We were five minutes into our five-hour road trip last weekend when our 3-year-old hit us with the question of all questions for a family packed seven deep for a Griswold-style journey across state lines.

“Are we there yet?” she asked from the backseat.

It was fine. With five kids, someone had to ask at some point. We laughed.

We weren’t laughing a couple hours later when the baby was screaming, our 10-year-old and 12-year-old were at each other’s necks in the second row, and our 8-year-old had to pee “right now.”

And what was that smell coming from the backseat?

We were somewhere in Yellowstone National Park, no restroom in sight.

“I can’t hold it,” our 8-year-old said. “What should I do?”

Hold it.

We found a gas station and then a place to stretch our legs, a pullout overlooking the majestic Yellowstone Lake, which looks like parts of the Pacific Coast at some points along the road.

We took photos in the breeze. I played Meriwether Lewis by leading the kids on an excursion down to the shore. We were barely 20 yards away when I slipped and cut my toe on some sharp rocks, ripping off part of my toenail and sending us all back to the car.

Clark W. Griswold down.

I brooded with my bloody toe on the dashboard, my wife behind the wheel and our 12-year-old daughter poking fun at me from the backseat. The trip was supposed to be fun. Even the highlight of our day at that point — glimpsing a bear and her cub in the park — turned south quickly when the two disappeared behind a ridge as we scrambled out of the car for a photo.

“They were beautiful,” gushed another tourist, as if to rub it in.

Road trips have been a hallmark for our family over the years, a great way to break up the summer and squeeze in some fun before school starts. We’ve visited Yellowstone together at least half a dozen times, but packing into our Honda Pilot this time had been more stressful than fun.

Was our traditional summer road trip still worth it?

Yes, says psychotherapist and mother of three, Kim Carol.

“To create a memory of ‘stability and togetherness,’ … rituals like holiday celebrations, weekend routines and annual trips can give kids something to look forward to as well as back on that will strengthen family bonds,” Carol says.

Even if those rituals are plagued by bad smells and a mangled toe?

Yes, says this father of five.

I want my kids to know that everything doesn’t work out like we plan, and that’s OK. As a dad with perfectionist tendencies, I learn and relearn this lesson over and over. My wife and I agree: Finding purpose in and rising above challenges is a valuable practice for kids and adults.

And back to Carol’s point, excursions like ours are about making memories — an important practice for our kids’ development. Family traditions like roadtrips can “make children feel like they belong and are part of a larger story, deepening their sense of security and understanding of family identity and values,” Carol adds.

If making memories was the goal, we did OK in the end. After finally arriving at our weekend destination — my sister-in-law’s place in Cody, Wyoming — our kids connected with cousins and the family’s beloved, fittingly indolent, droopy-eyed basset hound, Charlie. My wife caught up with her sister. I snuck in a memorable fly fishing trip with my brother-in-law.

Charlie’s belly was rubbed into oblivion. Delicious food was grilled and devoured. Stories were told around a backyard fire pit.

Memories were made.

We even saw bison herds, a grizzly bear and her cub on the trip home.

“Are we there yet?” our exhausted 8-year-old asked from somewhere in the back as we reentered Idaho.

I didn’t capture all the glorious scenery from the drive home, but here’s the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone showing off.