We just returned from our summer vacation! We visited Mommy’s extended family in North Carolina for a family reunion. We also spent a couple days in Williamsburg, Virginia. The rest of the time was spent driving between these places.
We had 520 miles to cover before we reached our first stop for the night. The 2nd day would only cover 370 miles, but the last couple hours would be off the interstate, so traffic could become a delay. Mommy and I did not enter into this trip lightly, considering that we would be traveling with a 3-year-old. We knew it would be a challenge, but we were confident that Eric could handle it. We made several preparations to ensure that Eric would be kept entertained throughout the trip. We had toys, games, and books to keep him entertained. Mommy packed a DVD player as a last resort. I researched the internet for ideas to keep young children entertained on long car trips, and I decided on using tickets. Before the trip, I made up several tickets, as suggested by one website. The tickets would be visible to Eric and given to him at regular intervals, so he could visualize how close we were to our destination, i.e. no more tickets , and we are there. The first day had 10 tickets, or one for each 50 miles or so. The second day also had 10 tickets, or one for each 35 miles or so. Rather than just use ordinary tickets, I decided to make up a variety of “special” tickets. Each ticket had a fun phrase, question, activity, or song title written on it, so the tickets were not only useful for “keeping time” but also for entertainment. I found an empty metal can with a plastic lid, and removed the label (almonds or something). Mommy showed this to Eric on Tuesday, and told him that it contained a secret inside for our vacation. This created some excitement! On Wednesday evening, just before bedtime, Eric and I sat on the living room floor, and we decorated the can with stickers. This made the can his own special vacation container. I still did not reveal the purpose of the can, only that he could not look inside until we were on the “highlighted route”! When we got into the car to go to Grandma’s house, I revealed to Eric the purpose of the can. I opened the can, showed him a small clear bag full of tickets, and explained that he would get a ticket every time we traveled 50 miles. He would use the can to collect and save his tickets.
We had the car packed Wednesday night, except for our morning essentials such as toothbrushes, etc. Eric was getting very excited about going on vacation. Mommy and I had been talking to him about it for a couple weeks. We talked about meeting lots of his cousins, going on the “highlighted route”, spending time with Grandma, Aunt Carol and Tyler. The excitement was building, and it peaked on Wednesday evening when we were frantically packing to stay on schedule. I had set a departure time of 10:00am from Grandma’s house. This required us to leave our house by 9:00am allowing 1/2 hour to pack Grandma’s luggage into the “family truckster”.
We awoke Thursday morning, showered, dressed, and ate breakfast. We finished packing the car, and headed for Grandma’s house around 9:15am. Eric was so excited, he could hardly contain it! We were finally going on the “highlighted route”! On the way to Grandma’s house, Eric asked if she could sit up front with me. I suggested that he ask her when we we get to her house. (This was our planned seating arrangement anyway.)
We arrived at Grandma’s house, and Eric ran in to greet her. Eric asked if she could sit up front next to Daddy. Grandma cheerfully accepted Eric’s invitation. We all agreed that Eric had a great idea! Mommy took him for a final pit stop, while I repacked the car to accomodate Grandma’s luggage. We pulled out of Grandma’s driveway at 10:06am, just a few minutes later than planned! We had a long day ahead of us, so it was important to get started on time.
Eric behaved very well all day in the car. Of course, we made several pit stops to use the toilet. Mommy sat in the back seat with Eric. She was responsible for dispensing the tickets every time I declared that we had just completed another 50 miles, “Wo knows what time it is? It’s time for a ticket!”. We sang songs, recited the alphabet, and answered questions like “Are we there yet?” and “Where are we?” We stopped for lunch at a Dairy Queen somewhere in Kentucky. Eric and the rest of us had a chance to stretch our legs and run around a bit before resuming our drive. Of course, Eric was treated to an ice cream cone. We stopped again in West Virginia for dinner at Bob Evans, and finally arrived at our hotel in Covington, Virginia at 8:45pm. Whew! That was a long day, but Eric held up like a trooper. Mommy and I were so proud of him! We started in Indiana and traveled through Ohio, Kentucky, West Virginia, and Virginia. We checked into the hotel, wished Grandma a good night, and went to our room to tuck Eric in for the night. We had brought Eric’s inflatable mattress, but there was not enough floor space to set it up. Instead, Mommy arranged pillows and comforters in a U-shape connected at the headboard to keep Eric corralled, so he could not fall out of the bed. Our room had two beds, and I assured Eric that Mommy and I would be sleeping with him in the same room. He repeatedly asked if we would sleep with him, since he was a little unceratin about the strange place. I read him his books, said our nightly prayer, and sang some lullabies. Eric was exhausted and fell asleep in no time at all.
