Road trip...

For someone who doesn't get to travel often, I love to travel. I am almost always up for an adventure or an experience...okay, well, you won't see me sky-diving...or bungee-jumping...or white-water rafting...I was in the Army, people. I have HAD my share of nail-biting adventure. I am, however, the consummate tourist, so while I would rather have been snapping pictures from a hammock beneath a palm tree this spring break, the kids and I eagerly accepted an offer from my husband to tag along on a business trip to Cincinnati.

I spent the afternoon experimenting with natural light...

not much to speak of in a hotel room,

but these were two of my favorites.

I am also an over-packer. I am convinced by experience that the one thing I forget is the one thing I will need. Some day I will recount the legendary husband-version luggage story from our trip to China. For now, suffice it to say that he swears we had 26 bags. Whatever. At any rate, I was too busy this time to put too much thought into our trip, so I decided to throw caution to the wind and minimal items into a bag. While the gamble on only one extra outfit for each kid paid off, you already know the tragedy that ensued when I didn't have my card reader and couldn't BLOG! Seriously? Time away from home and the distraction of phone calls, errands, laundry, blah, blah, blah...and no blogging?! For the record, I'm going back to my packing lists and excessive packing skills. Hmph!

Okay, you really have to click on

this photo of Mickey to enlarge it.

The Y chromosome, ladies and gentlemen...

So about the trip...one of these days I'm going to make my kids get in the car and drive for hours on end with nothing more than a book and AM radio. Once they work out the kinks of sharing oxygen and DVD chargers, they usually do just fine, but I can work up a serious annoyance in the process. After a joyful start with our three youngest, we cruised into Cinci in time to grab an early lunch and check into our hotel. Jon left to get some official consulting work done, and I fielded 472 recitations of "When is the pool going to open?" Yep. You got it. We drove all the way to Cincinnati so the kids could enjoy some pool time, and the pool was closed. Since I've already whined about that and the card reader in my previous post, I will again say that I was extremely grateful that we don't have cable at home. It is a real treat for my kids and saved our afternoon!

Another one worth enlarging...

Late in the day, we finally stretched our legs and got some fresh air, despite the chilly rain. Jon pulled up as I was snapping pictures of Mickey and Caroline running circles around me. We went out to grab some take-out...oh, how I love Qdoba! Abby has been begging for Qdoba lately. And it cracks me up that Caroline would much rather dig into some spicy cheese dip and a taco than even McDonald's! Mickey, of course, picked McDonald's, and Jon went for Penn Station. Can anyone say high maintenance? Back at the hotel, we discovered the pool was finally open, so the kids played for a while after dinner. Good thing that wait-30-minutes-until-after-you-eat thing doesn't apply any more because I had a date with Dancing with the Stars! And don't tell anybody, but Abby forgot her suit...hello, packing list...and I finally relented and let her jump in with shorts and a tank top. I forgot mine, too, but that was accidentally on purpose. I am just not ready to accept that bathing suit season is around the corner. I'm all about the weather, but not about me in a suit.

The next day, we had a relaxing morning sleeping in and eating breakfast while Jon was at work. Then it was time for a picnic lunch and little sightseeing. FINALLY, some bona fide tourist-type picture-taking opportunities! We drove down to the river and had lunch, but it was cold, so we ate fairly quickly. We were also being stalked by two Canada geese who were definitely in the mood for some KFC and not in the least intimidated. We drove around, enjoying the sights of the city, while Jon did a little more research. Cincinnati really is a beautiful city...lots of historical architecture, along with hills, bridges and the river. The sun was out, and it was a pleasant afternoon. We enjoyed time together, had some laughs and made some memories...the three best things about a road trip. It's most likely what makes the view from any place other than home worthwhile.

And what IS it with my family

standing on the edge of nothingness??

Let's not forget the Grand Canyon episode.

Click here to view the entire set of photos from Cincinnati...

You won't want to miss photos like this one...

Footnote...Mindy was not along on this family adventure because she was invited by a friend to join their family in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, for spring break. And, amazingly enough, I still love my kid. Okay, seriously, I missed her like crazy, and, as much as I detest her being at the beach without me, I am so thankful that she had a wonderful time and made it safely home.