Let’s face it – TX does everything big… so no surprise it took us 3 stops to make it across this large State. I felt like we were traveling before kids at first stop because we saw something fun and were able to turn the 43′ RV around and just go back and do it. That used to be our favorite part – finding hidden, fun gems along the way. Of course, the “fun gem” in this case was Old MacDonald’s Farm – and it felt like 110 degrees but… still fun to just stop and go! First stop… Houston. After Old MacDonald’s, we were off to RV park. There was a place within walking distance that throws rolls at you, so of course, we had to try it. They really do toss you the rolls. Kids thought it was fun, I thought ewww (as their rolls hit the table and they picked them up and buttered them). But, they also gave us muffins – chocolate chip and blueberry and the food was pretty good. My kids decided to use a “normal” amount of butter on their rolls. Hey, they already hit the table – it’s not like I am up for mom of the year…

The Colony, TX

outside Dallas, we stayed at The Colony, TX so we could be closer to friends who moved from us to Frisco, TX. They were super generous and came to us and brought us dinner from Super Chix (where her hubby left us to become their operations manager -only I get it now… if you are ever near one in Texas, go, it is yummy!!!). The kids were all so sweet together. They were watching movies in the bunk beds and playing games together. We really enjoyed getting to catch up (one of the best parts of RV’ing is coming across friends and family on the way). Mary, thank you and your family! After our visit, we rented a boat and played on the lake the next day. Kenzie was not much of a “pull behind raft girl” and zoe kept asking to stay on it. Connor just slept through me forcing him into a life jacket and sunglasses. Sorry son, I have started a therapy fund for you though.by the way, when we arrived at this campground, They brought us tree clippers so Craig could climb on top of RV to cut back branches so we *might* be able to fit and open our slides. We were just able to – though we were nervous putting jacks down and having coach raise up. Had about 3-4 inches to spare. Oh, then the 50 amp service wouldn’t work and he had to call someone else out – took about 20 minutes to fix and get us AC (our rv has 3 ac units and really uses about 40 amps with only ac’s running in summer heat). Oh the joys of glamping. It is not all just rock star style (unless you have excuse of baby and then you stay hidden inside 😉)

Amarillo, free 72 oz steak

We stayed at a campground that had limos (with horns, of course) to take you to the man vs food famous location of Big Texan. You have 60 minutes to eat 72 oz of steak (4.5 lbs), plus shrimp cocktail, plus buttered roll, plus salad, plus baked potato. We got to see the start of someone attempting toward the end of our meal. I don’t think he completed it. You sit on a raised platform with a timer clock behind you. You pay $72 up front but get refunded if you complete. A 125 lb lady holds record for fasted time and this place was on the TV show, Man vs Food where Adam won the challenge. What an interesting place. The food was good but wow – it was so busy, had games, a gift shop, fudge/coffee and ice cream all in the lobby. Inside was huge with two stories.

We left home a few weeks ago, but Internet has been spotty.  We started in Navarre Beach, FL.  Only stayed the night.  Craig did take each of the girls out on a kayak (only had two person) and got a work out as the winds were against him coming back. I loved saying “I have the baby, sorry you have to go back out with the other girl.” That was a welcomed excuse to not exercise. Next day, we headed to New Orleans.  Last time we went there was an adults only trip (pre-kids for us) and I feel it was much less gross.  Then again, it was an adult trip and I was drunk most of it…  It was extremely hot and smelled horrible.  We did go to Felix’s so Craig could get some oysters and Cafe Du Monde.  Connor stole a beignet.  Right next to the RV Park were the wardrobe, filming and cast trailers for a movie being shot.  The security guard said it was called 1973 or so,etching like that.  I couldn’t find any information on it online.

We stopped in Mississippi (Florence) for an overnight stay.  Went through part of Louisiana to get there.  There wasn’t too much around us but we went out exploring.  Took a few cute pictures of kids but most of them, they were busy itching as the bugs were a little much. Kids got very excited when Craig asked if they wanted to go to the beach the next day!

Made it to FLORIDA!!!!

We went through Alabama to get there, kids came and sat with me up front to go through tunnel and look for the Florida sign.  We stopped at the Florida Welcome Center and kids had free orange juice to welcome us back.

