Tough Day

Man today was tough. I don't know if I just started out in a bad frame of mind or if we both just didn't get enough sleep, but things just stressed me out a lot today. Speak of the devil, lol, he just woke up crying again...brb

Gavin woke up at 6am and right away wanted to go outside and play. For the first time in as long as I can remember he didn't want to watch any cartoons or TV, and refused to eat breakfast. All he wanted to do was ride his bike and play with his outside toys. I am pretty patient with him, and I think I compromise very well... but I draw the line if it's dark outside and it's earlier than 7am. I won't go into too much detail, but he pretty much was non-stop on crack all day. I had to drive my FIL to pick up his car at the mechanics around noon so Gavin slept for about 15 minutes and woke up as soon as we got home. That was his nap of the day. I tried everything to get him to lay down, but he was VERY ACTIVE. Finally at 2pm I gave up and we went to Target and played with our neighbor's. By 4pm he was obviously tired and yawning constantly, but still he would not slow down. He wanted to paint, color, play with trains, jump all over Daddy's computer (!!), and dance around the house. By this point I was so tired and stressing about a bunch of bills we have due in a few weeks, so my mood wasn't the best. Luckily Daddy was awake and gave me about a half an hour to shower and de-stress. Thank God for hot showers.

At one point today he pooped outside on the cement and then came to show me. He stuffed a nice bath towel inside our toilet TWICE! I have no idea where he got the idea to do this, but I had hoped the first time was a mistake. Then about an hour ago I went to use the bathroom and there was another towel stuffed completely in the toilet, totally soaked. I'm not sure when he did it or what to do about it. He can open the bathroom door so I can't really keep him out, and since I didn't catch him in the act I didn't get a chance to scold him or tell him not do it again.

I am just really tired and ready for bed. I shouldn't be up right now, but since I had no time to get on the computer today, I am using this time as my me time. So I got him to sleep at 7pm, which is nice and early, but since then he was woken up crying about 3x. I think he just got over tired and is having trouble sleeping. Jon is leaving for the weekend so it will be just me and Gavin the next three days. I hate to complain because there are many military wives that do it everyday by themselves (I don't know how you all do it). I guess I am just dreading not having a person to fall back on have to vent to. I hate to say it, but I really hope Gavin wants to watch a little TV tomorrow, because I can't entertain him for 14-16 hours without a break here and there. There is only so much running around I can take.

Pee-pee time

Well I haven't been really trying to potty train besides having an Elmo video about it and a few books. Gavin has pooped in a potty before but only after I knew he was about to go, so I scooped him up and put him on the seat. I keep thinking when he's ready he will go since he can see that his Daddy and I both use it regularly. I also explain to him often that when he's a big boy he won't need any diapers and he can use the potty to pee and poop in. Well this morning, like every morning, I take off his full diaper and run to grab another one. Right away he starts to pee so I grab a towel and throw it in his stream line. He doesn't like that I covered his pee puddle so he stops himself from peeing anymore. I quickly think fast and ask him if he wants to pee in his potty instead of on the floor. He runs after me and stands in front of his small potty chair and starts to pee inside of it!! You should have seen how happy I was! I was bouncing off the walls. Of course I realize it's just one small step and may not even click with him, BUT every step is a good one. I gave him a gummy bear and told him that every time he pees or poops in the potty I will give him a gummy bear. He has still peed on the floor since this morning, but each time I see him start to pee I run and grab the potty or move him to the potty. So we end up with pee on the floor and some pee in the potty. I never realized how much work this is!

I mean we've only been awake for 2 hours and he's peed at least 4x! I swear the milk just comes straight out of him, lol. Anyway I just wanted to share my special moment. I really hope that he can be potty trained before the new baby comes in December... but if not it wouldn't be a huge deal. I know sooner or later he'll get it.

Wild Animal Park

Well I haven't had a chance to upload the pictures from today's excursion, but I'll update the post later. Jon got a night off from work so he thought it would be fun for us all to spend the morning at the Wild Animal Park. I was as giddy as a school girl since it's not often that he wants to do a family trip or even comes up with the suggestion himself. We ended up getting there just after 9:30 and staying until 11:30. We both hadn't been in at least 5 years so we were amazed at all the new areas and rides that have been added. It was AMAZING! They have WAY more activities for kids to do than the Zoo. They have a Sponge bob show, a Bubble show, bird shows, a kids activity area, a small water area for kids to get wet, a jungle gym area, a carousal, safari rides, a hot air balloon ride.... phew, the list could go on even more, but I'll stop now.

