Alana Smith
On the way home recently, I saw a small, pink New Balance shoe on the side of the road. A nice shoe that was no doubt supposed to still be on some 3-year-old feet when they arrived at their destination.
I can just picture the mom in this story, as she is unbuckling her daughter.
“Where is your shoe?”
“Outside.”
“Outside? What did you do with your shoe? We had your shoes on when we left!”
“My shoe is gone!”
“WHERE?”
And then the mom thinks about it. While sitting at a red light, her daughter wanted the window down. It was hot outside, and she was not in the mood for the heat, but the 3-year-old whines coming from the back were more annoying than the humidity.
So she rolls the window down and thinks of all the things we moms think about.
And out the shoe went.
Tossed out as if she was feeding the birds. Or maybe she just wanted to watch it fall. Or she just didn’t like that shoe, all of a sudden.
My toddler will do this, with a cracker or some raisins, and then he will immediately regret his decision.
“I want my cracker!”
“Well, why did you throw it out the window?”
They don’t know. They just did.
Obviously, the mom with the shoe decided to leave it there, as she didn’t have time to drive back across town. Or maybe she didn’t know where she was. Or she didn’t care.
That’s the thing about traveling with toddlers — it’s not for the faint of heart.
And since it’s July, a lot of parents are gearing up for road trips with young kids. And boy, do I feel for you. And myself.
There will be loads of whining, questions, snacks and potty breaks. If another sibling is in the car, there will no doubt be poking, yelling and arguments like, “I wanted that book! That’s my book! Stop touching my book!”
The question, “Are we there yet?” will be asked before ever leaving your hometown.
Someone’s seatbelt will not agree with them. It will be too tight and then completely locked up, in anger against the child fighting it.
And everyone will be cold. Except for Dad, who will be hot, thus everyone else will be cold. Bring some blankets.
Mom will likely get so sick of answering the children and refereeing the battles that she will pretend she no longer hears them, and then Dad will have to start speaking.
And you must always be prepared for the worst. Please have a grocery bag handy in case any child gets car sick or has a terribly untimely GI bug.
Lastly, the one thing that will derail your entire road trip is a major traffic jam. There might not be a scarier sight out there to a parent, than one thousand red brake lights. Sitting still for over an hour on the interstate creates one very hostile car environment, so you’ll need all the toys, tricks and probably some toilet paper.
Happy travels y’all. And Godspeed.
