Adventuresome......

I made it. All the way to Idaho. 5 kids. 2 days. I did it. We stopped after 700 some odd miles in Cheyenne Wyoming. We swam. I finally got the kids to sleep around 10:30 (11:30 our time) and Kennedy puked. In the bed. I bathed her, covered up the vomit so Jack wouldn't roll in it, and finally got back to sleep around midnight. We made it to Idaho Falls the next evening in time for dinner. It is a looooong way to Grandma's house. Wireless headphones connected to DVD players helped. A lot. And XM radio that played Dr. Laura and the Gayle King Show. Both those women are quite entertaining. For various reasons. Oh. And the Wii. Which we were also able to connect to the DVD player and the wireless headphones. Having all these gadgets for entertainment were helpful. But. The kids still don't want to see the inside of a vehicle for a long time. We were hard pressed yesterday to get them to drive 5 minutes to the park. We are here now. And have a lot of fun-filled days ahead of us. We miss Shawn who is busy studying for boards. And hopefully accomplishing a lot without feeling guilty about neglecting us. Here's to vacation. And enough family around that it makes feeling like a single mom a lot easier.

Settling Duties...

I've lived here long enough that it's time to start scrubbing toilets and mopping floors. Only I still have boxes that need to be unpacked. Good thing I leave in 4 days for a total of 3 weeks. All this work will be forgotten.

A Fond Farewell.....

I remember the very day we got this little van of ours. May of 2000. Ethan was 5 months old. Our car was dying and we needed something new. I really wanted a ford explorer. Or any kind of SUV. The only thing I refused to purchase was a mini-van. Too stereo-typical for me. After test driving vehicles every Saturday for 3 months with this one particular sales lady, she was sick of us. We showed up again and she was busy. She made herself busy and was noticeably ignoring us. So, we met Ed. He was in his early 50's. We told him our recent history. He smiled and said "I have just the vehicle for you to try". It was a mini-van. I refused. "I think you guys should just try it. It'll surprise you." Surprise me it did. 3 blocks later found us kicking tires, moving seats forward and back, opening doors, locking, unlocking, and blasting the stereo. We couldn't resist. We drove it off the lot that very afternoon. That poor sales lady that lost her commission. We got a lot of guff for buying such a large vehicle for such a small family. But we were looking into the future of medical school budgets and birthing babies. In 2003 when all our medical school friends were birthing their 3rd child and needing to upgrade vehicle size, we were able to avoid that very scenario. I have sure loved this van. We all have. A lot of memories. The orange stain under the cup holder because the McDonalds drink ate through the bottom of the cup left over night. The red crystal light stain close by because an angry child hurled his "spill proof" sippy cup up to the front in protest of something. Gum wads. Wrappers buried so deep in the recesses of the seats they will never be found. Numerous vomit clean-ups. And that isn't even the good stuff. Countless road trips. Out west and back. Nauvoo. St. Louis. Chicago. And everything in between. Sandy lake trips. Sandy park trips. A lot of laughter. And a lot of tears. We are now filled to capacity. We can either take all our people, or all our stuff. But not both. We just don't fit. My kids legs are getting longer and their bodies are getting larger. We are feeling a little cramped. It's time to bid farewell to the faithful van that has gotten us where we need to be for the last 10 years. Hopefully this baby will see us through the next 10.

Or 20. Or until all the kids have moved off to college.

Exploration...

The kids and I decided on Wednesday that we needed to get out of the house. Actually, I decided. Because we don't have any friends yet, they are irritating each other. A lot. And grating on my nerves. I felt the zoo would be a good outlet. And since it's only a mere 45 minutes away how could we not take advantage. Right?We made it in time for the Sea Lion Show. All the kids crowded around up close while Presley and I hung out in the shade. She was a little curious as to what all the hubbub was about. But mostly she just babbled in her cute little voice.

There is a Kid Zone at this Zoo complete with a ginormous tree kids can climb and explore. It's a man-made tree depicting what a tree that old would really look like. The kids had a great time exploring all the crevices.

I predicted hunger would set in just as we set foot in the park. (Have I done this before?) And I was correct in my thinking. These babies were a hit. I'm adding them to my "travel shopping list".

It was a pretty hot day. Not as humid as is typical for July, but still pretty hot. Thank goodness for the "misters" that were set up throughout the park. If the kids stood under them long enough they appeared as though they had just gotten out of the shower. Sweet relief.

While the cool mist spray worked on keeping their outsides cool, icee's the size of their heads worked on their insides.

These kids were troopers. We must have walked at least 3 miles throughout the afternoon. Little to no complaints were heard. Glorious. By the time we got back to the van we were all exhausted. Even the one that didn't even have to get out of the stroller.

The good news? I bought a family pass so we can return whenever we desire. Excellent.