Mom Road Trip

We're here!

I can't believe that I just left home six days ago. It feels like I've been on the road for a month.

But we finally made it to BlogHer, and I get to stay in the same hotel room for three nights in a row! Yeah, I can leave my suitcase in the same place for a few days and actually hang up my clothes!

Yesterday started bright and early with a taping for KTVN, the CBS affiliate in Reno. After that we hit the road on our way to pick up Jill in Silicon Valley. I took the wheel, ready to try out some mountain driving. And I was glad I did. The route between Reno and Sacramento was hands-down the most gorgeous drive I have ever made, and driving meant I didn't have to miss a second of it looking at my laptop!

We decided we absolutely had to have a picture of the Tahoe in Lake Tahoe, so we got off at an exit and started looking. While we never actually located Lake Tahoe, we did find ourselves some beautiful scenery:

Hey, if we couldn't actually take a photo of the Tahoe at Lake Tahoe, at least we could say we had a picture of the Tahoe somewhere in the vicinity of Lake Tahoe...

After that, we got back in the car and decided to find a monument or museum dedicated to the grim tale of the Donner Party, a story I've been fascinated with ever since I read The Shining at far too young an age. We quickly located Donner Memorial State Park, where we located a monument dedicated to the pioneers who made the dangerous journey over the Donner Pass.

And since we are insatiable smart-alecks, we of course had to do our own re-enactment.

We tromped through the gift shop, selecting postcards and gifts for our kids (I got my ten-year-old a PBS special on the Donner Party. Grim? Yes, but something tells me his sick little mind will find it interesting) and finally, reluctantly--it was so beautiful there that I really could have stayed for days--we got back on the road. Finally, after a few navigational issues, we arrived at Jill's house and met up with the other SV moms. I'll post more about that later--have to get to a BlogHer session in just a few minutes!

--Meagan is relishing the fact that she actually got more than 5 hours of sleep last night.

 

The Biggest Little City In The World

I'll admit that so far, my only exposure to Reno has been via one of my favorite shows, Reno 911, which showcases the city's, er, seedier side. So when we pulled into Reno last night I really didn't know what to expect. As it turns out, there's also a really charming downtown area, which is one of my favorite things about small cities. And there are a lot of casinos, which are one of my favorite things about any city that happens to have one. I'm not a big gambler (I swear I can stop ANY TIME...it's not like I have a PROBLEM or anything!) but once a year or so I like to hit the slot machines and and let Lady Luck have her way with me. So while I was interested in checking out the city of Reno, I was mostly excited about checking out the gaming floor in the hotel. 

We pulled into Harrah's after a seven or eight-hour drive through the mountains and lots of frustration over internet signals getting dropped juuuust as we were loading a picture or hitting "publish". Combine that with many long days in the car, and we were in need of some serious R&R. Luckily for us, we got totally hooked up, with totally fantastic hour-and-a-half full-body massages in the hotel's spa. I don't think any of us fully realized how badly we needed a massage until after we'd had them. When we met back up in the locker room, none of us were even able to speak. We just looked around in a daze, saying things like "Ahhhh," and "Mmmmm" and "Blargle darf shmeng." In fact, as we were waiting to be seated for dinner in Harrah's steakhouse, we could barely keep our heads off the bar.

After stuffing ourselves on steak, prime rib, and lamb (one meat each--not all three for each of us) and bantering with our very knowledgeable and attentive waiter, Ozzie, there came a point where all conversation ceased and the four of us just stared at each other and/or off into space. It became clear that we had Hit The Wall. Still, it was only 10:00 PM in Reno. How could we head to bed before gambling? Sarah, Devra and I headed to the casino, while Aviva, the more responsible of us, stayed in her room to compose a post. But Lady Luck was not with us, and we were also too exhausted to enjoy ourselves, even Sarah the high roller.  Within an hour of leaving dinner, we were back in our rooms. About five minutes after we laid down, Sarah said "I am going to sleep. Right now." And she did. After that, we were both unconscious until our 6 AM wake-up call...time to get up, check out, and head down for yet another appearance on the local news. We realized we had been so burned the night before that we hadn't even taken a picture in the casino--so we hit the slots again for a photo-op and one more chance to play the odds.

After all, if you don't play, you can't win, right? And in our case, even if you do play,  you still can't win. Oh well. Reno was good to us, and even if we didn't walk away with fatter bank accounts, we wound up with relaxed muscles, some great food, and a fun memory. What we can actually remember of it, that is.

Bye-bye, Reno! After a gorgeous drive through the Sierra Nevadas, past the Lake Tahoe area, and right by Donner's Pass on our way to California, we're now almost to Silicon Valley, on our way to meet up with Jill Asher and some other SV Moms. It's hard to believe that our journey is almost over--and the conference hasn't even begun yet!

