Day 1: Have a good Trip! See you next Fall!

The excitement was palpable as the kids unloaded Papi’s classroom stuff out of the van so they could replace it with the luggage that sat expectantly in a line on the picnic table out back.  Today was "Go" day! Imaginings of sandy beaches, new sights, sounds and people were the topic of conversation.  It shifted slightly when they started talking about what was in the bags they were loading into the cavernous space that is our Ford E350. 

“Wouldn’t it be cool if we could flip this seat around and have a ‘Deaf van’ like we had on the temple tour?” asked π².

“Can we try it, Mama?” asked é.

“Sure, give it a go!” I told him. 

Alas the bolts only secure the seat when installed one direction and we stripped the torque bit on the first screw we tried to break loose. 

Giving up, I turned to go inside when π said to K,  “Where’s the WD-40?”

Running to the shed, K came back carrying a little can.  Once saturated, the bolt did little more than just mock them and their puny efforts.  Still undefeated, they worked together to try a few more tricks.   

"I know, we'll lash it in!" was one brilliant idea.
Papi came out and shot their last idea.  They complained profusely and the only response was, "I just don't feel good about it."  The complaining continued so I stepped in,

"No matter what, if Papi doesn't feel good about it, we don't do it.  Find another way, or the idea dies."

When at last they exhausted their abilities, they were still not defeated.  They asked for more ideas.  I felt the need to encourage this type of perseverance, but I had so much left to do!!  So, I re-prioritized the only events left on the list:

1—Pack Mama’s suit case!
2—Pack Mama’s backpack!
3—Mama shower!
4—Pack van
to:
1--Switch seats
2--Everything else

I piled them all in the car to cries of, "Where are we going?!?!"  and we drove to Jiffy Lube.  I explained the idea to the guy who came out to help us and he rallied the other guys working there.  They were pretty excited about helping us until their manager came out.  When he realized I didn't need an oil change, he sent me on my way.  So we drove to Discount Tire where they didn't have the tool we needed.  I told the kids I'd give them until 10:30 but then I had to finish the other tasks at hand.  It was 10:20 when we pulled into Tunex and Kurt, the manager, greeted us with a smile.  When the kids explained their plight, he was more than happy to help.  When a breaker bar didn't work, he pulled out the impact gun and fixed us up right!

I can't sing the praises of Tunex and Kurt enough!  Thanks guys for starting our trip out right!