Pensacola, FL

Are we at the beach yet??  YEAH!!  We are!!  Then, of course, dinner would not be complete without ice cream for these two.  The waitress was so nice when Zoe made a sad face due to them only having vanilla that she made it special for them.  Next morning breakfast, Zoe has decided she only wants to eat animal pancakes from now on and has asked if we can continue this at home, when they are allowed to occasionally have pancakes.

Tallahassee, FL

We debated staying in Pensacola a second day and then driving straight home from there.  However, travel days can be a little rough on the kids, so we decided best to head to Tallahassee.  Stuck in completely stopped traffic on 1-10 E for a few hours.  Supposedly, we have in-motion satellite and can watch while driving, but it turned out to just look for signals and not really work (even though we were dead stopped!!!)  But, we did discover the really cool feature of the GPS system showing up on the TV above windshield. Didn’t know that before!  Turned out a dump truck hit the overpass with its bed in the vertical position at almost 4 a.m.  Luckily, we weren’t in a hurry this day and had decided to go to breakfast before leaving or we would have been stuck even longer as they had I-10 shut down 2 miles after we got on (but no one stopping us from getting on haha).  We couldn’t cut through the median so just had to wait on them to determine it was safe to drive under overpass.

Uber and taxi that makes me want to walk 10-12 miles!

Craig decided we should do dinner at the University Club.  We did Uber on way there.  There were no XL in area so we just took whatever we could get.  I had just finished explaining to him I did not like uber because some of the drivers he has sent me photos of were a little sketchy and you cannot rule out ones that smoke.  Sure enough, ended up in a car with a very backwoods country woman (not the cleanest either), whose car reeked of smoke, and had black spots all over her side of the ceiling.  Car was dirty, kids kept touching everything.  We couldn’t wear seatbelts as we all sat in back.  She was in a merge lane and despite the large truck having the right of way on her left, she kept going to get in front of him (though her car doesn’t go that fast)…  He luckily backed off but, poor Craig’s arm from me squeezing.  All I could picture is kids getting hurt because no car seats (or seat belts).  We made it U Club!!!!  Had a yummy dinner, played out looking over field, looked around at all the neat things they are doing.  Leaving … no uber available at all.  Several tries, walked away from stadium to keep trying.  He finally called a taxi and I was so happy.  While waiting at the corner of a street, for taxi, Kenzie found a wallet by a light.  Sadly, only a student id and expired credit card were left.  I explained he either lost it or someone stole it – which made her very sad.  We called non emergency police to report it and taxi was there.  It was a van – BONUS!  Got in, and then… This one smelled like wet dog, had no a/c, barely ran, ceiling was falling down, and a driver that sped up at red lights to hit the brakes hard.  I thought it was just me but, when we got back, Craig mentioned only driver to speed up at red lights.  Kenzie said (loudly), I like the other car better.  So, we tried to get her not to say much else (she also kept saying it was hot and this car ride made her feel sick).  He would ride people when the lane next to him was empty.  I kept watching his GPS, praying we would hurry up and get there.  .5 left and I was so excited until for some reason, .5 made him speed up.  UGH!!!  Made it out safe and alive!!!  Craig asked me if I liked the taxi better than the uber (since I complained so much about the uber).  I told him we were only renting cars from there on.

No photos from driving experiences.  Here are ones of the park and Tally.  Kenzie was excited to see a squirrel on tree instead of chipmunk.  My seat that I have never sat in…, cool kids plate they offer at the Club, of course, more dessert…. (after theirs, they came and stole mine), looking at Unconquered Statue and the lost or stolen wallet. Now to explain to kids that there is a set bed time and that desserts are rare, special occasions.

Almost HOME

We are headed home now, should be there in about two hours!!!!  When the girls put the last state on the map, they started clapping.  It was really sweet.  We did pass through IL, LA, and AL but did not stay in any of them so did not mark them off.  Today was the first day that both girls were sleeping in (also first day back in Eastern Time Zone so not sure if that was part of it).

FINAL COUNT

RV (with only one little hole/crack in front from a rock hitting us)

4.5 people (and I do look like 1.5 people)

4,301 miles

48 days

12 States (GA, TN, KY, IN, MI, WI, MN, IA, MO, AR, MS, FLORIDA!!!)

Can’t wait to reconnect with you all you.  We have missed seeing our friends and family.  Special thanks to Shelly and her mom for watching our house while we were gone.

I thought we should stop in Little Rock for a couple of days.  Could have honestly done without.  Had we stayed an extra day, we would have checked out Hot Springs, AR.

