Riding in cars with boys.

Last weekend we drove down to Alabama in the family minivan, rented a small Budget truck, cleaned out my in-laws house of furniture and things we wanted, and then drove back to Kansas City. This all happened between Thursday evening to Monday afternoon. My husband drove the truck back, and I drove the minivan, with both boys and the dog. It's a twelve hour drive, each way.

This was not a vacation. Well, I guess it sort of was for the boys, as they got to spend time with their cousins, whom they adore, for the first time since last 4th of July weekend. And despite loading fantastically heavy sofas and bed frames into a moving truck in the drizzling rain and Alabama humidity, it was kind of nice just to get out of town. The physical stress was actually kind of a nice, cathartic change of pace from the usual mental stress. Although there was plenty of mental stress to be had in the situation.

Cleaning out someone's home is a very weird thing. It feels like you're looting. When you're trying to take a detached, non-emotional look at whether or not someone else's things have value to you - Do we have a place for that? Would that fetch a decent price? - knowing that those things have/had emotional value to someone else, it is...weird. And exhausting. But that's really all I have to say about it.

On the way home we drove through some of the toughest weather I have ever had the displeasure of driving in.  Although I've made that trip several times, usually my husband is driving or we take turns. I've never had to do it by myself before, much less with a carload of cranky little boys who are very tired of the DVD selection you have on hand.  But we made it it, and we returned to our home in time to enjoy a drink with neighbors during Monday evening's Memorial Day culdesac party, and then start another crazy week.  School is out, summer break is here. Work is crazy busy. Life goes on.