Planning and Preparation

Before I begin our journey, I should probably take a moment to mention a little background. The four of us held several meetings over the course of a year, planning a basic outline of the trip, making monetary decisions, and dividing duties. Kristee owned a Ford Explorer, which she planned on trading in soon after our trip. She provided the vehicle and the three other ladies split the cost of gas. We set up a gas fund at a local bank, accessed with checks and debit cards. That way, we never had to worry about whose turn it was to fill up the tank, who paid the most per gallon, or any of those concerns. We actually overbudgeted, and we split the excess money three ways when we returned and closed the account.

Betty Jo was the navigator, the map and AAA expert; she had all the AAA books, phone numbers, etc. Kristee was in charge of security, the vehicle, and the overall head honcho. I was appointed devotion leader, and we had a devotional time each day, whether we were in Yellowstone or the desert. I also had made up songbooks for each of us as a special surprise, filled with songs about each of the states we would be visiting, patriotic songs, favorite hymns, and songs that I thought most of us would recognize. I suppose this made me the entertainment director. I also bought a GPS right before we left, which proved to be a godsend. Jane was assistant navigator, second-best driver, and general morale booster. She gave us our visors and our nicknames on our first morning away from home. Kristee had given us all journals, which proved to be invaluable, and Betty Jo had made us all monogrammed laundry bags.

At our first meeting, we each picked three special places we wanted to visit, and Betty Jo started planning our route based on our choices. We all wanted to see the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone, and Mount Rushmore; they were unanimous choices. Kristee wanted to see New Orleans, the Oklahoma City federal building bombing site, and the JFK museum in Dallas, Texas. Betty Jo wanted to see Santa Fe (and her sister who lived nearby), the Mormon tabernacle in Salt Lake City, and Yellowstone. Jane wanted to visit a sister in New Orleans, a sister in San Clemente, California, and Mount Rushmore. I wanted to see the Crystal Cathedral, travel along historic Route 66 and see one of the Great Lakes.

Betty Jo called AAA and they mailed the appropriate books and maps. She also kept brochures and clipped articles from magazines on any place of interest that we might encounter. At our last meeting, we each brought the suitcase we planned to use, and we practiced loading the Explorer. It was a cinch! Of course, they were all empty! After much planning and preparation, we were ready to embark on our adventure. Off we go!