Vacation Planning...

We're T minus 4 days until vacation, and it's time to start throwing together the details of our trip.  Since this is our 11th year spring-breaking to Orange Beach, the details come about quite naturally.  But as to not give my mom anxiety, because she's already packed and pretty much ready to go, I'll start to get my stuff together as well.

Life Rule #1 - Keep your mama happy

I won't bore you with the details of the beach-appropriate gear, flip flops, and other things that will generally make you jealous I'm going on vacation and you're not, but I will share with you a sneak peek of what happens on a road trip with my mom and I.  Because isn't it just as much about the journey as it is the destination?

'Bama 2009

Essential #1 - The Tunes
Every road trip with mom begins with Keith Urban "Who Wouldn't Wanna Be Me?".  We stick our "hand out the window as the car drives by" and belt it out for all of Hudson Road to hear.  It's the perfect send off.  Because really, who wouldn't want to be us?

Later down the road, mom subjects me to two (sometimes three) of her favorite road trip CD's.   What are they - you ask?  Tom Jones Greatest Hits - I mean, what 26 year old doesn't love Tom Jones?

I'm your sex bomb.

And....(wait for it)....Evita.  Don't Cry For Me Argentina, I'm used to it by now. And quite frankly, I've embraced it.

The truth is, I never left you. 

I put both of these CD's in the "I know all of the words to these songs but shouldn't" category. (The third, if you're curious, is Carol King Tapestry.  Geesh, doesn't anybody stay in one place anymore?)

Essential #2 - The Grub.

If you know my dad, he is a totally efficient human being - in fact, he gets very bothered by inefficient processes.  So while traveling with him, we don't spend much time dilly-dallying about.  Stop for a meal? Nah, we'll pack our own.  Now Dad's not coming this year on vacation, but tradition is tradition, so we'll pack our cooler like we usually do.

A ham sandwich walks into a bar. The bartender looks up and says, "Sorry, we don't serve food here."  

 In the cooler on any Kuebler vacation you can find: Diet Pepsi, water, Dr. Pepper if the boys are along, and about 100 mini ham and turkey sandwiches on tea rolls.  Okay, maybe not quite 100, but you need a lot of ham sandwiches when you're in the car for 17 hours. Other mandatory car snacks include chex mix, licorice, Cheez Its, and some sort of chocolate or cookie.


Essential #3 - The Fam.

My favorite part of family vacation is, well, my family.  Although we live literally a half a mile from each other and talk almost every day, mom and I gab the entire trip to Alabama.  We talk about past trips, future trips, and who knows what else.  We sing along to songs I still shouldn't know the words to. We watch the temperature outside rise each hour we go on.  We take crazy side trips to the best shoe store ever created on some random Alabama road.  And if all else fails, I make mom play the game "Guess what song I am whistling" - which she hates, because  1) apparently my whistling is off-tune because I laugh too much and 2) she can't whistle and it makes her jealous.

'Bama 2008

Ahh, I love spring break road trips!  Speaking of, I better get packing. I guarantee mom just read this and wondered If she's blogging, how can she be packing? Whoops, sorry mom! :)