Thanks for all your info everyone.  I have yet another question. I carefully
observed the temp needle today to see if it truly was the AC causing it heat
up.  Seemed true until the last stretch when the needle crept up even with the
AC off. It was in start and stop traffic but not abnormally jerky.  Anyway,
what I did notice when I got home was that large amounts of heat were
radiating up from beneath the van. Pretty much for the entire length.  The
engine did some creaking but the hood felt cool. What felt untouchably hot was
the exhaust underneath (which you could all say is normal and being a car
dummy I'd have never known : ).  Standing next toi the passenger front door it
was very hot under the seat. Could this be a clogged catalytic as someone
suggested?

I also didn't hear the cooling fan come on when I stopped so maybe it is just
fuses. My fear is that if I take the van on a 6 hour trip before I figure this
out, either the engine will blow or we might catch fire. So tell me if the
exhaust and underbody has always been this hot and I just never noticed? Or if
this is a sign of bad things to come : ).

Thanks again for all your help.

Cyndi