Euchre at 10,000 Feet

How to Play Euchre – Teaching A Michigan Tradition

It was the first commercial flight for our kids, and everyone did well. We even played a little Euchre to pass the 4 1/2 hours. Madeline thought the take off felt like riding a roller coaster. Southwest constantly served us free snacks and drinks; our two checked bags full of camping clothes and gear were free as well. On the way home we’ll choose seats away from the wings so we can see more of the United States below.

If you’ve never played Euchre, it’s a game many people in Michigan play when camping.  Want to try it?  Instructables.com had a great tutorial here:  http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-Play-Euchre/

The Power of Camping

Many campouts are with a group of relatives, your best friends from school, or a big scout troop.

And then there are those quiet ones, when you camp with only those closest to you.

Or you’re all alone.

This is when camping is a time to be unplugged.

A time to travel far away from your ordinary world.

A time to be disconnected from your everyday routine.

A time to dream.

On the ride there, walking a trail, casting along a stream.

Pause to silently reflect on your world.

Ask yourself questions.

Give yourself hours (or days) to find the answers.

Dream BIG about your future.

Envision the life your want.

Sketch out ideas for change that will move you toward your goals.

Erase them, and try it again using a different perspective.

On the ride home, give yourself permission to make changes in your life.

Be at home with a revived spirit and renewed ambition.

Believe in the power of camping.

Road Trip Games

Everyone gets board along the way. A couple of family games we play can help pass the time. For instance, have everyone look at the attached photo. How many squares can you find?

Travel ABC’s
This works well driving through a big city. Point to a noun (person, place or thing) that has to do with travel for every letter of the alphabet. A is for airplane, B is for billboard, C is for car, etc. This goes fast, so we usually play twice without repeats.

License Plate Game
This one can take the whole week. One person writes down the plates as people find them. I let the kids count 50 different plates, so they can use out of country plates and not stress when the can’t get RI. The secretary get a trinket I pick-up and both kids can pick out some candy at they next stop when we hit 50.

Billboard BINGO
On our way to Florida a few years ago, I decided this is not for kids. Ya never know what’s going to be advertised on a billboard. Anyway, you find products being advertised in the order of the letters of BINGO. First person to call the billboard gets to use it.

Good luck and have fun!