Vicarious road trippin'

Grandma and Grandpa Mac have been gone for about a month now on a road trip around the country. It's on my dad's "bucket list" to see every state in the U.S. To make it happen, they basically had to drive the perimeter of the states - which never fails to make me chuckle every time I think about them.
My mom has done a great job turning it into a learning experience for the kids. First she made a map for us of their intended route and she's been religious about sending a postcard from every state. It's made it so the kids aren't missing her as much as they normally do when she's away - I think because they can see on the map where she is and how much more to go before she's home, and because we're hearing from them so often.

They have been super lucky with timing in that they skirted the tornadoes in Mississippi, were just ahead of the floods in Tennessee, and drove through Louisville on the day of the Kentucky Derby. They called from South Dakota this morning - only another few days before Dad can get home to check that one off his list.