Thursday, February 17, 2011

"Life doesn't always turn out the way that you planned"

"I just wish I had realized at the time that he was talking about my life."

I love to plan things, it's a favorite pastime of mine. I have been very much into planning a trip to Austin for spring break. Plane tickets ($1347), places to stay ($900), things to do ($500), and all that ($300)! I've been working as hard as I can to earn and save money but every time I manage to get a few hundred dollars saved up something comes up and has to be paid. Argh!

I've been getting closer and closer to the fact that this awesome plan might not be realistic for now. I'm still paying off our washer and dryer, and once those are paid off I have to pay ElCid back for our trip to Idaho over New Year's, so I have NO extra dollars to save out of our regular budget either.

ElCid gets to come with us on spring break this year so we started looking into closer to home, less expensive options and we've come up with camping at the Grand Canyon. We've never been there as a family and the girls have been begging us for years to go camping, in our tent, that is still brand new, in the package, for the last 3 years.

This is the new plan ElCid and I finalized last night. We will drive there on day one, which can't be until Tuesday because that's when the tax deadline really is because of some fake holiday in Washington DC. Williams, AZ is about 4 hours away. We will set up camp and hang out. On day two we will ride a train from Williams into the Grand Canyon and according to people I know it's a lot of fun, they did it once. Day three we will drive into the Grand Canyon and go "hiking". I'm betting we'll get 1/4 of a mile out of George before she starts whining, anybody else want to wager? Day four (also Fred's 11th birthday - ACK!) We will hang out, pack up and head home. 

This plan gives me all of Saturday to get back to real life, before Easter is upon us.

I'm still sad my original plan isn't going to work out but this one is certainly more reasonable, and when you're a grown up sometimes you just have to go with reasonable.

3 comments:

Karen Valinda said...

And as far as reasonable goes, this new plan has lots of positives and fun and DIRT on the tent, at least the bottom side of the floor, eh? You should put it on your blog so all of your relatives can get a jump on Fred's 11th birthday and send gifts to you Before mid April so she will have LOTS of presents to open, in the tent, in the Grand Canyon, from tens of people who love her. I figure tens of relatives read this, maybe not scores but definitely tens! I will tell my people, smack 'em when they say "but we don't Send Fred presents" and then drive 'em to the store! I love you Ddonn! xoxoxox
wv:stlinso the eventual status of one of our loved ones, st linso. Saint! not Street, yeesh!

An Wanna said...

Reasonable is boring. Is Wil one of the people who said the train is fun? I know she has been there, but don't remember hearing about a train...

The trip sounds exciplin

Safire said...

Being a grown up sucks sometimes. You know, you could have come HERE, and wouldn't have had to pay for a hotel (although it would have been tight!) and most everything around here is free. Think about it...:)