Monday 1/10/16

It seems that every time we start packing the van for a trip, somehow, our things and bags multiply like bunnies and before we know it there just isn’t  room for everything. We unpacked every last bag, bike and kayak and then meticulously repacked it all like fitting together pieces of a jigsaw puzzle.

Through the years we have gone on enough camping trips with an army of kids that Sean and I have somehow figured out a way to laugh when things don’t go as planned. Sure there were times in the past when I would get upset and he would get upset and we would be grumpy and pissed for the first few hours of the drive, but I guess age and experience has taught us that getting upset will serve no good purpose. We worked patiently together as we packed four bikes, four kayaks, three tents, cooking stove, canopy, coolers and a mandolin then ratcheted everything to the roof as tight as we could.

Two hours past our intended leaving time we are finally rolling over the causeway through the brown winter marsh. It is sunny but cold on Tybee this morning, with the temperatures dipping into the low thirties last night. Looks like a perfect time to go further south for the rest of January.

One last stop at the local Walmart, so we can travel with our favorite road trip foods like kettle corn, nutter butter wafers and white cheddar cheez-its.

I run into my good friend from Tybee, John Bremer, as I’m walking out of Walmart. He wishes me well and reminds me to keeps my focus on the purpose of our trip, even though we’re two hours behind. Loving life and treasuring the memories we will build together.

Sean tops off the oil in the van and we roll on towards Rt 17. We decided that we are not in a big hurry and we would rather take the scenic route. Sure it’ll add some time to the trip, but what else to we have to do? We have declared this to be a no stress, relaxed trip.

My plan is to blog every day during our trip. If you subscribe to my email list, I won’t email you everyday, just cause I don’t want to flood your inbox, but if you want to follow along, just check in everyday for the latest post.

If you are a frequent visitor to the keys and have suggestions for us, please share in the blog comments. Especially affordable fun things to do with kids. We will be staying at Boyd’s Campground, four miles from historic Key West.