Getting ready for a family vacation takes a ton of work. It’s almost like the universe wants to REALLY make sure you appreciate your trip because you had to work so damned hard to get ready for it. Work never fails to explode the week you’re trying to tie up all your loose ends and then there’s the packing, cleaning, laundry, meals, cleaning… oh wait. No, that’s right. So. Much. Cleaning.
Before our big trips to OBX I typically fill a giant plastic tote with all the non-perishable food and supplies I can fit because its cheaper to shop here at Aldi than on the island when we get there. When we arrive I run to pick up meat, produce and dairy for the week and we are all set. For this trip we are taking our first ever Jersey shore vacation (and I’ve lived here my whole life!) and we will be pretty tightly packed into one vehicle. To save some space I decided to cook and freeze some meals ahead of time which will also allow me more time to sit my ass in the sand when we get there. I spent my lunch hour today prepping and freezing said meals.
During the rest of the day I was cleaning like a beast, doing all the dishes as I cooked, running loads of laundry and generally trying to get the house in order for the dog/guinea pig sitters. I tried going room by room for the big clean so that before we leave its a quick sweep and wipe down, etc. Of course, children make this 457 times more complicated than it needs to be.
After I cleaned the bathroom, my boys took a bath and got half the damn tub water on the floor somehow. There goes 1 of 2 of my last clean towels…
Following all the standing/cooking/cleaning in my kitchen I was just putting the trays in the chest freezer when another child took out the ice cube tray that had JUST been refilled with water which landed all over the floor which now equals zero towels left. Guess the next load should be towels if I hope to shower in the next week.
Between tasks I had to keep yelling “STOP OPENING AND EATING ALL THE VACATION FOOD!” approximately 37 times. Apparently the fact that its all packed up neatly in a corner of the kitchen we don’t use still in bags means nothing to these savages.
I finally got to a point where I can take a breath so I sat down to work on some crochet. Tropical storm Elsa is rolling through and she brought thunder, lightening and heavy rain so I thought I might just chill for a bit. OF COURSE NOT. Owen came running down the hall to inform me that someone (under the age of 18) left a window open in my van. AWESOME. I should have brought soap and just showered in the backyard except I DON’T HAVE ANY CLEAN GD TOWELS.
I swear to shit. If I don’t get at LEAST two naps this week and finish one book I’m running away and joining the circus. It’s probably a less hectic lifestyle.