Second Longest Ride Home EVER

I've made the trip home to and from STG to Logan a million times. The only other trip longer than last week was in 2005 when I took some cold medicine in Roy, and by the time I was nearing Fillmore I thought I was a claymation figure from Wallace and Grommet and my car was a hoover craft flying down I-15. I got a hotel in Fillmore.

Fast forward 5 years and to the second longest trip home. Last week.

First of all let me start by saying siblings don't let siblings take cold medicine, even if their spouse assures them it will be "ok". Thursday night in STG my siblings and I had a pool party at my parents house (my parents were out of town, so apparently it was a pretty wild party;). I was coming down with what I thought was a bad case of allergies, so Joe rummaged through my Moms medicine cabinet and brought out what he claims was benadryl. I was desperate to feel better, and since I hadn't taken medicine for a year or so I thought maybe my body had changed, maybe I could take cold medicine? I don't really remember the party after that. Seriously. I don't really even remember anyone leaving.

I remember bits of that night. Isaac woke up about every 20-30 minutes to moan and cry (he was really sick too), I tried to comfort him in my psychotic stopper. Not totally sure what all went on, I woke up with Lou upstairs once, that was weird. Morning came too early. I tried to focus on packing but felt like I slipped in and out of mental consciousness all morning. I was so sick and tired. We somehow managed to get on the road after about 3 hours of packing. Isaac thankfully fell asleep in his car seat before we even pulled out of the driveway, but woke up when we stopped at my brothers (15 minutes later) to drop off the truck Joe had borrowed for the week. I was devastated, I was so tried and needed him to sleep so I could.

The kids were crabby so I was sitting in the back seat in between them. Isaac finally fell asleep again 1/2 way to Cedar. Yea! No. For some reason at that precise moment Ari decided to reach across my face and start poking him. I asked him to stop, his bad behavior persisted. I tried quietly begging and pleading and batting his hand away but he insisted on being a pest. He finally succeeded in waking up Lou, a decision he immediately regretted. I smacked him on the head and yelled "why did you do that, I told you not to touch him", then I stated crying and yelling "can't you see I'm tired and need to go to sleep". I was SOOO tired and drugged I lost control of myself. As soon as I started crying Ari started crying, then Isaac joined in the sob fest, not only was Ari bawling he also started hitting me and frantically yelling "grown-ups don't cry, your not suppose to cry, stop it Mom". I just cried and cried, I tried to shied myself from a temporally insane 3 year old and kept muttering something like "I'm so tired".

Joe pulled the van over, took Ari and his booster seat out of the back and put him up in the passenger seat. I was crying and mumbling something about not putting Ari there because the air bag would cut his head off. Joe assured me it would be ok (I think he felt Ari's life was in greater danger if he left him sitting next to me).

In Fillmore Joe took the kids to the playground at Maverick and I tried to nap in the van. Not sure how long we were there or if I ever fell asleep, but I felt slightly better afterward.

We didn't stop in Brianhead to mountain bike, or in Lehi as planned, I just wanted to go home. The medicine wore off about 24 hours later so I was able to get some sleep that night and felt much better (mentally) the next day when we drove back down to Lehi for Joe's parents farewell.

So now you have all been reminded. Friends don't let me take cold medicine; even if Joe says it's ok.