Our family has cross the continental United States by car five times now. And while there are many out there (including military families) who know the joys of constantly relocating, I imagine there are more than a few who haven't had the pleasure of repeatedly packing your life in to the back of a pickup truck and traveling for thousands of miles with screaming kids and animals in the back.
This is just another step along the way to finally making it to Morocco. Rather than go directly, we are taking leave with family on the other side of the country for a while. It seems appropriate given the fact that we are about to relocate to the other side of the ocean. So the story begins: 3 cats, 1 baby, and 2600 miles to go. During this time, there is plenty of opportunity to reflect and just as plenty of lessons from the open road.
1. We usually bring the weather with us wherever we go. I'm pretty sure you could track our movement across the country just by watching the national weather radar picture in the morning. Every now and then we'd get the notification on our iPhone of a flood warning or tornado watch in the area: hmm...that's cool....keep driving. Needless to say, some of the things in the back of our truck got wet.
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| Torrential Downpour: Par for the Course |
2. Waffles are crucial element to a successful trip. These carbohydrate-packet pancakes with built in syrup traps are sometimes the only thing that got us (and especially the baby) out of bed in the morning at whatever location we were at, attempting to put our life back in to the truck to slog it out for another day on the road. When waffles were not readily had in the hotel, we went to where the waffles were. This was not negotiable.
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| As you can see, waffles are no joking matter. |
3. In a pinch, Walmarts can come in handy as an alternative to playground. Tons of aisles of colorful and highly grab-able items were a much needed distraction for the kid who's toy remote control could only entertain for so long. The best part is, you end up finding a couple hundred dollars worth of stuff that you didn't realize you "had" to have.
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| "I'll take that one, and that one........" |
4. Keep all animals secured in their designated cages. This one we learned the hard way. Thinking we could let Godric (one of our domestic short-hairs) out to explore the cab of our truck while driving ended up nearly disastrous. In case you didn't already know, some cats have the ability to open rear power-windows of cars going 70 mph while leaning against said windows. After sudden gust of air in the back, frantic grabbing, and claw mark battle wounds on my arms and hands, this little guy stayed secure for the rest of the voyage.
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| Just enjoying the view, minutes before taking a one-way trip on to I-80 |
5. It's about the journey, not just the destination. Take time to stop and appreciate the country around you. Eat some of the "local" food. (Author's note: avoid the local fast-food chain "Runza" in Nebraska; it's a glorified hot-pocket). For those doing the trip for the second, third, fourth, or fifth time, take a different route that allows .you to see some cool stuff you haven't seen before.
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| Nevada: Some of the straightest, most boring roads in the country. |
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| Nebraska: Corn |
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| California: Canibals |
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| The Great Salt Lake, UT |
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| Crossing the Mighty Mississippi |
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| "No papers, state to state." (100 points to whoever gets the movie reference) |
But all's well that ends well. After some time, we'll pick up once more and finally make it overseas. Plenty of pictures to come once we're on our way.
