One Toddler, Two Dogs, and 3,000 miles

Day 12 - The End

2010-08-30T07:58:00.000-07:00

Let me start by saying that last night's sleep was not much better than the previous night. Before getting in bed I went to the restroom and here is what I returned to:

So where am I supposed to sleep?? grrrr. I ended up spending most of the night sleeping halfway down the bed in an "L" shape with my legs across the foot of the bed. At one point I flipped around and put put my head at the foot of the bed and slept that way. Ben woke up a few times, slid over and pulled Maddox over so I could have more room and move up to where you're supposed to sleep on a bed, but it didn't last long. Soon the child and husband had pushed me over again. I cannot wait to get home and sleep where I can hog the bed with my body pillow and no toddler.

I was up around 6am with sore hips and back, took a lengthy shower, and headed to the lobby by myself to get breakfast. When I got back Ben and the kids were awake and starting their showers. Morgan put his Red Sox jersey on for the third day in a row (which, of course, Ben had no problem with) and Susan put on the new necklace and earrings she picked out.

We checked out around 10am and piled in the car, which was literally packed to the brim. We thought we were crammed before...now add 2 more kids, their luggage, and all the stuff we got for them...yikes. My knees were at the dashboard, the kids had their bags either in their laps or under their feet, and the dogs were sitting on top of each other.

As we were driving, Ben made a right hand turn and we heard Susan yelling at Tiny from the back seat. He was trying to jump from the cargo area into the kids' laps. We yelled at him to stay back there, that's the last thing we need. Morgan looked in the cargo space and informed us that we had an avalanche. The pack-n-play and some other things had fallen over into the "dog space" and they were squashed again. Hank just layed there under it while Tiny jumped on top and finally found a satisfactory place to sit. We weren't planning on spending much time in the car so they would be fine until we got to our destination.

We had planned to spend the day at the Clarksville Dog Park and have a picnic lunch, but the threat of rain made me nervous. Morgan said they were building a new park in Clarksville and pointed it out on our left. As we drove past it we realized that "new" park was the dog park. It was completely bulldozed over, reduced to nothing but dirt and rock. Why would they do that? It was the only dog park in town. Then we remembered the flood from earlier this year. It had probably been damaged since it sat on the river and had to be rebuilt. We were at a loss at first, but quickly we came up with Plan B.

We went to another park in Clarksville, not a dog park, but it had walking trails we could go to. The kids had fun walking the dogs down the trails and playing on the playground.

When they got bored we left and drove through the rich neighborhoods, picking out the houses we would buy if we won the lottery.

Around 2pm we headed to Sonic for some half price drinks. We were going to go back to the park since the dogs were really smelly and we were all cramped in the car, but dark clouds rolled in and the rain was sure to start any minute. We decided to head south, toward the kids house, and try a park down there, hoping the weather would be better.

It was much better, so we drank our drinks and played on the playground.
After that we went to dinner and dropped the kids at their house.

Susan always has to have at least one major mis-hap during our visits, so I wasn't surprised that she spilled her 3/4 full Sonic drink all over the floor of the car and Morgan's new Red Sox backpack we bought him when she tried to get out of the car. That girl.

We gave the kids hugs and kisses, told them we'd miss them, and headed towards Fort Leonard Wood. The GPS was saying we'd be there around 12:30 am. On the way up there was saw a Bald Eagle flying low over the freeway. Ben pointed it out and shouted "Bald Eagle!" I didn't believe him, but as I looked up you could see it clear as day. What an amazing sight, to see one in the wild.

We got home around the time the GPS had originally said and went straight to bed. We have put a grand total of 4,315 miles on the car and spent 87.35 hours in the car getting an average of 24.1mpg! Wow, that was a long time!

Maddox is now a well traveled toddler, going through 11 states: Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, Kentucky, and Tennessee.

I hope Ben enjoyed his trip, since this was his vacation, but I am sure glad it's over. All I can say is: thank God for portable DVD players and headphones...we would have been lost without them.

