Welcome Home

Luckily, this is not what our house looked like when we pulled up in the driveway. However it is what it looked like this morning. But thankfully we have WONDERFUL neighbors who decided to take care of this problem before we returned from our two-day, 20 hour car trip. THANK YOU DAWN AND DARLENE! And if the punk that did this happens to read this blog, shame on you! I am a good sport, but not after being away for ten days and this car trip!

Actually the car trip wasn't so bad. Other than the fact that Kathryn had an upset stomach and we had to stop frequently for bathroom breaks. What sucked was Memphis!! I will never, ever, EVER go to that city again! We'll start with the fact that the streets there make absolutely no sense. They go every which way and veer off in hundreds of directions and are just not traveler friendly. And since the streets suck, one might realize she is going the wrong way and have to make a U-turn. And one might not realize that she is doing so directly in front of one of Memphis' finest. And one might not realize that a U-turn is not legal in the state of Tennessee, especially since she has been driving in Texas her whole life where U-turns are perfectly acceptable.

So the nice police officer pulled me over. I was hoping that perhaps the fact that I was lost, with Texas plates, suitcases packed to the ceiling, and four children might suggest a warning was in place. And perhaps I would have gotten one had a nice male officer pulled me over. But no, I got tagged by a short, stocky, female cop who could care less if I was a flustered mama not from around these parts. I have arrived home with one more piece of paper than I wanted to.

Then the hotel. I love Embassy Suites, it is the best possible setup for our family. But this one had obviously seen better days. The carpet in the room, well let's just say I did not take my shoes off at all, it was just gross. I even put my flip flops on when Emma came to me at 1:45am to tell me she had to throw up. Yes I wore my shoes, escorted her to the toilet and held her hair. And why is it that your children always have to come and tell you they need to throw up? Could they possibly just do it first and then come get you? Because that would cut down on the times that they actually miss the toilet. Just a thought.

And the nice family that stayed next door to our room. All fifteen of them. I'm not lying, they were spilling out into the hallway. They were crammed on the sofa watching tv. And they were knocking on our door all night, banging on walls, and jumping on the beds. We would have complained, but they were some very large, scary looking men in the group and we really just wanted to live.

Needless to say, we got out of Memphis as quickly as we could this morning. Steven drove.

We drove for hours, and finally we crossed into Texas. I was so happy I made Steven pull over so that I could kiss the pavement and dance a do-si-do right in the middle of the interstate. Not really. But I was ECSTATIC that we were home, back in a state where people understood that the left lane is for passing only. Where people have manners and smile and are just plain friendly. I was so happy, until I realized we still had over 5 hours to drive. Then I wished that we lived in Rhode Island.

But we're home. We've logged over 2600 miles, over 42 hours, found 41 different state license plates and a few from Ontario, stopped at 7 different Cracker Barrels and numerous rest stops and gas stations to pee, watched over 20 movies (Madagascar 3 times), and I won every round of Interstate Bingo.

It was a good trip. But now I am going to grab a cup of crushed ice, my pillow, and cuddle on my couch with my Tivo. There's no place like home.