Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Road Trip Survival Guide

I had to be in TX yesterday, so I decided to drive in Monday afternoon so I wouldn't be rushed Tuesday morning. After my appointment, a couple of playdates, and driving by our home there, I headed back north. I make the 3 1/2 trip every few months, usually alone. I have driven to my parents house 500 miles away alone. And flown multiple times alone. And by alone I mean me with the boys. I have done it with Mark also. And you need a survival guide even with 2 parents. With just me, I need an extra pill. KIDDING (sort of)

Here is what you must have when traveling with little folks:
-lots of DVD's -working DVD's-must check for scratches and skipping before pulling out of the drive
-headphones for the DVD player in reach of each kid
-extra batteries for headphones
-food-opened,sorted,divided and ready for hand out, except for Connor who sits on the 3rd row(he must         already have his food/drinks)
-drink- 1 drink each, not too much or you will pay for it in multiple pee stops
-DS for Connor
-Leapster for Colton with extra batteries
-magnetic board, crayons, coloring books, ect (the big boys each get their own bag full in reach)
-bag full of cars and other toys handy for me to pass one at a time to Christian (at each stop I collect what he has tossed onto the floor and refill my bag)
-blankies and babies
-and the must have for any traveling kiddos....dum dum suckers -very useful when you need to shut up   wines, cries, arguments, or talking back

Guess what I did on this drive! GUESS! You'll never guess....
I peed in a cup
OH YEAH! REAL CLASSY!
I had to pee by the time I hit Lewisville (30 minutes into my drive). Which is so unlike me. By Denton (another 15 minutes) I REALLY had to go. I just wanted to make it to Gainsville, which is the last town before I cross into OK. I was originally thinking, I will just drag all 3 kids into where ever I stop. But then, before I made it to the town I wanted to stop, 2 out of 3 boys were asleep. No way in hell I am waking them, but dang I gotta go!!! Now I have to stop alot for Colton to pee. And when I do, I pull over to the side of a gas station or fast food place where no one can see, and I open the door and he pees.  So I am figuring I can kind of do the same. If it's not too busy of a place I can just squat and hope no one can see my white ass from under the car. Don't you know, I was not seeing any place that I could pull over the side of and attempt this little white trash pit stop. It was then that I noticed  Colton's empty cup from lunch. So I finally found the side of place that was not too busy. I climb into the back of my SUV and start peeing in this cup. It was going pretty good until I realized I filled the cup (it was a kid size) and was not finished. Ok, so I'm gonna dump it and continue. Houston we have a problem. Once you shut the hatch, you can't open it from the inside. So now I have to climb over 2 rows of seats. I finally get out, dump my pee, climb back in the back, and finish my biz. By the time I finish all the this....the sleeping boys wake up!

Mark is so lucky he married me!

5 comments:

donatelli98 said...

Classy indeed cousin - but hey you do what you gotta do! Your list looks very similar to mine. I need to start gathering stuff - the girls and i leave next Sat for PA/NJ.

Merry Mack said...

Wow, that is WT! I don't have three kids though so I can't talk. I have peed in a cup in the car. A 32 oz and I ran over. I was drunk and 18 though. Also, I am impressed that you could stop mid-stream. I couldn't do that.

The Soladay Family said...

Ryan tried to get me to pee in a cup one time, but I couldn't. Stage fright I guess.

Your kids have it made on road trips!

Momma to the A's said...

SHUT UP! You peed in a cup? Oh my that is too funny! I was laughing so hard at the part you had to climb all the way up to dump your pee that I was crying. Oh girl, that is too crazy! But, I do understand a momma's got to do what a momma's got to do! Too bad the boys woke up.

Good tips! We just took a 6 hour car ride to the beach. The snacks sorted before hand was a must!

Leisa Dreps said...

After going through a lot of road trips, I gotta agree with all the essential items you had there to keep them entertained throughout the long drive. I remember the one time I was unprepared. Gosh, it was chaotic! It was especially chaotic because my passengers were kids (my cousins actually)!