We headed out Monday morning, leaving our driveway at approximately 6:20 AM. Only about 20 minutes later than our goal. Not too bad considering the amount of people that we must get ready and out the door, and that our house had to be spotless upon leaving. (By the way, could someone please buy our house while we are gone? I would really love to come home and not have that burden hanging over me!!)
I think traveling teaches me a lot about my kids. There are a few things that I do in prep for our trip in order to hopefully make our time in the truck a little easier. For some of our kids, my techniques work great, for others, not so much.
In the weeks leading up to our departure, I begin to look for items that will entertain the children in the truck. I try to find magazines, puzzle books, Color Wonder, special treats, etc. that will make the trip more bearable for all of us. We also have screens that we put in the truck for long trips. Having movies to entertain is also really nice.
Snacks for the trip have become so much easier with the system I instituted a few years ago. Basically I buy several different kinds of snacks that I know they will enjoy. Then, I have each of them pick out the a certain number of snacks for the drive. They are allowed to eat their snacks any time they want, but when they are gone, they get no more. It teaches them to plan and "budget" their food. It has really worked well for us over the last couple of years. I don't have them asking me over and over for food, and I don't have to keep up with their food. I just keep up with the snacks for the little ones and Rick and me.
So, Sam has just recently earned the privilege to participate in the snack packing. Unfortunately, he failed in his attempt to "budget" his snacks. Basically, he ate all of his snacks and treats for the 2-day drive within the first 4 hours of our travel!! When we stopped for lunch, he wasn't hungry and spent quite a bit of time in the bathroom. He came out saying, "I have diarrhea." I laugh so hard just thinking about it. Today, he learned the hard way that traveling is not nearly as much fun without snacks to entertain!!
Yesterday, we arrived at our overnight destination of Cedar City, UT around 5:00. We were all ready to be out of that truck. We went for a swim, out to dinner, and back to the hotel to watch a movie in the rooms. The girls shared a room and the boys shared a room(yeah, we are too big for one room!).
We started off today at the breakfast buffet!! Everyone loved unlimited food, and we encouraged them to eat until they were full. After all, it was included with our room. :) Laila spilled a glass of juice down her shirt making her really cute white shirt a nice yellow color. We headed out of town by 8:44 AM. Todays travels were harder. Everyone was tired and getting on each other's nerves. There was much weeping and gnashing of teeth throughout the drive. Really, with this many kids, there is always someone who is unhappy.
We arrived in Las Vegas around lunch time. The funny thing is that we have friends from the Springs in Vegas right now. We got to see the Fikes for a few minutes. It was really funny to see people we knew so far from home. I loved driving down the strip and really hope that Rick and I can go back and check it out without our children some day!!
The last stretch felt like the longest from Vegas to our final destination. I think Abby probably screamed about 75% of that stretch. Every time we would get things quiet and get little ones asleep, she would have a crisis of unprecedented proportions.
We made it. Palm Trees make me feel all happy inside. Oh, the pool where we are staying is closed. Really? We have been telling them how they can swim in the pool each day. Hopefully it will open some while we are here. The "repairs" didn't look that major, and there was water in the pool.
There was a time in our condo this evening where I think everyone was crying or screaming or fighting all at the same time. It was quite humorous actually. I just stood in the kitchen listening to the chaotic chorus of all of my children, and thought, "I really hope we don't get kicked out of this place before our time is up!"
I am praying for good rest for ALL of us tonight. My hubby is such a trooper. He drove the whole way. I did get a few little naps in along the way. He is exhausted. Tomorrow is a new day, and I get to see the beach and palm trees. I feel happy just thinking about it.
Reading this makes me think of all of my wonderful vacations growing up. Yay! You made it...so enjoy! Thanks for letting us follow along on your vacation. A well deserved time as a family.
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