My dad was big on stopping in different small towns, and getting out and walking around, when we were on car trips (usually headed to a campground) in the mid-50's and 60's.
With four kids, one or two dogs, and a whole lotta camping gear piled in a station wagon, we really needed a stop!
In fact, I think "the middle" is always the lot in life of the youngest child! That's me, in the middle of course, in both the photos above.
There was no such thing as a seatbelt back then either, so if someone went to sleep there was little to keep them from falling over on top of you!
When fights would break out in the backseat, we would stop in a town and get out to "stretch our legs" as Dad would say.
We walked around, in whatever little downtown we stopped in, until we found an ice cream counter. Before Baskin-Robbins, even the smallest town had at least one soda shop with an ice cream counter back then.
Dad and I always got the same thing -- a double-decker ice cream cone with rocky road on the bottom and orange or rainbow sherbet on top!
Now that may sound like an odd combo to you, but just try it sometime. It's still my favorite combo...
And when it came to candy bars back then, the Rocky Road candy bar was always my first choice.
And it's so easy! Simply Stacie's easy-to-follow recipes are always a hit around our house, and I think you'll like them too. You can check out Stacie's Confetti Chocolate Bars and other recipes here.
Thanks for dropping by!
We went camping when we were kids. I've got all sorts of memories back then. All of them good. It was a great time to be a kid.
ReplyDeleteOne of your recent posts got me to thinking about camping when we were kids. It sure was simpler back then. We had a small travel trailer that the parents slept in, but we kids had sleeping bags in the back of the station wagon or on tarps with pine needles under it.
DeleteYes, I remember it. There's nothing like ⛺️ camping that I can think of which will generate such happy feelings of being in shorts.
ReplyDeleteI often make rocky road as a topping for cup cakes, delicious.
ReplyDeleteput your recipe up on your blog please. It sounds wonderful.
DeleteSugar, I love this little slice of your childhood. I was the youngest of four also and had many an uncomfortable time in the car. Unlike your dad, mine did NOT like to stop and get out and walk around. Just the opposite! Strictly point A to point B, with as few and brief as possible pit stops.
ReplyDeleteJean, it is my most cherished memories. I wish life were like that still. Sometimes the parents would give us $2 and tell us to be back at the station wagon in an hour. We were free to buy lunch, which $2 would cover a hamburger, fries and a coke with change to boot. No one worried about kids back then and it was a lot safer.
DeleteI remember those car trips back in the 50s. No air conditioning and three in the back seat left us pretty cranky. Thanks for the memories. xo Laura
ReplyDeleteLaura, thanks for reminding me about no A/C. Funny how the mind blocks out the bad stuff! We definitely had none and I remember driving through Arizona one time when the car kept over heating. Not fun, but still warm memories of the trip to Tombstone.
DeleteYour sweet post evoked many memories of road trips. My dad put suitcases between the back seat and the backs of the front seats. We put blankets and pillows out so my sister and I could lie down and read - no seat belts in my day.
ReplyDeleteLoved the inspiration of the temp bed for traveling! When we could put everything in the travel trailer (usually on the way home when the load was lighter due to having eaten the groceries we packed) we would put our sleeping bags out in the back of the station wagon and stretch out for the trip home.
DeleteI was always in the middle too, I was glad when my older sister got married. Not fond of Rocky road ice cream, but I love the candy bars.
ReplyDeleteI so enjoyed traveling down memory lane with you and the photos are priceless. It sounds like you had a very sweet childhood. Now I'm going to check out Stacie's blog . . . have a super duper day :)
ReplyDeleteConnie :)
Connie, not really a sweet childhood. My parents divorced when I was 5 so it was always half good half bad. My dad remarried and that brought my sweet step-sister into my life. She was two years older and was a breath of fresh air to a little girl with only two older brothers.
DeleteThese are great pictures from your childhood. I always think of childhood in the summer. It was a time of great adventure and apart from the ordinary. Car trips with no air conditioning, and no elbow room. Why did we love it so? And how can people get along these days without a station wagon? I miss my big van from when I raised my kids. I can only get three grandkids in the back seat of my car now. I might have to go back! Haha! Now I need some rocky road!
ReplyDeleteThat sounds yummy! I'm the youngest of 5 kids and we always went camping when I was growing up in the 1970"s. My father's favorite saying was, "Stop the bickering!" lol I can still hear him saying it to this day:) xo Kathleen|Our Hopeful Home
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