We have a goal to travel through the 50 states with our kids in the next few years. This dream was birthed when we were in the thick of baby and toddler years. Hours spent at home nursing and rocking babies, led my wanderlust heart to dream up family adventures. Did I mention I am a military brat? I grew up traveling and exploring, so it is no wonder that this dream first caught my attention in college.
I had a roommate in college whose parents took her and her siblings on trips to see all 50 states before they graduated from high school. I was always amazed when she would meet someone new and upon hearing where they were from, she would seem to know something about that state or area. She had a frame of reference for the geography of the United States like I had never seen before. I knew instantly that I not only wanted to see all 50 states for myself, but would one day love to do the same with my own children.
Back to the days spent rocking babies where I spoke the same dream into the heart of my husband. We were sold. It was going to happen. However, we wanted to do it in a way the kids would appreciate.
We mapped out a plan that didn’t involve a huge statewide tour, but rather small trips broken down into sections of the country. This way we could fully appreciate each state without growing travel weary. Our plan involved taking 2-3 trips a year and going home in between those trips for time to regroup and enjoy our other passions which include camping, skiing in the winter, and kid sports in the spring and fall.
The first trips we decided to take were the states that had fun scenery, beaches, or kid points of interest. Places where we could reference back and say, “Remember that great beach in South Carolina?” instead of “Remember The Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC?”. This is just our preference mind you. There is nothing wrong with taking children to NYC or Washington D.C., but we have chosen to save certain destinations for when they are older and have studied the history. I want them to really understand Ellis Island and Boston’s Freedom Trail, so they can appreciate the places they are beholding.
We live in Colorado and have family living in Minnesota. When we began our state tours, a few states had already been marked off for us: Colorado, Nebraska, Iowa, Minnesota, New Mexico and Arizona. These were the states we had painfully, I mean, happily road tripped through with our babies.
When our youngest turned 5-years-old, we knew it was time to get started on our adventures. The kids were 5, 7, and 9-years-old and we set off for the beach.
2017: Started with a tour of Florida in the fall.
In 2018 we took the following state trips:
South Atlantic tour: Georgia, S. Carolina, N. Carolina (more here)
National Park tour through Utah and Arizona (more here)
Wyoming and South Dakota: Mt. Rushmore(more here)
Plains tour: Kansas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri
We plan to take these trips in 2019:
Southern tour: Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama
West tour: Wyoming (Yellowstone), Idaho, Montana
Pacific Northwest tour: WA, Oregon, N.W. California
2020:
East North Central: WI, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan
Northeast tour: Maine, NH, VT, MA, CT, RI
Texas
2021:
Mid Atlantic tour: NY, NJ, PA, MD, DE, Virginia, WV
East Central: Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee
Nevada
And we should be almost complete in 2022:
Hawaii and Alaska
If you have been keeping track, you may have noticed one gap in our state tours… the lovely, North Dakota. It will be visited one day when we visit our family in Minnesota. Brrr…
Now, when you see our travel posts, you will have a frame of reference for why we are doing what we are doing. We aren’t just trying to look cool on Instagram or Facebook. We really do have a purpose behind our pursuits. We want to show our kids the beautiful country we live in and give them an expanded point of view.
I know some of you are thinking, “Why would you want to go to Ohio when you could just vacation at a beach in the Caribbean?” This is true, our vacations will look different than most Americans, but I actually love that. This approach to travel helps us get out of our comfort zone and explore the unusual, if you will. I love the challenge in finding beauty, adventure, and fun wherever we go.
Not all who wander are lost…some are just trying to show their kids the world.