Thursday brought us an adventure on the road. The boys and I left home early in the morning, while still dark, to drive up to Stockton to spend the holidays with my family. The first part of our drive went as usual and we made it to our first stopping point in Indio, California making decent time. It was then that our trip took an unexpected turn ... my dad called and informed me that both mountain passes that I could use to get into the Central Valley, the "Grapevine" using I-5 and the Tehachapi Pass on Hwy. 58, were both closed due to an overnight snowstorm. Okay, I'm thinking, breathe and be flexible ...
So not wanting to waste any time, I got back on the road and stayed in constant contact with my dad who was able to keep track of the road closures for me and was able to guide me along an alternate route through downtown LA (not fun!) and up the coast using Hwy. 101. A beautiful drive it was (and according to Hayden, "how awesome mom"), however my main goal at this point was to drive, drive, drive until I got back onto a road I was familiar with! So three hours later and a few hundred extra miles, I finally get to I-5 and finish up our journey to my parent's arriving after only 14 1/2 hours! Though the nerves in my rear-end were numb from sitting for so long, I have to say my children were amazing little troopers (partly thanks to our portable DVD player which kept them occupied watching Christmas movies at a few different times during the day). Not once did they squabble with each other nor did they have any major meltdowns to speak of ... a whine here and there, but I was right there with them, and so we persevered and drove on! If there ever was a truer test of patience, I think I experienced it on this drive though would rather not have to again anytime soon! One of the most memorable moments of the drive was during our last two hour stretch towards "home" when Hayden said to me, "Mom, next time can we please just fly? You can borrow some of my money - really, I don't care." Out of the mouths of babes ... what a sweetie this 5-year boy of mine is!
A great deal of thanks goes to my dad who called me every few hours to make sure I was doing okay, and kept me going in the right direction toward home. In thinking about our road adventure as a whole, I am grateful we made it here safely to enjoy this time with my family, and enjoy it we will!
