While our little family did not make it to Yellowstone this year, we did manage to escape for a quick two-day vacation to the big city and this is what I now know:
*Rest stops exist for a reason. I can no longer, much to the chagrin of my obsessive-compulsive side, calculate how soon I will get somewhere if I manage to drive at a certain speed for a certain period of time. I can also no longer drive 7.5 hours at one stretch. Kids somehow changed all of that. I thought little C was coming down with an illness. He was feverish, whiny, pale. His feet hurt from dangling over the edge and then we released him and such a miracle was there to be seen!
*Montana rest stops, much like the entire state, are really quite delightful with interesting historical tidbits, moderately clean restrooms, and warnings about rattlesnakes in the area so you better stay on the sidewalks or else and don't say we didn't warn you!
*Naps are still critical, especially when Mother dear gets two whole hours of interrupted Costco time. Two. Whole. Hours. I almost ran out of money.
*The best part of vacation, whether you have 18 kids or none, is still the food,
and when it is your very first ice cream cone ever, this makes the food all the more special.
*You will meet some interesting people while sitting outside an interstate DQ with twins enjoying their first ice cream cone. Very interesting, indeed.
*If you take kids to the zoo, they will not want to walk.
*But if you get a stroller, they will not want to ride. This is where Mom and Dad rules come into effect and it is so fun to be the adult, finally, after many years: you can make them ride. This is also where I discovered that you people who take toddlers on long trips to large amusement parks are mostly saints, but also partially mentally deranged, and much more brave than I.
*There will be tigers and bears and red pandas at the zoo, but the most interesting creature will be the horse. Familiarity can sometimes be a beautiful thing for a kid.
*Montana rest stops, much like the entire state, are really quite delightful with interesting historical tidbits, moderately clean restrooms, and warnings about rattlesnakes in the area so you better stay on the sidewalks or else and don't say we didn't warn you!*Naps are still critical, especially when Mother dear gets two whole hours of interrupted Costco time. Two. Whole. Hours. I almost ran out of money.*The best part of vacation, whether you have 18 kids or none, is still the food,and when it is your very first ice cream cone ever, this makes the food all the more special.
*You will meet some interesting people while sitting outside an interstate DQ with twins enjoying their first ice cream cone. Very interesting, indeed.*If you take kids to the zoo, they will not want to walk.*But if you get a stroller, they will not want to ride. This is where Mom and Dad rules come into effect and it is so fun to be the adult, finally, after many years: you can make them ride. This is also where I discovered that you people who take toddlers on long trips to large amusement parks are mostly saints, but also partially mentally deranged, and much more brave than I.*There will be tigers and bears and red pandas at the zoo, but the most interesting creature will be the horse. Familiarity can sometimes be a beautiful thing for a kid. *Most importantly, I was reminded that these special getaways are critical to our children's well-being. They learn so much about the world at home, but there is always more to be seen, to be felt, to experience, to dream about and you have to get out once in a while to take advantage of that fact of life.
I agree taking little children to a large amusement park is something only crazy people do.
ReplyDeleteThe Rattlesnake signs most definitely caught my attention--rest assured I paid close attention to everything. Love C's shirt! Hopefully they don't eat their cones like their cousin--we have to watch carefully as she likes to bite of the bottom of pointy cones! I think she's finally gotten the idea!
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