Up early Friday morning! We dressed, packed the car, grabbed some breakfast at the hotel, and drove away by 9:30am. We had planned on 10:00am, but we managed to get up and going early. We met Aunt Carol, Uncle Rob, and Tyler in the morning. They had arrived at the hotel some time after we did the night before. Friday was a shorter drive than Thursday, and Eric again behaved very well for a 3-year-old cooped up in the car all day. The tickets were once again a hit with everyone! They were spaced closer today, so the time passed a little easier. This was my intent, since I suspected that Eric’s patience would not last as long on the second consecutive day of driving. Today is when Mommy and I discovered that a winery is a great palce to stop for all those necessary potty breaks. The restrooms were much cleaner, and Eric could run around in the vineyard to burn off some energy. As we were driving through Virginia and into North Carolina, we saw a lot of ocean, bridges, and tunnels. Eric liked to see the water, and especially liked driving through the tunnel. We got off the interstate and headed into the Outer Banks of North Carolina. This is the scenic part of the drive, the main drag down through the outer banks. there are roadside produce stands, beaches, hotels, restaurants, more beaches, and beach houses. We arrived at our hotel in Manteo, North Carolina around 6:30pm. We checked in, found Tyler and Aunt Carol, and walked a couple blocks to a local restaurant for dinner. Uncle Rob had already settled in for the evening. On the way to the restaurant, we passed through a street party with live music, dancing, and lots of people. We spotted a clown making balloon animals for some children. When we got to the retaurant, we had a short wait for our table, so Mommy and I took Eric back to see the clown. He asked the clown for a giraffe, and quicker than you can measure a giraffe’s neck, the clown produced a very nice balloon rendition of a giraffe. Eric loved it! He would later name it “Dooky”. After dinner, we returned to the hotel, again made a “corral” for Eric on the bed, read books, prayers, lullabies, and Eric was soon asleep. He again asked if I would sleep with him. I assured him that Mommy and I would be sleeping in the bed next to his. But first we would sit outside for a short while until he fell asleep. He was okay with this plan, and he soon fell asleep. Mommy and I sat just outside the room on a deck overlooking the town streets. The street festival had quieted a little and mostly moved inside the bars and restaurants. We enjoyed the breeze coming in from the ocean and listened to the parties down the street.
Eric looking at his cup full of crackers.
Saturday morning, we woke up and got some breakfast in the hotel common area. We walked around the pier and across the bridge to see the museum/store across the harbor. Eric found some fossils! He saved a special one for Grandma. When we got back to the hotel, Uncle Rob and Tyler were planning a trip to the beach, so we suited up and all drove to the beach. Eric loved it! He played near the water and held my hand as the waves washed up over his knees. He played in the sand and built some sand castles with the toys that we brought with us. Uncle Rob and Tyler attempted to fly some kites that they bought that morning on the way to the beach. It was quite windy, and they had little success, unless of course you measure success in fun! Eric really enjoyed the beach and was disappointed when it was time to leave. But, we had to get back to the hotel and clean up before going to the family reunion.
Cleaning up was a new experience for Eric. He took his first shower! Of course, he did not shower solo. He is still too little for that. But he climbed into the shower with me, at Mommy’s suggestion. This was to save time, since we were already running a little late, and Eric defintely needed a bath. Eric of course loved this! Anything that he can do like Daddy is okay with him. He stood still while I washed his hair and lathered him with soap from head to toe. He laughed while he stood under the water to rinse off. “Mommy! Eric is ready to get out!” Mommy dried him off, while I finished cleaning up. We all dressed in our matching red T-shirts. The theme for the reunion was everyone should wear red or white shirts. We chose red.
The reunion was a lot of fun. Eric met several of his cousins and played with them. He especially liked Lexi, who was 4 years old. They played in the living room tossing a balloon back and forth for a long time. Another cousin gave him a toy to keep. It is a little plastice mouse. Eric named him “Squeaky”. He played baseball in the back yard with some more little cousins. There were a lot of kids close to Eric’s age, and he loved it! Later, someone gave him a helium ballon. Mommy tied it to his wrist, but it came loose and floated away into the sky. Eric cried out for his ballon, but Mommy explained that it was gone. Back in the house, Mommy found another balloon for him. We tied this one better, and it stayed on his wrist until he was ready to remove it. But not until after he ran everywhere with it, he chasing it, and it chasing him. I cut it loose from his wrist when he was tired of it and tied it to my belt, so he could retrieve it later. A few minutes later, he started chasing me and tried to catch the balloon as it trailed behind me. We ran around the yard for a long time with Eric laughing the whole time.