--Meagan can't wait to actually stay in the same hotel for more than 12 hours. 

Rules of the road...

DAY FOUR:  FROM DENVER TO SALT LAKE CITY

It’s day 3 that I’ve been on the trip, and the first time I’ve tuned out. Rather than plugging my Zune into the car’s sound system and sharing my eclectic downloads with the group (a strange mix of such artists as Kanye West, Justin Timberlake, Blink-182, John Mayer and the Foo Fighters) right now, I’ve got my earbuds in.

It’s not that I’m tired of talking with everyone. It’s that I’ve spent so much time talking and laughing since Saturday night that by last night I was losing my voice and my throat was killing me. Since I’d still like to have the use of my vocal chords by the time we get to California, I decided to remove the temptation to join in the conversation and tuned out instead.

Now I’m staring at the rolling, open Wyoming landscape out the window and bracing myself for the curves in the road. (Devra takes ‘em faster than I probably would. Not judging, just noticing, as my old yoga instructor would say).

So it occurs to me that all road trips have certain rules, some spoken, some unspoken but implied. This trip’s no different. It seems to be an unspoken rule, for instance, that one does not hog the electrical outlet all day. One does not use more than one cup holder apiece. One does not scoot back one’s seat so that the person directly behind one has no leg room. When we stop for gas, it’s understood that the person pumping gas shouldn’t have to do everything else too. (Like yesterday, my job was scrubbing 129 dead insects from the windshield while Sarah filled the tank.) A driver does not deny a request for a bathroom stop.

A mile high...

So the first thing I noticed about the altitude is this: bending over to get something out of my suitcase left me winded.

"Are you feeling out of breath?" I asked Sarah. "Maybe you're just imagining it," she said.

Later, it was her turn to feel the effects of the altitude when her sinuses dried out and her first glass of wine left her unexpectedly tipsy.

"Drink a lot of water, and don't drink too much booze," was the advice from the experienced Denverites. We heeded this advice, sucking down glass after glass of water...and not a single one of us over-imbibed. (Though that could also be because we're planning on leaving the hotel as early as possible tomorrow morning to start the journey to Salt Lake City.)

Sharing in the drinks were a fantastically interesting group of Denver-area bloggers--some of them are pictured here:

...I believe they're laughing at Devra's accidental mangling of the words "Hybrid Tahoe" (Tybrid Hahoe, anyone?)

The hotel we're staying in is very cool. Each floor is themed--we're on the TV floor, but there's also a horror-movie themed floor, a Jack-themed floor, and a sci-fi themed floor, among others. We ate and drank at the hotel bar and restaurant--I had a creamy, saucy, delicious lobster mac and cheese. Sarah's scallops with corn truffle sauce looked pretty yummy too.

I wish I could write more, but I am falling asleep at the keyboard here, so I'll see ya'll in the morning!

--Meagan is full, well-hydrated and tired.   

Finally in Denver!

DAY 3: FROM OMAHA TO DENVER

Finally, we're at the halfway point of our trip. We've made it to Denver. To showcase my dedication, check this out: I'm blogging this from the car, parked in front of the Curtis Hotel downtown (which looks WAY too cool, by the way) while Devra chats with Adam, an employee of the hotel (who is HILARIOUS). The valet wants to park our car, but I absolutely refused to relinquish it until this post is DONE.

We've only been in Denver for about 20 minutes, but we've already jam-packed those 20 with plenty of adventure...

Here's Devra and Sarah in front of the Mile High Stadium...

Devra found Sarah's back to be hilariously sweaty.

Sarah climbs a mountain!

Just kidding! She was just climbing on this...enormous ball.

I cannot wait to get in my room, kick up my feet for a little while, and later have food and drink with some other local bloggers (want to hook up? Shoot us an e-mail at [email protected]). But for now, I have to find all my various wires, cameras and other technology and pack up. The valet is probably wondering what the heck I'm doing in the backseat furiously typing.

--Meagan is loving life at 5,000+ feet altitude.

 

We've chosen a charity for our drive-a-thon fundraiser...FLASHES OF HOPE

Thank you to everyone who suggested charities for the fundraising component of our trip. We were grateful for all the recommendations and wish they could pick them all, but hey, we've "only" got something like 3,000 miles to go, so we had to pick! We took our time choosing a cause to donate to, because we wanted to feel really good about the charity we decided to support and we wanted to make sure our readers could, too. Also, we wanted to be sure to pick an organization that doesn't have a huge budget, so that our contribution can really make a difference.

That all said...(drumroll, please!)...we've chosen Flashes of Hope as the cause we'll be supporting as we continue our drive to San Francisco! A big thanks to Shannon for suggesting this organization. It had everything we were looking for--it's mother/child focused, helps families across the country,and they're a transparent organization with an established track record so you can feel safe with your donation. Here's a description of the organization from the website--read it, then click over. I dare you NOT to get a lump in your throat (we all had chills).

