MegaTrip: The Drive to Louisville

Part One in a series chronicling our first big family road trip. 

"Well, the good news is, we've made it an hour and a half, and only one of our kids has thrown up."

Sarah did the dizzy-sway-walk next to the van while I worked on the car seat, applying Lysol to the milk curdles this rest area had to thank for our visit.We weren't off to a great start, but it got better. Her little dizzywalk made us worry she had actually inherited motion-sickness from her Papa. But she showed no signs of it afterward.

After months of preparation, our vacation had finally come. We would drive to Louisville, then Hattiesburg, then Townsend, and finally back to Cape Cod. In the middle of it I planned to fly home, lead worship, and fly back. We wanted to squeeze a conference in there somewhere, too. We felt secure in all of it except driving with the kids. Fortunately, this first 90 minutes wasn't the most accurate predictor of the rest of the day.

Once we took care of that, the driving was surprisingly peaceful- all the prayers we asked for were effective. We made three stops that day (including that first surprise one) of about an hour each. I kept noticing how comfortable the van was compared to a car. And Josiah stayed happy the whole time.

We arrived in Clearfield, PA in time to have dinner at some famous local pub (the kind that tells you all the TV shows you've been on) and put the kids to bed. A second, more uneventful day, and we were in Kentucky.

Shortly after crossing the Kentucky border we arrived at Asbury Theological Seminary outside of Lexington for a quick dinner with one of Emily's childhood friends. It was a great precursor of things to come to catch up with Haley and hear her joys and pains. If there's one thing a trip like this reminds us, it is that we are supported by a truly nationwide network of loved ones. It seems everywhere we go there is someone we long to stop and see.

As we approached Louisville that evening, Emily noted how excited I was just to be driving on roads that I knew. Louisville's interstate system, because of Ft. Knox, is far better than the city needs, which makes for great driving. You're always fifteen minutes from everywhere. I hadn't driven on these roads in two years. And I would spend the next three days saying thing like, "Ah yeah, Brownsboro! I love Brownsboro!" There's something about seeing the streets of this city that moves me, though none so much as the view of the bridges from Interstate 64. I very much looked forward to that one.

We arrived at the Johnson's home just in time to stay up late talking about God and life. I was immediately reminded of how much I miss Louisville's culture of late-night theology talks. The Johnsons' hospitality was refreshing and fun, so much that we always felt like we'd slept much more than we actually had. But more of that to come.

With the knowledge that kids were decent road-trippers, we were able to sleep much more soundly. We were now really on vacation, and glad to be there.

Roooooaaaaad Triiiip!!!!!!