tragusa3, I really don't like peoples "The Best Of..." stories but yours really seems to be a title and not a profound belief that it was perfect. Put another way, it's a story about a great family being a great family.
Now don't get older just to find out if I'm right but, The Best Is Yet To Come. I know you've heard that a million times about a million things but here is a little story about what we received from our Girls about 1987 or '88 when they were around 20. Both girls belonged to a organization their Mother belonged to and were chosen by their peers statewide to be Officers for a year. Well they served during different years and a couple after the youngest became a Past .... they were longing around after dinner at our home one evening and relating stories of how they and a few of their friends travelled around our state mostly but a few others and even as far a Manitoba CA to visit with others groups of this same organization. These trips were mostly by car or van and gave the travelers the opportunity to visit a lot of parks and attractions all over the West, Southwest and Northwest. Both of ours (not realizing were had stopped doing whatever we were doing to listen to their stories) were commenting on how their friends just didn't know anything about, traveling, camping, parks, exploring towns and other attractions and how very, very lucky they were to have spent their vacations going on trips and sleeping in tents and picnicking almost every single day and that they hoped to do that for their children.
I won't bore you with the ensuing 30 years but both girls love to travel and now in their fifties still love to sit and talk to one another about those years (at least in my belief) of learning about living.
Now an even better or at least more exciting part, starting over with grandchildren. The oldest didn't start traveling until she was about a week old and the youngest was a couple of years old when he first really traveled. They accumulated at least 20 NPS Junior Ranger badges each and have been given little badges in some parks making them Jr. Ranger Captains because they have been to the park more than once and still did the Jr. Ranger program.
We as older folk have past through all the phases of camping and are now entering the destination phase. We don't travel as long and as fast as before and can spend an entire day on the road and only go 90 miles or stop and sit (not really sitting) for several days.
You and the DW go for it, a lot of us have and it is fun and rewarding.
