In preparation for the family vacation, I realized that there are several things I’ll be doing differently than in years past.

I signed up for OnStar’s Three Months on Us Trial.  This will give me emergency contact info if my 15 year old wrecks the Denali on Highway 57.

My Mom just bought a new Garmin for her husband.  I’m going to see if I can’t borrow it for our trip, and if we like it, we may just buy one of our own.

I’ll also be using the Garmin for some geocaching fun.  The kids have been talking about this, so what better way to introduce ourselves to it than on vacation?

I’ll have Google Maps on my Treo for restaurant location and any other info I may need on the fly. I’ll also use it to find known wireless hotspots so that the wife and I can check email.  Unfortunately I’m not at the point in my business where I can trust the biz to someone else while I’m gone, or else I’d be avoiding the email altogether.

I’ll also use Google Reader on my Treo to keep up with the latest feeds (when I’m not driving).

We’re considering signing up for XM radio so we don’t have to change the radio station every 100 miles or so.  That gets old, particularly on an 1800 mile trek across the US.