The Go Boat.

It started about three months ago with one simple phrase. Elinor was just learning how to talk, she had mastered Mama and Dada and the rest was pretty much gibberish. One should never assume, however, that a seven year old won't try to make sense of that gibberish. Especially when that seven year old is Connor. Since that day, it has become an obsession with he and Sophia. The Go Boat. Or...more aptly, the Go Boat trip.

As Elinor was talking in that mysterious language that only babies know and as Connor was listening he heard her say something that sounded like "go boat". When he asked her where she was going to go on the boat, she responded with "go boat I." That is his version of the story and the source of late night whispers between he and Sophia. The source of giant holes in my back yard. And, the source of me forever finding bags packed with clothing, stuffed animals, shoes, and toys around the house.

You see, when Connor heard Elinor say "go boat I" he drew the obvious conclusion that Elinor had a secret plan for them to take a trip on a boat that Elinor had created and named the Go Boat to a country that begins with the letter I. He explained this to Sophia and she was more than happy to climb aboard the crazy train and start planning for their world wide adventure.

Connor immediately made the assumption that when she said "I", Elinor was indicating that she wanted to take her boat to one of four places: Iceland, Ireland, Italy, or the Ivory Coast. After careful consideration, they decided that Italy was most likely the place. The reasoning behind this: Italy is shaped like a boot and Elinor does seem to like shoes (she truly does).

Then the preparation began.

Phase I:
They began packing bags and planning for the things they would need in Italy. Sunglasses, extra underwear, a nice sailor dress for Sophia and Elinor, and their favorite animals were shoved into bags and stowed in places like under the bed and in corners of the playroom.

Phase II:
Connor began studying my various cookbooks to find travel friendly recipes and also recipes that involved fish. He also began to ask me questions regarding the best way to store water.

Phase III:
Connor told me not to worry if I woke up one morning and they were all gone. It would just mean that they had left for the Go Boat trip and they would be back in a few weeks or months. (He was quite serious).

Phase III part b.:
I explained to Connor that if he so much as stepped outside in the middle of the night or tried to take his sisters with him that he would be grounded until the end of eternity and would never get to do anything fun ever again. I strictly forbid him to take the Go Boat trip until he was at least 18. (He begrudgingly agreed).

Phase IV:
Connor then began to try to figure out where Elinor had hidden her Go Boat. She indicated it was outside (one of her favorite words) and down (another favorite). So...he and Sophia did what any normal kids would do when looking for a giant boat meant to travel across the ocean...they began to dig holes in my back yard trying to locate it. I told them to stop digging holes and took away their shovels. They then concluded that Elinor must have already taken it to the Mississippi River (that is their selected point of origin for the trip).

Phase V:
This is our current phase. This is the phase where every time we get a box of any kind it is immediately transformed into a boat, filled with clothes, stuffed animals, bottled water, and sunglasses. The kids sit in the boat and study a map - searching to find the best route to Italy or Hawaii. They are thinking that it may be more fun to go there now. Plus, Connor figures that when Elinor said "Go Boat I" at the beginning of summer, she may have just meant that she wanted to come on the Go Boat and wasn't so particular about where they were going.

If you see Connor and Sophia whispering to each other in the corner and listen very closely, I can almost assure you that at some point you'll hear the phrase "the Go Boat." And, if you happen to see my seven year old, three year old, eighteen month old, and baby heading towards the Mississippi, please send them back home.