Last Saturday, the Cool Fam went apple picking with our church. About 200 church members descended on a farm in upstate New York to pick apples and enjoy their apple-derived treats like cider, donuts, and Macbooks (not really).
Rains fell on and off, but it didn’t dampen our mood. It was fun to gather with friends from the various neighborhood plants of our church in a setting vastly different from the mean streets of Manhattan.
I volunteered to drive one of the 15-passenger vans that carried Upper East Side residents. From my years in the band, I have literally dozens of miles of van-driving experience.
For singles and young marrieds, the 1.5-hr drive was a pleasant jaunt through the changing leaves of rural New Jersey and upstate New York. For our van – The Family Van carrying 9 adults and 5 kids – the trip to the farm was surprisingly chill. Everyone enjoyed the Kincaidish scenery. Cool Baby slept.
The return trip was a different drive. Dark and rainy. The roads were jammed with eager visitors and weary Manhattanites. One 10-minute stretch was sitcom-like in the way it embodied what parenting often is. Picture it with me:
The Family Van inches back to its NYC home with miles of cars on either end of it. The rental van’s worn-down wiper blades fight a losing battle against the persistent rain. Two bench seats behind me, Cool Baby pleads with Cool Mum for more cheese; cheese that our friends are graciously providing us. I’m running late for an engagement party for some of our first NYC friends.
Suddenly, the toddler in the seat behind me announces to his parents that he has to go potty. Now. They pull out his portable potty, pull him out of the car seat, and sit him down. A few seconds later, I smell the funk. At first, I didn’t realize what was happening. I wondered if the Chick fil-A I had in the mall was disagreeing with me. Then, I realized it was the little guy behind me marking his airspace. My friend riding shotgun coughs mid-sentence, causing us to erupt in laughter thinking that the odor was gagging him.
The timing of all of this going down at once was uncanny. My friend said that the moment qualified for a sitcom. We all agreed. We need more sitcoms about the ridiculous lives that parents lead! You know, in addition to the 300 that are already on TV.
Despite the hitches and odors, the day was a fun one, getting to know new families and friends. There’s something about a road trip that bonds you with people unlike any other way.
So that was our first of what may be many apple picking trips. And how did I like them apples? Even with traffic and toddler flatulence, just great.
