The good ol' fashioned family vacation?

Growing up my family always went on a yearly vacation/holiday.  We usually just went camping or stayed near a lake in a cabin.  My dad is a huge nature/fishing/hunting type guy and he would get to decide where we went. I think that was mostly because he is crabby if he doesn't get his way.

But once in awhile the rest of us would mutiny and we would go somewhere with real beds and toilets. Think Disneyland and Las Vegas (when they were really pushing that family-friendly vibe). Fancy, right?

But one of the family vacations we talk about the most was the one we call "The Vacation from Hell."  I'm sure every family has a story like this, at least I hope you do.

My dad wanted to go to Oregon, correction he wanted to DRIVE to Oregon, from California.  It was a good 14 hour drive (and by good I mean horrible).  My dad changed lanes constantly to try and "outwit" any highway patrol that might get him for speeding.  My brother and I sat in the "backseat" of the pickup truck, which at that time meant a narrow, straight-backed bench that would not pass as a "seat" these days.  We whined and complained the entire ride, listened to my parent's oldies tapes, and stopped for fast food.

When when finally got to our campsite we were happy to find ourselves right next to the water.  And that was the end of the excitement.  It then started raining and raining and raining.  I think it rained every...single...day.

The highlight of each day was deciding where to eat.

After several days we visited my dad's friend in a nearby town and he was kind enough to let us stay the night (since it was STILL raining).  I have a great memory of my brother and I sitting on their king size bed eating hot fudge sundaes and watching tv.  It was heaven as far as we were concerned.

And after all that, we still had the ride home.  Yeah...boo.

But in the end it was so bad, it was good.  We still talk about it and joke about all the horrible rain and fast food and my dad's driving.

So now that I have my own family I think we need to have our own good ol' fashioned family vacations.  Let's make some memories and ask "Are we there yet?"  a million times.  Sounds like fun to me.  Seriously.

Now I just have to decide where to go.  I am thinking a quick plane ride to Sydney might be the answer.  The zoo, bridge, Opera House, shopping...ya I think that might work.

Happy Holidays!!!