Over the River and Through the Woods... Part I
To Grammavon's house we go.
Yes, we were among the millions who traveled on the most trafficed holiday of the year. (And yes, we will be among the most stuffed today and we will be among the throngs of the crazy 4:30 AM shoppers, trying to get a great deal at Walmart. Hey, I'm always up anyway, I might as well get Mr. Right out of bed too so that we can get some of the shopping out of the way since the kids will be snug in their beds at the grandparent's house! But that will surely be another blog.) Boy, did it look like it was the heaviest traveled day of the year. The gas pump lines were at least 2 deep at most of the stations we passed. There were lots of drivers, but I think the idiot drivers took another road because we had nary an almost accident.
Our journey, usually a four hour jaunt, was, overall, a very pleasant adventure. The kids were good to each other. The girl read to her brother, coaching him to read a sight word every so often. (I think she would make a great teacher, someday.) The boy shared his crayons with his sister. They only had a few "looks from Mom" during the entire trip. Everything was going fine... until we stopped for a "quick" bite to eat.
Our stop turned everything into a bit longer trip thanks to the fine folks at McDonald's.
McD's is not usually our first choice, but, being that it is known for being fast and easily accessible, it quickly moved to the top of the list.
What luck! We walked into MickeyD's and there was NO line! Woo hoo! I'll have a number 3, extra onions, two happy meals, and that rib meal please. Oh look, we got in before the rush. (About 20 people walked in right after us.) We step aside with the happy look of people who happen to be in the right place at the right time. (Nee Ner Nee Ner Nee Ner)
We watched the order of the person behind us get filled and released. Then the next order was completed. What was going on?
"Umm, excuse me, but we ordered before them. Will we be getting our food soon?" Mr. Right inquired.
"Oh yes, sir. It will be right up," said an evil liarhead in a uniform.
Two more orders inside off. Not ours. 25 drive thru orders have zoom-zoomed off.
"Umm, sir, could we have our order filled? And these burgers have been sitting here in the open for 10 minutes. Could we have fresh ones?" Mr. Right, unlike me, is all grace and understanding. Me - I'm sitting with the kids wondering if they had to go dig up some potatoes for the fries. The kids were happily twirling in their seats. They are so easily amused.
"Yes, sir. We were off track for a minute, but we are caught up now. Your order is next," replied the manager.
I look at Mr. Right. He shrugged his shoulders indicating that all is not right in the world, but barring making the food himself, we will have to wait patiently.
Fifteen minutes since we have placed our order, our food is finally ready. If it had been Cracker Barrel or Chick-fil-A, it would have been worth the wait. But a quarter pounder was not worth it. The fries, maybe.
The kids were so happy about their happy meals. They twirled their hearts out on the "cool" seats. The toys were something new to play with in the car. They laughed at each other.
I can learn a lot from my kids. Just find something else to do until you get what you wanted.
I smiled at them and realized that had we been able to get out fifteen minutes earlier, I would have missed these smiles. Life is good after all.
Yes, we were among the millions who traveled on the most trafficed holiday of the year. (And yes, we will be among the most stuffed today and we will be among the throngs of the crazy 4:30 AM shoppers, trying to get a great deal at Walmart. Hey, I'm always up anyway, I might as well get Mr. Right out of bed too so that we can get some of the shopping out of the way since the kids will be snug in their beds at the grandparent's house! But that will surely be another blog.) Boy, did it look like it was the heaviest traveled day of the year. The gas pump lines were at least 2 deep at most of the stations we passed. There were lots of drivers, but I think the idiot drivers took another road because we had nary an almost accident.
Our journey, usually a four hour jaunt, was, overall, a very pleasant adventure. The kids were good to each other. The girl read to her brother, coaching him to read a sight word every so often. (I think she would make a great teacher, someday.) The boy shared his crayons with his sister. They only had a few "looks from Mom" during the entire trip. Everything was going fine... until we stopped for a "quick" bite to eat.
Our stop turned everything into a bit longer trip thanks to the fine folks at McDonald's.
McD's is not usually our first choice, but, being that it is known for being fast and easily accessible, it quickly moved to the top of the list.
What luck! We walked into MickeyD's and there was NO line! Woo hoo! I'll have a number 3, extra onions, two happy meals, and that rib meal please. Oh look, we got in before the rush. (About 20 people walked in right after us.) We step aside with the happy look of people who happen to be in the right place at the right time. (Nee Ner Nee Ner Nee Ner)
We watched the order of the person behind us get filled and released. Then the next order was completed. What was going on?
"Umm, excuse me, but we ordered before them. Will we be getting our food soon?" Mr. Right inquired.
"Oh yes, sir. It will be right up," said an evil liarhead in a uniform.
Two more orders inside off. Not ours. 25 drive thru orders have zoom-zoomed off.
"Umm, sir, could we have our order filled? And these burgers have been sitting here in the open for 10 minutes. Could we have fresh ones?" Mr. Right, unlike me, is all grace and understanding. Me - I'm sitting with the kids wondering if they had to go dig up some potatoes for the fries. The kids were happily twirling in their seats. They are so easily amused.
"Yes, sir. We were off track for a minute, but we are caught up now. Your order is next," replied the manager.
I look at Mr. Right. He shrugged his shoulders indicating that all is not right in the world, but barring making the food himself, we will have to wait patiently.
Fifteen minutes since we have placed our order, our food is finally ready. If it had been Cracker Barrel or Chick-fil-A, it would have been worth the wait. But a quarter pounder was not worth it. The fries, maybe.
The kids were so happy about their happy meals. They twirled their hearts out on the "cool" seats. The toys were something new to play with in the car. They laughed at each other.
I can learn a lot from my kids. Just find something else to do until you get what you wanted.
I smiled at them and realized that had we been able to get out fifteen minutes earlier, I would have missed these smiles. Life is good after all.
Labels: Family
posted by Shalee at 10:42 PM
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