I have a lot more pictures and will be posting them on facebook and my walmart account soon (they take a long time to load on here for some reason.)

Day 11

2010-08-28T18:18:00.000-07:00

Today was a great day. We had lots of quality time with Morgan and Susan and a very limited amount of time spent driving around. The kids had "Young Marines" in the morning, then we went to the mall to buy Morgan some fall/winter clothes.

After shopping, we all went swimming at the pool and Maddox actually swam! He had on his little floaty that he's been using all summer, but I've never been brave enough to let him go. Ben isn't quite as over protective as I am and, at first, I was mad when I saw Maddox going free. But then I saw his little legs kicking and his arms going and couldn't believe that he was actually swimming around. He knew exactly where he wanted to go and soon figured out exactly how to get himself there by using his arms and legs. I caught it on video and tried to upload it, but it didn't work.

Maddox lasted almost an hour in the pool, but then he decided he just wanted to run around the edges instead of swim. I was worried he would slip and hurt himself and my efforts to get him to walk instead of run were all in vain. I decided to take him back to the room and let Ben and the big kids have some swimming time by themselves. Needless to say Maddox was having tons of fun and did not go back to the room quietly. I had to drag him kicking and screaming all the way back. I put the key in, open the door, and out burst the dogs!! We usually put them in the bathroom if we are going to be gone, but didn't think it necessary since we were only going to be a short while. Big mistake. Not only did they bust out of the room with a vengeance, but as I stepped in to put the still kicking screaming Maddox down, I saw the floor of the hotel room....covered in trash and torn up dirty diapers. Gross! In a blind rage I scooped Maddox back up and stepped outside the room to try to retrieve the beasts. As the door clicked shut I froze...did I have the key? No. I had put it down table when I opened the door.

So now I was not only chasing two wild dogs who don't know what the word "come" means, but I was locked out of my trash infested room with a wet toddler throwing a temper tantrum in my arms. I took a deep breath, pictured my "peaceful place", walked back to the pool, and told Ben he needed to get out and fetch his runaway dogs "now." While he did that I strolled to the lobby, told them I was locked out, and got a new key. Ben and the kids had caught the dogs by the time I got back and were waiting for me by the door. I think Ben knew I was trying hard not to lose it as he asked if I was ok and started picking up all the half eaten trash. I replied with a smile and a "yep", and proceeded to sit on the bed and put my feet up. Time for a break.

After swimming, and the dog fiasco, we had Chinese food and tried to pack up the room a little bit. Let me rephrase: I tried to pack up the room. Ben and the kids were all busy wrestling and tickling each other.

We had set the pack-n-play up next to our bed, but Maddox has refused to sleep in it longer than and hour. The is unfortunate because we only have twin beds. Last night Ben was sprawled out on his his side, so Maddox had me pushed practically off the bed. I only had a little sliver to sleep on and I'm almost 8 months pregnant, I hardly fit. It was extremely uncomfortable and I contemplated sleeping on the floor more than once. I'll have to figure something else out tonight.

Day 10

2010-08-27T17:58:00.000-07:00

Today we drove to Tennessee to pick up Morgan and Susan. We were going to get up around 4:30 this morning so we could be there after school, but thankfully mom reminded Ben that we will be crossing time zones, so we got another hour of sleep! yay!

We were on the road by 6am with about 2,930 miles into the trip. Needless to say we crossed into 3,000 miles WAY before I had anticipated. Maybe I need to rename the blog...

We stopped for breakfast sometime between Cleveland and Columbus. I held out food for Maddox to grab, but as he reached for it he realized his hands were full with a pacifier in each one. He was quite perplexed about this. What to do....
He decided to use his foot as a third hand and curled his toes around the side of one of the pacifiers. It was hilarious. He had food in one hand, a paci in the other, and another paci between his toes. Interesting decision, Mad Max.

