Traveling Music Mix

We're planning a camping trip that involves a six-hour car ride with four children. Most of the area we'll be traveling through is barren desert, so I'm a little bit nervous about keeping them occupied. I've started making lists of songs to make mix CDs. The first one I've compiled is for the little ones:

• L-O-V-E - Nat King Cole
• Life is a Highway - Rascal Flatts
• Pennies from Heaven - Louis Prima
• Shake My Sillies Out - Raffi
  
• Garden Song - John Denver
• The Grease Megamix - Olivia Newton-John
• Rum Tum Tum - Jo Jo's Circus
• Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer - Alan Jackson
• Superstition - Stevie Wonder
• Dela (I Know Why the Dog Howls At the Moon) - Johnny Clegg & Savuka
  
• Jump in the Line - Harry Belafonte
• Rainbow Connection - Kermit The Frog
  
• Crocodile Rock - Elton John
• Get Up Offa That Thing - James Brown
• Put a Little Love In Your Heart - Mary Mary
  
• Istanbul - They Might Be Giants
• Octopus's Garden - The Beatles
• Dancing Queen - ABBA
• Alligator in the Elevator - Rick Charette
  

Thanks to the magic of iTunes, I was able to fit them all onto one disc!

Joie de Vivre

This week's joie de vivre is rain. Pure, sweet, desert rain! We have been blessed with five consecutive days of rain, starting Saturday night in our tent. Today's downpour was the best yet, as the kids were treated to both puddles and mud!

My three youngest children do not remember what it is like to live in a rainy climate, so a rainy day is a rare treat that they celebrate to its fullest. Twice this week, we have been outside in our pajamas splashing through puddles. My son yells "puddles, puddles, puddles" while jumping. I love that the rain cools things off long enough for a few blissful minutes of outdoor play and open windows.

Weekend in the Mountains

Over the weekend, I took my three little ones up to the mountains for an annual camping trip with our friends. It was wonderful to get away from the desert heat! The kids enjoyed being outside and playing with their friends.

It was a bit of a long weekend for me flying solo with the three little ones. I think I would have had a great time if the campground had not lost water pressure, and therefore the showers and flush toilets, which added to the challenge of juggling the kids. Thankfully, we still had water from the spigots and vault toilets! Saturday night was the longest of all, when a thunderstorm rolled in shortly before midnight. Thankfully the kids slept through the downpour, we did not get wet and I eventually fell asleep.

The important thing is that the kids got to go on the trip they've been anticipating for weeks and we went on a couple of short walks that temporarily satisfied their desire to go hiking. They enjoyed themselves enough to already be asking when we can go again! Next time, we plan to take everyone.