The Joyride…

Five years into their marriage, my mom, Eileen, and dad had their hands full with four young daughters: Christine, Debbie, Susan, and Cathy. One day, Mom had a memorable trip to the grocery store that turned into quite the adventure.

After returning home, she began unloading the bags from the car, with all the girls in the back seat. Christine and Debbie, feeling mischievous, decided they wanted to "drive" the car. They climbed into the front seat, pretending to steer and honk the horn, while Susan and Cathy joined in the excitement from the back.

In their playful frenzy, Christine and Debbie accidentally nudged the gearshift into neutral. To their delight, the car started rolling backward. The girls, thinking they were driving, screamed in glee as the car rolled into a little embankment in the woods and got stuck in a hole.

Realizing what had happened, Mom had to act fast. She called a tow truck to pull the car out of the hole before Dad returned home. It was a frantic and hilarious scene, but in the end, everything turned out okay.

This escapade became one of the many stories that their family would laugh about for years to come, a reminder of the unpredictable joys and challenges of raising four young girls.