We've been careful about our speed the whole trip, but unfortunately the Cincinnati Police caught us at a week moment. We hadn't been paying attention to the speed limit signs and unknowingly drove from a 65mph zone to a 55mph zone without slowing down. A motorcycle cop pulled us over and I was crossing my fingers that he would see the Military Police sticker on the back of the car, extend a professional courtesy, and give us a warning. No such luck. We drove away with a $124 speeding ticket and a very unhappy atmosphere in the car.

We got to Tennessee around 3pm (10 hours later) and started searching for hotels. I was really tired of being in the car so, after a few calls, I got short and told Ben to just pick one. I didn't care which one, just get me out of here. We stayed at the Red Roof Inn and it actually ended up being a good choice. The rooms were new, there is wireless service, and no fee for dogs.

Ben picked up Morgan and Susan, they wrestled for a bit, then we ordered pizza for dinner and relaxed the rest of the night (after doing homework). Maddox was a little shy at first since he hasn't seen them in months, but he warmed up quickly. He had fun sitting at the table and eating his dinner with the big kids. He joined in the wrestling and the cuddling of the dogs, but was very upset when Tiny tried to snatch his pizza out of his hand. Dumb dog...

Day 9

2010-08-26T18:29:00.000-07:00

We spent today in Ohio for a little break in the drive. Maddox spent most of the day playing with Grandma, exploring her kitchen cupboards, or outside playing in his car. Grandma gave him her old IPOD nano and, even though it was in a pink case, he kept it by his side all day. He pushed the buttons but mostly used it as a phone, he always has some serious business to take care of.

Ben and I left Maddox with my mom and went to the mall (child-free) and went to see a movie. We saw "The Other Guys" and it was very funny. When we got back Alex and Kristin came over for dinner.

After dinner Maddox tripped over an area rug and got his first bloody nose. He's is becoming quite the boy on this trip: bloody noses, scraped knees, bloody lip....what's next?

We will be leaving early tomorrow morning to head south to Tennessee to spend the weekend with Morgan and Susan.

Day 8

2010-08-25T18:50:00.001-07:00

We woke up around 5am, finished packing the car up, and were on the road by 5:30. It took us about 12 hours to make it home. I thought Maddox would sleep more of the trip,but he was up for most of the way. He was a little cranky and wanted to be carried when we stopped at most of the rest areas. I think his legs are feeling too much like jello and you could see him wobbling around when he tried to walk...I know how he feels.

No major events happened today. We traveled through New Hampshire, Vermont, New York, Pennsylvania, and Ohio. I attempted to get pictures of the road signs as we passed, but they came out too blurry.

We got to my parents house around 5:15pm and Maddox went straight for the toy car that he usually plays in. He also had to show off his new skill that he mastered this week: jumping with two feet!! yay!

Now for a restful nights sleep with no children in the bed! Finally! He is sleeping downstairs with Grandma and Papa :)

Day 7

2010-08-25T18:35:00.000-07:00

Most of today was a comfortable 75 degrees with partly sunny skies. Damon, Keagan, and Zephan came up to visit us this afternoon and we went to a Science/Wildlife Center that had walking trails with a bunch of wild animals. In addition to that, Maddox got his first bloody lip this morning. He was playing with daddy on the couch fell face first on the register. We cleaned him up, gave him a popsicle, and he was fine, but the crying broke mommy’s heart 
Before the boys arrived Ben, Maddox, and I walked to the lake with the dogs. The water was cold so I wouldn’t go in, but Ben took Maddox wading out into the lake and on a canoe ride. He was a little unsure about the whole thing at first, but I think he ended up liking it.

When we got to the wildlife center Keagan and Zephan had matching hats and Keagan was nice enough to let Maddox wear his for most of the trip. Zephan and Maddox are about a year apart and they looked really cute playing together. They saw bears, mountain lions, owls, a bald eagle, otters, and other wild animals. Maddox followed the other 2 boys around most of the day and imitated everything they did. We all had a great time.

