What Was I Thinking

I love this picture even though it's blurry. The boys were so excited about the Monster Truck Jam, they could hardly contain it!

My family planned to attend the Monster Truck Jam together. I was really just going along to be a good sport. But, Chris, Daniel, and Josh had a ski trip for the same day. Jonah really wanted to go last year to the Monster Truck Jam, so I decided to just go ahead and take the four youngest boys to the event by myself. I mean really...how bad could it be???


We had great seats. The boys had a blast! However, I spent most of the time bored out of my mind. I really wish I had brought a book! Since I had nothing to do, I took out an envelope (the only paper in my purse) and wrote down some thoughts about why this was the perfect event for boys...

BIG, BIG, BIG (the tires on these cars were at least 6 feet tall)
Loud!!!! (even with earplugs)
Dirty (you can taste the dirt in the air)
Fireworks
Competition (Who can go the fastest? Jump the highest?)
Smoke & Exhaust
Jumps, Flips, Wheelies

Even the names of the cars were manly...El Toro Loco (in above picture), Grave Digger, The Eradicator, Maximum Destruction.

The real fun began when we were trying to leave the event. The show sold out which meant there were 60,000 people trying to leave at the same time. The autograph table was set up right beside the door I needed to go out to get to my van. It was very cold out that night so I wanted to stay inside as long as possible. I held on to Noah's hand and the other boys' coats to make sure we did not get separated. After much crying and relaxation breathing, we finally emerged from the west side of the building. What a night!!!

Tip for keeping track of kids in crowds: Make sure your cell phone # is on your child and they know who go to for help.
-I usually write my phone number on their arm somewhere, but I didn't have a pen that would write on their skin this time. (I know it's not the best thing, but it works.) So, I wrote my number on paper and put it in each of their pockets.
-I made sure we talked about what to do if we got separated on our way to the event.
-Once we were in the stadium, I pointed out to the what the event staff workers were wearing.
-I teach my kids to find a Mom and ask for help if they can't find security or can't remember anything else!

Rachel