Memphis: Day 1

Everyone was required to have their picture taken at the start of the trip.

Jason and I love to travel. Amelia and I took four big trips last year to various parts of the country and Jason joined us for two of them. But, since our journey north to Wisconsin in the fall, our travels have pretty much been non-existent. Something about being in late pregnancy and then caring for a needy newborn keeps long car rides and stays in strange hotel rooms at bay.

Amelia snapped my picture from the back seat!

With that being said, these circumstances didn't keep us from talking about where our first family vacation may take us. For awhile we debated the pros and cons of Chicago, Kansas City, Branson, and Memphis. We wanted to stay within a 4-5 hour radius and we wanted there to be plenty of things to do with the kids (mainly, Amelia). Our only other criteria was we needed a hotel with a pool!

Knowing that Amelia would have her spring break in March, we quickly dismissed Branson and KC because several things we were interested in doing weren't going to open for the season yet. Chicago made us nervous because in March, it can still be quite cold there. So, almost by default we decided to give Memphis a try. It helped that the forecast for the weekend we were considering included daily temperatures close to 70 degrees. After picking a weekend and a location, it only made sense to use our favorite method of scoring a cheap hotel on Priceline to see if we could make it happen. However, as soon as the confirmation came that we had scored the hotel at our desired price, I had a moment of panic. Who voluntarily chooses to take a temperamental 3 year old and an unpredictable 2 month old on a 4.5 hour road trip?

We do, I guess.

Amazingly, we were able to load up the car with all of the necessities for the weekend in my Honda Accord that seems to be getting smaller by the day. And when you ask, "What could you possibly need to bring for just 3 days" let me warn you that the list is not short. Other than the expected clothes and toiletries for 4 people (including one who averages 3-4 outfits each DAY) there was also a bouncer (where Henry naps), a double stroller, a pack-n-play (because I don't trust the hotel's version which is undoubtedly germ ridden and/or centuries old), an entire backpack of books/toys for Amelia, a portable DVD player, a diaper bag, etc. Not to mention that the entire backseat is taken up by car seats now!

Jason's picture at the start of the journey--he thought it would be funny to look angry.

We had everything packed up and ready to go just 20 minutes after our anticipated time of departure. About 30 minutes into the trip, Amelia exclaims from the backseat, "Wow! This IS a long trip!". (Obviously, I had advised her that we would be in the car a long time. I thought it was pretty funny that 30 minutes was long to her!). Shortly thereafter Henry woke for the first time and quickly decided he was hungry. We pulled over so that I could feed him and he happily ate on the first side while Amelia and Jason got out and explored the gas station snack selection. While I was trying to extract a burp from the H man, he started to cry and got very upset. Assuming he was eager to start on side two, I tried to get him going only to listen to him get more and more upset. Very upset. Very, very upset. Some might even say completely inconsolable. And did I mention that he had his 2 month check up earlier that day? Did I mention he got 4 shots and an oral vaccine? Yikes! I realized (as I was envisioning an entire weekend of this type of screaming) that I hadn't given him any Tylenol since before his appointment. So, out came the Tylenol and my little man was much happier within 10 minutes of administering the goods.

Sleeping off his 4 shots--for now.

Still leery of continuing on a path that was taking us farther from home, we decided to take a chance and keep going. A few hours later, we stopped to gas up and eat dinner. Amelia got a Happy Meal at every kid's favorite restaurant and her toy inside was something called the "Magic Meatball". This apparently is the equivalent to a "Magic Eight Ball". We explained to her how you can ask yes or no questions and the Meatball will predict the answer. For the next couple of hours we asked the Magic Meatball countless questions: "Is the weather going to be good this weekend?" (no). "Is Henry going to be crabby tonight?" (yes). "Is our hotel going to be nice?" (no). "Are we going to have fun this weekend?" (no). The Magic Meatball started to make us very nervous with its negativity! Luckily none of its "predictions" came true!

Eventually we made it to Memphis and our hotel. We (and by "we", I mean Jason) had promised Amelia a swim in the pool upon our arrival and although it was nearly 9 PM, he followed through and took her for a short dip.

Tennessee welcomes us!

And so ended Day 1! Thank goodness Henry had no further problems and slept, well, like a baby!