The Veldmans: Mommy's maiden voyage

I packed up the car on Thursday and made my first road trip alone with the two kids. Let's say it was an experience. The first 15 minutes were blissful. I had two beautiful sleeping children securely strapped into their car seats and we were on our way. Then we hit 494, traffic stopped, and my mind began focusing on how every single minute at this point in the trip counted since they were asleep. How long would they truly sleep for? I was irate after arriving in Minneapolis an hour after our departure time. This is when Ava abruptly awoke and made the announcement, "whoa Mommy, I just took the longest nap in the whole world, can I watch a movie now". Great, we haven't even left the cities and Ava's nap is now over. Thanks to the Ipad I was able to buy some time since I can't exactly hook up the DVD player while driving. Grant took a good nap and I threw toys at him for awhile. I then made a discovery. The band-aid that I had put on Grant's finger prior to leaving the house (he somehow cut it open on a toy and it was bleeding Everywhere!) was no longer on his finger. I then noticed that he was chewing on something. I quickly turned out the hazards, yanked the car over to the side of the highway, ran around the car (only to realize that his door was still locked, so I ran back to the driver's side to unlock it, and back to his side), and dug the lovely band-aid out of his mouth before he choked on it. A short stop and we were on our way again.

Next stop; McDonald's. Yeah, not my idea of a great mid afternoon pit stop but I needed a place to feed Grant. So, we made a stop in the bathroom to change a diaper and a break for Ava. We then tried to figure out what was more nutritious...chocolate chip cookies or french fries. Yeah, great choices huh? We settled on a cookie for an afternoon snack while I nursed Grant. Halfway through feeding Grant Ava starts her "dance" at which point she announces that she needs to go poopy. I'm quickly trying to get Grant unsuctioned from my breast as she's saying, "I'm going to go poppy in my pants, it's coming out of my bottom". We make a mad dash to the bathroom where she is adamant about choosing the handicap toilet that sits 12 feet off the floor. I lift her up there and we are safe from any accidents. Grant is now cranky and wants to finish eating so since Ava is demanding privacy I turn my back to her and feed Grant in this disgusting stall while praying that nobody steals the diaper bag off our table that contains my wallet and car keys. Once Ava is done she needs to be wiped. Oh fun! She bends over, putting her hands on the floor (makes me want to dry heave), Grant is now grabbing onto the germ filled door, and Ava decides she would have better balance if she puts her head down on the floor as well (makes me want to vomit thinking about the germs she is touching). At this point I just want a bucket of sanitizer to dunk them in. We eventually make our way to the sink and scrub all of our hands (including Grant's), finish feeding Grant, and load up again.

At this point Ava has her movie in so she is good. God rewarded me for our pit stop and Grant fell back to sleep for a short while. After 4 hours and 15 minutes, we finally arrived at the cabin safe and sound. Mission accomplished! Boppa arrived shortly after we did, and Daddy arrived just after dinner time.

Friday was a bit chilly so we didn't make it out on the water. Ava spent some time picking raspberries with Daddy and Boppa, and we all got a chance to play outside for awhile. Friday evening Nate surprised me with dinner reservations and Mema and Boppa watched the kids. We had a much needed night out to ourselves (ok, it was really just a couple of hours, but that is more than we ever get) and enjoyed some great food. Saturday was beautiful and Grant finally took his first boat ride. My friend Libby and her parents came over for a few hours for a boat ride. Grant absolutely loved driving the boat. Saturday evening we were supposed to have dinner at the neighbor's place. However, since our kids didn't get their normal naps we had a few melt downs. Nate was able to stay and enjoy dinner with everybody, while I put the kids down. Dinner was good, even warmed up in the microwave.

We headed home Sunday after one last boat ride and some lunch. The kids did fairly well on the ride home. It just gets to be a long trip with Grant, especially when we get stuck in traffic. It was back to work for both of us on Monday. The rest of the week is filled with play dates and a dinner with friends. Should go quickly, like most weeks. :)