Wow was that title dramatic enough for you guys? Not that I'm known for my dramatics or anything...
Alas, the trip was nowhere near perfect but it was SAFE and that's the most important part.
Where shall I begin? Well, let me TRY NOT TO go into great detail about how I prepped for pulling a U-haul trailer with all of our stuff behind it, from NYC -> Kansas. The summary: We had a decent amount of stuff but not enough where it made sense to pay a moving company to move it (lol remember that statement). So, the logical plan was to get a trailer hitch installed on our Jeep. In most towns, this would be simple, but in Brooklyn, this has about 4,526 steps involved. One being: don't die. You might avoid this by choosing a decent neighborhood to have the hitch installed, not taking a toddler with you, and realizing in advance that you could be waiting in said neighborhood for three hours, with said toddler, for three hours did I mention three hours I repeat three hours. Regardless, it gone done. We survived.
Alas, the trip was nowhere near perfect but it was SAFE and that's the most important part.
Where shall I begin? Well, let me TRY NOT TO go into great detail about how I prepped for pulling a U-haul trailer with all of our stuff behind it, from NYC -> Kansas. The summary: We had a decent amount of stuff but not enough where it made sense to pay a moving company to move it (lol remember that statement). So, the logical plan was to get a trailer hitch installed on our Jeep. In most towns, this would be simple, but in Brooklyn, this has about 4,526 steps involved. One being: don't die. You might avoid this by choosing a decent neighborhood to have the hitch installed, not taking a toddler with you, and realizing in advance that you could be waiting in said neighborhood for three hours, with said toddler, for three hours did I mention three hours I repeat three hours. Regardless, it gone done. We survived.
We spent the rest of the week enjoying Brooklyn. We stopped by Grandma's office (a convenient four blocks from home) and had lots of cookie dates with Great Grandma.
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And of course, there was some non-toddler time for me to say "see ya later" to all of my NYC pals.
Non-toddler time that still meant I was sure to be home before 11:30pm because #mammacanthang
So, back to the story because I'm sure your stomach is in knots wondering where in the HELL I was going with the U-haul fiasco. Well, friends, here's where it gets even more fun. I had scheduled to pick up the u-haul at a location close to my home, at 8am Monday morning. Lucky for me, I managed to choose an EVEN SKETCHIER location than the place I had the hitch installed. I showed up promptly at 8am, which the manager loved because he had barely had his first sip of coffee when I approached the window. Obviously there was a window made of a bulletproof glass because like I said, I choose only the finest U-haul distributor locations. Have I said U-haul enough in this post? Should I be getting paid to give them so much screen time? #questionstojotdownforlater After waiting for quite some time and being glared at for, I don't know, being punctual, I finally got the U-haul and headed back to my house to load it up.
So, back to the story because I'm sure your stomach is in knots wondering where in the HELL I was going with the U-haul fiasco. Well, friends, here's where it gets even more fun. I had scheduled to pick up the u-haul at a location close to my home, at 8am Monday morning. Lucky for me, I managed to choose an EVEN SKETCHIER location than the place I had the hitch installed. I showed up promptly at 8am, which the manager loved because he had barely had his first sip of coffee when I approached the window. Obviously there was a window made of a bulletproof glass because like I said, I choose only the finest U-haul distributor locations. Have I said U-haul enough in this post? Should I be getting paid to give them so much screen time? #questionstojotdownforlater After waiting for quite some time and being glared at for, I don't know, being punctual, I finally got the U-haul and headed back to my house to load it up.
I should mention that I have the best friends in the world, and Kyle, who has been my best bud since we were ten, offered to do the drive with me. He is certifiably crazy which is the only reason he agreed to do this roadtrip with me, a baby, and a dog. Or maybe he's just a really good friend. Probably both. Obviously, I knew there was NO way I could do this alone with my sanity in tact. I was right. Because...
Below, the picture on the left was taken when we were still young, innocent, and optimistic. The picture on the right was taken three hours into the journey when the Jeep's transmission started overheating because apparently, DESPITE EVERYTHING I WAS TOLD, it was unable to pull such a load behind it.
Below, the picture on the left was taken when we were still young, innocent, and optimistic. The picture on the right was taken three hours into the journey when the Jeep's transmission started overheating because apparently, DESPITE EVERYTHING I WAS TOLD, it was unable to pull such a load behind it.
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I won't bore everyone with the logistics - we were stuck in middle of nowhere PA, we exhausted all options, and we ended up paying a hefty amount of money to have a moving company come retrieve us and ship our goods to Kansas. My bank account still hurts just thinking about it. What would ya know, the car worked just fine once it had a significant amount of weight taken off of it's load. Thinking of it now, the Jeep and I may be spirit animals. We drove about seven hours further and retired for the evening.
Don't let this picture fool you - it took Riley about three hours upon arrival to calm down and realize the crib was a place to sleep and not a roller coaster in which she could fling objects at her sleeping mother from. Fun was had by all, even Dutch who wouldn't take "no" for an answer and insisted on snuggling with me. And by "snuggling" I mean snoring directly into my ear and wacking me in the face with his paws that must be made of sandpaper. "Boundaries" - an idea that is not in Dutch's vocabulary.
On this roadtrip I scouted places that a) allowed dogs over 25 pounds b) had a pool c) didn't break the bank and d) were in slightly better locations than aforementioned u-haul distributors (being bitter, it's my favorite). This often proves near impossible to find but luckily I managed to deliver.
