This week I have the pleasure of going on a road trip with my Mom, Grandma, and my boys, Christopher and Joshua, and I'm typing this from the backseat of our car, headed East on Highway 54 to my Aunt Beverly's house in Fulton, Missouri. 

Road trips are a commonplace kind of trip in my family. Because a large portion of my family lives in Southeastern Kansas, we take trips several times a year to go visit them, and at least once a year, we take a large trip to go see the country- to see what we can find, and where we can go.

Taking road trips with my family is a unique experience. We don't often travel the interstates, usually taking state highways, county roads, and even backwoods, dirt roads that almost no one knows exists. That may sound strange to some of you, but it often has made for some wonderful adventures and made some amazing memories. 

This trip is to visit family, and to attend my cousin George's wedding. I treasure these trips, because I get to set in the backseat of my grandmother's car, while my mother drives, and listen to them reminisce about growing up, living, and loving in the country they were born in. They get to point out to my sons where they were born, where they lived, and explain that story about that one time my grandfather got struck by lightning. It makes our family history real.

I get to enjoy my mother's navigational skills: 'Oh, there's the Wal-Mart; we just need to go up here and take a Left,' and, 'Wait, was that the fence post?' I get to hear my grandmother's opinions on the wheat crops: 'That's not ready to cut! They're behind this growing season.' And, I get to see my boys discover a different way of life than that of our semi-suburban lifestyle.

Anyway, so far on this trip, we have seen a giant cowboy, plenty of fields, and lots of farms and ranches. 

My mom tells me that this cowboy, located in Conlen, Texas- a blink-and-you-miss-it town North of Dalhart- was originally the landmark for a local bar, but has since become a bit of a road-side attraction. It holds a special meaning for Mom, though. It was always a landmark to look for on the trip between her home in New Mexico, and her grandparent's home in Kansas.

This panorama, and this photo of the grain elevators are the entirety of Conlen. 

We didn't make it to our first destination on our first day, but we made it today! I'm gonna sign off for tonight, and go enjoy spending some time with my aunt Beverly, and the rest of my family. I'll be sure to update y'all later!

Update 5/20/2024:

This road trip was a wonderful experience! It was one of the last ones before my grandmother’s dementia really started to set in, so she was still on her game, reminiscing about so many things. My only regret is not recording her memories. She passed away in March of 2023, and my mom and I definitely miss her. I now sit in the front seat- her seat- and ask my mom about her memories on these trips. I am so grateful to have all of these photos from these trips, so that I can begin to share these stories with the next generation: my boys.