Hilary Rodham Clinton’s Children’s Library

What can I say, I am a nerd and the thought of 12 million and 30,000 square feet intrigued me.  It was neat that they have a teaching kitchen, garden area, greenhouse and lots of children’s books.  But, I was not as impressed in person as I was on paper with it.

River Market

It was a few blocks but, nothing really that stands out.  It was pretty empty, since we went on Monday night.  The place we ended up eating at was the one that had all the funny signs.  We actually tried to drive a short distance to a brewery we heard good things about.  We went in and it was 3-4 big huge tables that everyone all sat together, wherever they could find a place.  It was super crowded and Kenzie kept complaining about the noise.  Zoe kept complaining about the smell, so we left.  Back to the place with the funny signs.  It was a pizza joint, that had trivia night.  Turned out to be pretty fun, minus Zoe losing her mind during our time there.  She calmed back down (she is way beyond tired) and ate a little.  She was definitely a Snickers commercial in the making.

William Clinton’s Presidential Library (and Big Bug exhibit)

I would have loved to been here without the kids.  We bribed them to please let us do the boring history stuff and then they could do bug exhibit and we would leave and go to close by park/splash park.  That really didn’t work.  They do not like boring adult stuff, at all.  They have copies of his daily calendar for each year.  It was really neat to flip through some of his daily calendars and realize how little downtime a President actually has.  There are also life-size replicas of the Oval Office and The Cabinet Room.  Lots of articles, videos and history.  The good and the bad.

After touring, we decided to eat at the restaurant located within.  It is called Forty-Two.  I kept trying to hint to Kenzie regarding the name and asking her what number President did she think Bill Clinton was.  It never sank in so I finally just said it is a number and the number name of the place we are eating is 42, do you think…  Anyways…  the food was beyond impressive.  I don’t think they could have a bad item on the menu!!  If you ever visit the area, you can go eat there without paying admission and having to do the rest.  Well worth it!!

Riverfront Park

It was way too hot to really enjoy this.  It winds around the Arkansas River and has a few playgrounds, splash parks and sculptures to enjoy along the way.  The playground by the larger splash park was really neat.  Tunnels everywhere with different ways of going down underground (rock wall, rope ladder, etc).  Stone walls to climb everywhere.  Kids loved it.  We just sweated.  They stayed at the splash park for a very long time.  Only way we finally got them to agree to leave was promising them ice cream.  It was more for the adults because did I mention the heat with no breeze or shade? The last photo is the Governor’s Mansion here.  There is a bronze looking head/shoulder statue of Bill Clinton within the gates, the photo just did not come out well.

River Lights

There are 3 bridges over the Arkansas River that are illuminated using thousands of LED lights.  Since they can all be seen at same time, together, they are lighted using different themes, at different times.  The colors happened to be red, white and blue.  Hard to get good photos but here are best I was able to do.  You could see them all out of our RV at night (we were parked facing the river) and I would just stare at them.  Since I can’t drink, this was my way of letting some stress go. Craig thought they were cool but not enough to stay up and look at or sit outside with all the bugs. Kids were not impressed at all.  Also, at the bottom is a photo of the Big Dam Bridge lit up.  It was a few miles away and could not be seen at same time as others.  I think it is the longest pedestrian/bicycle bridge around area that was built and only used just for that purpose.

Updated Count: 10 States, 3388 miles, 4.5 people (still same ones – I know, impressive).

We are now headed back to FL.  A few more overnight stops on the way and we should be back soon!!

We started off our stay in MO in the Lake of the Ozarks.  This was without a rental car, so we could catch up on laundry, and life.  Kids loved swimming in their pool and we walked the small dock they had, played at the playground, etc.

Branson

I laughed at Craig when we drove through and asked him what kind of tourist trap he took me to this time.  However, I begged to stay a few days longer so the girls could do the Showboat of the Belle Princess and Pirates Cruise (only offered on Sundays) and also asked him to do Dixie Stampede.  I completely fell for everything touristy and loved it.

These are general photos of Branson.  Kenzie made us eat at the giant meatball place.  Now, she won’t stop signing On Top of Spaghetti.  We sat in a trolley and it looked like you were looking onto a city.  Pretty cool, actually.  Zoe felt so bad when she saw the Ripley’s building because it was broken. We played at the Landing and there was a zipline that went across the water.  Kenzie decided she had to do it and I convinced Craig he had to go with her, since I was pregnant…  The ride seats you, goes backwards and then forwards back across water.  You are supposed to go twice.  I only took a couple of photos as I was trying to video the first time and planned to take photos the second time. Kenzie convinced the lady to let them off after the first time and that she didn’t want to go again.

