The Straw That Broke the Camel's Back

This post is going to be deep, very deep.  Take for example that there is a double meaning in the title . . . let me explain . . .

As I mentioned before, Kate and I are joining Dave for a business trip down to Las Vegas.  As much as I wish we could have flown, we drove.  I'm not sure I've mentioned how much Kate hates the car.  Let me rephrase . . . she LOATHES the car.  She has from the moment we put her in the car to take her home when she was two days old.  Apparently she holds grudges, because she still really hates it - a year later.

Our plan was to leave early this morning . . . unfortunately, due to some unforseen happenings, we didn't get to pack yesterday at all, so this morning was insane.  Dave was getting the car ready, I was throwing things in the suitcase like a crazy person, and Kate was taking them out even faster than I could put them in.  Let's just say that we didn't get out the door quite when we had planned.  (A word to wise parents - pack while your kids are asleep, if at all possible!)

I must say, though - Kate did much better than I expected.  We've made this trip, from Salt Lake to Vegas several other times, and they were nothing but miserable.  Today was a much different story.  She was pretty happy the first half hour, then we gave her a bottle and she went to sleep for almost 2 hours!!!  It was a beautiful thing, and a miracle, to say the least.  When she woke up we stopped for lunch.  When we hit the road she was happy for an hour, then took another nap, for another hour.  Unfortunately, she woke up a little before we reached Mesquite.  And that last hour, well, that was rough.  I had emptied out the entire diaper bag, given her my iphone, our water bottles, let her suck on my wedding ring (while it was still on my finger), and well - you can see we were getting desperate!  Needless to say, that last hour was the straw that broke the camel's back.

Once we reached the hotel, Kate was infused with energy.  I thought she'd want to go to bed early (Vegas time is an hour earlier), but instead she wanted to stay up and play, play, play.  Guess she needed to get out all of those wiggles she had to hold in during the road trip.  We took her down to dinner, and our sweet waitress brought Kate her own cup and straw.

After about three tries . . .

Way to go Kate - a not even a year old!

T-I-M-E

Tip #1: T-I-M-E

A family is essentially like anything else in life: if it's going to work, you've got to put in time into it.  I think this quote by Dieter Uchtdorf says it all, "In family relationships love is really spelled t-i-m-e."  So set aside some time right NOW for the whole family to be together.  I think it works best when there is a regularly scheduled time that stays the same every week, but for some families that may not work.  No matter what, make it happen.  Spending time together demonstrates that family is a priority.  And if family is a priority for you now, it will be later.  And it will be for your kids.

Ready, set, schedule family time!