Tuesday Talk:Road Trip
Hello, hello, hello… I still cannot believe it is already August…this summer has flown by!! Like I said yesterday, we have been really trying to take advantage of these beautiful days when the humidity is low (thank the good, good Lord for those days…and all days, of course…but especially the low humidity days!) Parks, parks and more parks is where it is at right now. We have been to the pool a handful of times this year, but in all honesty it just isn’t worth the prep work at this age. By the time I get myself ready and Ellie ready and pack up all the junk we need to make the day successful we are both exhausted before we even get there…and then we get in the pool and about 25 minutes later little miss is ready to get out, tired from the sun and we head home…one hour of prep work for 20 minutes…don’t get me wrong, I have done this plenty this summer and I love the joy she has from getting in the water so the sacrifice of one hour to get our junk in order is usually worth it…but I’m just saying it is not number one on our list of things to do…anyone else hear me on this. And I only have one kid….bless you mother’s out there with two, three or more!!!!!!!
Speaking of getting our junk in order, this week we are gearing up for a mini vacation up to Lake Ontario and I couldn’t be more excited. We love visiting up there…the lake, the little cottages, the lifestyle…all so relaxing. I have been going there every summer forever now and Joe has been up there a couple of times. Last year was Ellie’s first trip and it was so much fun, but this year is a complete different ballgame. She can walk and she can run, and she is into everything…which means not quite as relaxing as the many times before for us, but way more rewarding and fun!
Here is a picture of her from last year with my mom…what a chunk!!! (obviously i am talking about ellie here, NOT my mom!)
And a few more, because she is just so cute I want to pinch those cheeks!!!!!
Ok, ok…so getting back to gathering our junk for this trip…
On this fine Tuesday I bring to you a few random things that I am hoping to add to our belongings to make the trip a little easier on all of us:
1// Magna-Doodle: Ellie loves to color and draw, but she loves to do this while carrying around a notebook and marker which makes this momma nervous for artwork on the walls or furniture. One of our friends had this and Ellie fell in love. I thought it would be perfect for the car: easy and no mess at all.
2// Crayola Color Wonder: This goes along with what I said above…the kid loves to color. This product is amazing. It is special coloring pages that have to be used with the color wonder markers…the cool thing is that the markers appear clear until you use them on the special paper: meaning no mess if she draws all over herself or the walls!!! Although this won’t be as easy as the magna doodle in the car, I still want to take this along to offer an alternative and for when we actually get up to the lake for something fun to do.
3//Portable DVD Player: I am hoping we can get our hands on one of these before the trip because I am sure it will help the ride go so much smoother…
4// Snacks, snack and more snacks: Do I even need to explain this one or use a picture?!?! Toddlers and adults, no matter what age, snacks make a road trip so much better!!!
Any other ideas you may have for an 18 month old in the car for 6 hours, which I realize is not that terribly long, but still…We do plan on leaving pretty early in the morning so that she will just sleep most of the way up, but the way back will be during her prime play time hours so we could use all the help we can get!!!
Have a great Tuesday, oh and if you want to check out some other great blogs I am linking up below.
