4 x 6 of Chelsea

Pictures are my thing and I have albums that chronicle every year since PaulA and I were married. I also have great memories which are just as vivid, never yellow with age and I can take them with me, wherever I go. I have a 4 x 6 of Chelsea imprinted in my memory...one that I always carry with me…one that I will never, ever…never forget.

PaulA and I were living in St. Louis and decided to make a trip to Vermont to attend a summer wedding of a college buddy. We were young and Chelsea was just 18 months old (not a BigC yet). I don’t remember why we didn’t fly, maybe we were trying to save a buck, but we decided to hit the open road….Road Trip.

Were we making a mistake by taking a toddler on the road? Would Chelsea, locked in her car seat for two days, scream the entire way to the Green Mountain State? Apparently….NOT! We were prepared with just the right supplies…apple juice, Cheerios, and Fun Fruits. We were young…but not stupid.

Over the course of the trip, we threw her all of these goodies and more. And it seemed to do the trick. Whenever she woke from a nap… we stayed with the plan.

When we arrived, we had to unglue Chelsea from her car seat. What a vision she was…a sweaty, sticky, sweet vision. As PaulA and I worked with a crowbar to pry her out of her seat…she was smiling ear-to-ear. With sticky, humidity-wired ringlets of hair around her face and a gleam in her eye......her smile said it all: “Mom and Dad, I love road trips!”

Chelsea’s sticky, sweet face. Chelsea’s BIG, dimpled smile…

I will never, ever…never forget it.