This year, John and I decided to repeat a vacation that we had twice done as a childless couple in years past. We both had our doubts about the whole thing...... driving for 18 hours each way with a 16 month old, camping with a 16 month old, trying to attend a multi-day bluegrass festival with a 16 month old, trying to get out for mountain bike rides that we might each enjoy while making sure that a 16 month old is happy, and making sure that we all felt relaxed and refreshed after all was said and done.
In the end, we were more than pleasantly surprised by how it all went down. We were actually blown away by how much more fun this vacation was than almost any other we've been on. Really! Cally was a total rock star in the car, as a camper, at the music festival, and just about everywhere that we went she brought smiles to people's faces.
Here are the highlights:
- Mushroom lasagna at Nana and Grandpa's house-- after four hours in the car, we arrived in Farmington to a delicious dinner that Peg had prepared for us. Plus, Aunt Lynn and cousins Catherine and Chris came up to hang out with us (which is a lot to ask two busy high school kids).
- A "Lie-In" -- Cally's lovely grandparents scooped her out of her pack-n-play at 6am when they heard her talking to her animals and let John and I sleep until 7am and then catch a quick run along the Farmington River.
- A reunion- After a pretty painless seven hour drive, most of which was on the Jersey Turnpike, we arrived in Middlebury, VA where my dear friend Hester lives. Her girls, Olivia (5) and Flora (3) immediately took Cally under their wings and let her blow off some steam at the playground right around the corner from their house. And then, after all the kiddos were in bed, Hess prepared a wild turkey and morels that her charming boyfriend had hunted (and harvested) in recent days. The meal was amazing and being around an old college friend was even better.
- Cally getting goofy in the car-- She totally held her own on the 8 hour car ride to Pisgah National Forest-- when not sleeping, she read books, talked to her animals, or tried on the new shades her aunt Lynn gave her for a belated Christmas/Birthday present.
- The Tent-- We borrowed a mac-daddy six-person tent from the Ganz Clan. Until a few days before departing, we thought we'd just squeeze the family into a backpacking 2-person tent. Now that we've seen the "light" that a family tent has to offer, I'm not sure we'll ever be able to go back to ducking and squeezing ourselves into that kind of cramped space (at least when we don't have to carry the tent on our backs). This set up allowed for us to stand up inside the tent, walk around our blow up mattress, and set up a pack-n-play in which Cally could sleep behind a "wall" separating her from us.
- The Aubin/Weyland clan -- on Sunday night we met up with them. They had driven 13 hours with Isaac (14 months old) and were still smiling when they arrived. Bryan and I teach together and we all play on a softball team together. Last summer, the kids spent some time in strollers on the sideline at our games. They seemed to like each other, in the way that six - eight month old infants can "like" each other.
- Friends- Seeing Cally foster an almost instant bond with Isaac.
It got to the point where Cally would wake up in the morning and immediately walk over to "Baby Isaac's" campsite, not even interested in eating breakfast until she got to see him.
- Mountain Biking-- Being able to go on great mountain bike rides each day because of understanding partners, excellent napping babies, and great childcare swap options was one of the greatest treats of the week. In years past, our days revolved around 5-6 hour rides. This year was a little different, the rides were shorter, but I think we both appreciated and enjoyed them so much more than we ever have.
- Warm Temperatures-- Having the air warm enough for Cally NOT to have to wear a onesie, so she could show off her belly button to anyone who would look (including biker chick grandmothers and young boys).
- Merlefest-- this is a bluegrass festival in Wilkesboro, NC that takes place every spring to honor Doc Watson's son Merle who died in a tractor accident. It brings about 80,000 people to the area for a four-day festival. The line up this year was incredible. We attended on Thursday and Friday. And after two years of attending at this venue, we had the logistics nailed. We loaded the chariot with chairs, food, clothes, toys, and Cally and rode the mile into the concert from the free parking area.
- Washboard Girl- the biggest highlight was seeing Cally take to the stage in the "Little Pickers" tent. Without any prompting from us, she saw a bunch of kids on stage-- playing the kazoo and spoons. She decided to walk up onto the stage and a nice woman gave her a washboard and spoon. Somehow, she knew exactly what to do with it:
She even marched right in with the big kids (as you can see, she's about half the height of every other kid on stage):
When the song was over, the lady who had given her the washboard announced to the entire tent that there was a very little performer in the back, at which time the guy leading the song called her up to the front of the stage. She had no idea what was going on, but took to her first stage experience with a lot more confidence and charisma than either John or I have ever had.
- An Adaptable Sleeping Child- Luckily, Cally fell asleep both night (on Thursday in the Ergo carier and on Friday in her Chariot). This allowed us to hang out and see Sam Bush, Deirks Bently and the McCoury Boys, Taj Mahal, Zac Brown Band, Rhonda Vincent and the Rage and Little Feat (on two separate evenings).
Seeing Family in Baltimore- My sister, Jenn, her husband Rob, and son Will (10 months) live about seven hours north of Merlefest. It was such a treat to arrive at their house and let the cousins hang out. Cally loves "Baby Will" and had a great time tromping around the famous "Tot Lot" in my sister's neighborhood.
Red Sox/Orioles Game- Uncle Rob was kind enough to get us tickets to see the Sox play in Camden Yard. John and Rob caught a game there last summer and he's been talking about it ever since. Having not been to a professional baseball game in a VERY long time, I wasn't really sure what to expect. It was a total blast! Within minutes of getting to our seats, John touched, but didn't catch a foul ball that came careening towards us. And even though our boys didn't pull off a win, we enjoyed the scene. Plus, the kids were total troopers.
Unfortunately, the ball game didn't have the same soporific effect that camping and Merlefest had had on Cally. She was still awake, barely, at 10pm when we were leaving the venue:
- More Goofiness in the Car- Sunday involved the longest day of all in the car-- nine hours of driving. Cally spent most of the time like this:
But then, at 6:30pm, after seven and a half hours in the car, we stopped on Rt 22A to see a big cow moose on the side of the road. When we tried to put Cally back into her car seat, she rebelled for the first time. She actually cried and battled me when I strapped her in. So, a few minutes later, we stopped for dinner, which was akin to trying to feed a wild horse (Cally wanted nothing to do with sitting still in a restaurant). With nothing more to do, but continue driving, we plugged along. Amazingly, Cally never slept until we got home at 8:30pm, but she did settle into reading her books, ripping apart a magazine, and chatting to her animals.
If that is as bad as it gets, we really have nothing to complain about. We had an amazing vacation. The perfect combination of music, activity, friendship, family, and fun. I'll happily hop into a car and take to the road with this team again. Cally, John and I got the road trip figured out. I can't wait to try it again this summer.
