Excerpt from my private blog:
More often than not, if you see me driving in my van during the day, it's because I wanted to escape from my house. Yes, my kids are with me, but there's just something about having them strapped in their car seats - where they can't run around or can't take each others toys and can't jump on the beds - that make a van ride an easy out.
We bought our van only weeks after we had Sarah. And since I began my life as a stay-at-home mom with her (after working for two years after I had Caleb) I quickly found out how using my van as a way to lower my blood pressure worked for me. If I couldn't get Sarah to sleep or if Caleb was being more rambunctious than normal, I would just quickly load up the kids in the van and drive around town. I often found myself driving through the cemetery - just a pretty, peaceful place. I would drive around neighborhoods even if I didn't really know anyone who lived in those neighborhoods. Drive and drive...in hopes that the kids would fall asleep or settle down.
Even if they didn't fall asleep...at least I was out of the house...and they couldn't bother me or each other.
Now it's three years later, you'd think I'd be a pro at this stay-at-home mom thing. And yet, I still find myself loading the kids in the van and driving through St. James quite often. Caleb and Sarah won't fall asleep, but sometimes Gabriel does. And it's quiet once again.
The worst part about this is my habit of going to a drive through if I'm in my van. So the more stressful my day, and the more I want to take a drive, the more I'm prone to eat. And if you've read my blog for very long, you know I'm an emotional eater anyway.
This is a bad combination.
My van is my friend. It's almost like I have an emotional attachment to it. It keeps me sane. I'm not sure what I'd do without it.
Last Night As Family of Five
8 years ago
3 comments:
You know I never thought about it that way, but that's a great idea! I just blogged about how nice it is to get back to the safety and sanity that is the car after a shopping trip with the kids.
Next time I'm having a rough day, we're going to load up and drive around Steelville!
PS. It's nice to hear that I'm not the only one who gets a little weary, even though being at home is what I want more than anything else. Thanks! :)
I too love my van :) And it keeps me sane some days too!
I use to do the same thing all the time, until Amelia came along. She doesn't like the car seat that much, and so it tends to raise my BP instead of lowering it. Loved reading this.
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