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We Done Up And Lost Our Minds Right?

We're going up to the cabin again. Normal people would be singing "Woohoo! Goin' to the cabin! We're goin' to the cabin! We're getting away from it all!! Yes!!" Don't get me wrong, we're singing that song too, just a little softer. Ya'll know how much I love and adore my children (hey, I'm serious here). I love spending time with them. I love hearing them laugh. I love seeing them happy. These children of mine are awesome little people.

They also know how to channel Damien and all the children of the corn. It's true. Don't let the angelic faces or the politeness fool you. That's how they get you. Bahahahaha! If I'm going to be 100% honest (and I always am here) it's daunting to think about a week at a remote cabin on beautiful property up north in God's country with my three children.

One on one? No problem. Mix them all together? Oy vey. The baby can be excused from this equation I think. She smiles at everyone and everything. She only cries when she's hungry and when she can't get a poop through the chute (and let's face it, we've all been in that position - either one). She's a happy go lucky fly by the seat of her mama and daddy's pants kind of kid.

The other two? Get them together in the same zip code and there are issues up the wazoo. (hey spellcheck, just add wazoo already. it's a word, promise) One of them is touching the other one. Boy won't let girl watch him play video game on DS. Girl whines screeches screams makes me wanna put a hot poker in my eyes cries inconsolably. It's fun.

So.

We survived last year and the year before. We learned some very important lessons. Ahem! Bullet points!
  • ALWAYS bring the portable DVD players. Both of them. They will never agree on the movie, volume of the movie or location of the player.
  • Don't forget the chargers for the DVD players. This includes the car ones. Whew!
  • Bring all the DS systems you have (including mom's because someone's will die and the apocalypse will come)
  • Again, chargers for the cabin and car.
  • Don't pack a snack/treat bag for the car. They eat two pretzels and the rest ends up on the floor.
  • If they fit into a Pull Up, put 'em in it. Seriously, potty breaks kill the drive up there when you have to drive another 20 miles to the next rest area/McD's/inhabited by ANY humans area.
  • Keep them on the same schedule that you have at home. Listen, if you have a schedule at home? Awesome! In our case, we're using the word schedule very loosely. Organized chaos is more like it. It works for us. Most of the time.
  • Bring the Wii and a lot of family games. Nothing makes the kids giggle so much as seeing mama and daddy get frustrated at bowling. Stinkers.
  • Make sure to have "mama and daddy" time. You think this is a no brainer but alas, sometimes our brains aren't working.
  • Utilize that indoor seasonal room. Sure it's a tad chilly in there but the kids are begging to play in there. Plus? it's huge and when you shut the sliding glass doors? You can still see them but they're on MUTE. Hallelujah!
  • Don't forget the laptop.
  • Or charger.
  • Cell phones? Check.
  • Chargers? Damn that's a lot of chargers.
  • Food (it comes in handy)
  • Get some new toys for them to get up there. This year, the boy has been fascinated with Bendaroos. They're pretty cool. I was picking something up off the floor at work today and I'll be damned! We sell them at the checkout impulse buy racks. Guess who's going to lose their mind when he gets them? They girl too because we all know it is physically impossible for an older brother to share diddly squat with a little sister.
  • Don't forget the laptop. (it's THAT important!)
  • Booze.
  • Medication (that could be the same as booze but I mean the boy's in this case. Imagining him off of his Zoloft, Guanfacine, Ritalin, Melatonin and Clonidine really takes me to that bad dark place that's scarier than Paranormal Activity. Has anyone see that? Is it over hyped or really that good? Discuss)
  • Pull Ups, diapers and wipes.
  • Formula and bottles ( no brainer again but I have forgotten bottles on trips to Fargo. Hey, there's a Wal-Mart!)
  • Laptop
  • LEAVE THE SANITY AT HOME or you will leave it at the cabin.
  • Bring an open mind, open heart and lots of laughter, love and patience.

See? It's not too much trouble. It'll be fun. We'll just chant that when we get stressed. This is fun. This is fun. This is...where's my drink?
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