Wednesday night we drove all night from North Carolina to Peoria, Illinois.  I drove most of the way, my wife took over in the morning around 5 am as my eyes started to get bleary.  She'd managed to get some sleep through the night and so was in pretty good shape to drive the last 2 hours of our 12 hour trip.

The kids did pretty good on the drive.  We tend to drive at night for two reasons.

1. The kids can sleep most of the trip since its dark.
2. I work nights anyway and I'm used to being up late.
3. There is less traffic and no rush hour.
4. In the summertime its not as hot, so you don't have to run the air conditioner as much, saving gas and giving the van more power for the mountains.
5. The baby doesn't get cranky when the sun is in her eyes.
6. The road isn't as hot, which saves your tires wear and tear.
7. You are not as likely to eat as much at night, nor make as many stops for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
8. Towards the early morning hours you can sometimes turn off the air conditioner all together.
9. If you travel with dogs they aren't as likely to get car sick because they can't see out the side windows as easily.