Yep.

It makes no sense to me, either.

I'd crossed the country two times before last summer. But some of those were one-way trips (cruising with my dad from MD to NM after his retirement; another moving with Michael from MD to Seattle) and one true RT was when I was 7. None of those count as being especially "daring."

But last summer was the best. My two kids and I hit the open road and I grew more patient and empowered with every mile and camp set-up. It was one mammoth road trip – the aforementioned “96er”– and some may wonder why I would consider doing it again.

Because my seven-year-old son knows that Teddy Roosevelt’s home is called “Sagamore Hill.” Because my nine-year-old daughter knows that the Battle of the Alamo was fought in 1835 and that Paul Revere never really made it to Concord. Because the weather was so bad in Yellowstone that the campsite was running out of “refund” slips. Because we were at the Badlands long enough to realize that it was a tragedy that we were there for only a drive-by.

So, we are getting back on the road. The kids are ready, I am ready, Michael is….agreeable to accepting it.

Onward to trip planning…. GoogleMaps, here I come...but first, the damn pumpkin ritual.