First, we did a golf cart tour of the Ozarks at the Top of the Rock.  It was gorgeous and fun.  Minus the 100 plus degree days we experienced, everyday…  This is definitely something to go on your list to do!  We ate lunch at the Keeter Center, College of the Ozarks.  It is pretty much staffed and run by students – including growing vegetables, and animals.  Food was amazing.  Zoe fell asleep on the drive there from the Top of the Rock.  I don’t blame her, it had been a long day in the heat.  Luckily, she woke up in time to eat and get a special dessert.

Golf

Craig was able to sneak in 18 holes at one course then play the 9 hole, scenic course at the Top of the Rock.  He played at 7:40 in the morning, to try to avoid some of the heat but, there is sadly no escaping it.  Views were still impressive and he said the courses were nice.

Dinner – Osage, Top of the Rock

Craig asked if we could do dinner here.  Food and views, both were impressive.

Dixie Stampede

I thought it would be a fun show to do with the kids.  It involved lots of animals and eating with your hands.  Who wouldn’t appreciate that? (minus me, because I read the reviews ahead of time and brought plastic utensils.  Craig said I cheated but, I did offer to bring him some.)  Kids loved the pre show with the Bluegrass singers.  Zoe’s favorite part was the horses.  Before and after the show, you could walk by each of the horse stalls.  She made us read each of their names, before and after the show.  They were also able to get a few autographs of cast members after the show.  (Our rental car this time was a truck.  Zoe couldn’t get the door open and would just hang, getting frustrated).

Showboat of Belle – Princess and Pirate Cruise

The girls had a blast.  We did not bring dress up clothes on the RV so we took them to the Disney Outlet the prior day.  They both wanted Moana, but they were out of their sizes.  Once they boarded the boat, they were able to get balloon animals, face painting, meet Princesses and Pirates, meet the Captain, have a dance party and sail away celebration, and finally watch a show while eating.  We bought them Parasols when we left, as Zoe was obsessed with them.  Now to keep them closed and safe for the remainder of the trip, so they don’t hurt each other.  Last day in Branson was officially a success… For the girls. Sadly, Craig missed the British Open most all of the trip.  During the show, he just kept looking at his ipad.  I felt a little sad for him but appreciate his love for his family and putting the girls first.

We are headed to Little Rock, Arkansas next.  Only staying there for two nights.  Then, should only be a few days to get home as we didn’t really see a lot more worth stopping for in the extreme heat.  So… we should be home within a week!!  Maybe even before the weekend!

We were planning to stop at Des Moines for the night only and continue on to Branson, MO – then start heading South to come home.  However, I found an amazing place in Iowa that I thought we had to do.  After some pleading, Craig agreed to drive 316 miles, out of the way, to make me happy.  We were so glad we did.  The kids had the BEST day ever IN NATURE truly exploring caves.  There were 16 caves we got to explore.  Some had streams in them to cross, some were very muddy, some you had to crawl on to see the inside (we could not fit but the kids loved going in anyways).  We let Kenzie and Zoe lead us, which ended up going off path and over a bunch of fallen trees. We followed them (Craig a little reluctantly as it may not have been the safest path).  They had so much fun and led us to a hiking trail for about a mile until we decided to make our way to the parking lot and start back in the caves again.  Kenzie and Zoe took turns holding the flashlight and both worked together to get through the caves.  It was 100% what I imagined this RV trip would be.  I will say Kenzie thanked Craig this morning, at our family meeting, for allowing them to do all the kid things that mommy wouldn’t have. haha!!!  Guess we balance each other out nicely.

Maquoketa Caves – HIDDEN TREASURE IN IOWA!!

Dubuque and the Mississippi River

We tried to find a paddle boat to do a cruise on the Mississippi River; however, we could not find one that was open on Sunday and within driving distance.  We settled on a yacth style boat that also does lunch or happy hour.  Unfortunately, lunch was sold out and Craig could not wiggle his way in (he tried).  So, we were on the Happy Hour boat.  Sounded decent on phone – he would get free tap beer entire 1.5 hours… Until, we got there and found out the beer was Busch and Busch Lite.

