So just what IS in that top box?
As you may recall, we bought ourselves a bigger car with extra boot space for this trip (among other things). We also had a top box fitted. Our plan was to put all our hard purchased camping gear in the top box and have that as an option for approximately half the trip.
Saturday night. The boys are in bed. We are supposed to be leaving in the morning, and, in a flurry of uncharacteristic preparedness, we decide to pack the car. We pack all the camping gear in the top box – that is easily done as we have tucked all those bits aside during the planning period.
Then we put the bags in the boot.
And then we look at the other half of our bags, sitting forlornly beside the front door.
It is time to make a hard call.
Do we toilet train the boys tonight before we go? Do we put them both in beds? Do we take no toys? Or food? Or maybe clothes?
Or do we can the camping.
Yup. You guessed it. We are not camping on this trip, much to everyone’s disappointment (astonishingly, even mine!). I am very much looking forward to the family reunion the weekend after we return when we should finally be able to put our gear through its paces.
What I was pleased about with this decision was it came through Selwyn and I solving a problem together. Too much of the preparation has been run as a solo mission by one or other of us and it was starting to not feel like a family holiday. Even ‘though we were unhappy with the outcome, it was nice to reach it together.
Still, maybe next family holiday we can go to a nudist colony and not have to take all that clothing!
