On Our Way!

roadmap by Validat1on

Today marks the beginning of our journey to St. Augustine, Florida. For those of you who read my blog post on May 12, you will remember that my two boys and I will set off on a 23 hour car ride to visit my aunt and uncle. It will take us two and a half days to arrive to our beach-y destination. We leave tonight at around 5:30 p.m.

The bags are packed. The car is 98% loaded. The movies are rented and the laptop is charged – and the car adaptor for the laptop is also included! The boys have programmed their iPods. The car is gassed up. The GPS is programmed and the Mapquest directions are tucked neatly into the glove box in case our Magellan Roadmate GPS system (endearingly dubbed “Maggie Magellan”) sends us on an unexpected detour.

As prepared as I am for this trip, I also have to confess that I had never really prepared myself that, at age 41, I would be taking a family vacation with me as the “head of household”. Since I was a girl, I always pictured the perfect familial situation. Mom. Dad. 2.3 kids. Dog. Mini-van.

OK…so it is just me, the two boys…the dog is being boarded with my sister… and my small, yet fuel-efficient car. “Maxine”, the name we gave to the car years ago, and Maggie Magellan will, with any luck, harmoniously interface together in order to guide us safely to our destination.

It is a heartbreaking and agonizing, yet, joyful journey of learning and growing that has brought me to this point. But these days I am happier and braver than I ever thought I could be. If I WAS in that “perfect familial situation”, I might be too afraid to step out of my comfort zone and do things that are a little scary. And I think this is an okay thing to pass along to my kids.

So, as I set off on this journey I relate to a great quote I picked up from one of my favorite shows, “Sex and The City”. Carrie, one of the four main characters in the series, writes:

“Maybe our mistakes are what make our fate. Without them, what would shape our lives? Perhaps if we never veered off course, we wouldn't fall in love, or have babies, or be who we are. After all, seasons change. So do cities. People come into your life and people go. But it's comforting to know the ones you love are always in your heart. And if you're very lucky, a plane ride away.”

We are off to see some of those important people in our lives who are a plane ride away. It may be a roadmap we will be following to Florida….but it is the roadmap of my life that has really brought us to this day where we embark on our journey. I very much look forward to each and every mile.

Until next time, I remain…..1SweetMama