Our Disastrous Drive to see the leaves....

After the pumpkin patch, we decided to go on a drive up Millcreek Canyon to see the changing leaves.  We stopped on the way up and bought a fried chicken family meal so we could have a picnic there in the canyon.  It was a nice IDEA...
The EXECUTION... um- not so much!

As we were about ten minutes away from the mouth of the canyon, Bethany told me she needed to go potty. We were driving through neighborhoods with NOWHERE to stop! I asked her to hold it and she said she could.


Right after we got to the canyon, I noticed a porta-potty. We pulled over, got everyone out (because of course as soon as Bethy said she needed to go, everyone else said they needed to as well...) and went over to the porta-potty. We got there and realized there was a pad-lock on the door. Apparently it is only for the use of the person taking people's money to go up the canyon...

So we drove up the canyon, looking at the pretty leaves, and looking for a bathroom.  Finally she got to the point she just couldn't wait anymore and I helped her squat in the weeds.  She wasn't terribly happy about that, but she agreed it was better than going in her carseat :)

We continued up the canyon and were almost to the top when Jonathan suddenly threw up eveywhere- and I do mean EVERYWHERE!

We pulled over and ended up just pulling the whole carseat out of the van so I could clean him up.

Fortunately I had my emergency kit in the car that had a change of clothes, cloth diapers to use as rags, and water to help clean things up. 

 It actually took quite awhile to clean up as it really was everywhere. The belts were definitely the hardest to clean....

 The spot where Tim had pulled over was a nice little pull-out next to a little stream.  The kids had a great time playing next to it, and it was slow running and shallow enough in that spot that I wasn't terribly concerned letting them.

 Miriam hadn't gone potty when the others had gone in the bushes, but she really needed to go now.  And Alix decided she needed to go again, and it um, wasn't the kind of thing she could do next to a stream in a water-shed area if you know what I mean....

We had a little bucket in the car that we use as a garbage.  Tim lined it with a grocery bag, and let the girls use it as a potty.  They thought that was so funny and kept asking us to take pictures....

We had intended to leave Jonathan rear-facing at least until he was 18 months old, if not longer.  But, after the recent episode of throwing up at Wheeler Farm, and then in the canyon- both when he was tired and the car ride was a long one.

We figured Jonathan must have inherited his parents' equilibrium.  Tim and I both get motion sickness fairly easily, and apparently Jonathan does too...

So, even though he was a few ounces short of the weight requirement at his last appointment, Jonathan got to turn around.