A brief trip report, finally.

Easily the best family trip we’ve ever had. The kids were great, we were great, and except for a few bumps it was all wonderful. I also checked out of work to the greatest degree yet, and it was so nice.

5756 miles, about 110 hours of driving. That’s a pretty rough estimate; the timer on the car times when the car is on, not when the car is in gear. Driving was in a few big chunks: Home to twin cities (30 hours), there to Crookston (6), Crookston to Rapid City (12), Rapid City to Rexburg (15), Rexburg to Vegas (9), Vegas to Home (9).

Things we saw, did, or ate:
Some really nice rest stops, Children’s Museum of Minnesota, Happy Joe’s, Blessing for a 2 month old, Birthday for a 78 year old, Dinosaur Park, Bear Country USA, paddle boats, powdered donut holes, First John Philip Sousa Memorial Band, Big Juds, potato ole’s, Menard’s, Big Lots, emergency room, Bald Eagle (in the wild), hundreds of bears (in a park), canoeing, Mediaplay, Old McDonald’s Farm, pig racing, baby chicks, fishing, capsizing, Bellagio Water Show, Arby’s, Hoover Dam, Grand Tetons, Yellowstone, Upper Mesa Falls, Lower Mesa Falls, Henry’s Lake, Mississippi River, Missouri River, Colorado River, Snake River, Storybook Island.