When we got back Ben and Damon took the boys to see some old ford tractors while I packed up the car.

While in New England we have put an extra 934 miles on the car. There is no doubt in my mind that we will exceed the 3,000 mile mark. We are leaving tomorrow with over 2,200 miles traveled and are heading back to Ohio on our way to see Morgan and Susan in Tennessee.

Day 6

2010-08-25T15:20:00.000-07:00

Day 6:
I haven’t been sleeping well lately due to the fact that Maddox is sleeping in between Ben and I on a queen bed. We brought his pack-n-play but the nights have been so chilly up here that we figured he would probably get too cold since he won’t keep a blanket on and keep waking us up all night anyway. The travels are catching up with me today and my hips are quite sore, maybe they will be better tomorrow.

It’s another overcast and rainy day with temperatures in the 60’s. We are heading to Rowley, MA to spend the day with Ben’s family – another hour and a half drive. Throughout this trip I have gained an understanding as to why Cassie was so shocked that there was no Dunkin Doughnuts near Fort Leonard Wood, MO. It seems that almost every town in New England, no matter how quaint or tiny, has a Dunkin Doughnuts. After stopping here for the second time in 2 days, ordering an egg white, veggie, and cheese flatbread and coffee coolatta, I have begun to understand the obsession. If someone opened one of these in Jefferson or FLW they would make a killing.

We visited Ben’s mom’s gravesite and then spent the day at Tom and Nancy’s house. Maddox had fun playing with his Grandpa and Nana and exploring the house. He really wanted to play the organ, but I wouldn’t let him, too afraid he would break something. On our way back up to the lake we stopped and had dinner with Tammy and her daughter Nicole. Maddox had fallen asleep in the car so we had to wake him up when we got there. Needless to say he was pretty cranky. He spent most of the time whining/crying and eventually wiggled his way down from his high chair. He made one lap around the restaurant with Ben chasing after him, then we decided it was time to go.

Day 5

2010-08-23T08:20:00.000-07:00

Day 5:
We awoke to overcast skies and the threat of rain. The temperatures were quite a bit cooler than I was expecting, long sleeves and long pants were a must have. Before we left for the trip Ben found out I didn’t pack any sweatshirts. I thought he was crazy when he threw them in the car, it was 100 degrees in Missouri, but now I am glad he did.
Our plan was to drive up Mount Washington, which at 6,288 feet ,is the highest point in the northeast. It is the self proclaimed home to the world’s worst weather and has the second fastest land wind speed ever recorded at 231 miles per hour. Hurricane force winds are present well over 100 days per year. Unfortunately, it did not look like the weather was going to cooperate with us today.
We had breakfast with Mr. and Mrs. Dickey at the Pine Cone Inn and enjoyed visiting with them. Here is a picture of the place where we ate.

We headed up towards Mount Washington(a little more than an hour drive) and, with no improvement in the weather, went shopping at the outlet malls in Conway, NH. Maddox spent most of the time pushing his stroller around the sidewalk, refusing to ride in it. He didn’t like to share the walking space so he almost ran over several other shoppers. I had a lot of apologizing to do on his behalf. On the way up we saw several moose crossing signs:

After shopping we went to a local railroad station for a scenic train ride through the valley of Mount Washington. It was Maddox’s first train ride! The sky was overcast, so we couldn’t see a lot of the views, but Maddox had a great time looking out the window and saying “Toot, toot!” every time the whistle blew.

Day 4

2010-08-23T08:04:00.000-07:00

Day 4:
It’s wedding day!! We got up early to enjoy some time with Ben’s friends Jill and Damon and their boys before heading out. Maddox had a great time playing with Keagan, Zephan, and Brady. I wish I would have gotten some pictures, but both batteries were dead. The boys are coming back up on Tuesday, so we will get some good ones then.