After the Journey to Africa ride we were ready to go home. Gavin had ran around and played at a few of the play areas so by the time we went on the ride he was ready for a nap. We got an ice cream for the road and headed home. After seeing all the neat expansions and renovations that have been done to WIP (Wild Animal Park) I definitely plan on going back. The only draw back is you have to pay $5 for parking and of course it's all the way to Escondido so it's not the quickest trip. I think we'll try and go every month or two from now on. The night shows look amazing too!

Besides that we've stayed indoors the rest of the day. I seem to only handle one big excursion per day now. I wish I had more energy but after a few hours of chasing him around at a park or outing I need some time to recuperate. He plays with his train set and watches some cartoons and then we may take a short walk around the neighborhood before bed. Not the most exciting life but enough to keep us all happy and entertained.

Arts and Crafts

Well today was my attempt at being crafty. I was starting to feel like I needed a hobby so I decided to go to Jo-Anne's craft store and find some thing to do. They are having a sale on kids fabrics so I got a yard of curious george material and made a standard pillow case for Gavin. I sewed it by hand so it took a couple of hours but it was nice and relaxing. Then my friend across the street gave me a bag of random things that she said she would never use- A Beadazzler (so 1980s), a Candle Maker, and a stamp/laminating machine. We beadazzled some of my denim overalls and random things around the house, and I made a candle. I also got corn starch and corn syrup and a few other odds and ends so we can do some toddler crafts later this week. My hope is to do one craft a week. I would like to do more than that but it gets pricey buying all the materials and setting everything up. I never realized I could make my own chalk, finger paint, and bubbles at home. I don't know if it will be worth all the trouble, but at least I can try it out and see.

Gavin loves to help me cook in the kitchen so this morning I let him crack the eggs into the frying pan and then stir them. I let him use our little hand held blinder when I make mashed potatoes and he LOVES IT! I forget sometimes that little everyday tasks are so much more interesting to him, and he really gets a kick out of feeling like he's helped. Why is it always so easy to reflect on the day after it's over? Sometimes I look back at the day and wish instead of getting upset or raising my voice that I had just kissed him a little more, or shown more compassion.

Night Time Zoo

Yesterday evening we met up with a few friends at their kids at the Zoo. We had a great time. They had a live band playing Spanish style music when we arrived, something about it being Fiesta Week until the 1st? We ended up spending about an hour at the petting zoo and colored arts and crafts. A worker told me that they have arts and crafts set up only during the night time zoo. It seemed more busy than usual but there was also more going on so I can see why. I would like to make this a once a week regular trip. The only bad part was as soon as I arrived I started getting intestinal cramps and had to run to the bathroom a few times. I haven't had issues in awhile with my IBS, but for whatever reason it hit me hard yesterday. It's so embarrassing having to run to the bathroom so often and having to try to figure out what to do with Gavin while it happens. Luckily everyone was very helpful and Gavin didn't seem to mind.

I hope today I feel better. Not much more to comment on since I'm half asleep and need to start breakfast. I just wanted to recommend the night time Zoo and see if anyone else is interested in going with us sometime.

New Children's Museum

Wow, we just got back and I am totally exhausted! Gavin had a ball! I was a little bummed because all the fun things I would have liked to do, Gavin was not interested in doing. They had a huge car with paint brushes and tables with clay to mold, also an outside bubble area. I mean everything you could think of it had. He didn't want to paint, didn't want to play with the clay, and didn't want to blow bubbles. Normally he does enjoy doing those things, but I think it was a bit overwhelming to have so many options all at once. What he did want to do was climb up and down the stairs and play with the see through elevator. He LOVED the mattress room they have set up on the 3rd floor. It is an entire room with mattress on the walls and floors and even a queen sized mattress that is propped up like a slide so the kids could climb up and slide down it. He jumped all over the beds and dove into soft tires that were covering the ground. I think he could have just played there the entire time.

They have a rock climbing area for older kids. On the lower level there is a room with dolphins and fish projected onto the floor so the kids can run around and chase the moving fish. There is also a dress up area with clothes... an area with wooden sticks that you can stack, and play wooden cars that you can slide down a huge hill.

