Family Adventure Weekend to Indiana

Evansville, Indiana was the destination of the weekend. Luke had a marathon on the 14^th, so we drove out Friday morning and stayed overnight. It was a family adventure weekend. Isaac wasn't too sure but he was fine going along for the ride. Of course a 3 hour car ride is hard on him. He’s a toddler; always wanting to move and be active… it’s hard to be confined for 3 hours. We drove out right before naptime so we figured the kids would sleep the whole way. Nope, Isaac waited and waited until he finally fell asleep with an hour left of the drive. Ava was a champ too... just quietly riding along, only fussing if she was hungry or needed her binky put back in.

We got to the hotel in Evansville and checked in. Isaac was SUPER excited for the two beds in the room, giant TV and swimming pool right downstairs. We’d told him that he could go swimming after dinner, but we’d arrived sooner than originally planned and we had some extra time to kill, so we suited up and went downstairs to the pool. Ava had never been in a pool before but that kiddo LOVES to splash. She was in heaven – splashing away! Isaac still can’t swim; he’s only 3, so Luke toted him around the pool. He taught him to kick and paddle and even hold his breath. So, naturally, if Isaac can hold his breath above water, he thought he’d be able to do it under water for A second. So… he dunked him. A minute of gagging, choking and crying later, we decided to not do that again for a while.

Ava was done and getting cold so I dried us off and went back to the room while Luke wore Isaac out some more.  15 minutes and a bath for Ava later, the boys were in the room.  Isaac was EXHAUSTED and ready for bed. This kid NEVER asks to sleep unless it’s a dire situation. Too bad it was 3:30 in the afternoon and a nap at this time would completely throw off bedtime even further than it already was from being some place other than our house. Luke still had to pick up his race packet so he took Isaac to that. We were looking for anything new and exciting to stimulate Isaac enough to stay awake.

I stayed at the hotel with Ava, who was now sound asleep in her Pack ’n Play that was generously provided by the hotel.  I flipped through the very limited channel selection on the TV then just decided to lie down and nap along with her. Of course I didn’t fall asleep, I have to be on the verge of falling asleep standing up to be able to sleep during the day. – it’s a very annoying problem.

The boys were on their way back to the hotel after packet pick up and were STARVING. It was almost 5 and since we tend to eat early anyway, I just met them out front and we headed some place for dinner. After discussing it for a second, we decided on Texas Roadhouse since it was literally, 50 feet from the hotel and I’d forgotten our coupons for dinner anyway.

See what happens when you forget things? You’re punished with a delicious steak dinner.

We went ahead and drove over since the car was on and storms were moving in. Good thing we did because after dinner, we walked outside into POURING rain. We went back to the hotel, got showers/baths and snuggled in for bedtime. We were all exhausted and ready to sleep. Isaac was geared up to sleep in his own bed… until the lights went out. Then he decided that he would sleep with me and Daddy would sleep by himself. Then he decided that he would sleep with Daddy and I would sleep by myself. This was the final decision… We all got a restless night’s sleep. It’s typical for Luke prior to race day. I don’t sleep well at hotels because they smell funny, and Isaac doesn’t sleep well any place but his own house since he’s young and used to his routine.

We had an early morning… the alarm went off at 5am and we had to be leaving the hotel by 6am at the very latest for a 7am start time. The Hampton Inn provides breakfast so I was able to break into the goodies before it was technically open at 6 so Isaac could have something other than a granola bar that was in my purse. Plus, I got coffee which, we all know, is a must for my mornings to begin. On the road we were. The fairgrounds/starting line was about 15-20 minutes away so we thought we had plenty of time. Little did we know that there was only one way in and one way out of this place so the traffic was BACKED UP. All of a sudden, with 30 minutes to go before race time, people started jumping out of their cars sitting on the highway and were running across to the fairgrounds. I made the decision to pull out of the traffic line and drive down to the stoplight to go straight through instead of waiting for make a left turn. I got Luke close enough where he could get out (without having to bolt across oncoming highway traffic) and then the kids and I headed back to the hotel for a more substantial breakfast and a nap for Ava. I wouldn’t have been able to get parked and get the kids over to the starting line before the gun went off so I cut my losses and got them back to the race for the finish.

While waiting for Daddy to finish the marathon, Isaac asked if he could take some pictures with my camera. I had my point and shoot because it was scattered thunderstorms that day and I didn't want to risk getting the nice camera wet. Here are a few of his gems:

Luke was done just before 10:30am (raced a PR SMASHING time of 3:23). However, afterwards, his muscles were balled up and he could barely walk. 

After some rest, walking around to loosen them back up and “All Sport” we went back to the car. This was the start of his 30 minutes post run sick-time. It never fails that 30 minutes after a marathon, he’s sick and puking for the next hour. So we had to pull over once before getting back to the hotel, then he barely made it back to the room before heaving again… and again. Our checkout time was at noon so he tried to hurry through a shower while I got things loaded on a cart to take to the car. We were 10 minutes late in check-out but luckily the manager didn't care.

We were back on the road AGAIN to the fairgrounds to check on Luke’s standings and enjoy the festivities. Luke was doing much better at this point and was able to start eating again. 

By the time we were done with his post-run binge, he’d downed a cheese burger, a loaded chicken bacon sandwich, a thing of fries, two hot dogs, a bag of chips, a small smoothie and a vanilla milkshake.  I don’t think I left anything out.  Then, we found out, Luke finished 6th overall and 1st for his age group.  However, the guy that took 2nd place overall was in Luke's age group, so because he got that award, Luke was up for the age group 1st place... we're not too sure about their reasoning on this, but hey. I'm proud of him! 

Isaac also was able to bounce his brains out in a bounce house before getting back in the car at 2pm to drive home.

After the time in the bounce house, running around all day with no nap, we figured Isaac would sleep the whole way home. Nope. He was wide awake and full of questions. I told Luke that he’d be awake until we hit the bridge to cross over the Mississippi River then he’d fall asleep. What happened? We were 5 minutes away from the bridge and Isaac went out like a light. It’s ok though… he woke up super crabby but was able to go down for bed at a decent time instead of having his whole schedule completely knocked off. 

  

 All in all, it was a fun trip with the family. The kids were angels and I couldn't have asked for better behavior. There were no tears and no tantrums… only smiles, laughter, fun and lots of good food. I think Isaac at chicken strips for 3 meals in a row, but that’s OK. Sometimes you have to just go with it and have fun on adventure weekends… even if your toddler isn't getting the FDA recommended servings of fruits and veggies. He’s alive and thriving.  Judge me if you want, I don’t care. 


Oh, and Ava said “Ma” for the first time in the car driving home, so it’s only a matter of time before she associates “Ma” or “Mama” with me! Isaac said “Da” first so it’s only fair that she’s saying “Ma” first. What a chatter box! 

She doesn't say "ma" in this video, but wow, this girl has something to say!

So, to wrap up… Luke broke his Marathon PR by over 10 minutes, Isaac had a great weekend including bouncy house time, Ava said “Ma” and I came home with my sanity mostly in tact! I’d call that a pretty successful family adventure weekend! We’ll be doing this again.