Ok. If you had relatives in Arkansas that explains the out of the ordinary route. Usually I 44 (route 66 in the old days) and that would have been North of Branson.
yea there had to have been a shorter way. even as a kid it seemed we went in a sorta u shaped route. still. o wait we did Utah too cause we swam in the salt lake. down from upper middle socal to texas, then up to virginny.