Between the years of 1994 and 2004, we had taken our family on a few short trips to St. Louis to the Zoo, the Science Center, the many museums of the city and even to see the St. Louis Arch. We also enjoyed camping at Pomme De Terre Lake, where Steve learned that he could LOVE the outdoors.
The ability to run away for a lengthy vacation was relatively difficult, financially speaking, but, in 2004, we finally went on our very first trip, as a family, out of the state of Missouri. We loaded up the minivan and headed to the beach of Alligator Point in the panhandle of Florida. On that same trip, we headed to Orlando, Florida and enjoyed a couple of days at Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure. We were hooked. We knew that we had to travel more; experience more. Steve and I, without a doubt, are dreamers at heart, and the thought of exposing our kids to different cultures and locations, only seen on TV and in the movies, excited us! We began planning ways to visit more and more destinations. At first, we could only vacation every 4 or 5 years, but it was a good way to start.
By the Spring of 2017, our oldest, Derek, had already moved out, Kyle was planning to get married, and Olivia was eagerly awaiting her independence. We began to face the inevitability of an empty home. How would we fill our time? We often joked about selling our home and buying an RV to travel the country together. Being realistic, and thinking practically, we knew that there was NO WAY that this was going to happen. Still, traveling was always a passionate topic of interest for us. Where would we go? What would it take to get us there? What would we DO when we got there? The more obscure the destination the more attractive it was to us.
Meanwhile, Steve, working over the road, would pass the time by listening to audiobooks and podcasts. He realized that doing a podcast together would be the perfect way to transition into our empty nest years. We would share with each other, and anyone else interested in listening, all that we've experienced, discovered, and dreamt. Totally aware that we are Tenderfoot Tourists, we chose to share our success' as well as our disasters. The idea was to help others to have their own adventures, and, maybe, to avoid a few little road blocks along the way.
Gifted with the ability to talk for hours about sandy beaches, incredible mountain scapes, ziplining, and cruising, we took to podcasting quite naturally. Our hope is that you'll join us on this adventure, and, don't forget, "Stay Tender".