The foldy stool.

My kids are just a little too short to reach the sinks at most hotels and camp grounds, not to mention all of the rest stops in between. I found a little plastic stool that folds completely flat at a hardware store. It cost about $12, and I bring it along when we travel, sometimes in my suitcase and sometimes in the car. It was especially helpful at camp last week because it doubled as a chair. In hotels, I just set it up in the bathroom and then I don't have to help with the teeth brushing and the hand washing.

About paying bills...

We have been "camping" for ten nights. The word resides in quotes because our camping involves a pop-up camper, electricity, and usually a water hook-up, in addition to showers and toilets within walking distance. The camping trip was longer than expected; originally we had planned on a mere six night camp extravaganza. But, with our move to Pittsburgh coming up, we decided to stop and purchase our first house while on the road (another reason to have a wireless data card, house shopping on a road trip!). So, our trip was extended by five days. It was a long trip, changing campgrounds three times, but it was fun. And exhausting.

We were driving home last night, relieved to be back in Virginia after so many nights in the camper. As we pulled onto our road, I said to the girls, "Well, here we are at Paynes Mill Rd. Camp. Let's pick out a nice site near the bathrooms." They laughed after the initial wave of panic subsided and they realized it was only a joke. David pulled the camper into the driveway and backed it in next to the house (we have no neighbors anywhere near us). "Well, here's a nice spot, right next to the bathhouse" he said. Then we jumped out to start unpacking the car. I grabbed a bunch of dirty clothes and my computer bag, and headed into the stifling hot, completely silent, and dark house. Yup, the electricity had been turned off. And, since we have an electric well pump, no running water. Home sweet home.

This extended vacation, coupled with an overlooked electric bill in late July, brought on the perfect storm of irresponsibility. Apparently one should pay their bills, all of them, before traveling. Being on the road for 11 days, I had missed the first cutoff notice from the electric company, the second notice, and the cutoff event itself. So, late on a Thursday night, with no electricity and no water, what is a camping family to do, but camp. We set up the camper, grabbed our flashlights, used the baby potty which we always travel with (well, the kids did), and brushed our teeth with water from the water jug. Then we unrolled our sleeping bags, and went to sleep in the same place we had been for the previous 10 nights, in our camper. It was our most primitive campsite yet.

This morning, thanks to the magic of phone payments, we were once again blessed with electricity. Now we can start on all that laundry.

On the Road: Camping in Ohio

Here we are at Pymatuning State Park, camping with the kids (plus two) and extended family. It is nice to camp with others because there are more pairs of eyes to keep on the kids, plus people can "pair off and entertain themselves."

So, onto a travel tip, since that's what this blog is all about: Get a mobile broadband card.
($60 a month unlimited connectivity.) If you are too cheap and need some convincing, here are seven reasons to get one:

1. I am right now sitting in a camp chair next to Pymatuning Lake, watching the sunrise and, yes, typing my blog.

2. Google Maps right there in your car, complete with traffic updates.

3. Audio streaming in the car. When I drove back from Oklahoma by myself with the two girls, there was no one to take over the wheel. So, in order to keep sane, I went to the This American Life website and streamed show after show after show. Ira Glass kept me going for hours at a time.

4. Video streaming at camp. The night before last in Pennsylvania, David and I watched a Netflix movie in the camper, online.

5. Email. Instant messaging. YouTube. Realtor.com. (A few of my obsessions that I couldn't give up for a week of relaxation at camp.)

6. We use our mobile broadband card at home. Hooked up to a wireless router, it works great. And we're not paying for internet connection on top of the mobile broadband charge.

7. Airports, Starbucks, McDonalds, and all of those places with wireless that charge you for connectivity- screw them! Your $60 a month will actually save you money in those hot spots. You will feel the true value of your investment while you're sitting next to the guy who is shelling out $9.95 for a 12 hour period of connectivity.


Ok, if you have not run out to buy a broadband card based on my seven good reasons, then just go get an iPhone. It's cooler anyway.

On the Road: Camping in Pittsburgh

Our compact little family of four has inherited two more kids for this road trip. Now here we are, camping in Pittsburgh, with four kids age 3-6. The eight hour drive here was the hardest part, which actually wasn't that hard at all. The problem was that I wasn't prepared for three girls and a boy. I have all of my Dollar Tree road trip toys bought in identical pairs, and they are all girl toys. So, I abandoned that plan and had them share their road trip boxes, which I filled with markers, crayons, paper, and coloring books. One road trip box for the back seat and one for the back-back. That, combined with a sing-along and some books was enough to keep them entertained until they finally slept. We left at 6pm and they slept around 10pm.

Now here we are at camp, and it is great having four kids. They can pair off and entertain one another. My mom always says, "have them in pairs," and she should know, she has three.

Another thing about Priceline, parking

David went to Pittsburgh last weekend, and he called me up to find him a hotel room, since I am the wife/travel agent. I went to Priceline because my Holiday Inn rewards points were used up thanks to the 45 hour road trip to and from Oklahoma last month. So I did what I don't usually suggest, I booked a hotel on Priceline. Admittedly, I got a good deal (you can usually swing a really good deal if you book on Priceline for that very night), a $199 hotel room for $58 (pre-tax). Sounds too good to be true?? As is typical with Priceline hotel rooms, it was. With taxes, it was more like a $70 room and then when David got there, and extra $16 a night for parking. Yup, hotel parking... not even a consideration on Priceline, and I have stumbled up against it before. Be aware when you book hotel rooms in city downtown areas that they may tack on 10-20 dollars a night for parking (even more in NYC), though its not usually a problem elsewhere.