On the road again

DAY 3: FROM OMAHA TO DENVER

Finally, the Mom Road Trip - pers got a decent nights' sleep. After our appearance on the Sunday Inquisition last night, we all went to our rooms at the Crowne Plaza in Omaha and crashed...hard. After two separate TV appearances, a webcast, and 9+ hours on the road yesterday, we were all completely burned out. Luckily for us, the friendly Nebraskans at the Crowne Plaza had put us in the Quiet Zone:

So where do they put the circus animals then?

On our way out of the hotel we posed for a quick picture with Jamie, the front desk manager:

Then we made a quick trip through the drive-thru for some McBreakfast and McCaffeine, and hit the open, open, open road for Day 3 of our trip. The side of the road looks a lot like this:

We're on our way to Denver, and are planning to meet up with some bloggers when we get there, so shoot an e-mail to [email protected] if you'd like to meet us, and we'll get you the details. You know, as soon as we know what they are. Wing it? Us? Well, isn't that part of the fun of a road trip?

--Meagan is happy to be running on 7+ hours of sleep.

Chicago, TV, Iowa and Truck Stops

DAY TWO:  FROM CHICAGO TO OMAHA

Here we are on Day 2 of the Mom Road Trip, on our way from Chicago to Omaha.

We are currently sitting outside a truck stop in--well, in Somewhere, Iowa, on highway 80 about forty miles east of Iowa City. Let me share here that this is by far the most enormous truck stop I have ever had the pleasure (?) of being in. To illustrate:

I'm just now noticing that the floor said "World's Largest..." something. Largest what? Truck stop? Or World's Largest DVD Emporium Inside Of A Truck Stop? Very hard to say. maybe both.

It also seemed to house an entire Steve & Barry's...

...and a well-stocked Figurine Shoppe. (I kinda want that two-foot elephant). Not pictured: the food court featuring four fast-food restaurants and the spacious ladies' room. I'm telling you, it was like a small airport.

Counting down the hours...

DAY ONE: FROM THE HOME FRONT

I leave for downtown Chicago to meet up with Devra and Sarah in three hours. (Kim, a Chicago Mom Blogger friend, has graciously offered to pick me up so that my husband doesn't have to drive down there with all the kids and drop me off as they sob piteously in the backseat.) I'm all packed up (in fact, the following video was not taken with my new Sony Handycam, because I already packed it and I'm too paranoid to remove it from the bag for fear that I'll forget a cable or something!)

It's weird--spending most of my time with four kids, you'd think I'd be frothing at the mouth over the idea of a break. And I am excited, but every time I go somewhere without them--especially, yannow, ACROSS THE COUNTRY--I experience pangs of anxiety and guilt and some strange longing to stay close to them. And then I experience a moment like the following, and that longing just melts right away:

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

is it time to go yet???

"Video and pictures taken with Sony DCR-SR45 Hard Drive Handycam® Camcorder.  To learn more, please visit www.sonystyle.com".

We're on a mission to do good--and we need YOUR help!

PRE ROAD TRIP

It just wouldn't be right, would it? To go all the way across the country--almost 3000 miles, ya'll!--having a blast, without trying to do something good for somebody else along the way. So we're planning to combine our wild and crazy road trip with a drive-a-thon fundraiser with a goal of raising at least $1 per mile to donate to a worthy cause. Here's where we need your help: can you suggest a cause? Our criteria are:

1) User-friendly. They'll have to allow us to put a button on the site and make it easy for donors to give.

2) Legit. That means the charity needs to fully disclose how funds raised will be used and what percentage actually goes to help people versus "administrative" fees. Though we have nothing against newer organizations, it makes everyone feel secure if the organization has a good track record, so it would be nice if they have some demonstrable history.

3) We are especially interested in organizations with a focus on environment/sustainability issues, or those who help children/families in need.

Got a favorite cause you'd love to help us support as we drive across the country? Let us know who it is!

 

Packing lightly?

PRE ROAD TRIP

Over the past decade, almost all the trips I've taken have included several other people (namely, my hubby and kids). And since only a few of them are big enough to carry luggage, or at least, not actually BE part of the luggage, I usually find myself cramming clothes for six people into two suitcases--one medium-sized, one carry-on sized. (note: this usually means that at the last minute I discover 9-11 items that I absolutely need that won't fit in the suitcases, and those go in an empty Target bag. Luckily, even a four-year-old can carry a Target bag).

