It wasn’t as easy as clicking our heels together three times, but we made it home this evening. And the line from The Wizard of Oz never rang more true: “There’s no place like home!”
We had a good visit to WV and felt as welcome and as comfortable as can be at my parents house. But my bed, my sheets, my kitchen, my shower cannot be duplicated – even in the most loving environment.
Part of the joy of being home is just relief of the weariness from the 500+ miles with a four year old. The four year old who used to take long naps on long trips, the four year old who was content to watch any show (with headphones) in which Dora was the main character.
She is now the four year old that declares “The Fox and the Hound” too scary, that the seat belt gives her a stomach ache and is uncomfortable and awkward (her words). She is the four year old that has to pee, poop, eat, get “holdies” from mommy nearly every 40-50 miles, requests that we stop talking so she can hear her music, asks us not to sing along, AND the four year old who keeps unbuckling her seat-belt. This little trick caused LOTS of drama during the trip home.
Today I sort of longed for the good ol’ days. I know I sound like an old granny, but “when I was a kid” seat-belts were in the car, but mostly just as decoration. On long trips me and my brother would use blankets, pillows and anything else we could find to transform the back seat into a luxury suite where we could stretch out in the floorboard, across the entire back seat, the back window – you name it. And not even once did our parents ever consider strapping us down, rendering us immobile for 8-10 hours. And that was just in a regular car. On more than one occasion, my family borrowed a truck with one of those camper tops. In the bed of the truck was the luggage, bicycles, coolers, groceries, charcoal, grill…. and me and my brother on sleeping bags & blankets rolling around with the cargo. Loving every minute of it.
Today things are quite different. Seatbelts, car seats, booster seats, airbags, front facing, rear facing, placement in the back seat - are serious business. Knowing what I know, I can’t let my daughter roam freely around the car as I book down the interstate. But a little part of me wishes she could experience the joy of traveling as I did as a kid where going on a trip was like having your own playhouse – on wheels.
Instead, there are videos, coloring books, crayons, music galore to entice her to remain buckled and happy for the long haul. If all else fails, I’m gettin’ me some red shoes and findin’ me a wizard!
Filed under: Random | Tagged: home, kids, nostalgia, safety seat belts, travel, trips, wizard of oz
Well, do I remember the trips when we sang all the way to our destination. Many song still remain unpublished that were hits “back then.” McDonald’s may need a copy of the ….hamburger on your face, french fries between your toes…song.
Our games were counting “beetles” and tring not to cheat. And dad loves to do the old put on the brakes and make the car rock and roll. He made fun by acting like he was steering into someone or banging on the door and making a pedestrain jump.
We always went with a lunch packed and stopped by a picnic table to eat sandwiches, chips and drinks. Boy, those were the days.
Just the other day I joked that if someone had told me that there would have been a REAL. LIVE. MOVIE. SHOW. in the car while I was travelling, I would have pooped my pants as a kid.
I guess it’s true, the more things change, the more things stay the same. Car trips with kids will always be difficult and yet the destination is worth the journey.
So glad you came in.