When we left Minnesota on that first trip it was 11pm on a January night. It was cold, it was really dark and it was sleeting. The boys instantly fell asleep, but our daughter, who was 10, was wide awake in the backseat.
“Natasha,” I said, “I know you’re excited, but I think you should try to sleep.”
“Nope,” she responded, “I’m waiting until we get to the hotel.”
Apparently she didn’t understand our plan to drive through the night.
That first leg of the trip we drove straight through from Minnesota to Amarillo, Texas. We were in Kansas City, Missouri for breakfast at Mama’s 49th Street and we ate at Arby’s for dinner. The rest of the day we were in the truck. Our kids at the time were 10 & 11 years old. The day was spent singing along with Riders in the Sky (our favorite road trip music), chatting, finding new regional treats at gas stations, playing Gameboy for limited stretches, reading and doing school work. There were probably arguments, bickering and plenty of inane conversations, I don’t quite remember. What I do remember was that we were on an adventure together and that was a very cool thing.