Kenzie and Zoe got to drive another boat.  A nice family asked us to take their photo on the boardwalk to which Zoe took my phone, got in front of Craig and started taking tons of photos of them.  At least they laughed about it.  But, if you see a random photo of a family you don’t know with a fingerprint in the screen, you now know why.  Kenzie took my phone at dinner and I saw about 50 silly photos of Zoe and Daddy as I was loading pictures.  Glad they can self entertain.  The last three photos are: 1. Mississippi River 2. Dam and Lock on River and 3. Just the sun setting.  Was a beautiful, orange ball.

We stayed just outside of St. Paul, MN in a city called Woodbury.  Rented a vehicle from Hertz (they gave us the big size Cadillac Escalade with dvd players for kids, etc).  We went to Rainforest Cafe the first night after arriving.  Decided to treat the kids to the Volcano desert, turns out they are afraid of sparklers… It also turns out they love jewelry stores.

Next morning we planned a fun day for the kids at Mall of America, Nickelodeon Universe.  We went through Starbucks on the way and Craig ordered his coffee, then pulled up a little (long line).  Next thing we know, we got hit.  It didn’t do much damage but messed up the cover on the back and part of it beside it.  The girl was crying and a nanny for a family (had baby in van).  It was her nanny’s family vehicle so she didn’t know where anything was.  We apologized to her and explained we had to report it and have them take care of it because it is a rental car.  Her mom was up there before we even got Craig’s coffee.  The community cops showed up within 5-10 minutes.  They were super nice.  I joked about how quick they showed up compared to FL and they joked we should have gone to Caribou instead of Starbucks.  The owner of the van also came up at the end.  I felt so bad for her but, hopefully she learned not to look at cel phone while driving and it saved her from hitting someone at a higher speed.

Nickelodeon Universe

Can I just tell you, they really get it?  Chaperones do NOT have to pay to ride with kids that are not tall enough!!!  So, we only had to buy 2 wristbands and then would switch who would ride with Zoe on the ones she was not tall enough to do by herself.  What a brilliant concept!!!  I was so frustrated at Busch Gardens with how much we spent just to stand around and watch them on the kiddie rides.  The kids had a blast.  We were there the entire day (minus the accident wasted time).

Random Things

1. I went into a Super Target to buy Zoe more panties.  That thing was larger than any super store I had ever seen.  Craig and girls were in the car so I could not explore or play.  This had to be the saddest part of my trip!  I cannot believe how excited I felt just walking the 10 blocks inside the store to find the girls underwear!!
2. We went to Lake Calhoun (largest lake in area).  Walked around a little and kids found a playground.  Playground was really cool – they had these scoop type things that allowed them to get sand from below, use a levy to pull it up, then dump in drains or PVC pipes to come back down to the ground.  I am grateful for whoever designed this playground.  Kudos to you for allowing kids to use imagination, get dirty and play.
   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   
3. While at above playground, Craig mentioned going to Costco.  I asked “why do we need to go there?” (knowing bulk items and RVs do not go well together).  He said “I just miss it.” haha!  How could I say no to that.  Here is a photo of his face as he was turning on the street and could see Costco!  Sadly for him, while pulling into Costco, I saw Lakeshore Learning Center and got equally excited.  I begged to please let me go.  We went after Costco but only had a few minutes as we needed to get rental car back.  I could have easily spent an hour and several hundred dollars in there.  I told them I thought they were only a catalog store and she said they actually have another store in Tampa.  We bought the girls a game, drill set, and human body to take apart and explore.
   

   

   
4. Craig grilled out steaks, we had smores and the next morning went to an IHOP that just had a bus come in 10 minutes before with 30 plus people.  We were there for almost 2 hours.

Updated Count: 4.5 people; one RV; 2,365 miles, 8 states.  We are now on our way to Iowa.

Getting to Wisconsin…

put us through more storms.  But, we made it.  Our first stop was in Plymouth, WI.  We are having trouble getting RV spots last minute (this entire trip) since it is summer and the peak season in most of these areas.  We were used to traveling in Fall and never had an issue.  Now, it is hit and miss if 1. we can find a place, 2. we can find a rental car…  So, sometimes we stay in outlying areas and just travel to where we want to go.  Like Plymouth, WI.  Close enough for Craig to make his golf games (I promise to post his photos below – for those who like golf) and I found a place we had to extend one day just to see.  Thanks for going along with it, Craig!!  Storybook Gardens – My FAVORITE so far… But, I am a nerd who loves books and imagination.  I would take the kids there 1-2 times a month, minimum, if it were close to us!!!

