Coming Home

7.1.09

Five and a half hours on the road doesn't sound like much, but it can feel like an eternity when you're driving alone with two hungry lil' munchkins and a restless, panting dog. I stopped just three times on our way home from Family Land yesterday. First to get gas and let Buby out to pee {next to our car... heehee}. Then to feed + change Bleu and let Jazzy out to drink + pee. Then to eat and stretch our legs and all go pee at a clean looking rest stop with a dog walk.

Both kids are good road trippers. They are incredibly patient and flexible and up for anything. Bleu is consistently happy the first 4 hours in her car seat. After that, all bets are off. Both ways she cried on and off the last 40 minutes. Not bad. Buby needed no entertainment on the trip up. He and I sang songs and engaged in the most interesting conversation for hours. {Kids really open up in the car, don't they?} At one point Buby announced, "I want to be Daddy when I grow up, and I want to have 9 children." On the trip back he asked to watch "Dumbo" on the mini DVD player. He watched it twice in a row while reading the book at the same time and then just commented on the weather the rest of the time.

Aside from the fact that Bleu won't sleep in a play pen when we're away from home {which makes for a very exhausted ME}, we had a fantastic week hopping from house to house for play dates and parties and reunions. Our main reason for going this particular week was my niece Grace's 8th birthday party. We didn't want to miss it. We managed to squeeze in time with all four grands, 8+ cousins, aunts + uncles, and several of the greats.

Each night when we pulled back into Grandma DJ's driveway after a long day out, {and I think I can speak for both Buby + I here}... we felt even more blessed and appreciative for the people in our lives. I enjoy my family. I laugh with my mom. I love every one of my in-laws. Every single one as if they were always mine to start. I am in awe of my nieces and nephews and cousins {1st, 2nd and 3rd}. How fast they grow. How smart they are. When I see Buby + Bleu playing their hearts out I know the trip was worthwhile. Times 100.

I kept my mini Canon Elph in my cup holder the whole week and never used it until the last hour or so of our trip. Buby took some shots while I drove, and I even took a few with those inspector gadget arms of mine. He was trying to make me laugh. It worked.