Hanging around in Tucumcari....

Here we are, getting our kicks on Route 66 and thanks to the beauty of high speed wireless internet I can check some email and even jot a few reflections on one little Catholic family's summer road trip.

Our family of four left home (Fresno, CA) on Wed. afternoon, destined for the midwest. We will be spending the next week or so dividing time between the Lake of the Ozarks, and my sister's home in Chicago. We decided to drive, which is a bit of folly because we're actually going to be spending more days driving than not. It's been wonderful so far...we woke up in Needles, CA this morning and are now nicely settled in here in Tucumcari (which is in New Mexico, in case you didn't know!).

We spent the day admiring the changing terrain, testing each of the 200+ stations on XM radio and listening to the five discs of the Artemis Foul book on CD, which was incredibly entertaining.

If you ever find yourself in Tucumcari, be sure to stop at Del's family restaurant on Route 66. We had a great dinner, but my favorite part of the experience was speaking with the hostess Dorothy and learning the history of the establishment. Sick of fast food, we went in search of someplace with table service. We were attracted by the large cow statue standing thirty feet in the air atop Del's sign. Turns out that Del's opened for business in 1956 and has been catering to travelers ever since.

There's something wonderful about family vacations - the simple joy of long hours spent together without concern for laundry, dishes, sports practices, homework and the like. We did pass one really terrible accident on highway 40, which prompted prayer for that family and for all of those who will be on the road during the next week. Blessings to you and your families - may your travels be sweet and filled with happy memories.

I'll be back next time I get in range of an internet connection!