On the way to Nashua there are a couple of Toll Booths. As we pulled up to one I got a dollar out of my wallet and gave it to Ben. He rolled down the window and butter-fingers lets it fly out the window! He stops in the middle of the freeway and I can tell he’s about to jump out of the car. I tell him not to get out, that I have another dollar, but as I reach for my wallet all I can hear is him yelling “I got it, I got it!” Out of the corner of my eye I see him leap out the door and run into the road. Yes, he was chasing a dollar bill down the freeway. Thankfully it didn’t go far. Cars were lining up behind us and the toll booth man was sticking his head out of his cubicle curious as to what was going on. It was only a matter of seconds before Ben hopped back in the driver's seat, but it felt like an eternity. I couldn’t help but crack up as we pulled up to the toll booth and Ben explained himself to the money collector, who also chuckled a bit.

We got to Pete’s hotel and went upstairs where everyone was getting ready.

Around 3:30 all of the groomsmen and the groom piled into my Dodge Journey. A few days ago Cassie had asked if I would usher them to the wedding venue since my car seats 7, so of course I said yes. I didn’t realize how little room there is in the 3rd row until the 5 men, who are all 5’9” and up and weighing 200+ pounds, piled in. Let’s just say there was a lot of grunting and groaning going on as they tried to get situated. They were packed like sardines, but we made it to the wedding!

The wedding was beautiful. Maddox did a great job walking down the aisle with the two flower girls. I was supposed to grab him when he got in the front, but he kept screaming when I tried to make him sit with me. Reluctantly I let him down to roam. He grabbed the flower basket from his cousin, Mallie, and spent the whole ceremony picking up all of the rose petals. He stopped a couple times to watch what was going one up front, but then got right back to work. It kept him content, so we were happy.
He was a handful after the ceremony though, running around all over the place and trying to throw dirt. During the first half hour of the reception Ben and I were getting tired of chasing him. Ben gave Mallie $20 to watch him for the rest of the night, and I must say that was a genius idea. We had a great time and were glad we could be here on Pete and Cassie’s special day.

Day 3

2010-08-23T07:53:00.000-07:00

Day 3:
The Motel 6 we stayed at had an IHop embedded in the complex, so of course we had to stop there for breakfast. After a scrumptious meal of omlettes and pancakes we headed to Men’s Wearhouse to pick up Ben’s tux, then we decided to go see Tom and Nancy, Ben’s dad and step-mother, before heading up to the lake. About halfway there we realize that WE FORGOT TO CHECK OUT! Great. We had to drive all the way back to drop off the keys and check out. Thank goodness they have a late checkout of noon and not 10 or 11. We finally made it to Ben’s dad’s house and Maddox got to meet them for first time. He was a little shy at first but warmed up quickly. We watched one of Susan’s horse shows on DVD, during which Maddox found Tom’s John Deer tractor collection on the bookshelf and had to get one to play with.

He had fun petting Grandpa’s chickens, getting his picture taken on ALL of the tractors and even going for a ride on one.

We left soon after the tractor ride and headed up to Lake Winnepasaki, where Ben’s friends Damon and Jill are nice enough to let us stay during our visit. Of course we hit traffic along the way due to construction. Thankfully Maddox was asleep and we tried to keep our patience by rolling down the windows and enjoying the 80 temperatures and nice breeze. After 20 minutes of going 5 miles an hour we are back in business. Looks like we’ll have just enough time to drop the dogs off and turn around to head back to Nashua, NH for the rehearsal.

On the drive to Nashua we hit construction traffic jam number 5….this is getting a bit ridiculous. I have never had this much bad luck on a road trip. We finally got there almost 3 hours later. The wedding venue is absolutely gorgeous. I completely understand why people drive all this way to get married here.

