My kids

My children are having issues today. Issues that could result in pain....not my pain. I won't feel thing. I'm trying to take everything in stride as I know they are SUPER excited to be leaving in a few hours.

The big disappointment is going to come when they realize that our destination won't actually be reached until Tuesday....NOT tonight. They have no concept of distance/time. It'll be interesting.

I've armed myself....adequately, I hope for any problems. Not only do we have clothing, clean undies, toothbrushes and meds, but we have the necessities: Magna doodles (a.k.a. "draws"), crayons, coloring books, note pads, pencils, flash cards, toy cars, pillows, books, "bankies", sippy cups, cheerios, sodas, juice pouches, snack bags, popcorn, nuts, gum, magazines, dvd player, movies, video games and cell phones. I even went to the dollar store and spent $41 on new and fun things for when the kid get board with the above. I hope I packed enough.

The worst thing is going to be the many "sanity" stops we make. When we first pack the FTU (that stands for "Family Transport Unit"....I REFUSE to drive a minivan) it is packed with the care and forethought of a NASA engineer. Everything fits like a puzzle. Gone are the days of 1 suitcase...no we have 3 suitcases, 3 tote bags (not book totes, but packing totes) 4 book tote bags and 2 of the GIANT ziplocs full of toys and puzzles. Oh yeah....one back pack full of books. Then we have the walmart sacks full of "consumables." This will take about 40 minutes to load up due to the care that will need to be taken to ensure that 6 people can sit comfortably and safely...all the while making sure the whole aerodynamics of the van....*ahem* FTU are not compromised.

Fast forward 3 weeks. Aerodynamics are OUT THE DOOR! We will now have WM sacks of, not consumables, but of dirty undies. We will question HOW we got everything into the FTU in the first place AND we will just hope that we make it back to Texas with 4 boys.....Bonus if they are all ours.

Please keep us in your prayers as we travel. We not only want safety, but sanity. AND it would be a nice touch if we all had fun and enjoyed each other's company.

God bless....I'll "see" y'all in a few days.