You Found WHAT?!?!?

As we drove into Shreveport, I prayed...please let this hotel be nice.  As we slowly passed through the town, the area got a little older and less inviting.  When we pulled up to our hotel, I was TERRIFIED.  All the businesses on the street had bars on the windows...even the hotel lobby did!!!  Knowing that with four kids and a dog, getting a hotel room would be a challenge, we had made reservations before leaving Kansas...and I will NEVER do that again!!

I went inside to "check-in", I inquired about where we could park a U-Haul.  The front desk clerk told me that we would have to park it in the front parking lot....the UNMONITORED front parking lot.  We were able to park the van in the gated area, which had security surveillance cameras...but not the U-Haul with all of our worldly possessions in it.

After handing the clerk my credit card, another guest came in and THREW his key card at the employee.  Told him that there was no way that he and his family could stay in this establishment.  The clerk asked the man to be patient and he would be with him in a few moments....but this peaked my curiosity.  After getting my cards, I ran out to the van to pull it into the back lot.  It was easy enough to find the rest of that guests' family, as they did stand out from the normal patrons.

The girls' and I pulled right next to them.  I rolled down the window....at first the wife seemed terrified until she actually saw my face and the girls riding with me.  I asked her if she wouldn't mind telling me why they were leaving...since I am traveling with four young children and all.  She told me that their room was disgusting and when they went to check out the bathroom, there were bullet casings all over the place.  I was in shock....but on the other hand...I also know that most hotels (that are cheap) are not the "cleanest" AND I couldn't fault the bullet casings since we were traveling with personal protection ourselves.  I thanked her for the warning and parked to wait for my husband to get there in the UHaul.

When he finally pulled in, I explained the situation to him and together we went to investigate the room.  The room was musty, the neighbors were partying, and the carpets were NASTY!!!  But after some discussion (and it being 10pm), we decided to brave it out the one night.  We pulled out blankets and clothes so that we could leave our suitcases in the van.  We all slept in our clothes on top of the covers.

About 1am, we woke up to the sound of the doorknob jiggling.  Thank God for Elmo.  Our sweet little docile, gentle Elmo.  He is the PERFECT dog.  He is a cock-a-poo (cocker spaniel and poodle mix), which we had to have due to the allergies of our girls.  The sit on him, they ride him, they pull his hair, they do anything and everything to that dog that would normally cause another dog to bark, growl, or even nip at them.....but NEVER does he.  He lays there and takes it, knowing it is all out of love!!  Within a milli-second of someone's attempt at opening our door, Elmo barked long and loud and ferocious.  The noise stopped, and Elmo laid back down as if nothing had happened.  I knew he was a good dog, but this re-confirmed it!!

The rest of the night was uneventful, although we hardly slept due to the noise from the neighbors and my fear that all my things would be stolen away during the night.  When 5am finally came, we got up and dressed in a hurry to check out and look in on the UHaul.  Much to my surprise and pleasure, the UHaul was fully intact INCLUDING our two bicycles strapped to the back.  But I am not one to push my luck, so we were on the road as soon as possible!!