The Last Big Road Trip (We're Outta Here!)

Tomorrow morning, Robbie and I are leaving town for a week to take what will officially be our last big road trip before baby comes.  Admittedly, we fly (like, a lot) more than we travel by car these days, but we've both been itching for a road trip to somewhere more than a few hours away for quite some time now.  We've had this idea in our heads for a couple of months, hoping to squeeze it in during his time off.  There always seemed to be something getting in the way though (ahhh, reality).  Even with running my own companies and having a kick ass employee, it's really difficult for me to take time away from the office for more than a few days.  And then of course, there's money.  And bills. And car issues.  And all of the other boring grown-up things that always make us talk ourselves out of just taking off on adventures - something that came so freely to us in our younger days, when I literally spent entire summers on the road.

After my grandmother Maggo passed away last Tuesday, we decided that we need to make this trip happen.  Robbie's Nana has been ill as well, and Robbie hasn't been able to visit her since February - so that was a major motivator.  (Our first order of business will be to drive to Kansas City and spend a couple of days with her.)  We are also well aware of the fact that once our little one is born, it's going to be infinitely more difficult to just pick up and leave - something that we've taken for granted for the last seven years of our relationship.  And Robbie having this much time off the road in the summer is a very rare occurrence, so we figured that we'd better take advantage. 

After spending a few days with Nana, we're going to visit Robbie's childhood home town, then take our time driving west through Kansas (which I always think of as being the longest state ever to drive across; thankfully it's usually gorgeously full of sunflowers this time of year), and into Colorado.  From there, we'll head up to Summit County for just a couple of quick days to see my dear friends John and Rhonda and their babies who live in the area, as well as Robbie's parents, who spend a couple of months each summer there.  Although I only lived in Colorado for a couple of years and moved away over ten years ago, I still consider it home in my heart.  (And to all of our wonderful friends who live in Denver, Boulder, and Fort Collins: we wish we had more time and could visit all of you, but we're doing the best with the time we have. We love you!)  After that, we'll head back home.  The drive from Colorado to Chicago, once you get out of the mountains (so basically 95% of it), is pretty grueling.  I love you midwest, but sixteen straight hours in a car with you = brutal. We'll find a way to make it fun though.  We're pretty good at that.

So that's the plan ya'll.  The blog will still be in full action while I'm away.  I've written and scheduled a few posts, have some seriously awesome guest posts, and I'll also be checking in from the road.  If you'd like to follow along with the adventures from our 'last big road trip,' follow me over on Instagram (@bubbyandbean).  See you in a week!

Photographs in this post are from various road trips that we've take over the past few years. xo