My three adult children are gypsies, I think. My older two have moved more in the past few years than I have ever moved in my life. I traveled with them this summer, and here are a few things I have learned:

1. I worry constantly when they travel on their own, but they have all mastered Google maps on their phones. I remember toiling over paper road maps and routes as a kid, thanks to my dad. Now, kids can see it all on a phone screen. And reroute you in seconds if you get lost.
2. Pack light. No one had excesses of shoes, shorts or anything — odd for us, a bunch of shoe junkies.
3. Make a lot of short stops on long 9 to 11-hour driving journeys. My daughter will disagree here, but the stops relieve the boredom of riding or driving. She is more of a “plow through for hours” kind of gal. I need coffee and bathrooms. The boys needed leg stretching and smoking time. I despise the smoking, but they are adults. For Christmas, they are getting patches and nicotine gum.
4. Pack sandwiches, chips and snacks. I always hated when my parents insisted that we eat baloney sandwiches along the way, but my kids love it. Our sandwiches are more ham, turkey and salami. Oh and snacks — don’t forget the snacks. We tested out potato chips manufactured in three states and they were good!
5. I’m not a fan of long car trips, but my kids were unfazed. I would be the one to ask “Are we there yet?” My older two have driven all over the eastern U.S., so 12-hours is nothing to them. Now that we have one long trip under out belts, I’d do it again.  We all want to try a train trip and my daughter has chatted about Megabus, so who knows what’s next?

Pam Parker is the editor of Lake Erie LifeStyle, Her Times and House to Home at the Erie Times-News in Erie, Pa.