We recently went on our first long trip of the summer visiting our family in Michigan. Our last visit to Michigan was in 2014 and a lot changed in that time, especially how the girls handle road trips.
In our typical fashion, we left on Thursday afternoon to hopefully coax the girls into sleeping a good portion of the trip. From trips past, we knew the ride would last about eight hours, give or take a little, so we would be in the car for a long time.
I thought I had our old set of portable DVD players working before we left, I mean they did work when I tested them. Of course, as soon as we hit the road all I got was error messages and we were already making our first stop to replace the broken set.
After grabbing some dinner, we were off again and this time we weren’t going to stop until we had put some miles on the odometer. We did make it quite a ways before the cries of “I have to potty” came ringing from the back seat.
We had also been hearing a steady chorus of “how far are we,” “how close are we to there” and “how much time until we get there.” While I knew it was going to come, it really is as annoying as they portray it on television and in movies.
There were several strategies as we tried to explain the time and distance we had to travel. We used landmarks such as the Mississippi River, the city of Chicago and crossing state lines to try to give markers of distances passed. What happened was the girls started to think Chicago was a state, Illinois was way to long and we were “never going to get there.” I’ve decided using a map to show our progress might be the way to go next time.
We did eventually make it there and had a great weekend with our family. From playing in the rain to riding on duck boats and having a movie night, the girls had a ton of fun with their cousins and the adults had a pretty good time, too.
The highlight of the weekend was the visit to the beach. The temperature was a cool 70 degrees outside with the water of Lake Michigan even colder but that didn’t stop four six to nine-year-olds from working their way into the waves before becoming completely emerged from head to toe.
I should have known better, especially with my youngest, because she will try to swim in any water available. I was kicking myself a little for leaving the six swimsuits I had packed for the weekend back in our suitcase, but I wasn’t too upset hearing the giggles and seeing their smiling faces.
Our trip home went a little smoother with less questions, mainly because my oldest slept a large portion of the ride and my youngest was very entertained with her videos and crayons. With an upcoming vacation planned to Minnesota, it will feel like a quick jaunt to the twin cities in comparison to Michigan. I hope the girls think so, too, but I think I’ll grab a map just in case.
Contact Jamee A. Pierson at 641-792-3121 ext. 6534 or jpierson@newtondailynews.com