Hot Town, Summer in the City. And the Country.
Traveling to see our families is a three-hour journey across the back roads of Iowa. At least it used to be a three-hour journey before we had three kids-worth of stuff to haul that leaves us cruising uphill like a 30-year-old semi hauling a double-trailer filled with the stuff you could theoretically find at the center of a black hole. You know, the stuff so dense that even light has to slow down when trying to drive uphill in its presence.
Because of this, our trip to see our families took closer to three-and-a-half hours. Otherwise, it was a smooth trip, especially considering that we arrived at our destination a half-hour past lunchtime. I was worried the kids would scream most of the journey since we were traveling in the morning, a time when Abbie usually runs around probably in pursuit of the dog, and the twins sleep for an hour if I’m lucky. Instead the twins napped, or were at least quiet, for most of the journey. Abbie stayed entertained CD’s and toys, which kept her happy for about 40 minutes. After that we turned on the mobile DVD player for her, and she spent the rest of the ride staring straight ahead, blinking only while we changed discs. What did parents do before car-mounted televisions?*
I expected similar results when we drove back home the next afternoon. In fact, I hoped it would be even quieter since we left during prime naptime for all three children. The ride was quiet for about 30 minutes as the twins quickly fell asleep and we quickly gave in to Abbie’s demands for the television. After that, the twins started screaming. I assumed they were unhappy they woke up before taking in their entire nap, so I ignored them, figuring they’d fall back asleep within minutes.
30 minutes later, they were still screaming, and mostly inconsolably. Abbie joined in too, possibly because she couldn’t hear the television, effectively guaranteeing that at least one child would be screaming at all times. Exasperated, I pulled into the parking lot for a McDonald’s, the restaurant so prolific that it manages to appear at least once an hour even across the back roads of Iowa. The twins quieted to a whimper as soon as I turned, so we circled the lot for a couple minutes to ensure they really needed a break, and weren’t about to drift to sleep. At the next anguished cry, we parked and went inside.
I figured the kids had overheated. You may have heard our country is in the grips of a nationwide heat wave. This is a major national news story, as defined by the fact that it’s hitting the Washington DC to Boston corridor, which makes the national news organizations take notice. Temperatures were near 100 that day with high humidity, which might not sound exceptional to people in other parts of the country, but remember that in Iowa the last of the snow finally melted about a week ago.
Our car has air conditioning, but I didn’t use it effectively. When we left, I set it to keep me comfortable in the driver’s seat, not to babies trapped in a rear-facing car seat with a sunshade blocking airflow comfortable. By the time I realized my mistake, the kids needed a break in a cool restaurant with chilled treats. I had a soda pop. Ellie had a shake. Abbie had parts of a soda pop and a shake along with a yogurt parfait I ordered for her. The twins had a bottle full of apple juice and water, chilled with a couple ice cubes.
Our stop lasted over a half-hour. When we returned to the car, I initiated a full-court press to keep the kids cool. I set the air-conditioner to “frostbite” from the start. We put pillowcases in the windows to block the sun. Most importantly, we stripped the kids down to their diapers.
After a few minutes back on the road, the twins fell asleep. Abbie was happy that she could again hear her DVD. I adjusted the cooling vents to keep blood flowing through my face. Everyone was happy for the rest of the trip home. At least everyone was happy until we were about 30 miles from home; the twins screamed the rest of the way. Our cooling-off stop brought us home well after suppertime.
* They probably listened to their kids scream. More so.
Because of this, our trip to see our families took closer to three-and-a-half hours. Otherwise, it was a smooth trip, especially considering that we arrived at our destination a half-hour past lunchtime. I was worried the kids would scream most of the journey since we were traveling in the morning, a time when Abbie usually runs around probably in pursuit of the dog, and the twins sleep for an hour if I’m lucky. Instead the twins napped, or were at least quiet, for most of the journey. Abbie stayed entertained CD’s and toys, which kept her happy for about 40 minutes. After that we turned on the mobile DVD player for her, and she spent the rest of the ride staring straight ahead, blinking only while we changed discs. What did parents do before car-mounted televisions?*
I expected similar results when we drove back home the next afternoon. In fact, I hoped it would be even quieter since we left during prime naptime for all three children. The ride was quiet for about 30 minutes as the twins quickly fell asleep and we quickly gave in to Abbie’s demands for the television. After that, the twins started screaming. I assumed they were unhappy they woke up before taking in their entire nap, so I ignored them, figuring they’d fall back asleep within minutes.
30 minutes later, they were still screaming, and mostly inconsolably. Abbie joined in too, possibly because she couldn’t hear the television, effectively guaranteeing that at least one child would be screaming at all times. Exasperated, I pulled into the parking lot for a McDonald’s, the restaurant so prolific that it manages to appear at least once an hour even across the back roads of Iowa. The twins quieted to a whimper as soon as I turned, so we circled the lot for a couple minutes to ensure they really needed a break, and weren’t about to drift to sleep. At the next anguished cry, we parked and went inside.
I figured the kids had overheated. You may have heard our country is in the grips of a nationwide heat wave. This is a major national news story, as defined by the fact that it’s hitting the Washington DC to Boston corridor, which makes the national news organizations take notice. Temperatures were near 100 that day with high humidity, which might not sound exceptional to people in other parts of the country, but remember that in Iowa the last of the snow finally melted about a week ago.
Our car has air conditioning, but I didn’t use it effectively. When we left, I set it to keep me comfortable in the driver’s seat, not to babies trapped in a rear-facing car seat with a sunshade blocking airflow comfortable. By the time I realized my mistake, the kids needed a break in a cool restaurant with chilled treats. I had a soda pop. Ellie had a shake. Abbie had parts of a soda pop and a shake along with a yogurt parfait I ordered for her. The twins had a bottle full of apple juice and water, chilled with a couple ice cubes.
Our stop lasted over a half-hour. When we returned to the car, I initiated a full-court press to keep the kids cool. I set the air-conditioner to “frostbite” from the start. We put pillowcases in the windows to block the sun. Most importantly, we stripped the kids down to their diapers.
After a few minutes back on the road, the twins fell asleep. Abbie was happy that she could again hear her DVD. I adjusted the cooling vents to keep blood flowing through my face. Everyone was happy for the rest of the trip home. At least everyone was happy until we were about 30 miles from home; the twins screamed the rest of the way. Our cooling-off stop brought us home well after suppertime.
* They probably listened to their kids scream. More so.
posted by Matt at
11:49 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home