Wow! Another long day! Eric was exhausted, so we decided to return to the hotel. Eric was ready to go to bed, but Mommy and Grandma planned to drive back to the reunion and visit for a while longer after dropping me and Eric at the hotel. Well…that was the plan, anyway. As we were driving back to the hotel, we received a phone call from Aunt Carol. Aunt Carol, Uncle Rob, and Tyler had lef the reunion before us. Uncle Rob left Aunt Carol and Tyler at the hotel and went to meet with some friends, so Aunt Carol and Tyler decided to walk to the CVS store. They made a wrong turn and got lost. It started raining, and then it got dark as the sun set. It was very dark where they were, and they were getting scared. We drove around for more than an hour trying to find them. They had wandered away from the central part of town, and the landmarks that they were describing were unfamiliar to us; our GPS was not recognizing them either. Although the rest of us were starting to get worried, Eric thought that this was fun! After many phone calls and Aunt Carol and Tyler walking carefully to a more recognizable location, we finally found them! We were all relieved. Eric is still talking about this adventure every day. “You turned on the flashing lights, Daddy, so Aunt Carol could find our truck!” “Aunt Carol was scared!” “The lights were still on, because your door was open, Daddy!” Everything about the search was exciting and memorable for Eric. Of course, it also meant a delay for his bed time, which is always exciting for any 3-year-old!
Eric in the morning with Dooky.
Sunday, we packed up our stuff in the car again, and we drove to Williamsburg, Virginia. Here we would stay until Wednesday. It was a 3-hour drive, so it only took us 5 hours! Eric required an unusually frequent number of pit stops today. We stopped at Mel’s Diner for lunch. It is a themed restaurant that was a lot of fun. We arrived at the resort late that afternoon. We ordered a pizza, and Eric went to bed after eating dinner. This hotel was a resort condo unit, so it had a separate bedroom and living area with a kitchen. The bedroom only had one bed, but we found a cozy little corner for Eric’s inflatable mattress. Eric was excited to sleep on his own bed. He declared that he liked the corner we had chosen for his bed. It bordered his bed on three sides, which gave him a sense of security. He also like that Mommy and Daddy would again be sleeping in the same room with him.
Monday, we drove down to the playground, and Eric climbed, walked, and slid around the playset for a while. Eric and I walked back to our room, and Mommy drove back. It was really not that far, so I thought a walk would be fun. When we got back, Tyler was awake. Their condo unit was just downstairs from ours and connected to Grandma’s. We had three condo units all together. We were lucky to get them in the same building, and we were grateful. Tyler wanted to go swimming, and so did Eric. We suited up, and the three of us walked down to the pool. Eric loves to go swimming! He can not actually swim on his own, yet, but he is getting more comfortable in the water. I held him as he played in the water and splashed and kicked. We chased Tyler around the pool, and Tyler chased us. I don’t know how long we were there, but it was well over an hour, and Eric was swimming the entire time, except for the last few minutes when he was “fishing” for Tyler. Tyler pretended to be a fish, and Eric use his “noodle” as a fishing pole to catch him. Mommy came down to the pool to break up the party. It was time for lunch. Mommy had ordered some Chinese food to be delivered, so we headed back to eat. Eric spent the rest of the afternoon in Grandma’s condo unit with Tyler, while Mommy and I toured a local winery. Later that evening, Mommy and I returned to the same winery for dinner. Eric had pizza and spaghetti with Uncle Rob and Tyler. Another fun day!
