Day 38

We had a little extra time this morning so once I saw my early riser up we started on some pancakes. The griddle can be a bit tempermental in letting pancakes go at times, but this girl has just about figured it out.

Our first stop today was the Ford's Theater. The kids have just about always been interested in Abraham Lincoln. It does seem most years we have been able to stop at some kind of historic area related to his life.

We grabbed junior ranger books first thing so the kids could get started. The first part of the museum was dedicated to his political life and the struggles Lincoln had bringing the nation together. The kids' favorite part of this section was a quilt made by ladies of what is a modern day Red Cross supporting the efforts of peace. It was signed by all kinds of fascinating people including Ben Franklin, Henry Longfellow, and of course Abraham Lincoln.

The part they were most interested in was the assassination of Lincoln. They had tons of artifacts on exhibit related to the event including the gun John Wilkes Booth used as well as the boot that had to be cut off his broken leg. We learned so much about the events leading up to the assassination and the people involved.

    

Once the kids finished their activities they were once again sworn in as junior rangers. This ceremony was a bit special as it was situated right in front of the original ticket booth to the theater. Unfortunately the theater was closed as they were in rehearsals for a show but since they'd finished their activities the park ranger allowed them to peek inside from the sound booth.

Next door was the Petersen house where Lincoln was taken and later died. The living room was still arranged as it was when his wife Mary sat and waited for him to awake.

Next we learned all about the search for Booth and his accomplices. Apparently Booth thought when he was able to return to Virginia he would be praised as a hero for his acts, but he soon discovered he was that was not quite the case. The kids were all spooked once they peeked into a replica of the barn where he was eventually shot.

The remained of the floors of the house were come of my favorite with lessons and exhibits on the character and ideals a person should live up to. There were five sections, each of which we were asked to write what the word meant to us or what we would do in a situation: equality, courage, creativity and innovation, integrity, and empathy and tolerance. I was surprised by some answers and thrilled with some answers the kids gave. And I'm thinking we need to delve a little further into Lincoln's teachings.

During our evening tour days before our tour guide mentioned Abraham Lincoln was one of the most written about people in history. There were more books about him than any other person except Jesus. I'd believe it too once we saw this stack that reached the fourth floor!

Our next stop was a place all the kids were excited about once I'd mentioned it to them. In any children's museum with a television news area, my kids go wild to see themselves on television and pretend to be news anchors. The Newseum was offering kids free summer so we made sure to hit this museum too. We had the misfortune to visit Washington D.C. when the Washington Monument's only elevator was broken and the other high observation area, the Old Postal Museum, has been purchased by Donald Trump for luxury apartments. We found out the next best place was the terrace here!

Once we got oriented inside and planned our attack on the six floors we got started. After seeing a chunk of the Berlin Wall earlier in the week and learning a little bit about it from Dave and me, the kids were in awe of pieces they could stand in front of.

  

So our family has lived without cable for a few years now and I don't believe the kids have ever seen the news except at relatives homes possibly. I don't watch the news and simply skim the newspaper. This place was overwhelming with the artifacts and exhibits on the role the media has played in all kind of historical events.  There was a very interesting area that had real time statistics on social media. There were screens especially related to Clinton and Trump that were all over the place each few seconds.

We learned about the media in World War II, Vietnam, the Civil Rights movement, the Women's Rights movement, and September 11th and that was about all I could handle in one day. I was overwhelmed and shocked and sad. It didn't help we ended with first hand journalism accounts of September 11th. This is the lower portion of the broadcast tower that was on top of Tower One.

We decided to grab some dinner to wait out rush hour on the train and return for the interactive exhibits the next day. We ended up eating a delicious pizza a few blocks away and talking about all the events they'd seen. The kids were obviously not as affected as I was but we'd all seen images we definitely weren't prepared for and the time we had for conversation was perfect. We would be learning much of what we'd seen this year for history so they were glad they had a little bit of a preview.

We made it back to the campsite full and happy so we played games until dark and read until all our eyelids would need to be held open. Tomorrow would be an early day and what Ryan was probably most excited about!

Day 8

So although we'd hoped for a quiet night it was anything but quiet.  I was up beginning about 3am checking on the condition of the tent as the rain was steady, heavy and loud.  With the kids staking down the tent for me, there is definite room for improvement in keeping the water out. Luckily, we still had towels in the tent from the drenching the night before so I was able to strategically place them in our puddle areas.  We were definitely dry otherwise so all was good.  I debated beginning to pack up but decided instead to nap until the rain seemed to calm.

