Actually, we didn’t even realize we already had an annual tradition of taking a trip. Then, as we were pulling up to the house after a week of road tripping, seeing grandparents, and camping…
as the kids were alternating between smacking each other, screaming, dozing, and laughing hysterically…
as Mike looked at me and started to say, “We are never doing that again!”…
I said, “We should make this an annual tradition!”
But later, when the house was quiet with the sound of sleeping children, all of the camping supplies, dirty clothes, and grocery bags of snack foods were in the garage, and Mike and I were collapsed on the couch, we realized that we already have the tradition of a yearly trip.
-2004 – we drove to Illinois to meet his college friends and deliver an antique clock
-2005- we camped in Utah and visited my Grandpa West in Las Vegas
-2006- we spent a week in Breckenridge with Alex
-2007- we moved to Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, and drove down to Osh in the southern part of the country
-2008- we visited London, England; Edinburgh, Isle of Arran, and Aberdeen, Scotland; and Oslo, Norway, on our way back to Kyrgyzstan
-2009- we moved to Istanbul, Turkey and visited Ephesus
-2010- we visited Ephesus again, and Mike, Alex, and Uncle Scott went to Troy and Gallipoli
And so here we are, continuing a tradition that we didn’t even know we had! It is so wonderful to see new places and marvel at the beauty and diversity of God’s creation.
We left on Saturday and drove to Rangely, Colorado, to see Grandma Beth and Papa Steve for a few days. It was a wonderfully relaxing time spent at the park, throwing rocks into the river, eating hearty, homemade food, and soaking up grandparent-love.
