Sara and Melissa Talk About...Road Trips

We've been running a column series to get more personal with our readers. We are currently in our fifth year!

This month, we are talking about road trips. There are a lot of fun novels about road trips and we can relate, having been on some of our own over the years. (Cue the song "Holiday Road". Yeah, we're Gen X!)

We're always open to topic suggestions, so please don't hesitate to share those in the comments. We'd also love to know if you can relate to anything we've said or hear your own thoughts on the topic. So don't be shy. :) We look forward to getting to know you as much as we're letting you get to know us. You can find our previous columns here, in case you missed them. 

Sara Steven:

June was a very active time for me where road trips are concerned. In fact, I don’t think I was home for a full day more than a few days until the later part of the month! Looking back, I’m really glad that I had the opportunity to spend time with my friends and family, but I think going forward I’d probably space the trips out, because it was just too much traveling in a short amount of time!

It all started with a trip to Vegas. A close friend of mine who I have known since the age of three, and is like a niece to me, had plans to stay in Vegas to support her fiance, who was in town for a conference. My family (plus the dog) made the decision to road trip it to Vegas, which worked out fairly well–even with the five hour drive there. One of the highlights for me, other than spending time with my friends, was having a late lunch at Hell’s Kitchen. It’s been a bucket list item of mine for years. (If you ever dine there, might I suggest the lobster risotto? It was amazing!) Really, everything there was delicious. I still think about the food. We also toured Omega Mart, known as “America’s Most Exceptional Grocery Store,” with hidden passageways and crazy items for sale that you would never find anywhere else. It was a crazy wild experience. The Blue Man Group was a lot of fun, too, and my sons raved about the in-your-face interactive experiences with the performers–at one point, one Blue Man stood in our aisle in order to “pick on” another attendee in the row in front of us–which meant standing right in front of my older son; the Blue Man kept looking back at my son in an effort to get him to crack up. Which he did. It was a blast! Another highlight consisted of spending time at my friend’s hotel, where we lounged around at the hotel pool and spent the day relaxing in the bright sunshine. It was well worth the road trip.

Hell’s Kitchen…and the back of my husband’s head 🙂

Omega Mart with my family

Hanging at the pool

The drive...and the dog

Just a few short days after returning from Vegas, my sister and nephew flew out to Arizona to spend a week with us. I’d made plans to go on a road trip to Palm Springs with my sister–I know it sounds silly, but an episode of Sex and the City had inspired me to do that. I figured it would be a nice sisterly experience, and it was! Unfortunately, neither of us took photos. We’re both so bad at remembering to chronicle the moments. But I can tell you that the time we were there, with just two short days to explore the city, we’d really made the most of it. We spent time in downtown Palm Springs, visited their weekly street fair, and poolsided it at the resort we stayed at. 

Upon our return to Arizona, we didn’t even get a full day of rest before we drove out to Flagstaff, for a visit with my parents. They were very excited to see my sister and nephew, and we made plans to hike Call of the Canyon, a special hiking experience in Sedona. My nephew (14), who is only a year older than my youngest (13), is literally a whole foot taller, at 6 feet, 2 inches! I couldn’t believe how much he’s grown.  

My son, and his cousin

I think they were less enthused than the rest of us to go on the hike, but we made it. On our last day in Flagstaff, we spent our time downtown, checking out the tea shops and knick-knack stores. 

In a few short weeks, I spent so much time on the road. From Arizona to Vegas. From Arizona to Palm Springs. And then to Flagstaff. It was a lot. But ultimately, I wouldn’t change it for anything. I’m so glad I spent time with my loved ones over the summer, and who knows? We’ll see how it goes for next year…

My sister, our dad, my nephew, me, my husband, our stepmom and Panda, their dog

Melissa Amster:

When my family and I go on road trips, it's usually to the Chicago suburbs to visit family and friends. We break up the trip by stopping in Cleveland (usually Beachwood) and staying there overnight. (Somehow my parents do not do this and drive the whole twelve hours in one day.) The only other road trip we went on over the past year was to Pittsburgh to visit a close friend of mine. Road trips are pretty standard for the most part. Instead of talking about the experience, I want to share a few must-do items from our various road trips.

Sheetz: This gas station mini-mart in Breezewood, Pennsylvania, is the best! It's like Wawa, if that gives you any idea. We have to go to Sheetz every time we drive to/from Chicago or Pittsburgh. 

Courtesy of Mapquest

Our playlist: Since we're all Broadway fans, we usually listen to a LOT of show tunes. Sometimes Olivia Rodrigo is included in order to change things up a bit. We take turns choosing the cast album so that it's fair to everyone. Musicals we all agree on include Newsies, Heathers, Mean Girls, Legally Blonde, In the Heights, Something Rotten, Beetlejuice, Avenue Q, and The Last Five Years (just to name a few). 

Staying at hotels: The enjoyment of breaking up the trip into two six-hour drives is staying overnight at a hotel. Especially when there's free breakfast the next morning. I have an inside joke with one of my friends about hotel amenities. We went to one where they had this "Deluxe Beauty Kit", but it was just a tiny nail file, a cotton swab, and a flat piece of cotton. Real deluxe, don't ya think?!? My friend and I were laughing about that for quite some time. I also get annoyed when they attach hair and body wash containers to the shower instead of having little bottles available to take home. What is the fun in that?!?

Board games: We usually bring at least one board game with us if we're staying someplace overnight. It's a fun family bonding activity. Our favorite is always Loaded Questions and we can play that one for hours. We end up laughing a lot!

Starbucks: On every road trip, we have to stop at Starbucks at least once! It's a moral imperative.

Does this make you want to go on a road trip with me and my family? I won't be offended if you say no. 😅

Tell us about a memorable road trip experience.

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