After a year of halted plans, and now with the Covid vaccine rollout nearly complete, everyone is ready for a vacation. We have a few things planned because once I started I couldn’t stop at just one vacation. This post is about the first trip we have on the docket which is part of our “Visit All 50 States” plan.

With the kids in school, a spring trip wasn’t possible so we will leave in about a week. This also meant that taking the camper wasn’t practical (too hot and humid). The plan is to drive down to Orlando, stopping at Lexington, Chattanooga, and Daytona Beach before getting to Orlando. Nole will join us there by plane. We will spend almost a week in Orlando before driving back with nights in Hilton Head, Charlotte, the hills of West Virginia and somewhere in Ohio.

I have some unique stays planned, including a hotel right on the beach. I found lots of fun and unique things for us to do too. Then I put everything in a slide show and we looked over the plans together. The kids like to be involved in the trip planning. Nova liked the slideshow because she is my most apprehensive child and knowing what we are doing in advance allows her to get used to the idea (like kayaking in a cave). After a few days, she’s excited about it and not nervous anymore.

I changed jobs recently and when I did, I made sure I had the flexibility to spend more time with the kids when they need me. It’s been an unpredictable year full of changes for them and they’ve all been troopers. In the way that most young people adapt fluidly to change, they have embraced everything that has happened. It will be great to reconnect on this trip and get some sibling time. I plan to post here every day throughout our journey so check back soon!