Sheboygan Falls and surrounding area

Craig’s golf trips…

Whistling Straights

Erin Hills

Bookworm Gardens

While looking online for things to do, I discovered Storybook Gardens.  I decided we had to extend an extra day and play there.  It was perfect for our kids!  I wish we had something like this close by us as I feel all families should be able to experience this!  Each garden area was based on a different children’s book.  They had book cases throughout with laminated, large copies of the books that match the gardens close by.  Allowing parents to read the stories to their child, as they were close to the garden.  Sorry for the amount of photos – this is probably only 1/2 of the garden.  It was so impressive.

Wisconsin Dells – Known for the MOST waterparks in the WORLD…

While in Michigan, someone asked me if my husband likes beer.  He said we should definitely stop at the Dells, they have a local brewery and it is not sold in any other states.  So, I found an RV park and booked just two nights.  I found a close by Deer Park that looked interesting as well so figured a day and a half would be more than plenty.  As we started driving through the city, the kids went crazy.  Huge water and amusement parks on every side of the road.  It was torture to explain we would not have time to do much there…  I did also find Baraboo, a city right next to us – that was the home of the Ringling Brothers and thus has a circus museum and some smaller scale circus shows and activities.  Had to switch out deer park for that one!  We did the Duck ride the first afternoon we were there and the driver let the girls drive the bus in the water.  Zoe did a circle….

DELLS

Duck Land/Boat adventure

kids driving… Zoe took us in a tight circle…

Circus World

Buffalo Phil’s for Dinner… They deliver food and drinks by toy train to your table!!

We started our visit in Grand Haven for a few days.  There had to be 5 ice cream shops within a few blocks of each other… little did we realize, this was just the start of the ice cream places in Michigan.  We also walked along the water and out to the beach.  They are redoing the pier to the lighthouse but so many warnings about riptides in the Lake.  They had red flags out the day we went, which meant do not go in water but even with all the warnings and notices, still lots of people in the water.

Seriously, ice cream shops everywhere you look…

Slushies for Kenzie and Mommy, ice cream for Zoe and Daddy

She begged for this, even though I explained we don’t have snow

Playground at our campsite

We walked to beach area

Walk to pier was closed and lots of warnings

Kids waving to coast guard

more ice cream…

just random that I saw

Petoskey

We arrived at the campground and the ladies inside immediately told the girls they were just in time for Root Beer Floats in the main area.  They had never heard of them and wanted to try so how could we possibly say no to more ice cream?  We actually stayed here 5 nights, longest of anywhere.  We were talking with our neighbors and the kids fell in love with their dog, Winston – a golden doodle.  He was the best with them.  They played with him for at least 45 minutes.  At the end, Zoe asked me if we could bake him special dog treats for tomorrow but I had to explain we were leaving in morning.  So, she gave him a kiss and told him she would love him forever. (picture of it below).  We tried to go to the pool after playing with Winston (July 4th) but, turns out it was closed for park event (that we could attend but not swim).  We decided to make most of it and pulled out the hose to play in.  Then, ate outside.

Harbor Springs

Deer Park, they help rehabilitate injured deers (or so we were told).  Someone came to feed them carrots while we were there, but someone must have fed them earlier in the morning because none of the 5 deers we saw got up to eat.  Found a playground on the beach.  Convinced kids to run into water and they ran back out just as quickly.  It was very cold.  And, yes – of course, every corner has an ice cream shop so more ice cream.

Tunnel of Trees

Tunnel of Trees is a 20-25 mile stretch of road that has no center line and narrow/windy road.  But, one side opens up to Lake Michigan at various places, some places are just surrounded with trees and it turned out to be really pretty.  I could only imagine driving it in fall.  Craig read about Legs Inn restaurant on trip advisor so when we happened upon it, we stopped.  It was Polish-American and so delicious with incredible views.  There was a 30 minute wait to eat there but, well worth it.

