The not so big road trip.

We had originally planned on St. Louis as a spring break getaway.  There are lots of fun things for kids to do there. Ben and I lived right across the river from St. Louis in Illinois our first year of marriage and our baby boy is buried there so we feel a connection to the area. However, the more we thought about it the more it sunk in what the reality of a 5 hour drive each way would mean.  Our girls don't really do great on long trips.  We knew that 10 minutes into the drive they'd be asking if we were there yet.  What clinched it for me was when one of Katie's teachers at school told me that Katie was soooo excited to go on vacation to a hotel.  The teacher asked where the hotel was and Katie had no idea. She was just excited to stay in a hotel and go swimming in the pool.  I figured we could find a hotel with a pool a lot closer than 5 hours away.



So we changed our plans and decided on Dubuque, Iowa.  Two hours instead of five.  One night instead of three. 

 I was feeling a lot better about this plan.




  So was Ben.





We got a GPS when we still were thinking St. Louis but it turned out to be very helpful even on our condensed version of a road trip.  The girls loved it and said "thank you!" every time it gave us directions.  I've used a couple of times locally since then too.



The girls were super excited to stop at McDonalds for lunch...another affirmation that we made the right decision to change plans.  You don't have to drive 5 hours to find a McDonalds.
(Yes, Cinda, that bag is still my favorite--thank you, thank you!)



In Dubuque, we visited the Mississippi River Museum and Aquarium.

They had a fun hands on water exhibit.

Katie and I are pedaling bikes that cause a large bucket of water to fill up and overturn.

Enjoying a little reading with Mark Twain.