Day 51

I'm a planner. I don't know if it is my nature or my mom molded me but my brain is always on, always thinking, always planning. The majority of my plans work out at least mostly how I plan them to. Some just don't.

Brayden had an especially tough time going to sleep and at 1:30am he was up again. Seems his sleep mat died at some point since we set up. What are the odds that 3 sleep mats die within weeks after having them for 4 years?! I guess we do inflate and deflate more than the average camper. Anyway, he was flat on the ground and angry.

The night before I'd checked the weather and knew there was a storm coming in the early morning so I checked again only to see it was about 90 minutes away.  I checked to see if it was going to bring or follow any kind of cool front but it wasn't. So not only were we going to have to put on the rainfly and listen to a loud storm but we were going to be miserably hot in the process. I asked Brayden if he was up for just packing up and driving home now and all three kids answered, "Yes!"

So that's what we did. We packed up by moonlight and were driving out of the park at 2:20am. We filled up with gas and I told the kids to try to sleep now that we were in air conditioning. It was me and truckers on the road this morning.

I told the kids we would need to stop quite a bit because I was going to get tired and need to walk around and wake up. The adrenaline of  packing up and escaping the storm had me wide awake until about 5am and a few miles into Louisiana. We stopped then to take a break and eat some breakfast. Cereal to the rescue again!  I was feeling okay but I could tell my patience was thin already. This was going to be a long day.

We got back in the car and watched the sunrise as we moved across the state. I was relying on the cold air conditioning to keep me awake at this point so I knew it was time for me to stop and sleep. We weren't in any rush and it was simply unsafe to keep driving.  Once we pulled into the rest stop I told the kids to be quiet and let me sleep for just a short time. A nice rain shower started and I was out within seconds. I woke up an hour later not even realizing I slept when Brayden opened the door for cool air. We all climbed out of the car to stretch a little and before we knew it we were back on the road again.

After we were well into Mississippi I needed gas and the kids found a Redbox nearby with movies they would watch so we were set for a few hours.  We were all getting a little loopy by this point! I was tired of all of my music so every 40 minutes or so I would have to find a new radio station in the next town. We listened to all the decades of music from the 70s to today and sometimes I could even find an NPR station for a little while.

Once we made it into Alabama everyone perked up. They were excited about surprising Dave getting home a day early and they decided to send him a text with a picture of them at the Welcome to Florida sign. That last 45 minutes from Mobile seemed to take 2 hours but we finally made it!

In just a few more minutes we were home seeing animals, unpacking the car, and starting on the mountain of laundry. We all showered and I realized I must have scared a few people because my eyes were both so red I looked like I had pink eye in both!  

Once Dave got home we had a quick dinner and walked over to the house for the grand tour. I hadn't seen it in person since they started the floors so I was blown away by how much they had accomplished. The kids begged Dave to sleep there so we all grabbed pillows and blankets and enjoyed our first night in the new house. Just don't tell the county!

We are thrilled to be back home and jumping back into life as usual. We have a long list of lessons learned that I will be posting in the next few days!!

Day 1

I was up with the sun this morning trying to use the things Dave wouldn't eat left the fridge. I threw together a zucchini bread for an easy breakfast and crab dip for an easy lunch or dinner. Things were going a little to well and getting done a little too easy for load up day however.

Grammie's RV had been in & out of the service place for the past 2 weeks for various electrical issues that just popped up - thankfully not while we were on the road! Sunday she woke up to a flat tire so she went to get a couple new tires first thing in the morning (thing #1!).  That's when thing #2 happened - a sprinkler turned into a fountain after being run over. Being the awesome dad he is, Dave headed to Maynard's to get us some donuts for a fun breakfast. That's when  thing #3 happened - the entry gate was stuck in the closed position. Not to worry as we have a temporary opening for big construction trucks about 20 feet away.  I moved the pump to the next sprinkler zone and fixed the gate. And I was done with my three things for today!

Once Dave got back we had donuts together and he headed to work. It was going to take awhile for the RV tires so we got on the road toward our first stop with this year's co-pilot, Stitch The kids were excited to see what was in their travel bags and to listen to all the music they'd downloaded. Their DS's were a big hit too since they hadn't played on them since our summer trip last year!

