We left on a Christmas vacation Saturday morning. And by Saturday morning, I really mean Friday night, around the time college kids typically are getting home. Let me walk you through my day one diary, a.k.a. The Road Trip!
2:20 am: I wake up filled with dread. I hear Ladd opening and closing our front door, and I know exactly what he's doing: Loading up the car so we can head out on our Christmas road trip. I consider going back to sleep because I was dreaming about Kevin Costner, but decide it's futile because a) I probably wouldn't be able to resume the dream even if I fell back asleep, and b) If I don't go ahead and get up, Ladd's going to wake me up in about five minutes anyway.
2:35 am: Now dressed in comfy car clothes, I fill an extra large jug with cold brew, milk, and Stevia, and I fill a small insulated cooler with cans of Dr Pepper and Diet Dr Pepper, because I know we're hours away from stopping. We are Drummonds, after all, and we are hard core road-trippers.
2:43 am: We are on our gravel road, leaving the ranch. And by "we," I mean Ladd, me, Todd, and Todd's good friend, John Reed. John is going with us for the first few days, and he spent the night since we'd be leaving so early. Todd and John stayed up all night in anticipation of being in the car for nine hours (they wanted to sleep for a lot of the trip), so before we even get to the highway, they're sound asleep in the back.
2:55 am: I am sound asleep in the front, curled up with a king-size pillow I brought from our bed. The same pillow, by the way, on which my head laid as I was dreaming of Kevin Costner a mere hour before. Ladd, my true love despite my crush on Kevin, starts a new Tom Clancy audio book.
6:44 am: I am awakened by the bright lights of a gas station. Ladd has stopped to top off the gas and run inside, so I decide to head in and get a hot coffee to go with the cold brew I haven't had a sip of yet. I can barely walk when I get out of the car because I've been curled up in an unnatural position, so somewhere in rural Kansas there's a gas station with security footage of a woman with red hair who is walking like a 97-year-old man.
8:36 am: I have consumed both my jug of cold brew and my large hot coffee and I have also screened/edited an episode of my show on my laptop and finished the NYT Crossword. My glasses are grimy, so I clean them with my favorite glasses cleaning cloth I received as a gift last week!! I love it!
9:49 am: We stopped an hour or so earlier, so I am stretching my legs, feet, knees, hips, and toes. Road trips are a stiff proposition for a gal like me! 😂
11:39 am: We are less than 30 minutes from our destination in Colorado and it isn't even noon yet. 😂 This is what it's like to take a travel with Ladd Drummond. There is no messing around, most of us sleep half the time, and before we know it, we've taken a nine hour road trip. Hi, Todd and John! Are we there yet?
11:52 am: The mountains. I might cry. We're almost there! This fall has been so busy. I wouldn't say stressful, but just...a lot. Football, filming, shooting, family things, work things, ranch things. I would never complain, and I love being home on the ranch. But mama needs a small break!! Haha.
12:19 pm: We are here! And we've already unloaded all our bags and stuff and...well, we got here too early and our place isn't ready yet. Hahaha. How ironic is that? But honestly, it happens all the time! We get in such a hurry to get to where we're going that where we're going isn't even ready for us. But that's okay! We enjoyed a nice little brisk walk around town!
12:50 pm: I love Colorado vacation dogs! And Ladd of course loves it when I make him stop in his tracks so I can meet and interact with each and every one of them. This is GASTON, and I feel we have a lifelong connection now. What a cutie. And look at his booties!
1:18 pm: Okay, our place still isn't ready. 🤪 Remind me again why we left the ranch at 2:43 am?!? I am laughing so hard. Ladd and I sit in the lobby, where he orders French fries and a coke. He then suggests I order a cocktail, to which I responded, "OKAY!!!!" It turned out to be very yummy.
That's all the news that's fit to print today. To repeat: I am so excited to have this time in the mountains with Ladd and the kids, who will slowly trickle in this week one by one (and sometimes two by two.) This is the first Christmas we will be without Chuck, and since he has always been such a big part of our holidays, it feels like a good time to change things up and change the scenery a little bit.
I'll keep you posted on our Griswold---I mean Drummond---Christmas Vacation!
Off to search for more vacation dogs,
Ree Ree
Ree Drummond is the founder of The Pioneer Woman and a lover of butter, basset hounds and life on the ranch! Ree started her blog in 2006, and now millions visit ThePioneerWoman.com every month for her trusted recipes and fun family stories. Here’s what she has been up to since it all began:
New York Times Bestselling Author
Ree has written two memoirs (Black Heels to Tractor Wheels, and Frontier Follies) plus nine bestselling cookbooks:
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Recipes from an Accidental Country Girl (2009)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Food from My Frontier (2012)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: A Year of Holidays (2013)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Dinnertime (2015)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Come and Get It! (2017)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: The New Frontier (2019)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Super Easy (2021)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Dinner’s Ready! (2023)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: The Essential Recipes (2025)
Food Network Host
Since 2011, Ree has been sharing simple, family-friendly recipes—and the occasional kitchen prank!—on her award-winning show The Pioneer Woman, filmed right on Drummond Ranch. Ree is also a regular judge on Food Network competitions, including Christmas Cookie Challenge.
Founder, The Pioneer Woman Collection
Ree has been creating and selling kitchen and home products at Walmart since 2015 and she’s involved in designing every piece and pattern. The line now includes best-selling appliances (you have to see the floral blender!), plus hundreds of pieces of cookware, tableware, and more. Ree doesn’t like to play favorites but the Agatha print has a special place in her heart.
Restaurant and Hotel Owner
Together with her husband Ladd, Ree has opened several bustling businesses in Pawhuska, Oklahoma, including The Pioneer Woman Mercantile—a bakery, restaurant, and general store that draws visitors from across the country (many come for the biscuits alone!), P-Town Pizza, Charlie’s Ice Cream Shop, and The Boarding House, a charming hotel with eight different rooms decorated by Ree and Ladd.
Media Personality
Ree appears regularly on national TV shows like Today, Good Morning America and more—all while managing to keep flour off her shirt.
Wife, Mom and…Grandma!
Ree’s kids (daughters Alex and Paige and sons Bryce and Todd) are all grown up, and as of December 2024, Ree is the proud grandma of the cutest baby ever, Sofia Scott, born to Alex and her husband Mauricio. Ree still cooks for Ladd (and the kids when they’re home), and she also looks after a few mischievous ranch dogs.