Maddox and Ben had fun playing in the field. He is the ring bearer, so he has to walk down a very long winding aisle with 2 flower girls. He follows a dirt road around a curve then through a field to the alter. I hope he makes it without throwing a fit or wandering off. Thankfully, Maddox fell asleep on the ride back home and we had no traffic, so it only took 2 hours instead of 3. We got to the house around 10 and went straight to bed. The dogs wouldn’t stop barking at the drunk neighbors yelling next door so Ben had to put them in the car over night. I’ll deal with that mess of dog hair in the morning. We put another 375 miles =7 hours in the car today….soooo sick of this car at this point.

Day 2

2010-08-21T11:33:00.000-07:00

Day 2 : (Been without internet access for a while, but I've been bloggin in MS word - now time to copy, paste, and post.)

On day one we drove 744 miles ,about 13 hours, with 5 bathroom breaks. Today we drove another 10 hours and only had to take 3 bathroom breaks. Pretty good for 7.5 months pregnant. Our total trip mileage is 1,327 miles so far. Ben wanted me to add that we achieved a high of 28.1 miles per gallon, which is 4 miles per gallon over what the dealership said we’d get. We were both pleasantly surprised. But that promptly dropped once we reached the Berkshires and we ended our trip 25.7 mpg.

Ben woke up at 3am and started packing while I stubbornly stayed in bed until 3:30. We were all set and ready to hit the road at exactly 4:12am. Our goal: Make it to Pete and Cassie’s Rehearsal Dinner at 6:30 tonight.

Maddox slept a good portion of the trip. He did wake up a few times to get into some shenanigans. I heard lots of giggling at one point, so I turned around and he had put both pacifiers in his mouth. He thought he was the funniest toddler around. Here’s a picture.

We stopped at a drive thru for lunch and Maddox spent more time playing with his French fries than eating anything. Yesterday he got very creative with them and stuck 2 up his nose, wish I would have gotten a picture but I was too slow. Things got serious though when he decided to stick them in his ear. We’ve had enough trouble with those, don’t need a fry puncturing an ear drum too. Today he went a safer route and enjoyed putting them in between his toes. Whatever keeps him happy….

The rest of the trip was pretty uneventful, which is a good thing. Maddox slept most of the way and when he did wake up he was kept happy by sugar cookies that grandma baked him.

We stayed at a hotel outside of Boston so we would be close to the restaurant and so we could pick up Ben’s tux tomorrow. We ended up staying at Motel 6 because it was cheap, and they accept dogs at no fee. As soon as Maddox got in the room he started running around and it didn’t take him but a few seconds to find the phone. So, unplugging that was the first thing we did. By the looks of things we were going to have a pretty hyper toddler on our hands tonight. We relaxed for a few minutes, took showers, and headed to the rehearsal dinner. We were even early. The photographer enjoyed taking pictures of Maddox running around the tables, grabbing plates and silverware, and trying to steal other diners food. This was all in the first 15 minutes…boy are we in for it. We ended up taking him outside 3 different times to let him run up and down the sidewalk and throw rocks. We brought him back in when it was time for dinner and he was quite charming, sticking 2 straws up his nostrils, dropping his pizza on the floor, and refusing to stay in his high chair. Thankfully, everyone there had a great sense of humor and found him entertaining. I brought my camera but forgot to take pictures. We enjoyed the evening visiting with Cassie and Pete, Ben’s sister Tammy, and her daughter Nicole. …oh and lets not forget her slightly older looking boyfriend (comment added by Ben.)

As soon as we got back to the hotel, I was out. Ben and Maddox were in one bed and I was in another. I spent the whole night without any kicks in the ribs or punches in the face…that’s Ben’s job tonight. He and Maddox fell asleep watching their first Patriots game of the season.

Pictures from the quick stop in Ohio

2010-08-18T17:07:00.000-07:00

Yummy dessert:

Showing Papa how big his belly is:

Playing outside:

Basketball!

