On the Road. . . with my Family

We all had a difficult time saying goodbye to our home, packing up what little we could, and moving 1100 miles south. Immediately prior to the move, we tried to sell off some of our big items to try and fund the move. Side note, I LOATHE people who inquire about items, say they want to meet, set up a time, then don't show, don't contact again. They deserve to be roasted in the fires of hell. By me personally. Packing day, Scott did a great job of putting as much into the backs of the cars as possible, like a giant game of Tetris. Rear view mirrors, be damned! Brett decided to add sickness to our mix, with lounging on the couch complaining of headache, stomachache, and sporting a slight fever. We'd decided if we got out by 11am, we'd call it a win. It wasn't a win, but we were on the road by 2pm, and the rain had stopped, which was a bonus.

Coco was feeling anxious too. I don't know how to illustrate that I knew my dog had anxiety, but I knew he did. Whenever we stopped, he would cry and whine piteously when, in turn, so he wasn't left in the car, we'd go into bathrooms or to get things to eat. He was worse than the kids. Brett was delightfully silent, as he slept nearly the whole way. His illness was a bit of a blessing, as when we got to the hotel, he still wanted to sleep, so he stayed in the room with Coco when we went out for breakfast in the a.m.

Apparently, I don't take my kids to hotels enough, because both thought they had to use hand towels to dry themselves after showers. I don't know what their issues were, but I was too tired to argue. Housekeeping was probably more confused than I was.

Ask yourself when was the last time you drove for seven hours. Were you in your 20s or 30s? I bet you weren't in your 40s, because, as I discovered, in your 40s, seven hours of driving makes your back, your HANDS, your joints, all cry. And your eyes burn and sting if you're driving after dark in the south, because there are HUGE sections of road, miles and miles and miles where nothing is lit, and I mean nothing. Given all that, Scott and I decided we would stretch "day 2" into "day 2 and day 3" so we would be more likely to arrive with our family intact and not featured on the news. Day 1 ended in Blytheville, Arkansas, and we pushed that check out envelope to the laaaaaaaast minute, deciding to stop in Jacksonville, Mississippi for our next stay. It saved us a few hours less of "are we almost to the hotel yet" having banned Megan from asking if we were there yet.

More tomorrow!