DAY TWO 9/14 Indiana to Chicago
Michael woke up once in the middle of the night for a fresh diaper and a feeding. When he woke us up again, it was after 7, so we decided to just get on the road. Once we were headed down the highway, I got dressed and picked out clothes for the kids. I figured the first time we had to change either one‘s diaper, the clothes would be right there to change their outfit, too. It was actually nice for me because I had as much getting-ready and bathroom time as I needed, which is rare on mornings when both kids are up (and not strapped into a carseat). And David got in some quality driving without any background whining or crying. The kids both went back to sleep, but not for long. We pulled over in a truck stop at about 8:30. We had cereal and got both kids changed and David fed the dogs outside. He took Nora for a little walk while I fed Michael, and she promptly stepped in dog poop. (Not ours. We clean up after ours.) So that was the first tragedy of our little trip. One poopy tennis shoe. Of course she couldn’t have had her hiking boots on when it happened. It had to be her cute blue and pink Sketchers with the sparkles. So one of her tennis shoes is currently in an outside storage compartment until we can find a garden hose or something.
David met with quite a bit of traffic craziness on the way into Chicago, of course. We would go from being at a standstill to needing to squeeze into another lane at 50mph. There was tons of construction and the lanes were about 8 feet wide, which I think is how wide this camper is, with concrete barriers on both sides. Glad I wasn’t driving. We made it into Forest Park before noon Central time and rang the doorbell of some friends of ours. We came in and visited, then let her get back to work. We walked to the corner store and grabbed some charcoal for grilling out this evening in their backyard. I can’t wait to have these pork ribs, mostly because they are taking up an entire shelf in our very compact refrigerator.
I’ve already decided to rearrange one of the cupboards. We had one section designated for dog food, the spotlight, the manual for the camper, and the sunshade we put up behind the driver’s seat at night. I decided we need to move the dog food underneath, to where the dogs’ dishes are kept, move the spotlight to the cupboard over our bed, and use the remaining space for snacks. Currently our dry goods and snacks are crammed in so tightly that the peanut butter nearly falls on Nora’s head every time I open the door, the bread is smooshed and I can’t reach the goldfish crackers without standing on the dinette bench. Otherwise the way we are packed seems to be working out well. The clothes are all in the closets on either side of our bed. Kids’ stories and blankets are above the bed in the cupboards along the ceiling. Leftover containers, foil, paper towels and the toaster and griddle are in the drawer underneath the fridge. Hot mitts and dish towels and bibs are beneath the oven in a drawer. Dishes and pots and pans are over the sink, as always. Most of the dry goods are above the dinette. Diapers and wipes and tissues and emergency kits are above the couch. Enormous stores of backup diapers are under our bed, along with laundry detergent, rags and beach towels. Large items like the Pack-N-Play playpen, Michael’s screened tent platform, the bassinet and the diaper bag are kept in the cabover bunk, next to the space David walled off for Nora to sleep in.
The freezer is packed so tightly that a bag of bagels falls out every time David opens it to get his coffee.
-------------------------------------------------------
We had a great evening with friends. We had dinner with Alison and Doug. Dinner prep was a bit problematic, as David asked me to do the indoor stuff (beans, frozen vegetables and brownies) and I haven’t actually cooked in so long that I forgot to stir the beans, and I was trying so hard to figure out the brownies and run out to the camper for ingredients that the water for the veggies was boiling on the stove and the veggies were sitting idly by, innocently hiding in their bag. David gave up on me and ended up doing it himself. I could blame it on an unfamiliar kitchen, but that would be a cop-out. Nora also hit a rough patch. Literally. She stepped off a concrete patio in the yard onto the uneven grass and took a tumble, apparently twisting her ankle. She will only admit that it hurts when I put her shoe on or take it off, but she is limping,
After dinner, Nora had her requisite cup of milk and two stories. Then she went to bed in her fabulous, exciting “upstairs bed” (in the cabover area). Exciting as it was, she was knocked out in about 5 minutes, after just a single, plaintive call of “Mama?”
We were joined by another friend, Michael. We had a really nice time sitting around, having a few drinks, and talking about politics and religion. It was quite refreshing discussing such topics with people who have different views and doing so without any raised voices or hurt feelings. Even the two infants stayed quiet! And is was just nice being with old friends. Our bodies are still on Eastern time, so we turned in around 10:15 pm local time.