Things I Learned From Spending The Day In The Car With My Crazy Children

The kids and I arrived safely in Chicago. We are all in one piece, the van sustained no permanent damage, and my sanity is still intact. All in all, I'd say it was a mighty successful drive, wouldn't you?

The past few times we've made this trip, I've been struck by the fact that 5 hours is a truly short amount of time. It seems endless, but in the great big scheme of things, it's nothing. I also learned a few other things along the way.

1. The ability to control one's bladder is directly proportional to the desire to "hurry-up-and-get-there-already." Constant reminders of what awaits you at the end of the drive work wonders.
2. 2 suckers equal at least one hour of guaranteed quiet. Let me do the math for you: the time it takes to eat 1 sucker = 5 minutes x2 = 10 minutes. Being told "if you sit quietly for 15 minutes, you can have a sucker" = 15 minutes. Carelessly forgetting when 15 minutes is up because the quiet is just so nice = 10 minutes. Total quiet time before the sucker = 25 minutes x2 = 50 minutes. There ya' go!
3. Toll booth attendants have very little appreciation for kids' music cds.
4. Minivans are much bigger inside than they appear to be. This is most obvious when the driver is trying to listen to a child in the back row of seats. Huh??
5. Counting is still the greatest way to pass time. It could be counting red cars, motorcycles, semi-trucks or clouds. It really doesn't matter. If there is something that recurrs often enough to be counted, count it and watch the time fly by.

I'm really not complaining at all. I couldn't have asked for a better trip or easier drive. It all worked out perfectly!