Fourth of July Weekend

We managed to avoid a lot of the beach and NJ Turnpike traffic by taking I-95 through Philadelphia - once we managed to get out of town. The morning was peppered with phone calls from the answering service from patients who didn't realize the office would be closed on Friday and Saturday, which put me behind schedule on packing. Then we finally got on the road and were just pulling onto Route 1 when another call with four more messages came in. Those got squared away while we were getting lunch at Wendy's (still in Princeton, an hour after leaving home).

Then Thea needed a bathroom break so I found the Dunkin Donuts in NE Philadelphia near where I first worked after nursing school, and she was in a graffiti-covered bathroom with an electronic lock, taking her sweet time doing her business. And the bathroom has a timer on the light, so it cut out, leaving her a little wigged out. I managed to get a cup of coffee to keep me going. Meanwhile, Micah was passed out in his car seat so I'm trying to keep an eye on him and on the bathroom.

The answering service conveniently rang again as we were getting close to the Chesapeake House rest area on I-95, so we made another stop and took another bathroom and snack break.

We made it to Oma's by dinner time - which wasn't bad considering how late we started out and all the stops. Micah sounded the "I have to POO-OOOOO-OOOP" alarm as we were on Route 50, necessitating another stop at the McDonald's on Route 301. False alarm. Both kids are becoming fans of automatic toilets and sinks, which is starting to make me wonder do they ask for a stop out of necessity or boredom.

We celebrated the Fourth by using the GPS to got to the German Deli in Virginia and then having lunch at Panera's. Hard salami. Kinderschokolade. German pickles. Good stuff.

Thea and I dropped off Oma and Micah and then went to Target. I picked up an inflatable pool, which turned out to be 81 inches in diameter, which cupholders in the rim and an inflatable bench in the pool. Much bigger than I had originally thought, and it completely freaked my mother out as the electric pump inflated it (in the living room). The kids spent the afternoon splashing around, and then went into the bathtub to get warmed up before dinner.

Thea was less than thrilled with the idea of fireworks, and Micah was toast, so we skipped them. And despite it not being a total flag-waving, patriotic, red-white-and-blue sort of day, it was fun.

Sunday we got going with an agenda of going back to Target to return an item I bought the day before, got to Safeway to get flower and go to the ATM and then head to Watkins Regional Park for train rides and stop at the cemetery on the way home. We made a first stop at my brother's so Mom could drop off something, and then from the back seat Micah was yapping, "I want to see W-i-l-l-i, I want to see Un-kah Kah-rul," so I let him out of the car. And from there he went in and started to play with his cousin and the Thomas trains, then Thea got interested in the trains, and so we hung out there for a bit.

The plans got re-worked so that we all went to lunch at Ledo's together, after we made a quick stop at the ATM and a run throuh Target (thank you, Aunt Shannon for telling us about Thomas the Tank Engine underwear!). Karl introduced my daughter to those machines that you put quarters into and then try to grab a toy or stuffed animal. She didn't quite figure it out, but Micah benefitted from Karl's and Willi's success and we have yet another bear joining the flock. Yippee. . . .not.

By the time we got back to Mom's it was time to load the car and hit the road. Micah checked out and was fast asleep by the time we got to Upper Marlboro and the turn for the park. Thea voted for stopping and waking Micah up, so we went to Watkins Park and bought tickets for the train. Micah was in heaven - we took two rides and then went on the Carousel, then back for one more train ride.

Our pit stop at the park cost us in terms of time, so we didn't get back to Princeton until a little after 10 pm - both kids were awake until the last few miles.

And despite the late night, we were right back into the routine Monday: school van coming at 7:45, Thea going to camp, and me going to work. . . .