December 31, 2008

I Could Kiss Laura From Housekeeping

So we went on an overnight ski trip to a resort a few hours away from where we live on Sunday. Aside from it being one of the most stressful trips we've ever been on, we did end up having a great time. People always tease me for making lists and itineraries and "over-planning" trips, but this past weekend just reinforced why I do all of that. This is the first time since I can remember that I didn't make a packing checklist or map out an activity itinerary and boy did it show. Here's how the stress all started:

  1. Hubby did not put my overnight bag in the car.
    (Please know that I cannot possibly convey to you in words the feelings that little situation evoked. Use your imagination.)
  2. Since we were in middle-of-nowhere-Maryland my only shopping options to replace my stuff were Wal-Mart and Cato Fashions. Any store with the word "fashions" in the name can only be bad news. It was, however, a step up from the atrocities the local Wal-Mart was trying to pass off as "sweaters." I never longed for a Target so badly in my life.
  3. We also forgot at home L'il Buddy's winter coat and Chatterbox's and Giggles' hats, gloves, and scarves. This was because when we left home it was a record-breaking 70 degrees for some freakish reason and so we didn't bundle the kids up as we normally do when leaving the house. Instead everyone just piled in the car and Hubby threw the girls' coats in the back. So the kids got some winter "fashions" from Wal-Mart too. Thank goodness I had packed the girls' snowpants in their bag which, thank goodness, Hubby did bother to put it in the car.
  4. Hubby did not bother to bring any winter accessories for himself (because he "took this trip for granted" - his words, not mine) and so he ended up buying an overpriced ski mask from the resort boutique. He did have ski gloves that his wife packed for him though.
  5. Hubby had also decided that there was "no room" for the girls' sled and left it in the driveway at home. Scout's honor. (How could there not be any room? He didn't put anything else in the car!)
  6. With no set itinerary we wasted precious time trying to figure out what to do and when and where and how much it cost once we got there. Add three small children to the mix and it was a mess.

In the end we made the best of everything and had fun. J. Ny and her family came too and the first night the kids all went sledding (on J. Ny's sleds, of course) and tubing. My sister and I went night skiing (albeit very late) and it.was.so.great! After a completely sleepless night (the baby did not like his unfamiliar surroundings; Giggles' had a cough; the heater in the hotel room was louder than an army-issue Black Hawk; shall I go on?) we woke up, had breakfast and Hubby and I hit the slopes. We then had a ridiculously complicated time checking out of the room and returning our equipment (check out time came before the ski lift passes expired so we were trying to do as much skiing as possible whilst having checked out of our room), and then we were finally on our way home. Of course, in line with the rest of the events of the weekend, the nipple for L'il Buddy's bottle sprung a leak on the car ride back home just as he was wanting to eat, and we had to find our way to a CVS on dark back roads in the Maryland countryside to buy a new one. We finally made it home, happy and tired from our skiing adventure. End of story.

Or so I thought.

This morning it occurred to me that I hadn't seen Chatterbox's "DS" that she got for Christmas since we had been back home. Of course, being a firm believer in Murphy's Law, deep down I had a feeling that I knew exactly where the game was but I attempted to look for it everyhwere nonetheless. Chatterbox confirmed my suspicions and announced that her "DS is in the drawer in the hotel room." At which point I almost cried. She hadn't even had the thing for a full week!

Anyway, to put you out of your misery I will cut to the chase: I just called the resort and spoke to Laura from Housekeeping who cheerfully told me that they in fact had "the Frog" and would send it to out to us right away.

How's that for a Christmas miracle?

Lessons learned: There still are some good people left in the world; my unconditional love for Target really is justified; always double-check behind your husband when going on a trip; ignore the haters and make checklists and itineraries 'til the cows come home; and add "hotel drawers" to the list of spots to triple-check when checking out of a hotel room.

The End.

8 comments:

Genie Sea said...

Gotta love holidays... Glad the DS is making it back. Glad you all made it back in one piece. At least one of you wasn't left behind. :>

Unknown said...

I fainted off this part:

***Hubby did not put my overnight bag in the car***


So glad to hear it all worked out and the DS being found. There are AMAZING people in this world. I have HOPE ;)

Michele said...

People make fun of me because I plan the details of our family trips, but the rare times I don't, we end up with a trip very similar to yours! So, glad the DS was found and you all made it back in one piece! :)

Justice Ny said...

I just finally had a chance to log on to the blog - this is a great summary of the trip. I am so surprised that we/you were able to have a good time after all those mishaps! Folks, Fergie was livid - but she really does a great job of hiding it though. I could only imagine the things that were said in that hotel room once they realized that the bag was at home.

We most definitely will have to do it again and I will not tease you for your lists etc. In fact, DH did all that and I was pleased that things went smoothly on our end - but for DD getting sick at the hotel.

Clearly I will have to join the organization/planning club in 2009 because there is some merit to planning!

A Shorter Mama said...

Whew! Is all I can say!

Unknown said...

You really know how to make us feel like we were all right there watching from the backseat. Hold it down Fergie!

Baby Bunching said...

We linked you as one of our Baby Bunching bests this week. :-)

Anonymous said...

WOW, what a trip! Momma's overnight bag is a crucial component! Can't survive without that!
A twitter friend recently turned me on to springpadit.com to help me stay even more organized.
Take a look and let me know what you think.

Related Posts with Thumbnails