The Chaos Chronicles: The Life and Times of the Cox Clan: Are We There Yet?

Top 10 Random Things I Learned on the Cox Family Road Trip

10. Willie Nelson's "On the Road Again" is a delightful distraction from the boredom that sets in after you pass Ardmore. Too bad I only know the chorus so it doesn't last long. It also helps get your mind off having to pee, because we all know Jason doesn't stop and restricts my fluid intake on road trips!

9. Nolan is a great traveler. He watched "The Elf" for much of the 5 times it was shown due to his sister's authority over the DVD player, ate fruit, and rocked out to Bon Jovi. Bailey did really well, too. We were nervous after she asked us if we were in San Antonio as we passed the Warren Theatre in Moore (about 30 minutes from home for those of you not familiar with OKC).

8. I, apparently, am afraid of heights. Upon our arrival in S.A., we proceeded downtown to stroll the Riverwalk, eat Mexican food, and take the kids up to the observation deck of the Tower of Americas. I remember Jason taking me up the tower when we came to S.A. the first time when we were dating....and I don't remember anything crazy happening. This time, however, I couldn't look out the glass elevator and, when we got to the top, my legs felt weak and I couldn't walk anywhere close to the edge (it's all glassed in, but that didn't seem to me to be a rational argument for looking out). The kids' hair was blowing and I felt the gentle swaying of the entire building. Yep, that's when I wanted to go. Funny, my brother had a similar experience in Vegas....but we've known he's afraid of heights since he was a child. Me? Just add this to my running list of anxieties now.

7. We are not Six Flags people. We made plans to spend Day #2 at Fiesta Texas. Soooooo fun, right? When it's 105 degrees and one of your children is only big enough to ride one ride in the entire park (but doesn't understand why he can't do whatever he wants), this adds up to one thing: being miserable. We wore our swimsuits as our plan was to get hot and sweaty and then cool off at the water park. We only made it a couple of hours and then pondered why we shouldn't just go back to the hotel and swim there....less people, more relaxing. So, we were pathetic and left. We had fun in those 2 hours, though, so that's all that matters (trying not to think about the price per hour we paid for that fun!).

6. I will never again use Expedia to book travel arrangements! We booked our stay at a hotel where friends always stay and right by Sea World where our other friends live. It's beautiful, we got a good deal, the end. However, when we arrived (after our long journey to get there and when all the kids wanted to do was hop in the pool), they said that they didn't have a reservation for us and were completely booked for the holiday weekend. Say what? Apparently, a confirmation doesn't really mean anything. Long story short (or as short as you get with me!), Expedia had booked 7 families at that hotel and had not provided that information to the hotel. Jason proceeded to get angry, they told him to lower his voice and suggested we do as another family did and go to the Days Inn down the street that was sure to have availability. They lost him at Days Inn.....smile. It's funny now, but we were not amused in the moment. One of the managers ended up really helping us....calling Expedia, talking to supervisors there, etc. But, Expedia did nothing. They wanted to put us up for one night at a hotel downtown but charge us more for it. Regardless of the various arguments about our inconvenience, they were worthless. Finally, the hotel manager simply said that THEY would take care of us and they paid to put us up at the Courtyard Marriott down the street....one of only a handful of hotels with rooms available, only because they had just opened on Tuesday. All's well that ended well, but it was not a good start to our "no worries" vacation!

5. Salt water pools must be the new thing! Both the pools at the hotels where we stayed had salt water, which I'd never seen before. While disconcerting, I think it actually helped Nolan's wound heal faster! Nolan thoroughly enjoyed jumping off the side of the pool 500 times (he'd say, "NINE" and then jump.....his version of a countdown!) and Bailey is really doing well swimming, at least for short distances. She has a hard time transitioning from taking a breath to swimming again. Once she starts bicycling her legs and gets upright, it's downhill from there. But, she's making great progress and even jumped off the diving board a few times this weekend with the aid of a life vest.

4. When you do a lot of swimming, do your kids REALLY need baths? I propose the answer is no. That's all I'll say about whether our kids DID or DID NOT get bathed regularly on our trip.

3. Next time we go somewhere, I will pack less for Bailey and more for Nolan. She wore the same 2 dresses through the whole trip (and her swimsuit/cover-up) so much of her suitcase went untouched. All of my meticulous "outfit planning" based on the proposed daily activities went by the wayside. Nolan, however, can't eat anything (and I do mean ANYTHING) without it ending up smashed into his hair, shirt, on the seat of his pants, etc. So, note to self that Nolan needs 2 outfits per day if we plan on keeping him looking nice which isn't something we concern ourselves with at home that much.

2. There are ALOT of Cracker Barrel restaurants between here and San Antonio. I would not have known this had we not decided to stop there on our way down, and then saw one at almost every exit thereafter. I do have to say that their Campfire Chicken is pretty tasty!! There IS such a thing as travel food - sunflower seeds, beef jerky, Big Red drink (the drink from the gods, if you haven't tried it), and I'm now adding Cracker Barrel to the list!

And the #1 thing I learned is:

1. We have great friends and only wish they lived closer! We had a wonderful time with everyone (except Danny and Julie, who were greatly missed) and it makes me sad that we can't just have impromptu dinner parties all the time....or go see one of the kids play soccer....or be at birthday parties!

And, for the pics.....these are arranged from last to first (end of trip to beginning) and I'm too lazy to go through and change it around since there are so many of them!

Nolan looks like he's really playing...waiting for the rebound!