Wanting to go outside to play:

With Grandma and Grandpa:

Day 1

2010-08-18T11:53:00.000-07:00

The car was packed all nice and neat with every nook, cranny and hidden storage area planned out strategically. The cargo area held the big black suitcase tipped up on it's side and the pack-n-play stacked on top to give the dogs ample room for the trip. Every exposed piece of fabric was covered to ward off the evil dog hair. There was a plastic cargo mat on the floor, one blanket covering the luggage, and another tucked under the headrest of the backseat and draped over the back. They had plenty of room...as long as everything stays put.

Maddox was set up in his carseat with the new Travel Play Tray attached, toy cars, a sippy cup and some chicken nuggets to keep him entertained. He liked the play tray for the first few minutes but soon got tired of it sitting on his legs and wanted it off (which was no easy chore since it straps around the carseat).

About an hour and a half into the trip we hit traffic. Why is there traffic? Construction. We completely forgot that it was a summer with record high temperatures, which means: construction will be happening at night. But surely the wait won't be too bad, since it's not a popular time to be traveling the highways, not like rush hour. As we slowed and slowed we realized that Missouri does not make their workers wear reflective gear while working on the highway. They had little helmets with lights on and you could barely see the bodies working so closely to traffic. As a result, we ended up crawling down the freeway at 4 miles per hour. Thankfully that only lasted about 10 minutes or so...and Maddox fell asleep :)

Ben wanted to stop at the QT in Eureka because they have some of the best coffee/cappuccino we've ever seen at a gas station AND the Brett Micheals' Celebrity Apprentice Snapple Tea. As we pulled in I needed to use the restroom (of course) and I was starting to get pretty tired. I quickly hopped out of the car and walked to the gas station. Not really looking up, I walked into the restroom. We had stopped here many times before, but something seemed different, something I couldn't quite put my finger on. But no time to think about that, the baby was kicking me in the bladder. I rushed into the stall, and when I came out I realized the stall was on the wrong side of the wall. I walked to the sink and saw urinals on the wall...I had walked into the MENS restroom! How mortifyng. Hopefully no one saw me. I rushed out and went to the womens to wash my hands. Good one, Tara. To top it off, the coffee machine was getting cleaned and they were out of Brett's Tea. Not a successful stop, we will have to stop at the next exit for Ben to get coffee....I know he was disappointed.

As we pull back onto the freeway Ben takes a curve a little too fast and "Boom", the pack-n-play tumbles off of the suitcase and squashes the dogs (not hard enough to cause permanent injury...unfortunately j/k!) I yell at Ben (which I had to apologize for later) and he snaps back at me...the tension of the trip is getting to us already. I crawl in the back, which was not easy with my ever enlarging mid section, and try to fix things but the pack and play was just too heavy for me to lift. Good thing we are stopping. Another good reason we are stopping is because I cannot get my big butt back in the front seat! We pull into a gas station, don't bother to pull in a parking space, and Ben hops out, lifts the back hatch to save the pooches, and they jump out! They start running around the parking lot and Ben has to yell at them to get back in the car, scaring a poor lady who is pumping gas nearby. With all this chaos going on I maneuver my way back to the front seat. Fun.

Not long after this stop, Maddox wakes up and will not go back to sleep. Poor guy can't get comfortable, so I hop in the back to keep him company.

We hit another traffic jam due to construction once we passed St. Louis (at least this time the workers were wearing reflective gear. Illinois knows what they are doing.) Maddox falls back to sleep around midnight and we switch drivers about a half hour before Indianapolis. I'm driving this time and right after the city we hit another traffic jam due to construction!! Man, this is going to be a long trip. Thankfully I find a caravan of travelers going at a descent speed and I make up some time between Dayton and Columbus. Everyone is asleep and I enjoy the quiet time listening to the radio.

Maddox woke up when we had about 3 hours left in the trip, but thankfully Winnie the Pooh and tiger headphones kept him happy for most of the way.

We hit rush hour traffic on 271, close to Cleveland. So close, yet so far away.... Who would have thought that while traveling through the night anyone would hit that many jams.