Our first stop was a quirky little museum in Abita Springs, LA. It was about halfway to our campground so I though it would be a fun place to stretch and have fun. This plaee was small but had the most weird and entertaining collection of stuff we've ever seen! I was like a museum of things you find in those I SPY books - collections of watches, strange little toys, buttons, bottle caps. In fact we played I SPY at one little window of things.













This my friends is one of those marble maze things made entirely out of Popsicle sticks.  My maker Ryan's eyes lit up and I could tell I'd be buying the 1,000 size box once we got home!

The second best part was the video games. Ryan played an actual old school clunky pinball  machine and I was able to introduce them to games of my childhood and they were amazed at the horrible graphics of Donkey Kong, Ms Pac-Man, Frogger, and Dig Dug.

And the kids would say the best part was the adorable cat that not only walked with us as we toured the place but actually jumped from a banister onto Brayden's shoulder for a cuddle and ride. It was then the girls decided they would like to buy him.






After a quick visit to the gift shop we got back on the road for a couple more hours to our destination. Without the cat. The kids were still completely amused with their stuff so I cranked up my music and enjoyed the drive. Well, until I noticed the storm ahead. We were about 30 minutes from our spot. It was kind of a tradition to have rain on day 1. Not a welcome one though.  This year I was brave enough to try out some new bags for my cargo carrier that are touted as being waterproof. That is where we keep our clothing bags so I was super nervous yet hopeful they would pull through. It looked like a quick afternoon thunderstorm so it would be a good test.

We stopped for some gas and finished just in time for the downpour to start. I got an evil look from Ryan because she'd just cleaned the windshield - a favorite kid job! We drove the last bit in the rain and arrived at the park 12 minutes before they were to close. The staff was surprised we were braving camping in a tent tonight and I'm suspecting it's not because of the rain!

Once the rain stopped we picked the least mud & wet area of our site and set up. Usually a kid is sleeping with Grammie but with us leaving without her we renegotiated the slumber parties with a rock-paper-scissors match. Tonight we would all suffer in the tents!

We explored the area a little bit then the kids wanted to play with legos so I took some time to rearrange some things we'd thrown in the car at the last minute.  Once Grammie arrived we helped her set up and were thrilled to munch on a quick dinner she'd prepped before we left (yay for no cooking!) and sit in some air conditioning. There were belly laughs and even tears from me & Laney as we all played a hilarious card game after dinner.

We were tempted to throw in some laundry at the campground laundromat simply because it was free at this park - first time I've ever seen that! I usually spend between $5-10 each time we have run out of clothes so an extra day of clean clothes for free is like gold. Instead we opted for bedtime in our tents. And that was when I knew for sure what the check-in lady was talking about. Trying to sleep in a 91 degree hot night was going to be painful.

Day 2

We all slept remarkably well for having 6 people in a 10 foot radius! We made up all the beds pretty quickly and had a delicious breakfast of cereal and homemade muffins. One of the many reasons the kids love the summer trip is because of the amount of breakfast cereal they get to consume. As a general rule we try to stay away from processed sugary food, but the rules get a little looser on the trip!

As we were packing up the kids played in the water a little bit looking longingly at the huge waterslide we missed out on because of the thunderstorms. It wasn't set to open up again until noon and we had a long drive ahead of us so we dragged them away with promises of a pool at our next stop.

Once we packed up our sleeping bags we were ready to leave and were asking Grammie what was taking her so long! It was supposed to be quite a long drive this day so we were going to break it up with a stop at Hot Springs National Park. But first we had a surprise drive through the glorious
potholes of Louisiana!  I was giggling as Dave's laptop bounced with every bump and he accidentally hit all kinds of keys along the way.  If the kids hadn't been in the car I do believe a few choice words would have been said!

We weren't able to get everyone in this picture as it was on the side of a busy interstate with no access. And after about 40 minutes we rolled up on this one!

