when people ask how our trip was, i pause while my mind spins remembering it all. there was so much goodness. but like all of life, there was balance.

we traveled by car 1880 miles on our journey north.
1880 miles with
a lot of adult conversation,
a lack of playmates,
new restaurants,
sleep deprivation,
newness around every corner,
requests demands for good behavior,
threats of punishment,
deliberate bodily noises at inappropriate times,
punishment,
moments of being so hungry you don’t know what you’re hungry for,
boredom,
traffic,
hitting,
spitting,
pushing,
pinching,
no bikes to ride,
waiting,
too much rain,
being inspected at the border,
too much screen time,
getting carsick if reading…

{deep breath}

all covered by reminding myself that through it all
we are achieving what we set out to do.

{another deep breath}

and we did.
covered by grace, the gift of laughter and protection, we did.