Way back in March I started talking with my mom about the possibility of making a solo trip to MN with the kids. I did this several times with M, but had never done a solo trip with both kids. The thought frightened me, but the timing was great. The kids had a week between the end of school and VBS. The whole time Tom and Judy were in town I was buying treats and prepping for the big trip. I stopped at the library and got stocked up on DVD's as well. I had one main objective in choosing them. The DVD needed to be long and on one DVD so that I wouldn't have to pull over many many times.
We were all packed and ready to go shortly after 9:00 (if I remember correctly). We started a Curious George before we left and were cruising along nicely for almost two hours. I was thinking about how easy the journey had been and then I suddenly realized that I hadn't verified that I had my wallet in my purse. I had a strange feeling it wasn't there. I pulled into the last gas station before getting on to the interstate and prepared the kids for the reality that we might have to turn around and drive all the way home. I checked my purse and it wasn't there. I thought about the bag we brought to graduation. I checked it and it wasn't there. I had my phone in my hand ready to call Brandon to talk about meeting half way or something and then T spoke up. She said, "Oh, I have your wallet in my bag." She calmly opened her backpack full of junk and there was my wallet! Thanks be to God! In that moment I had a flashback to the little old lady in the movie Dirty Dancing... haha... I digress. We had a little talk about taking the wallet, filled up with gas and went to the bathroom. We switched DVD's and were back on the road.
Sadly, the DVD player was having some major issues. it would short out every few minutes and I would have to wiggle the cord to get it to work. It was very frustrating for the kids and for me. We decided that we should buy a new DVD player before the journey home. We stopped again an hour later to use the bathroom and try to fix the DVD player. After that we pulled over a couple of times to switch DVD's or to regroup snacks. The first leg of our journey was only 5.5 hours.
We stopped to visit my Grandma F. in the hospital. She had fallen a couple weeks before our trip and broke her leg. She was able to stay in the hospital to receive OT. We had a nice little visit there, but it is tricky trying to take two kids who have stared at a screen and eaten junk food into a small space to sit and chat. We didn't break anything, so I would call it a success!
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| Enjoying conversation with Grandma F! |
After the visit with Grandma and my Aunt Julie we still had two hours to go. Well, it should have been two hours. I don't know this part of the journey well so I followed GPS and it led me into a City area at rush hour. Big mistake! Poor kids! We were all getting so weary. It felt like forever before we got to my parents house! We were so thankful for the tasty food waiting for us. My kids love pretty much everything my mom makes. It is funny that they won't eat the same recipe if I make it, but if she does it is the best thing ever. I agree that her cooking is great! As usual the kids wanted to do every single thing they could think of the very first night. Eventually we got them to sleep.
Overall our time in MN was very good. The kids were missing Daddy a lot by the end. I grew a much deeper appreciation for all that Brandon does to keep our family moving. Just his presence is very calming to the kids and to me. We all especially missed him at night. During the night I take care of M and Brandon takes care of T. M and I were sleeping in one room and T in another. She sort of cries or talks often in the night as she turns or dreams. I didn't realize this. I woke up each time and so did M. It was pretty brutal. As the nights went on I got a bit better, but the sleep time was by far the hardest part.
The major downfall of waiting way too long to blog and not keeping a journal of events is that I have little recollection of how all the photos fit together or what we did which day. I told Brandon this morning that from now on I am going to journal each night of our vacations what we did that day, even if it is just bullet points, because I can't remember how things fit together. I will do my best to lump things together and share the highlights of our time together. The kids change clothes a lot so that isn't always a helpful indicator of which day it is. Brandon is the main picture taker in our family. I tried to get some pictures and my mom and friends took some too. I compiled them as well as I could.
The photos do not capture my daily walks with my mom. I am so thankful for a mom who loves to walk and talk. I also don't have photos of my shopping trips. I was able to get some awesome treats at a local store that has lots of health food. I also good some fun things for the way home from Dollar Tree.
Saturday:
On Saturday morning we drove visit some of my parents' friends. The husband dresses up like Santa (at Christmas time, not all year ha) and has a little shed full of Santa collectables. They also have a player piano. T loves to collect things so she really hit it off with the man. She loves new people. M was a bit more shy, but they both were eager to check out the piano. It was fun for us to meet some of the people we hear about often. It was hard to get pictures of the kids because they were moving so quickly!
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| T: I love to dance to the music! M: T, it is playing by itself! |
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| T: You can watch it working! |
My mom and I found some very special gluten and dairy free ice cream bars. The bars were a lot like the ones that my Grandma and Grandpa B had growing up. Smelling them reminded me of my childhood. The kids were very excited to try the special treat, but ended up not loving them. I think my parents helped finish up both bars. So there you have it, my mom's cooking is much better than fancy treats!
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| M and T: We can't believe it, we get to try these fancy ice cream bars! |
We spent a lot of time just enjoying being with Grandma and Grandpa. They had brand new baby birds that the kids checked on every day. They also enjoyed tractor rides. M also had many, but I didn't get any photos. The guys went fishing once or twice but didn't have any great luck. *The next two photos happened on Wednesday morning, but when I try to move them everything gets messed up. I have no idea why.
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| T: Hold on Grandma, I am a crazy driver! |
Sunday:
The kids and I drove to a town about 90 minutes from my parents for a full day of fun with old friends! First we played at a super fun park (with a petting zoo) with one of my best high school friends. Jessi and I have countless crazy memories together from our growing up years! We continue to share interests in adulthood. We are both adoptive mamas! I totally underestimated how crazy busy the park would be on the weekend. It was a bit stressful. Our kids were all over the place. We did have a few moments to chat. It was so special see her kiddos and just to be around such a special friend. Attempting a group photo led to a soaking baby. T lost and found tired. T refused to wear shoes. The bathrooms were FAR from the park... Oy!
