Claire from “Modern Family” said, “I’m a mom traveling with my kids. This isn’t a vacation, it’s a business trip.” I must say, I can relate. We are taking our long awaited trip to Disneyland. And yes, I did win it, back in the summer. But when you “win” a trip to Disneyland, that includes two nights in a hotel and four 3 day passes. Since we have to actually GET to Disneyland, and we have more than four people in our family, our “free” trip is definitely not free. But it is fun!
When I scheduled this trip, I wanted to be sure that it wouldn’t be crowded. We’ve taken too many trips over spring or fall break and seen half of Utah in the park. This time, while we will be there over a holiday, only Monday is the holiday, and we are hoping that Tuesday and Wednesday we can have the park to ourselves. But I didn’t consult with the kids about when they thought we should go, since this trip is kind of a Christmas gift to them. When I told them about it, a certain son of mine was very concerned with how many days of school we would be gone. After figuring it out and after a lot of thought, he decided that he would rather not miss 3 or 4 days of school. I gave him the option to stay home, and he took that option. Can you imagine? A child who would rather go to school than go to Disneyland?! He decided it would be too hard to make up the missed work in calculus and AP physics, among other classes. So, we left him home.
Before you think I just left him home all by himself, let me explain. He’s not totally on his own. He’ll be spending a couple of days with Ryan’s sister and her husband. They planned to take him out and show him a good time, since he willingly stayed home from Disneyland and all. He’s also going to spend the holiday with one of his friends. He’s even going to stay for dinner. Speaking of dinner, I’ve lined up dinner appointments for Cole for every night we’ll be gone. I just called up some friends and asked if Cole could come to dinner. One of my friends was all, “what’s his favorite food?” and I’m sure she’ll put on a lovely spread for him. Another friend likened it to feeding the missionaries, only he’s just one. I’m sure he will eat well.
Yes, he’s capable of making his own dinner, but I wanted him to know that people are expecting him, and care about him. I don’t want him to just stay holed up in the house doing homework all night, but enjoy a nice dinner with friends, and then go home and do his homework. I’m very thankful that my neighbors were all so willing to feed him. I really have wonderful neighbors and friends.
When I called to check on him the first night, he was watching a movie, had gone to dinner at a cool restaurant, went bowling, and had already had a fun day. It sounds like he had a lot more fun than we did driving all day. But the drive wasn’t all that bad.
Now, on to Disneyland!
(be prepared for lots of pictures when we get around to that)
Catching up on your posts, my friend. Love the new car, and I understand your rage–I want a mini myself. Not in this lifetime.
As for Disneyland, I can’t believe Cole stayed home. Whoa.
The people who lived in my old house just moved out, and in the laundry room was a box with some cream and hand sanitizer. Did that happen to come from you? If it did, THANKS! If not, . . .
you are a very nice mother to arrange dinners for him. that is way more than I would do for my older teenagers. i would at least make sure they had enough milk and cereal for the time I was gone. and my kids would do the same thing – i don’t think any of my teenagers would miss school to go to disneyland. too much trouble making up work.