Living in the Pacific Northwest for the last 20 years, we have seen a lot. But with family living in the southwest, our travels often take us to other places as well. My children are now entering their pre-teen years and this brings a whole new set of challenges. After 10 years of being a stay at home mom, I entered into the workforce at my children's school. Working hard and still getting to eat lunch with them brings me immeasurable satisfaction. We love to pick up and go where ever we can just be together. Although we like the activities, we have found it is in the time together that we find the most satisfaction. So if we are hiking the Grand Canyon or simply sitting quietly by the lake, we love just hanging out together. I am convinced that one day my children will grow up and all the bickering will stop and I will no longer hear "how much longer" coming from the back seat. It is at this time, I want to remember all the things we did to encourage adventure, learning and love in our children.

adventurous, easy_going

Sun Shinny Arizona

Any where we can put up a tent and put our feet in the water!!

The East Coast

Narrowing it down to just one is like trying to name your favorite child. It just doesn't happen for me. There are so many great memories. I try to always be aware of the moment I am in. To realize the joy in my children's faces, the time that is fleeting and take all the emotion in. Each trip has its ups and downs and although there have been several memorable trips, it is the everyday, joy of being a mom that I love. If I wait for a vacation to realize this, I have missed so many opportunities to make memories. I know that when we travel, it is the emotional memories that I try to capture. The kids and my husband will each tell you a vacation they remember most, but for me it is that bright joyful smile or the moment they drop their mouth in awe at seeing something new. All too soon they will be gone and I will be reminiscing about the years we had together. Although the trips may trigger the memory of when somthing wonderful occured, it is that emotional moment I want to remember. It will not be the places we visitied or the things we did that I necessarily want to remember, but the joy on their faces and the wonder in their hearts that we had when we were together.

Traveling with children always has its moments and it seems like to some degree or another we experience a moment just about EVERY time we travel. One time in particular I was traveling alone with two of my children, then only 18m and 2+. We traveled by air, which I thought would be easy enough since I had done this so many times before when they were infants. Little did I know that potty training brought in a whole new set of rules. After a stop to pick up new passengers, we had about 1/2 hour layover in which I was glad we did not have to switch planes. However, to my dismay my 2 year old decided she needed to use the airplane potty. With the airline attendant helping with my youngest, I quickly took my little potty go-er to the airplane bathroom. However, for any of you, who have ever had the opportunity to squeeze into one of those little spaces, knows fitting TWO of you in there makes it quite tricky. After much a-do, I realized her FEAR of the shiny metal potty and I quickly realized I had to get her to a REAL bathroom. I packed up my other child and all my belongings to actually RUN to the potty nearest our gate. I was just hoping I didn't miss the plane getting back. Who would have thought the airport bathrooms would be just as bright and shiny as the airplane? Needless to say, my little one dismissed that opportunity as well. (Try holding one infant while taking another to the bathroom amid trying to get your entire luggage into one of those little airport bathrooms-quite a site!) Back on the plane I thought we would try the airplane potty again once we took off. I mean, how long can one hold it???? No sooner had the doors closed my little one starts crying for the bathroom. The empathetic assistant eyes her top to bottom and wispers, "If you hurry you can use the bathroom". Did she know who she was talking to??? A mother with two little ones- one of which can't decide which bathroom to use-"hurry" is not in my vocabulary. I thought this time would be it for sure. Yet, once again, the assistant is banging on the door, "M'am you need to take your seat!!" A heavy sigh of failure yet again, I emerge from the bathroom at the front of the plane to an airplane full of irritated passengers. Only then did I discover that at that very moment, as my little one and I stood at the front of the plane and the pilot was backing out of the gate that my little potty go-er decided that was the moment to go to the bathroom!! Horrified, with a little puddle amid our feet, the assistant quickly had the plane come to a complete stop. After cleaning the mess and stripping my child down to nothing in front of the entire aircraft, I realized I was missing a bag full of clothes! I wrapped my naked little one in an airplane blanket and spent the next leg of the trip trying to convince my child that flying with no clothes wasn’t so bad. Fortunately, we later found the bag of missing clothes and my little potty go-er was none the worse for the wear, but I was frazzled to say the least. It may have been the worst travel moment flying, but by far, but now I can honestly say it was the funniest.

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