Lessons learned when road-tripping with a 7 and 5-year-old...

Today started Day 1 of a multi-day journey home; specifically from Chicago to Scottsdale.

We got a much later start than I would have liked, but it was pouring and traffic was miserable in Chicago, so there was little I could have done anyway.

First lesson was that I bought and brought too much food. This isn't camping, it's driving, and you are never far away from another 2 apples if you need them. Also, my playmate igloo cooler is too small; it only fits 6 drinks, I need more space.

I have this amazing Verizona wireless card and it worked brilliantly in the car. The kids were using their favorite web sites and staying thoroughly entertained. I need to research more how they can both share the same WAN card, since creating a small peer-to-peer network didn't work. I'm sure I can figure it out after a few minutes online.

I need to buy a bathing suit, chapstick, kid-safe shampoo, and a CF card reader since I seem to be missing mine.

So what did I really learn this first day?

Visiting the Lincoln Museum in Springfield was kind of heavy. The kids were definitely traumatized by the exhibit depicting a slave auction. They also weren't particularly into the period pieces nor the history of the civil war in general.

This post got auto-saved, so now let me update everything with Day 2. The agenda has dramatically changed...