Mackinac Island (pronounced Mackinaw)

No cars, only ambulance and police have vehicles.  Otherwise, horses, bicycles or walking is how you get around.  We took the ferry over and grabbed a carriage ride around the island.  Took some photos at the Arch (almost got left by our carriage), saw Fort Mackinac, had lunch at the Grand Hotel and toured it (has the longest balcony anywhere – 600 feet), walked around some, went to the toy store and let the kids try fudge from one of the 12-15 fudge shops on this small island.  They decided they liked ice cream more and of course, had more ice cream…  The island is very unique and if you are close enough, I would suggest visiting it.  It was very cold and misty the day we went, so we rode inside the ferry on way over (and went under Mackinac Bridge).  On the way back, the girls insisted on riding up top, even though we kept trying to explain it would be cold and windy.  Hence, the crazy photos of them not being happy on the top during the cold and windy trip back… but, at least there was a playground on the walk back to the car.

SOO Locks

They say this is the largest, but we think Panama would be?  We haven’t really  looked further into it.  It was neat for the kids to see but, being 4 and 6, it was hard to keep them still for all the time of waiting on the boat to get into the Lock and the water to rise. With the personal boat, you can see the first photo of just the antenna then watch it start to appear as water rises.

Tahquamenon Falls

We did Lower Falls first.  You can hike for 4 miles between them to get to upper but, with the kids we drove to each.  When Kenzie saw the row boats on the water, she begged to rent one.  Both kids wanted to try rowing, which meant more work for Craig but they had so much fun.  When we got back to the shore, Kenzie said “that was not exhausting at all.”  Craig just laughed.  When we got to the Upper Falls, I kept telling the kids not to run and to save their energy (which Kenzie calls “injury”. )  After we went down the first 112 steps to the gorge, she was saying it wasn’t bad and was all still happy… until, having to come back up.  Then, we had to convince them to go another 94 steps in a different area to the viewing platform.  Luckily, they were not as steep so kids did really well.

Lower Falls:

Upper Falls:

Dinner at Upper Falls Pub and Drive Back

Sun doesn’t set until around 10:15 here, photos of sunset below were around 10:30 pm.  We had to wait quite a while to eat at Pub, but I was able to get a “craft root beer” on tap while Craig had his craft beer.

Random UP (Upper Peninsula) Photos

Going over the Mackinac Bridge, Mackinac Island off in the distance, Castle Rock, Bridge & customs to Canada.

Pictured Rocks

I explained to Kenzie there are colorful cliffs/rocks and we are going to do a boat cruise so we can actually see them.  She seemed excited.  When we got to boat area, we had to wait for 30 minutes outside, in the heat.  Both kids were ready to be done before boarding for the 2.5 hour boat ride.  Once we got on the boat and made it to see some of the rocks, Kenzie kept saying “these aren’t rainbow colors, I don’t get it.” I explained they have colors from the minerals, and she was not impressed.  Zoe was beyond over it.  We thought it was beautiful but hard to enjoy with the kids being so bored.  It was definitely hot, which didn’t help.  When we got back, Kenzie said “I can’t believe you took us on a boat ride that didn’t go anywhere – not even to the other side and all to look at rocks.”

We drove from Pictured Rocks to the next camp ground, City of Marquette.  On the way, we passed a very small (population 400) town called Christmas, MI.  They had a giant 35 foot wooden Santa (painted on both sides) and a very large blow up Santa.  While Zoe got very excited seeing them, I was so hungry and busy stuffing my face with Ruffles that I missed getting any photos.  Before I could wipe my hands, we were out of that town.  So, I googled some photos to at least show you what we saw.  On the way out of our campground, Craig mentioned he thought we might pass back through Christmas (we did not) but Zoe immediately popped up and looked out her window.  The photos of Kenzie are just showing her latest obsession with drawing spiders to try to scare me.

We are off and on the way to Wisconsin!

We were honestly not expecting much and only decided to stay there to break up a drive.  However, it proved to be a favorite! The Subway photo might seem like nothing but, when we got gas they had a Subway and the kids wanted their pizza.  This one did not have pizza so kids were forced into sandwiches that they actually ate – THIS IS HUGE considering they live on air.

Kenzie loves plain spaghetti noodles and kept reading signs for the Old Spaghetti Factory so I decided to see if they had one there.  We surprised her by taking them to dinner there.  Food was okay, but it was a neat place.  They have part of a train car inside where you could sit to eat.  We did not make reservations so just had to wait to sit anywhere we could (place holds 350).  They had someone coming around making balloon animals, which the kids loved.

