Motherhood Uncovered

This week’s focus for me is preparing a trip with my boys, alone. I’ve taken a trip 1000 miles away by myself but never with two human responsibilities. My husband or my mom have always been my sidekick for these events. We had planned on traveling back in December but it fell through. My husband has gotten very busy with work and it’s not going to be beneficial financially for him to come. We are excited to see family we haven’t since last May and enjoy the recent snowfall. Speaking of that, I need to be monitoring the road conditions to see if I can even make it this time. It seems my life comes with many obstacles in these situation’s. I don’t know about you but my mind spirals with events like this. I need to prep at least a week before with any grocery items necessary and last minute essentials. I create lists in word to make sure all clothing, shoes, and hygiene items are not forgotten. I have a checklist for each hotel stop to be sure we do not need to leave the room once we are there. I even went to the extent of creating an emergency list of contacts and personal info in the case we had an accident and weren’t responsive. I laminated it as well, can you really be too prepared? If there is something I haven’t thought of, I might cry. It is definitely a personality trait that I’ve developed over the years. I have this need to reach a level of perfection I will never find and be disappointed about it. It’s a work in progress for me.

As I mentioned in my previous post, our family has many events being held this year all across the country. The most amazing part about it is that we don’t have to navigate travel according to school schedules. We utilize the time and area we’re in to incorporate educational opportunities. We have two wedding to attend, in two different cities, both of which have had many historical events take place. I have already started putting together a “packet” of activities and information for each place. I love that my boys will be able to see it in person. It allows for the information to be interesting and may spark more conversation. My oldest has always been the empathic type, like me. We appreciate the extra detail described when it comes to how others felt to what they were passionate about. It allows us to have a better understanding of what they were going through. I feel blessed to have that ability.

We are down to three days to pack and prepared for two days on the road. Last May was our big trip so it has been some time since the boys have had to withstand sitting for so long. They are truly wonderful travelers. If I pack plenty of snacks and make sure all the necessary games and movies are downloaded, they’re good to go. One item I will always have on a road trip is a bucket. Our first huge trip was when we moved 1000 miles. The day we left my son said he felt off and was laying around but we thought maybe he was sad and overwhelmed with what was going on around him. Not the case, he was sick. We got a few hours down the road and boom, the vomiting begins. I was so happy with myself that I thought to bring puke buckets. This circumstance comes with a God story though! When we had pulled over with two U-hauls and our personal vehicle, I had gotten my son cleaned up while the guys double checked our belongings including the vehicle we had on a tow hitch attached to the U-Haul. They soon discovered our Jeep was starting to detach from the trailer. If my son hadn’t puked and we never pulled over, the jeep could’ve fell off and caused an accident for ourselves or any drivers surrounding us. That was definitely a reminder that God is always with us and he can put things in place to allow for correction before the fall.