A couple weeks ago, Ray came home with the news that he had to go to Detroit for 3 days for training. Since it is 2.5 hours away, the company would pay for a rental car and a hotel room. One of the three approved hotels offered suites with enough beds for all of us, along with a complimentary breakfast and an indoor pool. That sounded like a cheap get-away with the kids to me, so after teaching on Monday afternoon, I surprised the kids and drove over to Detroit.
We arrived a little after 7:30 and swam before bed. On Tuesday morning we had breakfast together and Ray left for his class. The kids and I restored order to the hotel room and had a couple hours of school. A picture is worth a thousand words, but the camera batteries died just as I tried to take a picture of Benjy stretched out on the bed “reading” a book. Nathanael loved having the hotel room desk for his studies, and Maggie and Katie each pulled up a little table to the couch for their work. It was perfect!
I promised a morning and an afternoon swim time as long as attitudes were good. And they were, so down to the pool for an hour or so before lunch. Nathanael practiced his new knowledge of whale antics, thanks to Apologia’s Swimming Creatures of the Fifth Day, by breaching and lobtailing, much to his sisters’ distress. The splashes were not appreciated. The little ones rode on my back and practiced kicking and scooping water. They were great about staying on the steps when I wasn’t holding them.
Lunch wasn’t anything special—pb & j and apples. Not the kids favorite, but they ate it. We checked out the “market” at the hotel, but I refused to pay $2 for a single serve cup of mac ‘n cheese! After the lunch the little ones crashed, and I played games with the older two. Once the little ones woke up we did a couple crafts and worked on a puzzle or two. They had slept so long that we really didn’t have time for an afternoon swim. The children chose to wait for Daddy. While we waited, we took a tour of the hotel, walking up the four flights of stairs to the top floor and then walking back down, floor by floor. The girls had fun making the connection between room number and floor (221 is on the second floor, 321 is on the third, etc.). That was my exercise for the day!
After supper the rest of the family prepared for a swim but I begged out of it and rested while watching a couple episodes of the Duggars. We don’t have cable so I rarely get to see those. What a testimony they have! After the swim everyone went right to sleep. For a hotel situated right next to Detroit Metro Airport, it was very quiet. I credited it to good soundproofing, but Ray also told me that a lot of flights were cancelled due to the blizzard on the east coast. The hotel was full of stranded passengers and the skies were empty! Breakfast was a little busier that next morning.
On Wednesday morning, Ray returned for his last day of training, and we packed up to head back to Lowell. Michigan also had a small snowstorm on Tuesday and the news advised caution in driving. Just the excuse I needed to take the kids swimming one more time! I figured that would give the plows a little more time to get the roads cleared. It worked. The kids were much more cheerful about leaving with one more chance to swim, and the roads were ready for us. We left around 11:00 and were home by 2:00, including a stop for lunch in Lansing.
Sometimes we just need a little break—not seeing all the tasks staring me in the face at home, the kids only having a little schoolwork, not being overwhelmed with toys and games to play. God provides for our needs and then overflows our cups with just a little more to show his love and goodness. I never thought I would say this, but three days in Detroit were a blessing.
