Keiki was quietly chanting "home, home, home" as soon as we got off the highway exit in Massachusetts and then all the way until we pulled into our home driveway late Sunday night (around 9 maybe?) Even though the streets were dark, it was like she recognized the houses we were passing and knew the trip was actually over. Even Daisy was up with wags! The long ride home was not ideal because we decided last minute to outrun the hurricane that was going to be creeping up the east coast along with us if we decided to visit with family so we made one stop in Orlando and then drove straight-through up to my parents in NJ... yup, craziness with a toddler and a dog! It was 4,240miles total that we traveled on this 6 week trip, door-to-door from our home.
Check out from our Sanibel Island rental was Thursday October 1st at 10 am and we actually got out on time even though we were minimally packed the night prior. It's easy to pack when you look around and realize anything you see that's yours needs to just be stuffed in the car somehow. Early in the morning, Brian attached the cartop carrier and we started putting things in plastic bags before putting it up there just in case because you never know just how crazy hurricane winds and rain can be. It ended up being totally unnecessary but better to be safe then have soaked stuff. We ate breakfast and enjoyed morning coffee at the glass table one last time and looked out over the pool to the clam bayou and Gulf while Keiki said "Ocean!" in that cute squeaky voice. Doodles chased her last lizard and we took a deep breath and said good bye to vacation. It wasn't as hard as we thought it would be because we knew the long drive home would be a new adventure in itself.
The Lakes Park in Fort Meyers, FL was a great playground within 30minutes to stop at to get the ants out of our pants and eat lunch before naptime in the car. It's easy to plan travel when food and nap schedules are routine... or so we thought. When playing on an unshaded playground and it is 106*F outside, crankiness bites you quickly! And we are not just talking about toddlers, we were all cooked especially the gray fur-coat dog. Guzzling water, we quickly ate our sandwiches at a picnic table huddled in minimal shade and got in the car. And for anyone who hasn't already guessed, cooked kids don't nap in carseats - whoops, figured that out the hard way. All miserable after an hour of crying and then 35minutes of screaming, Keiki finally cried herself to sleep out of exhaustion around 2:30pm with a blanket over her face to shield her eyes from the light. Eventually got to Orlando (yes, I know it's only supposed to take 3.5hrs, but with potty breaks it took all day), we crashed at the exact same LaQuinta hotel, where they gave us the exact same room316. It was surprisingly comforting to be in a familiar place, but the long day didn't stop there. Its not easy finding a place to eat with a dog, let along a child with anaphylactic allergies but being tired of the same-old Subway we found a HotKrust panini place for something different to eat. But just when you think the worst is over, a terrible migrane hit me and I was throwing up in the bathroom while our child cried herself to sleep in Daddy's arms from teeth pain (molars coming in) and a dog cowering in the corner from all the chaos...*sigh*
Waking up on Friday morning was scary: how were we going to drive ALL day and ALL night to get home if we couldn't even get 3.5hours off Sanibel Island? Buck-up cowboy, this is happening. Of course we had the option to stay put for a few days while the storm blew past but looking retrospectively the roads we were about to take would have been flooded out and closed down so we made a good call to outrun the storm. We survived the day part of our trip much better then the day prior and it lifted everyone's spirits! Making it past Jacksonville by lunch/naptime and then making it up to Florence, SC by 6pm for dinner was amazing distance for us. Unfortunately Keiki had a blow-out pee diaper all over her carseat and long pants pjs so after cleaning her up we ran from the parking lot in the torrential poring rain to the Mellow Mushroom restaurant. Rain isn't bad when eating pizza under an awning outdoor area usually when traveling with a dog but let's add to the mess: we were not prepared for it to be in the 50*s. It occurred to us 38 days after leaving Massachusetts in hot August weather that we minimally packed only shorts and tank tops for our Florida vacation - oops! We all had one light long-sleeved shirt to put on to eat quickly, and to our delight Keiki spilt... no, soaked her only warm clothing in milk -ugh! "But we were ok, we can do this!" we kept saying outloud, but positive thinking can only get you so far. Changing her clothes AGAIN for the fourth time in less then 90minutes, we covered her in a blanket to keep her warm and cozy, stopped at a petrol station for gas, Monster energy drinks, Gaterade, and Twizzlers, and then started driving to a soothing loop of 3 lullabies and both the dog and our bravely enduring toddler were asleep in the back - pfew!
