Oh what a day

Other titles I contemplated for this entry was the suspenseful "blow out on the free way", the alluring "breastfeeding in the fast lane", and the literal "how to spend 6 hours and half a tank of gas doing nothing". This is going to be long but hang in there and enjoy!

So yesterday started great (a little late, but great). I was to get Heidi ready to leave for my parents house in souther Oregon for nine days, yes NINE days! My thoughts were about how I was going to fill nine days, oh how I will miss her, how was I going to fill nine days......Soooo we were to meet my mom and brother (who is doing well by the way, 2 more weeks until the big brace comes off) in Springfield. We got there late but no big deal they had enjoyed the air conditioning. We had a great lunch and I told them about the grass fires I had seen on the way down. Got Heidi packed up and off to Grandmas. Here is a rough rundown (with my thoughts at the time in quotes) of the next 6 hours!

2:40 - Leave Springfield, "how am I going to fill nine days, oh how I will miss her...., how am I going to fill nine days"

2:55 - 15 miles from Springfield, "Humm there is the second grass fire I saw coming down, looks like it is under control, I can listen to whatever I want on the radio! (this is a big deal if you are used to traveling with a 3 year old)

3:00 - Stop to breastfeed Clara at a rest stop because she wouldn't stop crying, "It is getting hot, Clara will probably go to sleep when we are done"

3:10 - Back on the road, "There's another fire, maybe I can get Jeff from work and we can do a few things in town"

3:15 - Call Jeff we talk about the several fires I have seen, we make plans to go to Home Depot, pick up some sugar free bacon at Costco (Kirkland low sodium) maybe dinner, he suggest I go to the growers market before I come to get him. All is good!

3:30 - I have just passed my 5th grass fire, "Weird, that's a lot of fires in one day and all on the East side of the free way"

3:35 - Traffic stops, "Oh probably just another fire"

3:50 - Jeff calls and tell me to get off the freeway a hay truck caught fire and they are closing the freeway "Yeah thanks I'm stopped, well at least Clara is asleep"

3:50 to 4:45 - We move about 4 miles and actually hit 40 at one point, Jeff tells me the free way is re-open and we are about 4 miles from the big fire, we decide I should tuff it out these last few miles rather than drive through Albany about 60 around into Salem to get Jeff (somewhere in here I saw a 300+ lbs women get out of her car and get to the bushes with towel in hand leavening behind a mortified teenager in the front seat)

Somewhere in the above time zone - A lot of cars and semis come driving down the right shoulder of the freeway (where there is no lane!) to get to the next exit!

5:20 - We are just past the second Albany exit, Clara is still asleep, I call Jeff to tell him I'm going to be pretty late maybe he should walk to the library, he lets me know they have closed the free way again. "Boy I'm close to that exit, well I wouldn't know where to go off of that one anyway, Oh, well at least Clare is still asleep and I don't have Heidi and I can listen to whatever I want to on the radio"

5:30 - Alot of people are out of their cars, there are people in front of me reversing down the side of the freeway to get to the exit I am Just past!

5:50 - Clara wakes up and we get out to stretch, everyone has turned there engines off and we are sitting ....... and sitting. (Here is where alternate title one comes in) I walk around the car with Clara and think "hummm she feels a little wet, well I can't change her here, oh wait... what is that....awww that is poop squishing out of her diaper!" Well now I have to change her here (luckily I was in a brown shirt, so all was hid!), I open the back of my car on the free way, change the diaper, try to get all the poo off of my hands (wipes only go so far) and before I can get her dressed we start to move! Quickly I get her in her car seat and were off! We move 50 feet

6:00 - 6:30 - We move about half a mile, Clara has eaten the last two Ritz crackers, I was silly enough to pull into the left lane because it was moving a little faster but deprived myself of the shade of semi's; someone runs up to my car and asks to pull through without thinking I say yes and he drives in front of me, through the 15 foot barrier of dry grass down the middle of the free way, then quickly into south bound traffic "YOU ARE GOING TO CATCH THE GRASS ON FIRE!!!! OK this is not fun anymore, it is really hot"

6:30 - After exhausting all the toys I could find in the car (including the lid to my Nalgene water bottle) Clara is hungry, here is where alternate title number 2 comes in......you can figure it out. "OK this is not fun at all, it is really hot"

6:45 - Clara has exhausted all food sources in the car and is sitting quite content on my lap, looks up at me with her beautiful eyes and signs perfectly "more" (oh, if I ever had a sad moment as a mother it was then); the guy in the semi behind me jumps out, catches my eye in my rear view mirror with a startled look of "oh, my goodness there is someone in that car" I think, "No duh I've only been here 4 hours!" He then proceed to relieve himself at the side of his truck...people are getting desperate.

7:00 - We start to move and the semi to my right lets me in front of him to an exit, "finally off of the freeway, humm this road sure is empty, oh well at least I am moving"

7:10 - Back on the freeway...yes the road just reconnected about 3 miles up, "Aww man, and there wasn't even a spot I could stop and get something for Clara to eat"

7:30 - Exiting on the detour through Jefferson, both sides of the exit ramp are black and smoking, Clara is awake and crying, "Well I'm stuck and there is nothing I can do, Hey there's the news crew!"

8:20 - Jeff is so concerned he call from the library and I finally have good news, I am almost to the freeway, Clara is still crying

8:30 - Clear freeway in sight! "Oh that is beautiful sunset, never mind that it is caused by the smoke"

8:45 - We finally make it to Jeff at the library and I carry my diaper clad, still trying to recover from crying baby to the saving arms of her daddy, we both get hugs and I can finally wash my hands of poo!

My wonderful husband then takes me to Olive Garden and even lets me order dessert! Clara is finally clothed and is just glad to be out of the car even if it is 10:00 at night. We arrive home at 11:30 to a very happy cat, a hot house and a very over done batch of yogurt.

So that is how I spent 6 hours and half a tank of gas doing nothing (and I did it all legally, unlike many on the road that day) I can think of much better ways of using both!