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| M: It was so much fun to play with E. I used to look just like him! |
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| M: Don't worry, he isn't real! |
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| The weary and smiling mamas! |
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| The best shot of the boys! |
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| The best shot of the girls! |
At the end of our time with Jessi and the kiddos, one of my college best buds Nikky joined us at the park. I had not seen Nikky since her wedding... way too long!!! I was pretty weary at this point. We all just sat under a tree near the van and ate snacks. We decided to go to a state park that promised a waterfall and roaming buffalo. We navigated our way to the park and hiked to the waterfall. I wore T in the Ergo for some of it. All of our moods brightened and we were all feeling more regulated!
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| M: Check out the cool waterfalls! |
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| T: Hug me M! |
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| So happy to be with Nikky! |
After the waterfall we had quite a journey to find the buffalo. We eventually found them, but first we discovered many wrong turns. It was such a cool park. You drive over a grated area and then the buffalo are just roaming freely. We drove for quite some time and saw nothing and then all of the sudden they were right near the road. I felt like we were in SD for a while. T would have loved to go out there and join them. We assured her that was not going to happen!
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| We were so close to them! |
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| I love this pic because without zooming in you can see how truly close we were. |
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| They were shedding their winter coats. |
After our outdoor adventure we attempted to eat at my old favorite restaurant. It was under new management and it really went down hill. We were thankful for the company and the kids were hungry so they ate well, but we were not eager to go back.
After dinner we got back in the van and drove home. The kids managed to stay awake all the way home. It was a long day. It was a great day!
Monday:
On Monday we went to my Grandma B's farm for the morning and then stayed for lunch and played some more. The kids love being there. They love playing with Grandma's dog Ginger. They also really really loved the gator rides. Joanna and my niece A joined us there. We are so thankful that we got to see A almost every day while we were there.
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| T: Ginger is such a gentle dog! |
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| M and T: We are ready to ride with Great Grandma! |
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| M: Grandpa let me take a joy ride before lunch. We went really fast. I loved it! |
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| They still love the remote control chair! They are all getting so close to the same size! |
While we were cleaning up from lunch my dad took the kids on a long Gator ride. My grandma has a mound sewer system which creates a small hill. The hill was the perfect size to thrill three small children!
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| M: Hold on girls. I think I can drive this thing. |
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| M: Actually, it is better to have Grandpa with us! Let's Go! |
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| This distance shot gives you an idea of the size and slant of the hill! |
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Going Up, Up, Up!
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| And DOWN!!!!!!! You can almost hear T squeal through the photo! |
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| M and T: Thanks Grandpa Daryl! We can't wait to do this again! |
Before long it was time to head home for naps. The kids had to get in one last Ginger pet.
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| M and T: You are a good dog Ginger! |
Once we got home T went down for a nap. Mom and I went for a walk (I think), and M and Dad vacuumed out the van. It was a big job. We have a LOT of spills. I love having a vacuumed van so it was filling my love tank for sure.
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| M: I had fun helping Grandpa Daryl! |
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| It was a pretty big job! |
While my dad was vacuuming out the van, Brandon was working on a huge project at home. He rented a power washer and cleaned the house and patio. I have wanted this to happen for years! I am so thankful for his willingness to serve us. He got so many jobs done while we were gone.
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| The power washer! |
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| Holy Cow! Can you see the difference?! |
After nap we headed over to Bret and Joanna's house to meet their newest additions, baby chicks. I am NOT a chicken fan, but I held it together for the kids! The kids were very interested in them. The chicks were pretty scared of the kids.
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| A was so proud to show the kids the chicks! |
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| T: I tried to get one, but they all ran in the corner. |
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| M: I wasn't sure I wanted to touch them. |
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| T and M: We both gave them gentle pets on the head. |
Tuesday:
On Tuesday morning T made cookies with my mom while M and dad fished (I think they fished). T loved helping with the cookies, even more than eating them I think!
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| T: I really wanted to smash them down hard! |
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| T: Grandma is a really good cookie maker! |
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| T: We had lots of fun together. |
I am not sure what we did during a lot of this day. I am sure we were having fun adventures and I was not taking pictures. After nap we went to a local park. It had some fun things for big kids and small kids. We all had a great time. We were glad that Bret and A could join us!
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| T: We liked this roller slide! |
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| M: I sure had fun climbing! |
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| M: A is a great climber! |
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| T: Keep spinning me mom! |
After the park time we enjoyed some time outside at Grandma and Grandpa's. The kids played at their park (no photos) and the guys worked on the screen door. We ate dinner and then had to say goodbye to Bret and A. It was sad to say goodbye after so much time together. We are glad that we will see them all again soon!
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| T: A used to be Baby A, but now she is a good friend! |
When it was time for A to leave they walked her to the truck. She and T are almost the same height. A will be 3 at the end of December and T will be 5 in February. She is a tall girl!
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| Heart Melting Photo!!!! |
On Wednesday morning we got everything packed up. My parents played with the kids while I packed. My parents are incredible. My crew is a lot to take on, and they were great with the kids. They might have been weary, but they just kept playing and the kids LOVED it! What a blessing to have healthy, active parents who love playing with their grandkids! Thank you Grandpa Daryl and Grandma Kathy!
The drive home went very smoothly. I think we stopped 2 or 3 times. The new DVD player worked very well. The kids had plenty of snacks. We didn't hit any roadwork. We had a wonderful vacation, but we were all very happy to be home with Daddy! The kids requested that he come with us on the next road trip!
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