It is a 3 hour drive to the theme park.
Or, at least it is supposed to be a 4 hour drive.
About half way there the van broke down and I was stranded on the side of the road with 3 little ones. It was so hot and the van wouldn’t even start up enough to let me roll the windows down. After waiting for over a half hour for the tow truck, the kids and I walked a half mile to the nearest store. It happened to be an auto parts store. Thank God they had air conditioning. The kids and I cooled off while we looked at car seat covers and floor mats. The manager of the store heard about my issue and he volunteered to drive down and see if he could fix our van. I was a little bit apprehensive about going with a stranger like this, especially with the kids. But he told us to stay here in the air conditioned store and that he would go with one of his employees. I handed over my van keys and hoped that they were honest men. Twenty minutes later, they pulled into the parking lot of the auto parts store with my van. And it was working! The manager only charged me for the new alternator and we were on our way. The funny thing is, when I ask the kids what their favorite part of the trip was, they all chime in and say, “the auto parts store”. It was mine too. I loved their air conditioner because we were never that cool again until we got back home.