Are we there yet? Are we there yet? Are we there yet?

Taking a trip with your grandchildren is a real privelege and real exhausting!  Their spirits are naturally high just being with gramma and grampa on a normal day, but their energy goes thru the roof on a trip to Disney World!!!!  We warned them beforehand that this was going to be a long car ride before reaching Disney, but I'm not sure their little minds really comprehended how long two days in a car really was!  I have to say, they were good little travelers, tho, and brought along activities to keep themselves busy.  My daughter in preparation for the trip gathered some electronic devices to keep them busy at least part of the time.  My Sophie, aged 8, started with the Nook, on which was loaded a joke/riddle book.  She started asking riddles as we left Erie, and of course, we did our best to participate.  "What do you call a cow that has been thru an earthquake? (A milkshake) Why did the man stare at the orange juice bottle?  (It said concentrate) You get the idea.  After half an hour, only gramma was playing along, and we thought it was only a matter of minutes before she would tire out and give it up and move on to something else.  Not so!  She was not going to give up until she had read ALL of the jokes.  Outloud.  To all of us.  At one point, her mother said that she should pick out a couple more, and then save the rest for another time.  This was somewhere around Pittsburgh.  She chuckled and said, "here's a funny one, this is good stuff!"  I believe she could have continued all the way to Florida, had she not been censured!    Sharon, aged 3, piped up once an hour, to yank her grampa's chain, "Arewethereyet, arewethereyet, arewethereyet???"  Always three times in a row, and always with a little giggle at the end.  Grampa would answer, "not yet, not yet, not yet!' 

At one point, Sophie asked for some "tunes".  We sifted thru my collection of cds, and decided that one we could all agree on (all meaning my daughter, husband and I) was Barry Manilow's greatest hits.  Not being familiar with Barry, Sophie was not enthusiastic about the selection until.......Copa Cabana!  At that point, it was, "play number 7 again".  So we did.  Again, and again and again.  We sang, we danced  in our seats, playing air drums and cowbells etc.  We played it until we (the adults!) could not stand it anymore. 

We arrived in Florida after two days and one night amazed that what we thought would be a tedious trip, turned out to be so enjoyable.  Tiring but enjoyable at having spent some very close quarters and long hours with the kids.  We arrived with the anticipation of Disney, and thinking that the best was yet to come.  We were mistaken.  It's ALL good.  The "best" is in sharing moments.  Little moments as well as big moments.  The best is sharing laughter, and music, and each other's company.  Disney was wonderful, and is a blog for another day.  The trip was the unexpected joy of just being together with my precious girls and knowing that tho this car ride may fade from their memory's, it will never fade from mine.