Okay, remember back a couple of months ago I said that we had a secret that we were working on? One that I couldn't tell you about yet because it was a surprise? Well, surprises and secrets don't last long in our fam and so it is time we let you in on it...no, I am not pregnant. Why does everyone always guess that?
Read the title of this blog and you will know. We are making plans to travel to the Midwest this summer and visit family and friends. Ben and I grew up in Illinois and so most of our family is back there. We haven't been back to Illinois for almost 7 years with the kids. I know that seems like a long time, but if you consider spending 33 hours on the road in a space that measures less than 12X8 feet squared with 6 kids, you might think (like us) that 7 years is not long enough.
We have considered driving or flying to Illinois many times for our summer vacations, but the cost of time, energy, and money has caused to become weak in our stomachs. Then we just, well,... chicken out. But, this year, we have decided that the time is now. It is Clayton's last summer before he graduates. He has not had the wonderful experience of driving across our beautiful nation in hot weather with his family and we just don't feel like we can let him leave home without such memories.
As far as the cost of energy, well, Katie is three now and almost able to sit in her car seat for long periods of time...notice I said "almost." The cost of energy actually has not been reconciled in my mind....
But we have figured out a way to handle the financial cost of the trip. We have begun to look for gigs along our travel route so that we can perform and use our earnings to help finance the trip. Here is the part some of you may be able to help us with....
We are looking for gigs from Seattle to Illinois along I-90 to Minnesota and then down through Wisconsin to Illinois for the dates around June 25-after 4th of July. We are planning to make it all the way to Cincinnati by mid-July then head back on I-70 to Colorado near Denver by July 25th.
The 25th is when Rockygrass begins in Lyons, Colorado, and we are planning to be in the band contest there. Rockygrass is a great bluegrass festival near Denver. So, we need to be in Colorado by the 25th. After that weekend, we will head straight back to Seattle, just in time for our gigs in August.
It is a long trip, and Ben plans to be in an out of it depending on his work schedule, and probably his level of sanity. I will have two other drivers (Clayton and Clark), and so, it is very do-able (did I just write that?).
We are excited to start planning. And we are excited about getting a chance to see our friends and family back in the Midwest. It is a huge task to get it all together, but what a way to make some fun memories!
So, that was our big secret. We have been reluctant to share our secret because we wanted to be sure we could pull it off. A lot can happen by next summer, but that is what we are hoping and working for right now.
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