So the seed of an idea was planted, discussions began and my research was off and running.  One word: OVERWHELMED. This wonderful world wide web provides an OVERload of information which I need to decipher and summarise and get my head around. Easier said than done!

I decided to poll the family to see what their priorities are for the trip, apart from the absolutely necessary theme parks.  The boys wanted to see a gridiron match and a WWE event, Miss 8 wants to see Pink (in person or in concert), and Miss 2 wants to go to Sleeping Beauty’s castle.  Why am I stressing? We don’t need to leave California! No, I want to fit in as many experiences in as many states as time and budget allows.

Rather than start at 1 and count up, I wondered about starting at 50 and removing states until we achieve a “do-able” number.  Alaska immediately was removed from the list (sorry Alaska, you are on my bucket list to do with Canada sometime by cruise), Hawaii immediately added as a stopover on the way home. 2 states considered, decision made, 48 to go!!  And that’s where the feeling of being overawed began.  Every state seems to have a descriptive website, excellent suggestions, a guide book available to order by post or download as a PDF, and many reasons why one cannot bypass that state!  So my research now really begins in earnest…