No Longer "On the Road"

(in Central Park)

After 5+ weeks, 5,000+ miles, and 110+ hours in the car, our great summer road trip has come to an end. Although it sounds absolutely terrible, it was actually very good, and Emily did great with it. We were about an hour from home before she declared that she felt "car sick." I asked her what was going on (fearing the worst), and she said that she was "sick of being in the car." :)

(feeding the ducks)

As for adventures on the trip, Emily said that swimming in lakes was her favorite part. She definitely got some lake swimming, in two different lakes, while visiting Grandma and Grandpa P. She also got some lake swimming while visiting our friends, Todd and Amy, at their cabin. Other than that, there was not much for lake swimming, though.

(at Joan and Jerry's place)

Aside from lake swimming, there were definitely other pieces of the trip that she enjoyed. As you can see, she was more than happy to grab Olaf in Times Square for a photo (which subsequently cost Mom more money than she is willing to admit!). There were also some unexpected joys. One of the things that she loved was the air mattress that she had all to herself at Grandma and Grandpa C.'s house. After a week and a half of sharing a bed with her sister, the freedom of her "own" air mattress was just the greatest!

Now that we are back home, she has loved all the time for relaxing, but she has also started to think about school. She definitely has some apprehension about entering Lower El this fall, and she is worried that she isn't ready. We have assured her that she will be fine, but just to be sure, she has started doing some Kumon to brush up on her skills. :)