It isn't easy to park but I got there earlier enough and found a metered parking spot about a block away. I think it cost around 2 bucks in quarters for 2 hours (not bad). If you use the paid parking it is 10 bucks~~crazy!! It is also 10 bucks per person and kids over 1, so it would have cost 20 bucks just for today, so instead I got the 1 year membership. It's 75 bucks but pays for your entire family (not sure if there is a limit on kids), but that means the three of us can go as often as we want. I put down a guest pass as the alternate pass since I didn't want it to only be for my husband. This way I can bring any guest with me (Grandma, MIL, etc) when we go. When I think about all the paint and clay and supplies they provide you with it really is a good deal.

Now if I could just get Gavin to want to paint, lol. They provide smocks to wear but the paint can still dry and stain so it's best to wear frumpy clothes. I'm sure I forgot to mention other things that the museum has going on, but hopefully I got the main points across. We will definitely be going more often. It does get busy but it wasn't too bad going early and leaving by 11.

Men at rest

I don't know how much longer I have a quiet house so I may have to make this short and sweet. Gavin has amazingly been sleeping since 3pm, and so has my husband! Please ignore his pasty white skin, lol, since he works nights he hasn't had much time to tan.

So while they are both peacefully sleeping I cooked dinner, did the dishes, ate, and just baked a cake. I thought for sure that I would hear a cry or see a head peak around the corner at any minute. I know when Gavin wakes up it will be tough getting him to bed at his normal time, but it is soooo worth having some free time to cook . I love baking but it seems like I never get the time to do it anymore. Gavin seems to cling at my leg whenever I start any cooking projects.

This brings up a whole other topic. I want to start being more crafty and do some fun activities with Gav. I attempted to tie dye one of his white shirts this afternoon, but it wasn't as easy as I thought. I didn't have rubber bands so the string fell off and it looks more like a blue shirt with some light blue smuges on it. Oh well, it was my first try. So any craft ideas would be greatly appreciated! I found some easy sand ones and a few things we could make out of toilet paper rolls, but nothing that seems like a whole lot of fun. I think I'll take him to the New Children's Museum tomorrow morning so he can get crafty and messy there. I heard they have tons of paint and chalk activities for toddlers to do, and the fact that I wouldn't have to clean any of it up is a huge plus.

Better run now so I can ice my cake before someone stirs.

Which Goddess are you?

Which Goddess are you?

Which Goddess Are You?

http://www.quizilla.com/quizzes/7545936/which-goddess-are-you

37% Take another quiz!

You are Hera
You are closest in personality to Hera, the queen of the goddesses. Hera was lovely, elegant, regal and grand - in short, she was a true lady. Hera was also the protector of married women and Hera types tend to be somewhat traditional in love and value marriage, family, children and fidelity very highly. You are also practical and show good common sense.

It's A .....

BOY!!!

This time around he was dancing around doing flips so the tech found out he was a boy in a matter of seconds. It's amazing how she can see something so tiny... I still had trouble seeing it after she pointed it out to me. I was a little sad because I had slight hopes I would be the first to have a girl in our family, but a huge part of me knew it would be a boy. I am greatful that I have all the clothes and supplies for a boy so things should be a lot cheaper this time around. I also like the idea of the two of them sharing a bunk bed and having each other to bond with about boy issues. Now it's time to pick out a name. We already know his middle name will be my dad's name, Peter, but we're still not decided on first names.

As long as he's healthy that's all the truly matters in the end. Now time to prepare!

Will I find out today???

Tonight at 6pm I have another go at trying to determine what sex the baby is. Any tips on getting him or her to open his legs or roll over for me?? I really hope I can find out tonight... but if not I'll just wait another month for my 20 week ultrasound. Sooner or later I will find out regardless.

This morning Gavin and I went out to the beach and had a great time digging holes and splashing around. I hate dealing with the sandy clothes and cleaning up afterwards, but it's worth all the fun we have. I dug a large hole for Gavin to jump inside, but as soon as he sat in it, he decided to bury himself. It wasn't too deep so part of his chest and head were out of the sand, but it looked cute to see him popping up from the ground. AS soon as he was buried I ran to get the camera, but he decided he didn't want to be buried anymore and got out. I discovered later that he had buried his sandal in the hole too so I had to dig for awhile to try and find it.

