1300 miles

If someone would have asked me a year ago if I would ever consider driving 1300 miles with three boys under the age of six all by myself, I would have laughed hysterically and given them a big fat "No way!!" Moving up to Utah has given me confidence I didn't know I had.  For spring break, I wanted to go see my family and friends, and since Jason had to work, I decided to tackle the drive on my own.  The drive itself was much easier than I would have guessed.  All my boys are pretty good travelers.  Blake is a VERY fussy baby, but when driving, it seems to actually calm him down.  I made each older boy a food back filled with various snacks to last them the whole trip.  I also had a bin of toys next to me so I could throw toys at them when they got board.  I brought lots of CD's, (Jason laughed at me that instead of hooking up my iphone to my radio to play my music, I decided to bring all my high school  CD's).  The drive was long, but the hardest part was having to stop half way through at my grandpa's home near St. George.  I wish I could make it all the way, but driving by myself, I just get too tired.   I love seeing Poppi and Valerie and spending time in their new home, but stopping was hard with the boys.  My Grandpa and his sweet wife Valerie have a very nice home...which doesn't mix with three little rambunctious boys.   I had to bring all three in the bathroom with me, because I didn't dare leave them alone to destroy the house when I wasn't watching, ha ha ha.  The first night Wesley didn't  get to sleep until 5am.  He tossed and turned all night complaining his ear was hurting.  I got maybe two hours of sleep.  We woke up early to finish the remaining six hours of the drive.  I only stopped once at Mc Donalds to eat and use the restroom.   The line was very long.  It was 10:30 am, the boys wanted happy meals, yet they were still only serving breakfast.  I waited about 30 min in the line, and another 15 min for the food.  This "quick" stop took over an hour.  However, the rest of the drive was pretty easy.  We finally made it to my parent's home, and I was exhausted.  Not long after we arrived, Wesley starts complaining about his ear.  My mom and grandma had made a nice Easter dinner, but I ended up having to take Wesley to Urgent Care,  just two hours after we got to Cali.  He had an ear infection, and after spending over an hour at the doctors,   I then had to find a pharmacy. I finally got back to the house  2.5 hours later...even more tired.   Between being so exhausted,  driving all day, and not drinking very much I started to get a migraine.  Blake decided to help me out a little more, by screaming half of the night.  My parents have a small home, and the three boys and I were in my brother's old room.  Blake is a baby who needs routine, and the poor little guy was confused and probably scared.  My head was pounding, and my mom tried to take him for me, but he just wanted me.  He finally fell asleep (against me in the little twin bed), and my headache finally went away.  I was starting to doubt my sanity for tackling this trip alone.  However, after that things settled down and I was very grateful I decided to make the journey.  Blake never did sleep well, and woke up around 2 or 3 every single morning screaming.  Even if I got him back to sleep, he was usually wide awake around 5 or 6.  I was so exhausted that whole week, but it was so worth it!!


 We didn't do anything extraordinary while I was down, but I really had an amazing time.  I enjoyed my time just relaxing each morning with my mom, and spending time with her.  It was fun watching movies with my parents at night, and going out to eat with my family.  We had fun going to the park, and just being together. I loved seeing my Grandma, and it was so sweet to see Chase sit in her lap reading books.  He opened up to her more when we were down on this trip than in his three years of living down there.   We did go to the beach, to the San Dimas Nature center, and to the local mall.  I also got to see some old friends from my old ward, and I went out to dinner with my best friend and her hubby one night.  It was so nice to see them and catch up.  Its amazing how much more I appreciate everyone now that I am far from them.  I also took Wesley to his old kinder class.  His little heart was pounding with excitement as we drove down to his old school.  It has only been about 4.5 months, but to a kid, that is a long time.  He was like a celebrity when we walked in.  No joke.  Those kids surrounded him, and were SOOOOO excited to see him.  They all yelled, "WESLEY IS BACK!!!!"  It melted my heart and broke it all at the same time.  It was so sweet to see how excited they were, but I felt so bad that they missed him so much.  We were only there about 10 minutes before school got out, and he was so sad when they all had to go home.  It was such a sweet and important moment  for Wesley to get to see his friends and teacher again. 

Even though this trip wasn't exactly a vacation, it was much needed break.  It was so nice to see everyone.  It taught me that I can do hard things (and the things I used to think were hard, really are not that bad).  Living in Utah has made me appreciate all the people in my life that I used to take for granted.  I know I don't get to see my family as much as I used to, but when I do, I think the experience is so much richer than it used to be.  I had been really homesick before traveling back to Cali, but now I'm renewed and grateful for my friends and family in ways I've never been.  I love California and always will, but now when I visit, I am reminded how incredibly crowded it is, and how dirty it is.  Its amazing that only five months away can give me such a new perspective.  Even the areas of my home town that I used to think were nice, don't look as nice anymore.  However, even though I notice the smog, crowds, litter, and crazy people way more than I did when living down there, I also see the beauty more than ever.  I have come to understand the importance of family and friends more than ever.  I am very grateful. 


When I lived in Cali, I could go a year without going to the beach and not think anything of it.  However, now that I am so far from it, I miss it like crazy.  My boys LOVE the beach, and  it was fun getting to play there for a few hours while I was down.  Blake loves playing in the sand, and it was so cute seeing him have such a wonderful time.   I didn't hear a peep out of him for the whole three hours (which is unusual for him).   He was absolutely filthy when we left, but seeing his sweet smiles as his played in the sand was well worth it!

At this moment, this little guy was probably the happiest baby in the whole world. 

San Dimas Nature Center.

My Dad used to take me to the San Dimas Nature Center when I was a little girl.  I haven't been back in YEARS, and had nearly forgotten about it, but while thinking of places to take the kids, it popped into my head. 

The boys also had fun playing in the water in the front yard. 

Fun at the park with Grandma

We went to a super yummy Mexican food restaurant (there are not a lot of good ones in Utah that we have found).   Blake loved the food.  He is a true California baby. 

Before heading back to Utah, on Sunday I went to my old ward.  It was sooo nice seeing everyone.  I just wanted to stay for sacrament meeting, but the boys were getting restless and tired, so I left like 10 min early.  I didn't get to say goodbye to some of my friends, but I was able to change the boys and get on the road. On the way back home to Utah we stopped at my Grandpa's again in St. George.    Poppi and Valerie took us to a park so the boys could get their energy out.  The boys went to bed great that night (hallelujah).  However, Mr. Blake woke up at 4 am bright eyes and bushy tailed.  I turned on the light (the other boys were still sleeping), and here is a picture of Blake in all his happy, early morning cuteness.  I was exhausted and grumpy, but once Blake is up - he is up!  :-) I ended up waking up the other boys so we could leave early and make it to Chase's to preschool on time.  It is a four hour drive from their house back home.  I was really tired, and we made more stops on that four hour drive than we did the other 15 hours we had driven.  We made it to Chase's school with one minute to spare!  Talk about perfect timing!