We are fully committed.

We have purchased (yes, purchased) the RV, which we will sell again in September (anyone interested in a 28 foot 2015 Sunseeker?) so there is no turning back.  It’s been on our minds for a while, but now we are actually going through with it and we figure before the kids are completely embarrassed to hang out with us – we might have missed that window – why not show them Canada?  And what better way to do it than on the road. Vancouver to Charlottetown via the upper mid-west US in 8 weeks.  Are we mad?

Trust me, I am under no illusion that this is going to be an 8-week party.  I think we can all rest assured that arguments will happen, mistakes will be made, and not every day will amicable family hikes (since when has a family hike been amicable in the history of family hikes?) and sunsets by the campfire.  We are not the family who will be listening to the complete unabridged Harry Potter audiobook while the kids read to themselves quietly strapped in for 5 hours on the road.  No, we are the family who will be fighting over who has control of the music while listening to whinging about whether or not the next place we stop at is going to have wifi.

But at least I know this.  And my expectations have been adjusted accordingly.  I know that we will see some breathtaking scenery and amazing sights on our road trip.  We will get to see parts of Canada and the US we have never been before and also show the kids some areas that we love or have lived.  I’m confident that we can travel together because we have done it before:  through New Zealand 7 years ago.  Granted, that was when they were five and seven and I could basically distract them with a card game,  but I have faith in our ability to live together closely for the summer.

So bring it on:  the days on the road, the dramas, the unscheduled stops, the family meals, the time with friends along the way, the wrong turns, the frustrations but most of all the laughs.  Yes, the bants and the LOLs.  We’re doing it for the LOLs.

After all, we are never going to get this time back.

So stay tuned to what really goes on during a family road trip …