Sometimes the Journey is Arduous, and the Destination is a Relief!

I will have to write my account of the Women's Adventure Race soon. If you can't stand the wait, check out Emily's blog.

We had a good weekend, but Anthony summed it all up when he said, "I remember when road trips used to be fun. Now its just work." Not to mention expensive, the way gas prices have doubled. Leaving town, Anthony had expertly packed both mountain bikes, an inflatable kayak, and all our suitcases in the van, not forgetting to set up the DVD player for the kids. We stopped at the post office on the way out of town to pick up a package, a 20 minute diversion. As we pulled onto the highway, Anthony said, "Did you hit something with the van? Its all out of alignment." That turned into a vibration, and when we pulled into a rest stop outside of Temple, it was obvious the right rear tire had broken some cables and was about to blow! While Anthony put the toy tire on, I let the little people stretch their legs and tried to keep them from running into traffic. Funny how Montana listens better with a brain tumor! By now, it was obvious we'd have to feed the offspring on the road, so we stopped later at McD's where Colin bit into a ketchup package spraying it all over his mouth and Anthony's shirt.

We had no automotive difficulties on the way home. However, when we stopped at Starbucks, Anthony tried to pay for our beverages with $15 and charge his Starbucks card with the rest, the cashier screwed up the transaction royally, putting only 80 cents on his card when it should have been more like $5. Anthony calmly explained the mistake to her, then twice to the manager, who handed him back his card with 80 cents and said, "OK, I'm just going to comp your drinks and give you these free drink coupons," leaving Anthony to say, "OK, but I gave her $15, I'm still out $5... I don't mind paying for what we actually ordered, but I'm still in the hole here..." So then the flustered manager gave him back the $15, and in the meantime Anna had spilled her decaf drink twice and Colin was jumping on the upholstered seats everytime I had to deal with that...

In the end we made it home safely, and had enjoyed the weekend, especially seeing our kids really enjoy themselves with their cousins. Big cousin Andrew (14 yrs) is very patient with little kids, and even let them all pile on top of him on the trampoline. Henley (2 yrs) -- or Kenwee as Colin called her -- was a favorite to bounce with or play in the sandbox with, and little Rian (9 mo.s) just grinned and beamed at them all.