My sister-in-law recommended a weather app with to-the-minute predictions for rain and so far it seemed to be accurate within about 20 minutes. Once I was able to check the radar it looked as though it could have been exponentially worse with the heavy thunderstorms going directly north and south of us all night.  So maybe we need to start a new bedtime ritual of crossing everything! ?

Packing up a campsite takes time even once you get a pattern down.  There are things we do the same every time and there are usually things I tweak every time to make it all better.  I can tell you from experience though that packing up while it's pouring rain is NOT FUN.  And it's also quite messy.  I was fine with messy as we did have showers so I was resolved to find a window with the least amount of rain and go for it.  It looked as though 5-6am would work for us so I got started.  One by one, the kids woke up and got started on their parts of packing up as well.  Last, of course, was Brayden yawning and stretching the whole way.  While we weren't racing to get everything in the car we were a little hurried, anticipating another wave of rain soon.  We were packed and leaving the campground by 6:20!  Might be a new record, but boy was I going to have sleepy children later!

Leaving so early actually put is perfectly on time for an early tour of the Lincoln home in Springfield.  Those of you along with us for our first trip 3 years ago remember this stop, but the kids couldn't seem to. It was only 30 minutes out of the way so it was a perfect place to spend the morning.  Once we got there Brayden vaguely remembered it because of the gabby gift shop guy!  After buying a bunch of postcards, we headed to the home to enjoy learning a little more about Abe.  While I'm sure the rangers have a script, each one always has a little bit more trivia to add so the tours are always a little bit different. The look on the kids' faces was priceless when the guide told us to make sure to hold the hand rail on the way up the stairs as it is the original handrail to the house and the one Abraham Lincoln also held on his way up. American History is going to be so fun to study this year!

There were several guides in period costumes ready to teach everyone games kids played at the time Lincoln's kids were younger.

This game actually taught kids how to gently milk a cow but the girls remembered it from a science kit at the Mess Hall!

My Bloomberg family reunion was scheduled for later this evening so we decided to get on the road to get settled into our next site so they would still have some time to play before we needed to go. The further north we get the parks seem to get more and more lush.  Brayden also has determined they are more and more full of daddy long legs - his camping nemesis.  So when we opened the tent and four of them scampered out of the middle after being cramped up for 8 hours he completely withdrew from tent set up today.  He so creeped out that he's even got Ryan - the animal whisperer - nervous now.

After setting up and sharing some sandwiches we relaxed until reunion time.  Armed with pecans from our stop at Priesters in Alabama, we headed to the town where my dad grew up.  The drive was so very similar to all of Illinois for us so far with massive corn fields on both sides of the road.  This drive added hundreds of graceful wind turbines to the mix and the kids were amazed.  I had to stop to get a picture of this area just to be able to remember the beautiful landscape of our drive.

As I looked down at the GPS I was certain that I was lost as it showed we only had 2 minutes left and we were still in the middle of the farms!  With 2 turns however, we were in the middle of a tiny village at their community center with 35 people who knew me but I had no idea who they were.  My uncle and his family from Los Angeles was there so as we walked in, he escorted us back out for a grand tour of the houses of the family.  I could picture my dad running around causing all kinds of trouble at each of them.

Everyone was so welcoming and patient with my exceptionally shy kids so we ended up having a great time.  The oldest Bloomberg there was 89 and the youngest was 2.  The food was delicious and the company was wonderful.  It's funny how we don't get much interaction with anyone other than our little traveling family of four for so long how nice it is to talk and listen to my kids talk to others!  It was especially interesting to hear about a cousin's trip to Sweden to research our family's history to learn that our family is actually in a line of Swedish royalty.  Laney perked up when she heard when she gets married that she is welcome to request and wear the royal crown.  Wow!

When all three of my kids get clingy they are definitely exhausted so we bid everyone farewell and headed back to our beds.  Everyone wished us well on the rest of our trip and thanked us for coming all that way.  It was a great experience for me especially but I think the kids as well.  There were very excited to open presents from my uncle and his wife on the way home!  We are a family that has a ton of games but they just happened to find the perfect ones we didn't already have!  The girls were giggling as they were trying to draw on their "World's Tiniest Etch-A-Sketchs" too!