The reason I really wanted to find a pool is kind of sentimental. Aside from a method of tiring Riley out before getting back in the car, I wanted to carry on a tradition my Mom started with my sister and I. Whenever we stayed at a hotel, she would take turns waking one of us up early to go down to the pool and get breakfast. It was fun to get one-on-one time with Mom, and even more fun because, hello, POOL! Oh, and breakfast, breakfast's my favorite.
Except...all of our bathing suit apparel had been left behind with the moving truck. So, Momma improvised. Luckily we were the only people at the pool and nobody was around to witness me in my sports bra and workout shorts. Except, well, now...everyone reading this. Oh well, I don't think "bashful" is a word ever used to describe me so...
The reason I really wanted to find a pool is kind of sentimental. Aside from a method of tiring Riley out before getting back in the car, I wanted to carry on a tradition my Mom started with my sister and I. Whenever we stayed at a hotel, she would take turns waking one of us up early to go down to the pool and get breakfast. It was fun to get one-on-one time with Mom, and even more fun because, hello, POOL! Oh, and breakfast, breakfast's my favorite.
Except...all of our bathing suit apparel had been left behind with the moving truck. So, Momma improvised. Luckily we were the only people at the pool and nobody was around to witness me in my sports bra and workout shorts. Except, well, now...everyone reading this. Oh well, I don't think "bashful" is a word ever used to describe me so...
Onward we boldly charged! The next day we made it to Saint Louis, which was an awesome town I truly wish we had time to explore a bit more. Kyle got a much-needed break from our circus and headed off to get a hipster-esque beard trim and hair cut. Riley and I walked around the cute little part of the city we stopped in, and Dutch enjoyed the auto-start in the car. Homeboy needs his air conditioning and rest, Lord knows he works hard for it. *eyeroll*
On day three, we woke up and made the quick five hour jaunt to our destination! I think you can agree everyone was pretty done with being in the car at this point...
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We settled in and got a full night's sleep, then hit the ground running the next day. We went fishing - which is pretty cool because that is exactly what Kyle and I used to spend every summer doing as kids. No joke - we woke up, met by the "rocks" and spent all day trying to reel something in. Riley wasted no time getting dirty and playing with worms. I was all about it until she thought it might be fun to eat them - that's when I had to intervene and let her know that even though the moving company cost us a hefty sum, we weren't quite THAT destitute, yet. YET.
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Kyle left later that day, much to everyone's dismay.
Now, Riley was pretty stellar on the roadtrip. However, once we got to Kansas - different story. This is the part where I completely underestimated and took for granted that she is fourteen months old. I figured, a toddler won't notice much where she is or what she's doing. I was wrong. Oh, how I was wrong.
Now, Riley was pretty stellar on the roadtrip. However, once we got to Kansas - different story. This is the part where I completely underestimated and took for granted that she is fourteen months old. I figured, a toddler won't notice much where she is or what she's doing. I was wrong. Oh, how I was wrong.
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I'm not sure if you can tell from the picture above, but the first few days here were not the easiest. My happy baby turned into an extremely clingy, constantly whining, mopey little thing. What the hell happened?! There was one morning where she woke up crying at 6am and did not stop for two hours. TWO HOURS. Greg witnessed this via FaceTime and I asked him no less than fifteen times if he was sure he wanted to come home (luckily, he still thinks it's a good idea).
I then did what all frazzled mothers do, turn to Facebook. I'm part of a truly awesome group for military spouses that I know I can always turn to for gentle advice or encouragement. When I asked for input, I was reminded that of course the move could have thrown her off. But also that toddlers can be assholes. Loveable assholes, but assholes nonetheless. Someone also mentioned the WonderWeeks app to me, and it has so far been spot on with Riley's behavior. Hearing these things gave me the insight I needed to calm the hell down, take a breath, and gather my patience.
As luck would have it, the moving truck showed up less than five days after us. With the arrival of Riley's familiar things, an addition of a fun pool, and the normalcy of a "new" schedule, her behavior has been steadily improving. Or maybe I'm just numb to the craziness?
I then did what all frazzled mothers do, turn to Facebook. I'm part of a truly awesome group for military spouses that I know I can always turn to for gentle advice or encouragement. When I asked for input, I was reminded that of course the move could have thrown her off. But also that toddlers can be assholes. Loveable assholes, but assholes nonetheless. Someone also mentioned the WonderWeeks app to me, and it has so far been spot on with Riley's behavior. Hearing these things gave me the insight I needed to calm the hell down, take a breath, and gather my patience.
As luck would have it, the moving truck showed up less than five days after us. With the arrival of Riley's familiar things, an addition of a fun pool, and the normalcy of a "new" schedule, her behavior has been steadily improving. Or maybe I'm just numb to the craziness?
Either way, it finally dawned on me how much big changes like this affect children even at such a young age. Maybe that should be common sense, but I think it was a lesson I had to learn myself. This makes me both a bit sad yet also excited for our future as an Army family. Sad because it hurts my heart to think about putting my children through undue stress, but also excited because I know that that hurt eventually turns to strength and pride. All I need to do to confirm this is realize that although our journey to Kansas wasn't perfect or easy, we made it, we did it together, and that's all that matters.
So, this is me saying we're alive and well and enjoying life in the Midwest.
I'm going to try to pop back in over the next few days, but if I don't, just know my next post will involve a HUSBAND THAT IS FINALLY HOME OMG!!
So, this is me saying we're alive and well and enjoying life in the Midwest.
I'm going to try to pop back in over the next few days, but if I don't, just know my next post will involve a HUSBAND THAT IS FINALLY HOME OMG!!
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