My Inner Clark Griswold

Some people fear becoming their parents. Not me. I fear becoming Clark Griswold, the hapless father portrayed by Chevy Chase in the "Vacation" movies.

Unfortunately, Old Wahoo experienced a Griswold moment on the way back from our family's spring break trip. During a restroom and lunch break at a McDonald's, my youngest son, in desperate need of a nap, kicked off his shoes while throwing a mini-tantrum. While Mrs. Wahoo struggled with the Moose, I picked up the shoes while I also took care of three bags of Happy Meals and fries.

We pack the kids away without further incident, and after eating lunch, two of the three boys fall asleep. Mission accomplished, right? Well, when we came to our next rest stop three hours later, we could not find the shoes, and when we arrived home later that evening, the shoes still could not be found.

Finally, the next day as I unloaded groceries from the back of the van, I found one shoe wedged in the luggage rack atop the car. Alas, the other shoe still was missing.

Since leaving the shoes on top of the car was definitely a Griswold moment, I have tried to shake it off and look for the bright side, just like Clark W. did in the movies.

Sure, I lost my son's favorite (and best) pair of shoes, but imagine how amazing it is that one shoe made the 428-mile trek from Berkeley Springs, W.Va., to Detroit.

And yes, I did leave the shoes on top of the car, but it could have been worse. I could have left my coffee there, or the portable DVD player, and either one of those calamities could have made the trip unbearable. A friend also said it would have been worse to leave a kid on top of the van.

Or, as Clark Griswold did, I could have left the dog tied to the bumper.

Back in Michigan

Old Wahoo and the Mrs., along with the three boys, returned home from our vacation to D.C. and Virginia last night, and this morning we awoke to beautiful spring weather in Michigan - 40 degrees and rain. That's enough complaining, though, because we had a great time, and much love to the Old Wahoo family - Grandma Wahoo, Gramps Wahoo and Aunt Amy and Uncle Clark - for all that they did during our trip. We did a ton, too - the Mall and Metro in D.C., visiting old friends in NoVa, Easter egg hunts, Virginia Sports Hall of Fame, amusement parks, golf, tennis, beach, and a night on the town. Rob loved the Smithsonian, and all the boys loved Busch Gardens, where Matt never wanted to get off the rides. Plus, a perfect day at the beach for Grandma's birthday to cap everything off. 

Plus, I gained a much greater appreciation of what my parents went through, especially after buying a $30 lunch of hot dogs at the Natural History Museum while the 1-year-old puts on the Barry Sanders moves en route to escaping his dad's clutches. In some ways, though, that may have been the highlight. 

Liftoff, if a little late

Finally, the space shuttle Discovery launched, nearly a month behind schedule. This was the launch that the boys were supposed to see when they went to Florida. Hopefully, all goes well with the solar panels for the space station. I'm sure it's hard for people to be excited about space exploration right now, especially with the economy suffering, but we can never stop the pursuit of knowledge. Space is still an untapped frontier, and I hope our kids can discover more about it.

Finally, the shuttle will launch

Discovery is set to blast off tonight, according to this article in The New York Times. Originally, the shuttle was scheduled to lift off on Feb. 12, and Rob and Alex headed to Florida with their Grammy and Papa for the launch. Unfortunately, the launch was delayed (more than once), and the boys missed it, though they still had a great time on vacation.

UPDATE: The launch was postponed again, this time until Sunday, which puts a crunch on the mission.

Our First Home Movie

This movie won't have Spielberg shaking in fear, but at least the kids are easier to work with than Christian Bale.