I promised I'd read a few chapters and the kids calmed down within seconds to listen so I knew they were going to be out quick.  The book is getting good, but not enough to request "just one more chapter?" from these tired kids!

Day 7

We ended up sleeping pretty well until about 7 this morning after our late night.  As each of the kids got up I escorted them to the playround behind our site and since they now had actual bats, they revived the game of camp ball from last year with the Cadenas girls.  After breakfast, Laney and I teamed up against Brayden and Ryan for a very exciting game.  In the bottom of the 3rd inning, we we down 3 with the bases loaded and full count on the batter.  Sneaky Ryan was pitching to me and she through a nasty curve ball the strike me out for the win.  If the weather was dry we were definitely going to have to have a rematch!

There was quite a bit of rain forecast for later in the day so after getting ready, we hopped in the car for a little exploring.  Our first stop was to the Historic Lincoln Cabin just down the road from our campsite.  This was a cabin and land bought by Abraham Lincoln for his father where he lived until he died.  The visitor's center wasn't open, but we explored around the grounds and walked through the farm.  The summer camp here looked like it would be a blast for Laney as they would learn to live as the frontier people did so many years ago.  I suspect there were no campers as so many kids in the area actually live on a farm that it really isn't that different from their life.

We were first met by this friendly guy in the parking lot and he proceeded to escort us through his area to the farm.  Our animal-loving Ryan was instantly smitten with these guys - especially the babies.  After a short walk, the wind shifted and got pretty strong so we headed back to the visitors center area so as not to get too soaked should it start raining again. All the kids wanted to ride in this wagon so bad!






Next we headed to the local library for some book, wi-fi and kid email time.  They are enjoying getting emails about as much as getting real mail at home!  I kept looking at the window for rain as forecast, but it never seemed to happen so the kids voted to go get some pizza and head to a huge park in the center of town.  I know the days when this will be an exciting stop are numbered for Brayden, so we take it now as often as we can.

All their shoes went flying and they screamed like they'd found a long lost friend when they saw the rolling log thing.  Guess we might need to keep an eye out for a lumberjack show?

With still no rain, we headed back to our site for the anticipated camp ball rematch.  Laney and I were teamed up again and took an early 4-1 lead in the first inning.  In the second inning we scored 3 more to match their 3 and could already taste the win.





But in the third inning, Brayden knocked out 2 homeruns to bring to tip the score to 8-7. Brayden wanted Ryan to pitch but she was getting tired so he nervously took the mound.  As if it were a replay we had 2 runners on with full count on the batter.  Brayden through the heat and I grounded out for the loss.  This isn't over.

After showers and dinner we took to the picnic table to work on the kids' trip journals. This is one of the most anticipated parts of the trip as the kids get to see pictures of just a few days ago and they laugh, draw, and write about it all.  It's fun to relive the exciting things with them now as well as months after we get home when the journals are pulled back off their bookshelves.

As we were finishing up, the rain started so we headed into the tent to escape and go to sleep.  Not before a few chapters of our new book though!  We are now reading "Neil Armstrong Is My Uncle & Other Lies Muscle Man McGinty Told Me".  We all said goodnight and crossed our fingers, toes, and eyes for a quiet night of rain.

Day 6

I think we've all gotten used to the night sounds of camping by now.  There are the cars occasionally whizzing by, the gentle wind in the high trees which sounds like rain without the beating on the tent roof, the footsteps of other campers through the gravel, and the birds rustling in the leaves around us. Each night it seems we all sleep a little more soundly than the night before.  Until I hear a gunshot next to me.  Or what I thought was one.  It was around 2am when I had just flipped to give one hip and shoulder a break and had just settled down when I heard a sharp bang right next to my head.  Within a second I felt a flat piece of rubber land on my hand.  Any guesses? Brayden's punching balloon had just randomly popped and now my heart was beating 400 beats per minute.  Never a dull moment even when we're sleeping!

As I repack the car today, I keep wondering just how we are going to fit Dave in there in a few weeks.  Without me sitting criss crossed in the passenger seat holding his luggage in my lap I'm not sure it's going to be possible. I guess I'll need to start making the adjustments now!