Tuesday, we decided to see some historic sites in the area. We chose the Jamestown settlement. I punched the address into the GPS, and we headed that way. It was just Mommy, Eric and me. We arrived at the museum to find all 50 state flags flying each on its own flag pole and lined up along a walkway. Each flag had a plaque briefly explaining its history and when it entered into the union. We stopped to get a picture in front of the Indiana flag pole. The weather was very hot and very humid. It threatened to be a miserable day. We went inside, bought our tickets, and headed out the back to see the sights. We started with a tour of the Powhatan Indian village. It is a replica of an actual village with huts, fire pits, pottery making, and a dance circle. We continued the tour into the fort that was built by the Jamestown settlers. It too is just a replica, but it represented the conditions in which they lived during these early years. Eric was so far enjoying all of the tour. He was very interested in the buildings, the fence around the fort, and the dirt on the ground. After the fort, we walked down to the docks and toured the replica sailing ships. This was Eric’s favorite part of the day! We climbed onto the ships and walked around, up to the top deck, and down to the lower deck. We started to leave the larger ship, and Eric declared “No, I want to see more of the ship!” Mommy had had enough of the heat, so I took Eric back onto the ship, while Mommy went ahead of us to wait in the shade. Eric and I explored every inch of the ship. He was very curious. Eric methodically toured the entire ship from top to bottom, fore and aft, port to starboard. Everything on the ship was new to him, and he had a lot of questions for me to try and answer. I did my best, and I learned a few things along the way, too. When Eric had finally satisfied his curiosity, we went ahead to meet up with Mommy. Mommy had found a shady spot near the ice cream vendor, and she was already enjoying an ice cream cone. What a wonderful idea! Eric decided on a popsicle, and I got myself some ice cream. We sat and ate our treats in the shade…So refreshing! Eric ended up wearing nearly as much of the popsicle as he ate, red stains down his hands, chin, shirt, and shorts, despite the paper napkin bib that I had fashioned for him. We cleaned up and headed back to the car. The heat and the walking had taken its toll on all of us. We were ready to relax and have dinner. When we got back, Mommy and Eric took a nap together. Eric was exhausted, and we let him sleep until it was time to go to dinner.
We all went to dinner together. Grandma conspired to make this happen. I think she really just wanted to spend an evening with the whole family together. So far on this trip, it had been just a few of us here, and a few of us there. We dressed up a little and went to a nice restaurant where the waiter’s name was also Eric. He was very nice, and he enojoyed serving us with our very own Eric. Eric behaved very well through dinner, and we all told stories about our adventures of the week. Tomorrow morning, we would be heading for home.
Wednesday morning, I got up early and started packing the car. We were all up and ready to go by 9:00am. We drove for about an hour and stopped for breakfast at Cracker Barrel. Eric ordered pancakes of course! I had my mouth watering for waffles all week, but I struck out again. Cracker Barrel does not serve waffles. Eric really enjoyed his breakfast. He was excited to be going home! We stopped at Dairy Queen for lunch and an ice cream cone. We were recycling the tickets again in the car. They had lost some of their appeal, maybe because they were the same tickets. Eric still was excited when it was time to get a new ticket. Next time we travel, I will remember to make unique tickets for the entire trip. This trip was shorter, since Williamsburg is much closer to Indiana than Manteo. Today’s mileage will end up being around 370 miles, and the same for tomorrow. Most of the driving today was through the mountains, so it was very curvy and plenty of up and down. Mommy did a wonderful job of keeping Eric entertained in the back seat. We arrived at our hotel in Charleston, West Virginia just before 6:00pm. I promised Eric earlier in the day that I would take him to the pool if he behaved in the car. So, we suited up and went down to the pool, while Mommy and Grandma went out to get some carry out dinner. We played in the pool for a while. Someone had left a toy boat, so Eric played with that the whole time. The shallow end of the pool was only 3 feet deep, and Eric could walk around on his tip-toes. So, of course he did and loved it! After dinner, it was time for bed. This hotel room was a 2-bedroom suite, so we shared it with Grandma. Eric slept on his inflatable mattress next to our bed, and we stayed up in the living room for a couple hours visiting with Grandma and looking at photos that we had taken so far on vacation. We had over 500 photos between us, including a CD that we bought from the photographer at the reunion.
Thursday morning, we packed up the car, ate breakfast at the hotel, and we were on the road by 9:30am. A little bit later than yesterday, but we already had breakfast, so no stops until lunch. We made the necessary pit stops of course, but Eric was not drinking very much today, so these stops were fewer. I skipped lunch, and Mommy, Grandma, and Eric all ate in the car from food at the drive-thru. We made very good time today. With the mountains behind us, we were determined to make it to Grandma’s house by 4:00pm to avoid the afternoon rush hour in Indianapolis. We made it to Grandma’s house just before 4:00pm, unloaded her luggage, and headed for home. Eric was getting very excited at this point. All day he talked about going to Grandma’s house! Now, he was ready to go home! We arrived home before 5:00pm and unloaded the car. Eric played outside and helped me clean out the car, while Mommy went to get us some carry out dinner. When the truck was compeltely cleaned out and vacuumed, we took a couple minutes to vacuum Eric’s car (Cozy Coupe). He was happy to have a clean car just like Daddy!