The water is warming up nicely and the weather is just right. I decided I want to have a Beach Brunch next week or the week after that and invite everyone to come down and enjoy the water with us. Kids have so much fun getting wet and chasing each other around. I haven't determined the exact date yet, but anyone interested just let me know. We can all sit back (HAH!) and munch on fruit and muffins while our kids tire each other out.

It worked for me! Gavin is passed out and hopefully will sleep for a good two hours if I'm lucky.

Zoo

Haha, whoops, I guess I got side tracked and ended up not writing anything about our day at the Zoo. Gavin napped on the ride home so of course didn't nap the rest of the day. On days he doesn't nap, Mommy doesn't get time to write a Blog or check up on her e-mails.

Yesterday I decided to go out and do something we hadn't done in awhile. We have year passes to the Zoo so I thought I'd give it a go and see how much trouble we get into. Gavin was amazing! He didn't throw any tantrums or try and get lost in the crowds of people... he very happily pushed his stroller by each animal and stopped and posed for pictures when I asked him to. I really had the best time I can remember going out in public with him. I hate to say that but the past 6 months or so I haven't wanted to go anywhere with him. He runs away from me and ignores me, and in the end I feel like I drag him home kicking and screaming.

This was the first time we didn't go to the petting zoo or kid area, but it actually worked out better that way. We started with the Flamingos and then walked through the monkeys and Gorillas. We walked further and saw the Panda's, Elephants, Giraffes, Camels, and Koala bears. I don't think I ever walked as much as I did yesterday without some sort of issues arising. I brought ice cold water and snacks, so we stopped on the way and tried to stay cool (it was HOT!). I also ended up getting a soft serve ice cream and it was so sweet to watch Gavin hold it and try his best to lick it. People looked at me like I was crazy for letting ice cream melt all over his hands and arms, but what more fun can a child have then making a complete sweet mess of himself ? After such a good afternoon we got home... but didn't nap. Oh well.

I plan on going to the Zoo more often now. I realized that maybe he had a better time because I wasn't stressing to meet someone or trying to see certain animals. Gavin was glad to be in control of where he wanted to go and not have any time constraints or agendas. My little man is growing up... or maybe it was just a fluke, lol. We all have our good days and our bad days.

"OOO"

Yesterday (Saturday) I went and got my hair done. It's funny how when I don't feel pretty I always feel better doing something different with my hair or getting my nails done. My highlights were growing out and it had been a few months since my last cut so I decided to go short again. It's a little different than what I had in mind, but I'm getting used to it, and my husband likes it. It's so much easier having it short. I don't even have to brush it! The touch up highlights look a lot more natural than they did before (something about a toner and brown hues?), so I guess more natural is better. :D

Gavin spent the afternoon at Great-Grandma's tormenting her cats and chasing the tiny dog around. I guess he discovered how to escape out of her backyard so on two occassions they found him next door at the neighbors house. The next door neighbor is a cute 3 year-old named Sammy. I am really happy that he has a friend to play with when he goes to my Grandmother's house... but at 2 years-old he is a little young to be running off and ringing their doorbell by himself. We'll have to figure out how to keep the gate locked.

Gavin progressed a little more with his speech therapist. He now says "Boo, Moo, and Hoots like an owl." I don't know why it's all words with ooo sound, but at least it's progress. I think he'll start talking when he's ready, so I'm not too worried about it anymore. I have heard of a few boys in our family that didn't talk until 3 or even 4 years of age, and they ended up very smart (Dentists and such).

Well that's about it for now. I'm getting phone calls from upstairs so my train of thought keeps getting interrupted.

Today the only exciting plan is the monthly trip to Costco. YAY!

Sleeping Beauty

Gavin found a tiny corner to hide in today. It doesn't look comfortable but somehow he got snuggled up into this spot and decided to fall asleep there. I don't have the heart to move him so I'm going to leave him and hope he gets a nice nap.

Last night I ended up going to the 3D-4D ultrasound office with my Grandmother. It was great to see the tiny little baby and watch as he/she kicked his arms around. The heartbeat was a nice 150bps. The only problem was that he refused to un-cross his legs! She poked and pushed but he wouldn't budge from his comfortable spot. In the end I didn't get to see what the sex of the baby was. :( Luckily they will have one more go at it next Wednesday night. If he still refuses to open his legs than I'll have to wait until 20 weeks to find out. I really hope this second time he will be more active for us. I did get some good ultrasound photos and a VHS of him moving around, but at only 15 weeks he doesn't look very human yet. It is still amazing to think that I am creating this little person and yet on a daily basis I forget that it's even there. It's about the size of an apple right now so I don't feel any movement yet. I'll keep you all informed as to what I find out next week.

