Family Adventures: From Taylor Swift Tickets to Theme Park Thrills

I have a friend who showed me a video of her 15-year-old daughter opening her present, which turned out to be airline tickets and concert tickets to see Taylor Swift. The young lady was elated and couldn't stop crying. It was very heartwarming.

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It got me thinking about the most memorable trips that parents have given their kids.

I know several families that were given cruises by their parents or grandparents so that the whole family could travel together. I've seen the same with family trips to Hawaii.

Obviously, not everybody can afford to spend that kind of money. So, your most memorable trip wasn't tailored for "Swifties". (Tailored...see what I did there?)

For our family, it would have been a four-day drive from Great Falls to Memphis to see my grandparents. Followed by another 6-hour drive to Atlanta in my dad's 1973 Plymouth Fury with no air conditioning. Did I mention that this trip was in August?

When we got to our destination, Six Flags Over Georgia, it seemed instantly worth it. These were the first real roller coasters that I had ever seen that weren't for the kindergarten-aged crowd at the Montana State Fair.

Of all the most memorable parts of that awesome day, my mom losing her wig on the Runaway Mine Train ride was the best. It's also where I learned that I can ride anything that goes up and down but when you add barrel rolls, I get sick.

A lot of great memories were made and that's what it's all about.