This week, we’ve been lucky to have been able to borrow our friend’s car (they are having a blast in Europe!) while our car was in the shop. I don’t think that I realized how much we were dependent on our car until we didn’t have it.
Ninja works 30 miles north of our home and Ninjette was going to a vacation Bible school this week out in Arlington. Since we only had one car and taking public transportation would have taken way too long, we drove all the way up to Ninja’s work and then I would take the car to the VBS and hang out until we had to go back and pick up Ninja from work and finally drive home. We left our house at 7 am and usually didn’t get back until 5 pm! It was a long day!
Thankfully, we were able to have a playdate with some friends in the area, did a lunch date with Ninja, and Ninjette got a summer haircut. Today, we got to eat lunch with two wonderful ladies in an old train station. We never felt like we were living out of the car, but thinking back every night – it made the week feel super packed and busy.
Since we left so early in the morning and Ninjette is not a morning person, we had a bag with extra clothes, undies, hair brushes and accessories as well as a pair of pajamas. I would pack a breakfast with snacks since we were always running a little late in the mornings. We always had blankie and baby Jack too. The car was full of all our stuff every day like we were going on a trip!
Here’s what I learned from our week of living out of a car:
1. Ninjette knows how to take off her footie pajamas with her car seat belts still on. Maybe she could be a magician or one of those fast clothes changers?
2. Always carry a towel in the car. You never know when you might have to run and play in the sprinklers or get caught in a sudden rainstorm!
3. Having a cooler is really helpful. We had some breakfasts, snacks, and even lunches packed. It was great for impromptu picnics and keeping stuff cool in the hot car!
4. Ninjette likes to sleep with the music blasting loud. I wish I could’ve napped or just turned the music down.
5. I don’t mind driving. I get motion sick pretty easily, so driving in a car was not my thing, plus I was always quite impatient. However, I have discovered that I don’t mind driving so much and being in the car. I totally want to do a R.V. trip, get a minivan (so I can really live the life in a car), and I forsee more road trips in our family’s future.
6. Traffic sucks big time. I’m glad that I had a phone with the Waze app. It helped to avoid traffic and to give me a good idea of how long it would take to get to places. Traffic gives me road rage big time.
7. I consumed a lot more caffeine than normal with all the driving. Way more caffeine. I also noticed that I didn’t drink enough water throughout the day.
8. Ninjette liked to listen to the same music over and over and over AND over again. Sometimes it was the same song! But it was super cute to hear her sing along. She didn’t like it when I sang along, though.
9. Make sure your kid has everything they need before you start driving. Many times, Baby Jack was unreachable and so was blankie. I would hear about it until they were both safe in Ninjette’s arms – usually in a very loud voice as well. I started to figure out that before I got set to drive, I should do a quick check with Ninjette. The loud music, her loud insisting, and trying to parallel park were never good combos and I would just lose it.
10. Living near public transportation and walking are wonderful things that I appreciate so much more after this week! And being walking distance to things is really really awesome.
I am going to welcome the rest of the summer that will be filled with more walking and using the T (subway)! I love the car, but am also quite glad to not be driving it so much!