Traveling

AAA estimates 40.45 million Americans will travel more than 50 miles over the holiday weekend. That 40.45 million Americans who will squish kids into the back seat of a car like this:

Hoping that they will do lots of this:

Because the parents will be dealing with this:

And traffic jams that cause this:

And idiots like this:

Who can't read signs like this:

And at the end of the day when you absolutely can't drive any more and the kids can't sit any more you will be grateful to find a place where they can do this:

While you do this:

Then the next day you get up and do it all over again because you live so darn far away from everyone you love. And they are worth it. Really. At least they are a week later when you've finally done all of the laundry, unpacked the car, gotten some sleep in your own bed, and have had a chance to look at the photos of everything fun you did. Time to start planning next summer's trip. Fortunately for me I will not be traveling with the other 40.45 million Americans this weekend. I will be walking two blocks to the lake to watch fireworks. And I will be planning next year's vacation from the comfort of my own home. Phew!

(PS If you think I am complaining, I am not. I am grateful that our kids didn't do any projectile vomiting like the Hinton kids did in McDonald's, the Starr kids did in IHOP, and the Familo kids did all the way through four states on I-95S. Very grateful!)