Within about 30 seconds from taking this picture we were driving in the kind of downpour that you just stare at the white line on the side of the road to make sure you're still on it.

After dropping Dave off at Starbucks to get more work done, we drove through the very small town of Hot Springs and were in the park almost immediately. We found two lucky parking spots on the main road and walked toward the Visitors Center.

Back in the 1920s, this town served the area and tourists by providing bath houses from the 37 local springs. After the kids stamped their passports, they went to watch the movie and I sent Grammie in to enjoy it with them. Lola and I walked down Bathhouse Row and learned about this history of the area. The buildings were so very different and beautiful.

And this one even still operates as a bathhouse! Sorry, that's only half of the building. My furry tour guide was anxious to get back!

While everyone else was exploring, Lola and I relaxed on the front porch....tough life this furry girl has!



Learning from my kids is especially difficult. The lesson I usually get from them is disjointed and half of the story. Thankfully Grammie was there and could fill in all the extra parts.  This is the gymnasium in one of the bathhouses and some of the clothes the ladies wore after their treatment.



Lola and I took them behind the Visitors Center next where we were able to feel the 114 degree water straight from the spring. The water looked deceptively cool and refreshing, what a surprise!  But with the 85 degree weather not one of us was interested in a bath.  We walked back through the park to our cars and to pick up Dave.

Another bonus of having Dave along is having a second driver! He'd already finished work for the day so I was able to take a break and relax for the 90-minute drive to our park. Although I couldn't really relax as the county "roads" we were driving on, which just happened to be called Narrow Rd, was exactly that with some added S-curves.

The adults were all pretty exhausted by the time we got set up at camp. Brayden has been itching to play some camp ball so he was having some batting practice and the girls were exploring the park on their scooters.















We had a quick dinner and went for a walk by the lake to catch some of the sunset. I am also lucky to have a personal photographer along on the trip!

After a few minutes of RV time, we all headed to bed. I do believe I was asleep before my sleeping bag was zipped.

Day 2

We woke up after a night of rain to a nice, cool overcast sky ready to explore the park.  Until I checked the weather.  There were some pretty intense storms headed our way for what looked like most of the day.  We even discussed packing up and heading somewhere closer to our next spot and just staying in a hotel.  We decided to think about it and head to the nature trail while we could.  The kids have found so many fun animals here!

Thankfully, I was prepared (thanks,Girl Scouts!) with a bunch of backup plan research so when the rain was for sure coming, we headed to the nearest children's museum.  The kids had a blast exploring all kinds of careers: vet, banker, chef, grocery store clerk, news reporter, bubble artist, dentist, and builder.

And for our budding community helper, they had a full-size ambulance for her to explore!

After a quiet, dry lunch inside, we headed to the library.  Always a fan of books, the kids sat for quite a while exploring all the pages.  They were actually a little bummed when I said I thought the rain may have disappeared and we should go.  

Until I said we could go to the splash park!!

I only got a few pictures in because they were just that blurry running around enjoying the water!  The teacher did get to sneak in some science when the kids asked where the water came from though.

There were definitely smiles all around.

Until.....

No worries, though.  That's one tough girl right there.  With the promise of being able to tell Daddy all about it, she was back in the groove in no time.

We ended the night with with our traditional family walk and said goodbye to all our animal friends: Blueberry the dragonfly, Chocolate (Choco for short) the generic name for all the teeny frogs hopping around, Momma Tank and Baby Tank the armadillos, and Caramel the baby bunny.  We also caught a blurry glimpse of a raccoon, but didn't really have enough time observing him to name him.

Day 2 - soaked but smiling!  On to the next state.....

Day 1

Well, it was a crazy long day of driving through some really tough stormy weather conditions, but we made it safely and made the best of a drizzly afternoon.  We made it through 3 states:

After setting up quickly setting up tent we cooked dinner because of another looming storm.  Everything and everyone is wet and soggy, but we all have smiles on.

Hopefully tomorrow will bring some sun to dry us out and allow us to go splash around in the water.  

I just smooshed two mosquitos on my laptop screen.  And that my friends is Day 1 in swampy Louisiana.