On the road again…

After so many “Goodbye’s,” packing our whole apartment up ourselves, and just dealing with the physical and mental stress of moving to the other side of the country (plus some), S and I were looking forward to getting to Michigan to have some stabilization time with his family.  We had these grand ideas it was going to be relaxing and peaceful and…well, like a trip to the spa for a week before our arduous journey to Alaska.

Ah yes…Michigan (in my dreams)

Little did we know we’d be dealing with this creature at 3AM…

Remind you of anything?

I quickly came to realize puppies are absolutely adorable– when you can pick them up and kiss them and watch them fall asleep and then get to walk away (like grandchildren).  Puppies are absolutely nightmarish when you own one and have to get up in the middle of the night to let them outside.  Or when you have to get up at 5AM and they want to play and you’re only allowed to have them outside or in the garage and your puppy is a priss about wet grass and chilly weather…okay, sorry.  I could ramble on forever about that.  What happened was, being in Michigan was not a week-long relaxing stop on our way to Alaska, it was an introduction into the world of being an adult and having another entity completely rely on you for everything.

Well, for some of us at least

At some points during that week, I wasn’t sure if I was actually going to be going to Alaska because I didn’t know if my husband would want me around anymore.  We were barely getting any sleep, we didn’t know how to schedule for who would get up at 3AM with so-called “puppy” (I think “monster” would be a better descriptor at that point in her life), and this was weighing on our normal ability to be kind and loving to one another.  Fortunately, we were still able to communicate and were rational enough to know what was going on and just stuck it out until we could get some sleep.  Unfortunately, sleeping well wasn’t really on the schedule for another 3 weeks.

All three of us did end up getting on the road on Sunday, May 27, 2012 (which also happens to be the birthday of the darling who brought S and I together– his beautiful niece).  I had my handy-dandy iPhone app, Pet Friendly Hotels, downloaded, Callie sleeping in the passenger seat, and my hot coffee ready to go.  I was ready for hotels, fast food, and one long road for the next two weeks.  I couldn’t believe I was about to drive 4,462 miles (7,181 km) all by myself.

What’s the longest drive you’ve ever made by yourself?

Note:  The Pet Friendly Hotels App is free and it was truly a life-saver.  I didn’t always make reservations through them, but it was really nice to know instantly which hotels in the area allowed animals instead of trying to find access to the internet and trudging through hotel sites and making phone calls.  I HIGHLY recommend it to anyone traveling with animals– no matter how far you’re traveling.