The Great American Road Trip with the Grandparents & the Kids

I200 miles. From Texas to Wisconsin.  Stop cringing.  It hasn’t been too bad….yet.  

I’m not sure we are saving any money over flying.

I am a seasoned long haul road tripper.  I love road trips, after intense conditioning by frequent road trips of my youth. My parents did not believe in, nor could afford, air travel.  We drove everywhere.   Back in the day when…

Old School:  I tell Handsome Little Man, “We didn’t have smart phones, iPads, DVD players.  Gasp!  We had to use our imaginations.  Play the sign game.  Or the license plate game.  We’d have to read.  Sing.  Have conservations.  Look out the window.  Enjoy the landscape.  Annoy your sibling.” (Yes, a true sign of getting older is “when I was your age” speech.)

My older sister used to play dead.  Ok, she was just sleeping, ignoring her little sister.  After countless pokes of non-responsiveness, she’d win.  I’d start crying, thinking my sister had died in the backseat of the family car.  Game over when the parents, annoyed, tell her to knock it off.  

My Dad would say “THIS is America.”  Sometimes referring to the amazing American landscape.  More times than not, making reference to the unbearable smell of manure.  Or dead skunk.

Dad, now Grandpa, also overuses a hand gesture that only he knows the meaning, that he gives to drivers he thinks deserves it.  The slow driver.  The signal-lights-are-optional driver.  The tailgater.  And now these days the-distracted-on-the-cell-phone driver.  He has done all the driving this trip.  I’ve only had to grip my oh-shit handle twice each day.

It amazes me that there are so many Americans who never cross state lines.  Never enjoyed the open road.  Never seen the grandeur of America from the car.  I am fortunate that I have.  Road trips broaden my perspective.  I appreciate people from different parts of the country.   Certainly helps during election year when I see the map of red vs blue states.  I am much more tolerant.  I am much more appreciative of our collective persona.  

I wish every American, especially the youth, should have a chance for a multi-state road trip. There’s a whole country out there, not as depicted on TV by Hollywood, or by politicians in DC.  It can only foster hope for America.  Acknowledge everything that contributes to our greatness.

Back to today’s road trip.  We are traveling to Wisconsin to celebrate my grandparents’ 70^th anniversary.  70 years!

The kids are happily watching from the dropdown DVD player.  If that should fail, I have a portable DVD player, an iPad, and a slew of DVDs.  I have books, workbooks, toys.  Neither kid has to look out the window.  Although that would be a shame.  We point out things but they are not easily impressed.  I am emphatically pointing out the St. Louis arch, spouting out facts that I probably misremembered, telling him one day we are going all the way to the top.

Are we there yet?

Back in the day, my Dad mapped out our road trips with military precision.  Up before the crack of dawn, he’d have the car packed before my mom, sis, and I were barely out of bed.  I advised him that I travel differently with young children.  

(1)    No matter what time we get up, we won’t actually hit the road until 10:00 am.  He should consider any departure before 10:00 am a bonus. 

(2)    We are required to stop more frequently and when we do, there is no such thing as a “quick potty break.”  Stopping for gas will turn into a quick potty break, too.  Add a minimum of 30 minutes to your travel time for each stop.

(3)    Hotel swimming pools are essential!

                                                                                                                       

We are now back home in Texas.  2400+ miles.  6 days of driving. 6 days of visiting.  12 days of fun!  The grandparents enjoyed the quality time with their grandkids.  I enjoyed that I didn’t have to drive.  For the record, I did offer.  However, Grandpa did want to remain in control of some things.  It was all good – I actually read 3 books from start to finish.  3 books, people!   There is little time for leisure reading at this point in my life, so reading 3 books seemed quite indulgent.  Although I was reading for self-development.  (A business plan is underway!)

Summertime and the Livin' Is Easy....

Another 2 weeks have flown by….and what have I been doing? Trying to keep myself & the child sane. Seriously, it’s summertime which can only mean one thing in my book: TRAVEL!

This past week, kiddo & I drove to the Finger Lakes in New York. Every year the Mother-in-Law spends two weeks at the lake with her best friend of 40+ years. They host a reunion party for their high school friends. They visit family. They cook. They read. They lounge. And for one of the weeks, they gave me a break, helped me with kiddo and provided him the opportunity to create happy childhood memories! His favorite memory of the lake is taking the paddleboat across the lake with Gamie. My favorite memory is him telling stories with his new friends (fellow 4 & 7 yr olds) around the campfire while we made s’mores. Of course, he doesn’t remember the temper tantrum when he couldn’t go on the lake because the water was too rough. Or his whining to go home after day 2. Or anything unpleasant. I remember that all vacations with child in tow always tend to be more work that I anticipate! But we did have fun, even if it was cold & rainy most of the days we were there. (I am a wannabe Southern gal at heart. Give me 90+ degree weather, frizzy hair, and I am happy.)

We returned just in time to visit with out-of-town friends and spent a lovely day on the National Mall. We started at the Museum of Natural History, took a ride on the Carousel, got balloons, popped balloons 10 minutes later, walked to the WWII Memorial, saw the preparations for the Glenn Beck “Restoring Honor” rally, and then called it a day.

With such good days as these, I will keep the grumbling about the move to a minimum. I am thankful to finally live in a place that people want to visit. I expect round 2 of visitors next month. Good times!