The Final Mistake

I had trouble sleeping last night. I guess I was anxious about finally returning home, anxious about sleeping in my own bed, anxious about no longer being a guest. I wanted to leave Phoenix early because I knew I had to get to Palm Springs around lunch. Liam was anxious too. He wanted to play as much as he could with his cousins before we left. It's amazing how fast toddlers can completely destroy a clean room. I liken it to my theory about graffiti, If you don't paint over it, it will eventually just create an illegible layer of paint that resembles a solid. Cleaning a toddler's room has to be similar to that, why pick it up if it is just going to end up there anyway. Think of all the time Sisyphus would have saved had he not rolled the boulder up that hill. I bet you his room was dirty too.

Thanks to my Uncle, breakfast was early, fast, and wonderful. Since we were not able to carry out my plan of only taking out of the car what was necessary, we were delayed slightly repacking the car. Three quick hours to Palm Springs, lunch with my Dad, and we're back at home. That was my final mistake. Believing that my children would be able to step foot into my Father's new retirement mecca without swimming for hours in his newly constructed pool. I told Susan we would just roll up and honk the horn so the kids wouldn't even have to see the pool. We were going to spend the following weekend there anyway! Once again Susan just nodded in agreement to shut me up.

The quick three hour drive to Palm Spring took a little longer than anticipated due to Liam's desire to wear big boy underwear instead of his usual pull-up diaper. He was inspired by his cousin of the same age not wearing diapers and I suppose needed to keep up with the latest trends. This inspiration led us to stopping at nearly every rest stop and gas station to allow Liam to relieve maybe a teaspoon full of pee into toilets of various condition. He was very proud of himself, and so were we, but it did extend our trip about an hour.

We arrived in Palm Springs and my plan not to enter my Dad's house was ruined right off the bat because we of course had to allow Liam to use the restroom. The kids knew that we were going to eat first no matter what so they refrained from stripping and jumping directly into the pool. Did I mention it was 115 degrees? The heat in Palm Springs made Phoenix its bitch. I couldn't blame the kids for wanting to swim, but I so wanted to get home. We all agreed to have a quick bite at the nearby Panda Express before a "quick" dip in the pool. This time my entire family nodded in agreement to shut me up.

We ended up pulling into the driveway a little past 6 pm. Not bad considering we ate lunch and swam. We even left our swimwear there because we were returning the next weekend. Liam, who wore big boy underwear successfully all day, promptly pissed in his bed as soon as we got home. We didn't have the rest stops to remind us to ask him if he had to pee every 15 minutes. The animals were alive (both fish remaining alive was a shock to me), and the garden didn't die. I paid the boy next door to take care of the dog and the yard, something I did for the neighborhood that I grew up in. Once we unpacked the car (for the final time before repacking and going back to Palm Springs) the trip had officially come to a conclusion. Although I began this trip not really looking forward to it, I had a blast. It was wonderful spending so much time and experiencing so much with my family. It was nice meeting new relatives and seeing others we hadn't seen in quite awhile. Of course, the DDD tour was also a nice bonus. There is something about the road trip that you miss when you go on a package vacation by plane. My car made it through over 1500 miles and extreme heat without one hiccup- I guess my family did as well.

As for the blogging, it has also been an experience. I have enjoyed it, but it does take time and patience from your significant other. There were times I should have been helping when I was typing away. I appreciate those of you who have been following, commenting, or just reading occasionally. I even had a request to continue blogging after the trip is completed. Perhaps if something lights a fire under me sufficiently I will, but until then----Goodbye.