Subway at a gas station – kids ate sandwiches which is huge!

writing to Grammie & Papa on drive

Writing to Grammie & Papa on drive

We decided to walk around.  Ended up on a carriage ride downtown and by the canal.  Saw their capital building, where the Colts play and the largest JW Marriot in the world.  They also have bicycles and electric cars that you can rent downtown.  (electric cars were plugged in at different places along side of road, like bikes – where you put your information in without talking to someone).  It was really nice.

Side note:

Speed limit in our RV campground was 6.5 miles per hour. I had never seen a 1/2 on a speed limit sign & thought it was hilarious.  Craig on the other hand, seemed to ignore it.  As he was putting kids inside, a guy in a golf cart came up and said “I don’t know who was driving but you were going over 10 mph and need to keep it to 6.5 mph.  There is a sign up front.”  For those that know me, you know I try very hard to follow rules as I hate being told I was doing something I should not have done.  So this was very hard for me.  Thanks, Craig! haha!

Children’s Museum

All the reviews made it sound pretty amazing.  Honestly, they can’t even do it justice.  Just go, if you are ever near there and have little ones.  Plan to spend the entire day – get there right when they open.  It is not cheap so buy ahead to save money or do through AAA.  It cost us right around $100.  But, so worth it.  They have 5 floors total.  Exhibits included dinosaurs, space, a train/train station for kids to pretend to work, Dance, Pop Culture, the Circus (kids LOVED), Hot Wheels/racing, Travel to China, an area for 5 and under (impressive area), Carousel, mirror fun house, kid size houses and ice cream store, and so much more.  We pretended we were cave explorers and the girls had to find cave fish (part of a program – each family had a different animal to locate inside), then the kids were able to fill out a booklet regarding how their animal has adapted and what it eats.  The entire day was such an incredible experience.  I apologize for all the photos but I really LOVED this place!!

Count:

5 States, 1,028 miles, 4.5 people, one RV (still same one – in one piece), a few rented cars (plus one borrowed… thanks, Missy), and now one Bed Rail (Kenzie slept in our bed one night so Zoe begged to sleep in top bunk, fell out around 4 am, then two nights ago she fell out of bottom bunk at 4:45 am so we made it a mission to find a bed rail)

Decatur, IN

We were able to do a tour of the American Coach plant, where they made our RV.  It was really incredible to see where they start (plain pieces of wood turned into cabinets, a chassis with not much else, creating/building the side walls, slide outs, insides  – I mean what a process!  We stayed in a parking lot for two nights at the REV facility, which is where they do the repair work on several types of RVs.  We tried to get an appointment a few weeks ago and were told earliest was in September but, could come as a warranty “drop in” and maybe they could get to us.  We arrived and not too many RVs in parking lot.  By night time, the lot was full plus others parking in non lot spaces.  You have to go into waiting room at 6 am. Wait for a service rep to come and talk to you. We got lucky as we were first on list and they had a cancellation.  Warranty work drop ins trump other drop ins.  We left there after 12:30 p.m. but they fixed our issues.  (We had about 1 inch of water sitting in an under cabinet on the outside from the crazy rain and it also came in on the lower bunk – I wanted to make sure those were sealed.)  Then, little stuff.  While we were there, we realized how difficult it was going to be to book our places for July 4th (still haven’t planned ahead).  We found places for all but June 30-July 2 so hopefully someone has a cancellation (or there is a Wal-Mart parking lot???) haha!  On to Michigan!

Tour of Plant:

Can kids make it 6.5 hours in a waiting room??

They did!!!  They did amazingly well.  We had several people come up and talk us and tell us their grandkids would never be able to sit there for any where close to an hour – let alone what we did.  They did crafts, played games/watched leap pads, took lots of selfies, ate plenty of snacks but stayed on the couches and did really well!  Thank goodness for good days!  well…

Then our kids returned…

I decided we could not drive anywhere since kids got up super early and had to sit for 6.5 hours.  I also decided we should take a nice, long walk to the local grocery store so we could get the kids out some.  We made it to the store and about 2 minutes in (1 minute after the nice photo of them below, where they look happy and content), they lost their little minds.  It was the longest 10 minutes ever in a store…  So, I am not really sure kids can make it for 6.5 hours in a waiting room… even when they appear they can.  But, thankfully, we got back and they did puzzles, played on the keyboard, and we played board games.  (Last picture shows the parking lot we stayed in for 2 nights…)