Childhood happy experience that you can't forget about (housing, actor, strange)

[33458]

Camping.

We went somewhere almost every summer, reaching from Yellowstone to Canada to Virginia, all by car with a tent or camping trailer.

Canoing with my father whenever we went camping. I learned how while quite young and it was our special time, exploring whatever waterway we had available to us.

[Prettygyrl777]

Family trips to Florida: When I was 10, we went to Florida for the very first time. We stayed for a week in a little known place called Port St. Lucie (LOL). My dad was a realtor and had his own properties to manage so he had business in Florida (though we lived in NY at the time).

Florida was so foreign because i had never been out of the northeast so to me, it was like heaven. Everything was sunny and bright and just 'perfect'. My parents made it a point to stop at every roadside tourist trap and we had a ball! Who could forget 'south of the border' and weird roadside restaurants along the way! Some of the funniest things happened on those trips. We did that every year -sometimes twice a year- for the next several years until we finally moved down here.

By then, we grew up. I was in highschool, one sibling was married another in college and so ended the 'family vacations'. We still go on vacation together (trips to resorts, recently to Canada and North Carolina) but we travel separately and with our own families. Maybe its a sign of the times but now we're all about getting to our destination the fastest and my sibs don't do 'the road trip' thing with their kids but its fun to remember when we did it!

[ShadowCaver]

When lived in StL, folks would take me and younger brother to the country. Would pass through various smaller towns - one had an ice cream store; lol, would stand there, mouth watering, eyes bigger than belly, mixing various flavours together, having a tall stack on the cone... mint chocolate chip, orange sherbet, vanilla, and so on...

Further out, there would be a farm with some woods by a corner, guy had pair of white mules... can not ever go by that place still w/o glancing over into the fields to see if they, or their spirits, are chewing on the grasses, pawing the dirt, or prancing about, nipping and playing with each other...

[7th generation]

At age 4 my siblings (5 of us) and my folks went to Arlington National Cemetery to visit the grave of my uncle. For some reason my parents left my brother and I in the car at a gas station with the keys in the car. Evidently I climbed into the drivers seat started the car and proceeded to put it in gear and rolled into traffic! My father did the 100 yard dash in world record time and got the car stopped before anyone was hurt or cars were damaged!

[Mooseketeer]

My Dad telling me stories to put me to sleep when I was little, including making lots of them up , with faces and different voices and gestures too. I just loved those stories and it never put me to sleep as I could have listened to them all night. Canoeing down the river with him playing the clown and pretending we were about to tip over. And we did !

Travelling in the car with him at night, driving all the way from Germany to Brittany and stopping at road side places for a bite, then staying awake all night singing songs, playing games,falling asleep on the dog in the back seat about 2 miles before we got to my Grand-Ma and finding myself in my PJs in the morning. How did I not wake up ?

Going to a New Year's day ball in Austria with him, all dressed up, age 14 and dancing with him all night , feeling terribly grown up. The last time I remember us being really close.
So many perfect memories.

[AksarbeN]

My Mom & Dad always gave us kids food at every meal, a roof over our heads, and as much “love” and attention as they could spare,,,,,, each and every day of their lives! We often didn’t have alot, but the love was never lacking!

[1410OC]

The blessing of a dad who gave of himself sacrificially

[1410OC]

and yes, the camping

[1410OC]

(that might come in particularly handy soon)

[lilypad]

Really silly, but still sweet....my dad took us all (five of us!) to Disneyland when I was about 6 y/o. I have vivid recollection of the ride, "It's a Small World Afterall". Love that little song! So whenever I go back, that is the first ride I look for, and go around humming it all the time. The funny thing is both my sisters hate that ride and the song, and tell me to shut up when I start singing!