A day of Travel
As I reflect back on our trip so far, I must admit this is the way to travel, especially with a child with autism. He was able to get used to the RV while it was in the driveway at home. It became a peaceful place for him. So far, it has remained so. He is able to sleep in the same bed every night, with his sleeping bag. The rain does not affect his moods like it would in a tent. He can be safely locked in at night with less risk of wandering than in a tent. All of his favorite foods are in the RV and we are not needing to eat out on a consistent basis. He can amuse himself, with and without technology, as we travel.
Yesterday we left the campground in search of Starbucks. We followed the directions on the GPS only to find a sign on the door saying they had moved in June. Fortunately, we discovered their move was just to a different part of the same building. Across the parking lot we spotted an Aldi's and decided to replenish our fresh fruit, get ingredients for tacos, and a few other items before heading out. Our destination was Pipestone, MN.
After a stop for lunch at Culver's, we knew we would not reach our destination in time to give the National Park as much time as we wanted, so we relaxed and let the kids play and decided we would see that in the morning. At one rest area there was a pay phone that amused Allison. We were finally able to get in some swimming in before dinner.
At the campfire we reflected on what each of the kids has enjoyed the most so far. For Georgie it has been the campgrounds and making friends. For James the answers vary depending on when you ask him - swimming, seeing Mandy (his former speech therapist), and seeing Lincoln's Tomb. For Allison it was seeing Lincoln's house and tomb. Joan's favorite was crossing the Mississippi River, the openness of the countryside, and seeing Lincoln's Tomb. She had a tough time deciding, as she is enjoying all of it. My favorite, similarly to Joan's is hard to pinpoint, but I would probably have to say watching each of them experience new and exciting things.