The rain had caught up to us though. Intense rain was pouring down form the sky and cruise control was getting confused by the car hydroplaning through puddles. I carefully choose that word 'puddles' because even though at the time we were thinking the roads were flooded, it wasn't until the next morning watching the news at my parents just had flooded roads could really be in the Carolina's. Originally we thought we wodl have traveled from Florida up through Atlanta and then take Rt85 east for a more scenic route but the Rt 85 was shut down due to flooding already back on Thursday so we choose to re-take Rt95 straight up north which was a good decision. Had stayed where we ate dinner we would have been flooded out. Had we not gotten back on the road when we did, we would have been stuck in the South Carolina state of emergency, and possibly needing to abandon our car. Scary looking back how we were outrunning the storm but it was nipping us at our heels. Only the major cities were on national news the next morning by Brian's father who lives in SC said we got out just in time. Where he lives near the ocean had lots of flood damage too but they were lucky. It was a great lesson on respecting Mother Nature.
I must have dozed off because it was midnight when Brian stopped for gas and we switched driving responsibilities. Despite turning the lights and the dings off in the car, toddlers inevitably still wake up when the car stops moving. She dozed on and off for about 2 hours but by 3am she was awake and babbling like it was morning. Poor Brian had only gotten about 1hr of restless nap and I had about 2hrs in me. Energy drinks make you shaky with minimal sleep and we ate one of those yucky gas station hot dogs because our metabolism was confused and our stomachs were grumbling for something more then chips or Twizzlers. It's safe to say we didn't plan our food very well at this point. Rice Cakes are great for keeping a toddler happy because they fill her up and take longer to eat, so entertain her longer but she was still so cranky and we were exhausted too. By 4am we were somewhere past Baltimore, MD and enough was enough. Pulling off to a rest area (which was quite lovely might I add! Reminded me of the ones you stop at in Ireland) we just parked the car for a half hour to recharge. I took Keiki out of her carseat and held her resting on my lap in the back seat, Doodles decided to camp out on top of the duffle bags in the trunk and Brian stayed in the front while we all listened to the rain. None of us slept but at least we were taking a break from driving and the confines of seatbelts.
Within a 1/2hour we decided it was stupid to keep sitting there. We couldn't get everyone out because it was raining, and we couldn't bring everyone inside the nice, cozy, warm, inviting rest stop with a dog. If we were going to be trapped in the car, we might as well be driving, so we got back on the road. An hour into Brian driving, we found ourselves in a bad area of Philadelphia, PA but needing to switch driving. Keiki kept falling in and out of sleep luckily and I drive toward New Jersey. I love the Bucks County, PA area and since the rain let up I decided to get off the highway for a change of pace. Everyone was still "sleeping" and the sun was starting to rise up on the farms. I wish more people knew how pretty the farms in NJ backroads are, they glisten in the early morning dew. It was a really nice way to end our overnight east coast road trip.
Recovering at my parents in New Jersey on Saturday and taking a stop for Sunday dinner at Brian's Mom's house rounded our trip out nicely. We were home in Massachusetts by late Sunday night and it was surreal for everyone. We must have cleaned the house up so much prior to vacation that the house looked bare. Do we really live with so little on the walls? You would never think we've lived in this home for over 5 years. The dog was excited to check out her back yard again even though it was dark out and like any typical toddler, Keiki walked in slowly to take in her surroundings and whispered, "woah." I think we all were in a fog as we tried to remember how to turn the water and boiler back on. How quickly one can forget these things! Leaving in summer and returning in autumn is strange and it's going to take a while to feel like this is home again. The leaves are turning and the air is cold already! I'm going to need to get a pumpkin and some mums quickly! But nothing was more rewarding then snuggling into my own comfy bed to fall fast asleep. There is no better way to feel at home then getting cozy in your own bed and sleeping on your own pillow - ah! Home sweet home!