So on the rare occasion that I'm packing just for myself, I can't help but go a little crazy with the clothes and accessories and shoes. I mean, look at all that SPACE in there, just waiting to be filled up! Isn't it good to be as well-prepared as possible? Isn't it wise to bring along five pair of shoes and enough clothes and underwear to change at least twice a day in case something should happen? You never know--I could be invited to a ball. Or a rave. I could fall in a swamp one day and in quicksand the next. I could lose a shoe in a manhole. (I hear there have been a lot of manhole cover thefts recently). And it's always possible that I'll fall asleep first and the other ladies will freeze my bra in the hotel mini-fridge. Or at least chill it in the ice bucket.

Very little chance of tantrums and flying toys--I'm in!

I’m late to the party here, actually, because I just returned from a road trip. No cross-country quest...just four hours from Chicago to Lansing, MI to visit my sister; then four hours from Lansing to Ohio to visit our friends and their three kids; then six hours today to get back from Ohio to Chicago. (Actually, it was supposed to be 6 hours, but wound up being more like 8, due to relentless bathroom stops .)

But while it was a lot shorter than next week's adventure, there were certain challenges I don't anticipate encountering on the trek to San Francisco. For instance, next week I'll be riding with lovely, well-behaved, happy, and probably clean ladies.

Whereas this weekend's trip was shared with these guys:

(by the way, this picture of my youngest pretty accurately represents the overall mood for the last ½ of the trip.)

I was so packed in by items like these:

That I could barely move.

And instead of riding in one of these, as I can look forward to for next week, today I was riding in a 2000 Dodge Caravan covered in crumbs, wrappers, bottles and random pieces of plastic and emitting a funky smell from the backseat. (I would share a picture, but my husband would cry actual tears of manly humiliation.)

During today’s trip I was hit twice in the head with a flying toy:

and my two-year-old kept up a steady chorus of “Wan’ hear White an’ Nerdy on da WADIO!” To appease him and his squeaky little voice, I played it over and over and over.

The trip to San Francisco will take many more days than my Midwestern family excursion, but I figure as long as nobody throws toys at my head, screams about the music selection, tosses half-eaten burgers on the floor or smears chocolate all over her face and then cries for three straight hours, I’ll be one very happy—and relaxed—mama. Stay tuned, though, because you just never know what could happen when people stop being polite...and start Road Tripping.

--find out more about Meagan and the house 'o boys she'll be leaving on their own over at her blog.

Pictures taken with Sony DCR-SR45 Hard Drive Handycam® Camcorder. To learn more, please visit www.sonystyle.com

THE ROAD TRIP

Take five moms, give them a Chevy Tahoe Hybrid SUV, add wireless internet access in the vehicle, a GPS system, cutting-edge cameras and video recording technology, video games, music, gasoline, hotel stays, food, mainstream media covering the road trip on the internet & television - and see what happens as these hilarious and irreverent women drive coast to cost, picking up their fellow SV Moms Group Contributors and blogging it all on the road.....  Seriously, you will NOT want to miss following these bloggers as they make their way across the country, from Northern Virginia to San Francisco.

Here is a video from Katie Couric of CBS Evening News with a few words to Silicon Valley Moms Group mommy bloggers and our mom road trippers:

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Silicon Valley Moms Group has partnered with Six Apart to enable, amplify and share our journey across America.

Come Meet SV Moms Group Contributors participating in our first-ever, Silicon Valley Moms Group Road Trip '08: 

Dates and details about the trip:

July 6, 2008: Five selected contributors from SV Moms Group will begin blogging and video blogging (vblogging) about their upcoming road trip from Virginia, DC, Chicago and Loveland to San Francisco.

July 11, 2008:  Devra will receive the Chevy Tahoe Hybrid frm General Motors

July 12, 2008: Devra and Sarah from DC Metro Moms Blog will drive from DC to Chicago.

July 13, 2008:  Devra and Sarah will pick up Meagan from Chicago Moms Blog and drive to Omaha, Nebraska.

July 14, 2008: Devra, Sarah and Meagan will drive from Omaha to Denver.

July 15, 2008:  Devra, Sarah and Meagan will pick up Aviva from the soon-to-launch Rocky Mountain Moms Blog and drive to Salt Lake City.

July 16, 2008:  Devra, Sarah, Meagan and Aviva will drive from Salt Lake City to Reno.

July 17, 2008:  Devra, Sarah, Meagan and Aviva will drive from Reno to Silicon Valley, where they will pick up Jill Asher from Silicon Valley Moms Blog for the last thirty miles of the trip.  From Palo Alto, the six SV Moms Group contributors will drive to San Francisco.... where they will join 100 other contributors from SV Moms Group for a party in San Francisco that evening. Over the next few days will be more Silicon Valley Moms Group events and attendance at the BlogHer conference.

Beth Blecherman (Techmama) from the Silicon Valley Moms Blog will be tech blogging (behind the scenes) about some of the technology used on the Road Trip.