Micah and Christine

May 30, 2011 by Christine

We take these long car trips a few times a year. From time to time we even plan ahead... though this was not one of those times. We had known for several weeks that we wanted to make it back to visit family after months home in NC. Then we took a look at our calendars and decided that we had better go ahead and make the trip.

If we didn't take any breaks, the drive would take 10.5 hours. (Driving to my IL's... driving to my hometown tacks about 90 minutes onto that time.) We have found that we normally take breaks on the drive. Four years ago, making the trip as newlyweds, we would eat relaxing, slow-paced meals at nice restaurants. Now, we take breaks at fast food where it is more socially acceptable to allow our toddler to roam around.

Here is a little outline of our trip this time around:

Thursday:

Do tons of laundry to prepare. Talk about when to leave. (Still thinking about leaving Friday night.) Talk about how much we have to do.

Friday:

Birthday celebration! Realize there is no way we're leaving that evening. Pack. Plan to leave early the next morning.

Saturday:

8AM: Wake up when Charlotte wakes up, finish packing, pack the car.

10:15AM: Leave the house. Note that the GPS states we will arrive at about 9PM.

12:00PM: Drive-through fast food, gas, and then running around a little town for an ATM. We forgot cash for the tolls!

2:30PM: Christine gets tired of driving, so she stops. We stop at Dairy Queen, which brings a bunch of smiles. Charlotte loved her ice cream with sprinkles!

6:00PM: We stop at Arby's. Micah and Christine revel in fast food that they don't often eat. Charlotte runs around.

7:00PM: At a small town, we stop at a stop light that just happens to have a huge playground next to it. Charlotte notices the playground and urges us to stop so she can play. We do not grant her wish. Dejected, she protests for a long long time.

8:30PM: Gorgeous sunset prompts us to pull over the car and Micah take a bunch of pictures.

9:30PM: Charlotte begins to look really tired. Her parents are hopeful that she will sleep. Then she gets really upset and not tired. We give in and turn on the DVD player.

10:30PM: Arrive at MIL's home. Charlotte chases a cat, squeals, and does other things not related to sleeping.

11:30PM: Charlotte falls asleep.

So here we are, resting comfortably at my MIL's house. We're visiting with relatives and generally having a relaxing, happy time.