My impatience got the best of me. :P

Much Better

Well today things are going much better. Gavin ate his first real meal last night!! It has been so long since he ate more than one bite of food that I was in heaven watching him stuff his face with veggies and mashed potatoes. He is finally over whatever bug he had so now it's catch up time on all the calories he lost. Today I spent the morning washing the bathroom floor, sink, and toilet, then washed the kitchen floor, and cleaned out the nasty motor home. It took 4 loads of trash bags to get all the dirty clothes and supplies out of it. Then came the emptying of the fridge (Yukky!). Now I have about 5 loads of laundry to do but besides that I am very pleased with most of the cleaning that was done. Gavin is napping so I know I should be laying down and getting a few Zzz myself but I always find things to do rather than resting.

I am debating about getting the 4D ultrasound. I did it with Gavin when he was 16 weeks and found out he was a boy! It was so exciting and the pictures are amazing compared to regular ultrasound pics... but it's 100 bucks. My other option is wait until August and find out at my OB appointment with a regular crummy ultrasound machine. They say they can tell the sex as early as 15 weeks, which is basically what I am now and a few days. My excitement and lack of reasoning says to go now NOW NOW! But then I think about how I should be logical and just wait another month to find out when the cost is covered by my insurance. What to do what to do? Damn, I just hate waiting. They also promise if they can't tell they will do another free visit the next time, so I know I won't be out the money even if it is a little too early to say for sure.

I hate to admit it but I really want a girl. I love Gavin and I would love another boy just as much as a girl.. but I want to buy dresses and do braids and see what it's like to take care of a little girl. I know it would be cheaper to re-use the boy clothes I already have, and it would be easier for the two of them to share a room, but I still kind of wish that it's a girl. Honestly I feel deep in my gut that it's a boy. Jon is one of 6 boys, his brothers had 2 sons, and of course I had a son, so it seems I have the cards against me. I don't know what it is about having boys in his family but it seems that I have a much higher chance of it being male than female. I will update as soon as I know for sure. I believe the Chinese calendar said it was a boy too. (Just my luck) :D

Well that's all for today. Nothing exciting, just recovering and relaxing. Hopefully we can get the strength to go to the park and do something fun later this week. I hate hiding out indoors for too long.

We're Back!!

How do I explain a trip that feels weeks long, but was actually only 4 days? Let's first start with the morning we leave. We left much later than planned and hit the road around 10am. We ended up stopping for a late lunch in Barstow CA at a small 50s style diner. Gavin having been in the motor home for a few hours was not ready to sit down for lunch. I ended up chasing him around for an hour while the rest of the family had a nice sit down meal... I had thought after my husband or MIL had finished eating they would switch off and let me eat, but for some reason no one thought to come help me. In the end they got my burger and Gavin's nuggets to go and we ate on the road.

The heat as we got near Las Vegas was unbearable. The motor home has AC as long as we turn the generator on for the extra power. Well after about 20 minutes of nice AC the generator started failing and shutting off. So while driving through death valley it got to a nice roasting 120 degrees in the motor home. We all layed around half comatose and poured cold water on ourselves to survive. The heat finally let up around 9:30pm at night. Another issue we hadn't realized was that in the motor home going up the grapevine as well as other steep mountainous areas we had to go as slow as 30 miles an hour. Even going on straight aways and down hill we can't get much faster than 55mph, SOO this added an extra few hours on our trip. Instead of 4-5 hours to Las Vegas it took us almost 8 hours. By 10 or 11pm we were just hitting Utah and all very sick and tired of being stuck in the overheated boat. We all just wanted to get to Provo and get a break from the motion sickness. Finally we arrived at Jon's Aunt's home around 2am Thursday morning. Gavin who had slept most of the trip due to the constant shaking and motion of the motor home woke up bright and early at 6am so I may have gotten around 3 hours of sleep that night. Everyone else slept right on through the morning.

