Yes, we are finally back from all things summer & gearing up for back to school {posts to come soon}.

So starting out with our FRT {Family Road Trip} ...

Let me set the stage:

With $300 cash ... a full tank of gas ... a map ... & tons of car games ... we were off.

Only a few rules to follow:

• No DVD player {unless it was dark outside while we were driving}
• No electronic gaming systems
• And EVERYONE will put a smile on their face & have a good time whether they like it or not!!! :o)

Since our budget was practically non-existent, I got REALLY creative. I skimmed money at each paycheck & ask each of the kids to pick a spot in our state that they wanted to drive & see.

So, we were off!

Our fist stop was the DS#1's choice "Gravity Hill".

I was surprised when we Google'd it to get directions ~ they're all over the place! The one he found {& we ended up visiting} was several hours away ... making for a great start to the trip!

With a full cooler in the back, a duffel bag full of clothes & some extra little surprises for summer fun we were off!

Now, I should add here that poor DH was coming off shift at the fire dept & was a little wiped out ~ so he had NO vote in the stops along the way on day 1 :o) heehee

Of course, I drove most of the trip, since it was my bright idea :o) And as luck would have it ~ my bladder lasted exactly 35 minutes before we visited our first rest stop!

Not to worry though, I had plenty of Purell on board!

Back on the road again, I had chosen a route that ensured lots of scenic pleasures {& of course we had to stop at several of them!}

Only 1.5 hours into the drive I was stopping at a lookout point & when we all got out to stretch DH gave me the sideways look of "are you seriously going to act like a tourist this entire trip?" ... my silent response was of course a smile! :o)

As we got closer to our first destination I was grateful I was driving ... we had no idea where this gravity hill was ~ just the town it was in! So I did what every smart woman does ... I asked for directions!

We first went into a hotel, yeah ~ they need to re-evalute their hiring requirements or possibly offer an IQ test for qualification. Next was the gas station ~ not only did she know what we were talking about, she sent us off confident!

Until my directionally impaired skills got in the way! Luckily my DH has been around my lack of talent long enough that he jumped in with suggestions on how to continue the scenic drive without turning around. {phew}

Once we found the right road, we were lost again ... turns out this phenomena was about 15-20 miles out on the road! So we crept along trying to find the "start" on the pavement {pictured above}

It's one of those times when you feel like a complete idiot once you find your way because the journey to get there was so long & yet it could have been so simple! :o)

Since this was DS#1's request {& he is 15} I got out of the car, put him in the driver's seat & used the digital camera to record his "rolling up hill" for posting on Facebook later :o)

I had a gravity hill where I grew up {the road to my best friend's house} & as teenagers we would go out there at midnight & swear that a ghost was pushing us up the hill! As a matter of fact, at the gas station the gal said 2 couples had been in the day before & had bought baby powder while asking for directions! Aaahhh, I remember those carefree days!

{theory is, you sprinkle the baby powder on your bumper before rolling up hill & when you get to the top you'll have hand prints from the ghosts that pushed you there}

And yet, no baby powder went on my bumper ... just a teenager behind the wheel astonished at the uphill roll in neutral :o)

Stay tuned for more of the adventure ...

TOAM