Oh... what a trip!

On Friday morning, we got up bright and early and began our two-day trek to Newfoundland.  It was 36 hours before we arrived at our destination, and we learned a lot on our travels!  Let me share with you some of our new-found wisdom!

1.  Just because it is 5 am when you wake up the babies, it doesn't mean they will go back to sleep

We learned this very quickly... despite our efforts to keep Gracie in the dark and quiet, once we were in the car, she was wide awake!  She had a blanket, and her bear, and yet that little girl would not go back to sleep.  So we started her day 2 1/2 hours earlier than usual.  Not a great way to start a trip, in hindsight! :)

Gracie ready for the trip... crackers, blanket, pajamas, bear!

2.  Your eagerness to hear that first word way back when... you will learn to hate it!

I never thought hearing a word would send shivers down my spine as much as the word "mommy" did by the end of hour 3.  One year ago, I remember hearing that word and thinking, "I love it, it will never get old."  Little did I know that hearing the word over and over and over again over the course of a 2-day trip would make me want to deafen myself with screwdrivers.  I know that sounds dramatic, and those of you who have yet to travel with a toddler (who cannot be reasoned with, by the way), will probably think I'm horrible for saying that.  But please... take my word for it.  Nobody will still love that word after hearing it like we did for two days.  Ever seen that episode of Family guy?  Here it is, for your viewing pleasure... and trust me, it's EXACTLY like this... that look on Lois' face, totally me! :)

3.  Learn the lyrics to as many different songs as possible... BEFORE leaving on the trip!

You know what word I hate more than "mommy"?  That would be "siiiiing."  Gracie loves to sing.  And by sing, I mean listen to other people sing!  And she gets very demanding when it comes to singing.  She demands it over breakfast, while you're putting on her shoes, while you're sitting on the couch, and, apparently, while you're driving to Newfoundland.  It was a good way to keep her quiet at first (and to stop all the "mommy"s).  Except that after an hour of singing the same 4 songs over and over again, I got tired and didn't want to do it anymore.  And she didn't like that!  She is also very particular about her songs... she knows what she wants to hear and when you start to sing something she doesn't like she cuts you off with a very firm "Nooooo!"  We sang Old MacDonald half a million times, along with Skinamarinky Doo, This Old Man, and our very own made-up song, "Gracie is a cranky butt," which she loves by the way.  When we sing it now, we stop at cranky, and she happily chimes in with "butt!"

4.  You cannot reason with a toddler

I think I already mentioned this a little... and it seems like common sense.  I mean, I already knew this before we left, but I was reminded very quickly halfway through day 2 when Gracie dropped her baby on the floor and I couldn't reach it for her.  She wanted it.  And she wanted it right now.  So no matter how many times I tried to explain to her that mommy couldn't reach her baby and she would get it at the next stop, Gracie just screamed and cried.  And of course, that made mommy explain it even louder, and with a little less patience. And soon, we were both very unhappy and on the verge of tears.  Which leads me to the next lesson...

5.  Tantrums can be thrown by anybody

I'm not gonna lie... I had some not-so-stellar mommy moments during the trip.  For the most part, Danny and I were both very patient and we were well prepared to handle the crankiest of children.  But any mother can, and will, breakdown after 24 hours without more than an hour or two of sleep and a screaming child in the back seat of a car.  At the beginning of day two, I even calmly explained to Danny that Gracie was terribly sleep deprived, having not napped at all the day before and going to bed super late, and that we would have to be extra patient since it wouldn't be her fault if she couldn't control herself.  I explained that all to him, and yet, after a meltdown of ginormous proportions by Gracie 5 minutes outside of Deer Lake, mommy threw her own tantrum in answer to Gracie's.  It wasn't pretty.  I wasn't proud.  And when we stopped the car, Danny took Gracie out, got her some snacks, and let mommy have a good 2-minute cry in the front seat.   Tantrums will happen.  And you will be surprised when you're the one throwing them.

Gracie in Deer Lake with the "misssss"

6.  Poop Happens

Duh.  Two kids in diapers, and poop is bound to happen.  But of all the days for poop, our two lovely children decided to pick the days when travelling in a cooped up space and on a ferry full of people.  They were poonamis.  Like tsunami... except with poop.  We went threw all the spare outfits I had packed in the diaper bag for Ella, and she spent day 2 in nothing but her diaper.  Gracie also decided to fill her shorts a few times... and I'd like to thank Grampy Fillmore for the wonderful idea of filling her full of corn on the cob the day before we left :)

7.  Nap time does not exist whilst on vacation

Not for babies, not for mommies, and not for daddies.  Ella was the exception.  She slept basically the entire trip.  Gracie would not sleep.  In fact, she screamed for 45 minutes on the boat while we tried to get her comfortable enough to fall asleep.  Yep, we were those passengers... the ones with the screaming kid.  And I was only slightly embarrassed... mostly because I was too tired to care.  Mommy didn't get her nap either.  Halfway through day 2 though, Gracie fell asleep.  Let me tell you that "bliss" does not even begin to describe how we felt in that hour when the car was silent and Danny and I could have a whole uninterrupted conversation. :)  I thought she would feel better when she woke up... nope!  Apparently, catching up on an hour's sleep when you are 7 hours behind just makes you crankier! :)

Well... that's all I can think of right now.  Mostly because I have yet to catch up on my sleep and my brain is still a little fuzzy.  I'm sure there were more lessons, and I'm sure we'll learn even more on the drive home.  But for now, Gracie is in bed, Ella is spending time with Nan and Pop Ford, and mommy is going to bed early to catch up on some sleep! :)