In the throws of July or How I spent my Summer Vacation, Part 1

When last we met, our fantastic heroine was entrenched in the most solemn preparations for mighty battle, er, a road trip with her sister and three sweet and hairy monkeys.
It has been three and a half weeks, and by gracious, I am simply exhausted still from the events that filled this madhouse road trip/ family vacation.

Event #1: We were driving.(and driving well, I might add.) We had stopped and hotel-ed in style in the darling town of Kanab, Utah. We had breakfasted and filled the mighty Fred's tanks to brimming with gasoline that cost far more than I wanted it to. And then...


Directly after having a conversation about car insurance claims (and our decided lack of experience there-in) and a Pointed notice of the lighted "Watch for Deer" sign (I really did point! Ask Kelsey!) a deer walked right in front of our speeding white bullet and lost his/her life.
Points to ponder:
A- pay attention to mile markers when you drive. It is really easy to feel like an idiot when 911 asks where you are and you say: Um, Highway 89? Somewhere North of Kanab?
B- Brave sisters! Mine was a champ. No, really though, she steered the crunched Fred while the officer used his car to push us out of traffic's way. She played with, helped, bribed, and loved my kids (and me) while the insanity of endless hours in Panguitch loomed before us. She's a gem, folks. Plain and simple.
C- Panguitch, Utah. A tiny town with loads of charm. (where penguins play Quidditch if my sister is to be believed) BUT on a Saturday afternoon it is decidedly void of handy things like rental car places (open or closed), or fast food joints that don't mess up two orders in a row (*Ahem, Arby's) or movie Theaters that promise a Matinee movie to kill the hours you will have to wait while your sister's hero boyfriend drives all the way to pick you up in his family's suburban but then the movie is SOLD OUT.
D- Three traumafied children with nothing to do and nowhere to go for hours on end when it is hot-ish outside and you are SO ready to just be done for the day.

So- it has to be said. Rest in Peace, Fred. You were a dear friend and loved companion on many an outing and the occasional cross-country adventure. I will miss your leather seats and delightful worn-in-to-perfection sensibilities.

Oh, and I guess RIP deer, too. Stupid Animal.

You can kinda see the deer blood on the windshield in the bottom right corner.

Kelsey and Grapes rode in the tow-truck from our boonied crash site into 'town'. The boys and I rode with the officer who helped us out.

We buckled Pencil's seat into the cage part of the back seat. He thought it was funny at first, but then he cried, "Get me outta hewe! I not like it!"
The Cop laughed and said, "That's what the last guy said too!"

Sock rode near the printer and official officer stuff on the other side of the back. He was nonchalant about the whole thing. He just read his book the whole time. I guess multiple run-ins with the law will do that to you.

This was his preschool visit from an Officer back in January.

Event #1 took up so much of our trip's time and energy (with all the insurance phone calls and paper-works) and the subsequent new van shopping, that I'm going to let it be it's own post. There will be more events to come. Stay tuned.