The Ride Home

After a fun-filled weekend away with friends, it was time to head home this morning.  After a mad-dash loading of the car, followed by Tessie slipping on ice and cutting her hand, we were not in the greatest mood leaving Pagosa Springs.  However, the drive to Taos is only about three hours, so we felt confident the kids would stop crying, and sleep most of the way home.  This proved to be true until we stopped for gas.  Both kids woke up, and I braced myself for an awful ride home. 

I was almost immediately proven wrong, when Christian started giggling at something his sister was doing.  She soon joined in, and Nick and I were right behind her.  We were then entertained by Tessie’s constant narrative, brief games of I-Spy, and Christian’s vast array of animal noises.  Now don’t get me wrong, it was by no means a perfect ride.  There were squabbles in the back seat, frustrated parent moments, and a couple minutes devoted to revisiting the boo-boos on Tessie’s hand.  But we were together, mostly having a wonderful time, and driving through some of the most beautiful country on earth. 

The kids marveled at the snow piled high in the forrest surrounding us, and the way it clung to the tall pines.  We gushed over the view from the top of the mountain pass, and we were even lucky enough to have a majestic buck prance across the road in front of the car.  As we neared home, the cheerful atmosphere started to deteriorate, but that was to be expected since the kids slept for such a short time.  Once we were home, and their little bodies were rested, they were happy once more.  And so I could look back on the car ride home fondly, and see it for the beautiful family moment that it was.