You’re f*cking crazy.
It’s the response my husband and I receive when we share our summer’s greater aspirations: a road trip with our 1-year-old and 3-year-old from Georgia to Colorado.
But I think it has more to do with our parenting. We don’t allow our children to freely watch screens. Thus, we are encouraging our kids to court boredom.
Does anyone do this anymore? (Really, I’m always up for a good read.)
Our trek to the West and back will take 11 days. If images of pastoral camping have conjured in your mind, please don’t be fooled. We’ll be staying in hotels. This mother needs sleep.
So where is our top destination? Well, everywhere. I blame it on Steinbeck. When I was pregnant with my son, our first child, I read to Travels with Charley aloud to him.
I want my kids to see America.
Truthfully, this isn’t our first significant road trip (we drove to Chicago from Georgia in 2015), but it will be our first with two children. We are excited to visit a handful of national parks and monuments along the way.
I think it’s easy to romanticize family togetherness, but over the next two weeks, we couldn’t be more grateful to live it out.
And, yes, we are this crazy.
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One Year Ago: A Wall, Our Peril
Unlearning 
Ooooh! Good luck. Some of my best times as a kid were on these sorts of epic road trips. 🙂
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Thank you! It should make for lasting memories 😊 They are always epic, aren’t they? What a gift to have those moments to reflect on, especially as you brave the “hard, but good things” as a mother!
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Good luck indeed – I have a series on the go over at my place called An American Odyssey In Song inspired by Paul Simon’s “America”. Hope you write about this trip as probably won’t ever do it myself now so have to experience it vicariously!
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Sounds awesome! I’m looking forward to exploring the series when time (i.e. children) permit. Vicarious experience, ah, that’s the best part of reading, isn’t it?! Thanks for the encouragement 😊
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I’m so excited for you. It’s all what you make it and with your outlook I know you will have an amazing time. I look forward to hearing how it went!!
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Thank you so much! The bright outlook will have its challenges, but I suppose that’s the adventure. Thanks for reading 🙂
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YOU CAN DO IT! Kids who are encouraged to court boredom can handle life sooooo much better! Here’s hoping you have a safe and wonderful adventure- National Parks are always a good choice for that 🙂
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Thank you so much 😊 I feel like I may need this pep talk every day! But I guess there is always risk and discomfort in adventure. The stories, I’m certain, will be better than ever I could have dreamed ❤️
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Part of the fun of our road trip this year was singing and rediscovering some of the games we used to play- counting different state license plates, the alphabet game (both finding letters on signs and the ‘my aunt went on a trip’ version), and lots of others. Your kiddos may be a bit young for some-actually, mine are too, but they liked watching the hubby and I play 🙂
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Ha, that’s awesome! Yes, unfortunately, our kids are a bit young for games (our son is still practicing reading his numbers!), but you offer excellent ideas for the future 🙂 Modeling is the best! Kudos to you all for braving the waters – our adventure has been amazing already!
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I applaud you for taking your kids on trips instead of allowing them to be addicted to a screen. I’ve seen kids as young as 6 attached to a phone screen. It’s sad.
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Thank you for the kind words. It’s a public health crisis, but parents still hold the power to turn the tide. Our plan has always been to never make it an issue in the first place. The fine line between technology use and addiction will be tough for the next generation to walk!
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We’re about to embark on a road trip/relocation from WA State to Texas! Looking forward to following along with yours!
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That’s exciting (and sounds like quite an undertaking)! Perhaps you’ll blog a bit?! Good to hear from you, and I wish you peace (and rest, whenever possible) during this busy season 🙂
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Our family has done this sort of trek – it was fabulous! I would read some novel out loud to everyone in the car. It would get so quiet, I would eventually stop reading, thinking they weren’t listening anymore. Then, they would all start carrying on, “Why did you stop?! Keep reading!” Good times! Enjoy every moment.
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I thought driving from South Georgia to Virginia was crazy with children ages 1, 3, and 4. It was trying to say the least. You are much more brave than I.
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The title of these posts caught my eye since I blogged about our Great American Family Road Trip last year: https://jdhatter.wordpress.com/category/gafrt-2016/ if you’re interested. Every family has to do it sometime before their kids are grown in my opinion. I will be interested to read about your experiences in my adopted home state of Colorado.
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Agreed. Kids benefit from the exposures to nature and the discomfort. And what better way to make vacation memories? It’s good to know we aren’t the only “crazy” parents out there 🙂 I look forward to following your blog and adventures!
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