Thursday around 2pm we meet up the whole Degn clan. Let me explain just a little about my husband's family. We had driven to visit Susan, his father's sister (Jon's Aunt). She had 12 kids, but 2 passed away so Jon has 10 cousins, just from that one aunt! His family IS HUGE! Probably due to the fact that they are Mormon, but who knows for sure. Anyway out of those 10 cousins they have 34 kids. Sooo Gavin got to meet tons of his 3rd cousins? However they are all related there were a lot of kids to play with. We met up with about half of the clan at a Provo Waterpark and spent the afternoon there. I would like to say it was a blast but with all of us tired and Gavin being too young to enjoy the water slides it wasn't as fun as it could have been. We went inner tubing a few times and got to chat with the family so all in all it went well.

I should probably do a better job at making this story shorter so I'll try and jump through the details. Gavin starting getting a fever and didn't eat much at all on the drive up (we assumed because of motion sickness on the drive). By Friday night we had a very very high temperature and now had not eaten for almost 3 days. We took him to the ER. This was at midnight from a campground site in the mountains on the 4th of July. We had no idea where the nearest ER was located and had to deal with thousands of people leaving after the fireworks and a Hannah Montana concert were over. After stopping at two gas stations to ask for directions and driving about 45 minutes we found an ER and Gavin got seen right away. He was given medicine for strep throat since his throat was red and swollen and his fever was so high. We went home around 3am and Gavin started vomiting. Again everyone went to sleep and Mommy was left to stay up with her sick son all morning. His fever was down due to the Tylenol and Motrin but the vomiting was non-stop for 4 hours. By 7am I woke up my In-Laws and decided to take Gavin back to the ER for fluids and the reaction he had to the antibiotic they had given him. They gave him some anti-vomiting medicine and told us to stop the amoxiclian. In the end they decided it was not strep throat but a flu virus that needed to run its course. So Friday night I may have gotten about an hour of sleep, and was covered in vomit. Gavin spent another day not eating and even now that we are home has only had one bite of an apple. He is drinking fluids but I hate that he hasn't eaten for so many days. I see his ribs and pale face and it really worries me. Anyway he does seem to be slightly better today (Sunday) so I hope he is on the mend.

Saturday due to his sickness and our lack of sleep we decide to leave town early. Susan's 70th Birthday party was that night but there was no way we could enjoy a huge reunion type party with a sick baby and ourselves being so sleep deprived. We hit the road at 11am Sat. and ended up back in San Diego by 3am Sun. This time the ride was much worse since we were all tired before we left and the generator again wasn't working. I started getting sick and throwing up (which is not fun in a tiny port-a-potty style bathroom). The water pump wasn't working either so I had to pour bottled water down the toilet to try and flush things down. Gavin again slept most of the way and his fever was slightly lower than before. Thank God he didn't continue throwing up so at least he drank water and juice periodically on the trip home.

I loved meeting the cousins and family. They are all such nice friendly people and their children were so great with Gavin. The childrens ages ranged from as young as a 7 week old newborn to the oldest , 16, I think. Jon's cousins were older than us (30s and 40s) but we all got along very well. I loved the mountains and the peaceful beauty of Utah. I just wish Gavin hadn't gotten sick and we had not gone in the motor home. Next time we fly and get a nice hotel room to stay at. I have never had so little sleep (besides when Gavin was first born). Hopefully the next few days we can all feel better and get some rest from our Vacation from Hell.

Trip to Utah

So tomorrow, Gavin, my FIL, MIL, Jon, and myself leave for a road trip in our motorhome to Provo, Utah. The majority of Jon's family lives in Utah so it's going to be a huge Mormon family reunion (they are all Mormon). I think it will be fun to meet his cousins and for Gavin to meet his second and third cousins. Thursday is a day at the water park, and Friday is a huge Fourth of July celebration with catered food and fun activities for the kids. My husband is not too excited since he usually sits back at the beach and watches the traffic go by our house, while drinking a couple of 6 packs. I agree it sucks to be driving 14 hours each way, leaving our place which is really the best place to be on the 4th of July... BUT it's for family. We have never visited Utah before and can afford to give up one holiday to have a reunion. I'm sure there won't be alcohol but fireworks are legal so we will have fun lighting off our own display. I think the weekend plan is to drive up to a campsite with the extended family and do day hikes and other outdoor activities. I think we will have a good time.

My only dread is having to sleep in a small RV for 4-5 days. We are all very large people and the space is VERY TIGHT. I would much rather fly up and stay in a nice hotel room, but I can't always get what I want. By the end of the road trip we may all want to strangle each other. :) It will be a trip to remember. I'll update Sunday when we get back.

Everyone have a Happy 4th of July!!