We finally made it! A sigh of relief. Our 12 hour trip turned into a 13 hour trip. All things considered, we didn't do too bad.

Now time for Maddox to play with grandma and grandpa and for us to get some shut eye. Pictures to come...

Last Minute Items

2010-08-17T06:57:00.000-07:00

Ben can sign out at midnight, so of course he wants to leave then instead of sleeping. He wants to drive all through the night, hoping Maddox will sleep, but I'm worried Ben will end up sleeping too and I'll be stuck driving all night since he didn't sleep hardly at all last night. My husband has developed a bit of insomnia due to working 3 years as a Drill Sgt. I think his body is so used to running off of 3 hours or 4 hours of sleep that when he tries to go to bed early it doesn't know what to do with itself. We got in bed around 9pm last night, hoping to rest up for the big trip, but at 2am he was still awake. He's tried everything from soothing sound machines to warm baths, drinking warm milk to reading in bed, even forcing himself to lay in the dark for hours waiting to fall asleep. I feel really bad for him because I know he's exhuasted. Maybe these two weeks off will give him enough time to get his sleep habits back in check.

Two weeks with with my husband...I'm really excited about that :)

I still have a lot left on my "To Do" list. We did a lot yesterday. Maddox got a haircut, Ben mowed the lawn, I worked on packing and cleaning, we put the mail on hold, and gave the beasts a bath! There was no way I was letting them in the car without one. They've spent the last few months laying in the dirt to keep cool and shedding all over the place. We brushed them like crazy and scrubbed them up. Hank is looking pretty good, but Tiny...that dog will be the death of me. He continues to shed like mad. I don't know how he still has hair on his body. I swept the whole house yesterday, let the dogs in for the night, and I've already got tumble weeds going down the hallway. I wish I was allowed to just shave him!

I got a little distracted with the decision to dye my hair last night. I had bought black hair dye to cover up the unwelcomed "natural highlights" that pop up with age. I was about to dye it and jokingly said "Why don't I just make it blonde." Ben was really enthusiastic about that and came home with blond hair dye, so....Why not! Well...there's not one strand of blond in my hair. It turned out like a brownish red and really doesn't go too well with my skin tone. Maybe that's why the box said it's "Not Recommended" for dark brown to black hair. Now to decided wether to go back to black or get another box of blond and try again.

But, there's not time to do that now! I have to finish packing and cleaning so we are ready to go whenever Ben is ready....not to mention I hear dog food being thrown across the kitchen floor....better go check on that....

The plan

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Ben is taking 2 weeks of leave to travel home for his brother's wedding and then we are going to Tennessee to see Morgan and Susan before heading back to Fort Leonard Wood and finishing up his time as a drill sergeant. We are really excited for this trip and the time off of work, but we could be in for quite the adventure.

I have decided to try blogging each day of our trip to record our trials and tribulations and to share any funny things that happen along the way. Being that I am 7 months pregnant and we are driving 3,000 miles with a 21 month old and two dogs, I'm sure there will be much to share.

Our trip starts out on Wednesday, the 18th and until then I am just trying to fill Maddox's days with as much activity as possible and think of what I can bring along to help make the trip a little easier for him. I got a play tray, dvd player, headphones, some toys and snacks, but I know it is a lot to ask of a toddler to sit in his carseat for so long. We are thinking of doing most of our driving during the night so that he will hopefully sleep most of the way. I say hopefully because we happen to have one of the worst sleepers in baby/toddler history. He always wakes up at least once in the night and you never know if you will get a nap out of him. It is a blessed day when he takes a nap longer than 20 minutes AND goes to bed without screaming his head off. At least I will be used to waking up all night long when the next one arrives, I guess! So yes, we are crossing our fingers that he will sleep while we drive through the night and then Grandma and Grandpa can watch him while we catch a few winks in Ohio.

Wish us luck.....