She has never been and I figured it would be something fun to do rather than sitting around the hot house all day. The waves on the beach scared her, but she had no problem in walking through the little streams or pointing out every fragment of sand dollar she saw. We also examined a small jellyfish and the difference between various animal tracks, including our own. It must have been exciting because she fell asleep on the way home. I wish I had taken photos, but I was so excited to show her the beach, I never got it out of the car. Plus, with a child and dog, I didn't really have a free hand. For those who are wondering, dry sand "hurt", but wet sand was just fine.