We were off pretty early this morning once the kids finally woke up and we headed straight to Trader Joe's for our last visit until after we leave Canada in a couple weeks.  We can devour a tub of yogurt in one sitting so we definitely need to stock up on more.  And if you ever go to Trader Joe's, absolutely DO NOT buy the cookie butter.  There was a very nice man, let's call him the cookie butter pusher, that spotted us from the other end of the store to offer us a sample of cookie butter.  The kids love any kind of free sample of course, so we agreed and the rest is history.  My kids are addicted and I'm going to have to ration what I did buy.  Or just convince them I lost it and eat it by the spoonful after they are asleep.

Next stop was the Louisville Slugger Museum.  I'd kept this stop a secret as I knew Brayden would love the surprise and he definitely did!  That and when he gets really excited about something he can't stop talking so I wasn't ready for that quite yet.  And fortunately for Laney who had begged to go to Lincoln's birthplace, we noticed it was on our way so we made a quick stop to check it out.  Laney has a new fascination with Lincoln, so just had to!  They were all excited to find out there was another junior ranger opportunity there so we ended up hanging around for a couple hours.  There was an interesting movie, nice exhibits, a kids program about a frontier child's life, and a memorial with the actual log cabin housed inside.

They we actually stopped a the Lousiville Slugger Museum & Factory.  There was a museum room where Brayden immediately starting bouncing and drooling over all the Derek Jeter memorabilia but first we headed to the factory tour.  They didn't allow photos so you'll just have to visit yourself to see!  Although the tour only lasted about 20 minutes, we all learned a lot about the company history as well as the bat-making process.

Next up, the kids were able to stand where a batter would for a 90mph pitch.  Brayden decided right then there was no way he was going to play professional baseball.  We watched several interesting movies and walked around the museum.  This is Brayden actually petting a Derek Jeter bat.

And this is him holding one.  I thought he was going to pass out.   That or run down the street with it.

Then Brayden went to the cheapest batting cages I've seen in a long time and hit 10 balls for $1!

Next up was the Topps trading cards museum.  Brayden was hopping around here like it was a candy store!  It was neat to see all the old Star Wars, Garbage Pail Kids, Lost In Space, and all the sports cards as well.  There was even a section of error cards that were neat too.  The kids enjoyed making there own...they need to grow a little bit I think!

After a quick purchase at the store, we hopped in the car to head to our next site.  There was a science museum across the street from the bat museum but with our unexpected stop we just couldn't fit it in as we still had a 3 hour drive ahead of us.  I need to get a time zone map as I guess I never notice the small signs on the highway when we pass.  So not only were we running late, we had lost an hour!  I called the state park to make sure they didn't lock the gate at before sunset, but could never get an answer. So I grabbed the kids milkshakes for dinner and popped in Despicable Me 2 (thank you Jeffersons!!) and headed on our way.

With about 30 minutes to the campground we left the highway were making our way through county roads.  We were definitely in the middle of Illinois farm country now and these roads eerily reminded me of the back country, pot hole-ridden roads of Kansas.  They just kept getting more and more narrow with each turn I made.  With about 5 turns left, I ended up on a gravel road that had the kids bouncing in their chairs!  On the third turn, it looked like I was heading down someone's driveway with dirt tire tracks but otherwise grass all around.

Queue the lighting.  Great.  It was 8:30pm and we still had to set up and our friend lightning shows up. The last turn gets me back onto a paved road and we race to the campsite (at the posted 25mph) and I enlist the help of all my troops to get everything out of the car and everything in the tent we'd need for the night.  We had everything set up and in the tent with time to spare so we ran to the bathrooms.  Then it hit.  It poured those giant raindrops and I could tell more storm was on the way so we raced back to the tent and I grabbed towels and changes of clothes as we were all completely soaked.

There was no way anyone was going to sleep with all that excitement and it was entirely too loud to read so we just laid there and talked about rain and lightning and all kinds of things in between.  Ryan was out within 30 seconds but the other 2 were up with me for about another hour fighting and laughing and trying to wake Ryan up.  What a bunch of turds.

We all ended up asleep by 11 in hopes at least the lightning and thunder would stop.

Quote of the day: "I could live there." says Laney when peeking into Lincoln's tiny log cabin. That's our Little House on the Prairie, sewing-obsessed, dress-loving girl.  I believe her for sure!