The Explore All 50 States Project
Let's Go!
I wish the kids and I had actually gotten a chance to check out International Bowling Museum and Hall of Fame, instead we were killing time in the St. Louis Cardinals team shop across the street....Ugh—I can’t stress enough the importance of checking hours of operation before you set out each day-this is a great example of missing something truly great because I wasn't on top of my info. By the time we … [Read more...]
The Magic House Children’s Museum is an interesting place for younger kids, and great if you need to fill some time in between some historical stuff with some fun as well as thought provoking activities. Most of the hands on displays are very science oriented and my kids had a blast running around and checking everything out. Some of the more memorable things to do included playing with magnets-check out what … [Read more...]
Located under the Gateway Arch is the Museum of Westward Expansion which houses some of the rarest artifacts from the days of Louis and Clark. This is a fitting place for this museum as the arch is on the banks of the Mississippi River, the gateway to the west over which many explorers and pioneers headed out to settle the Louisiana Purchase and seek their fortune. In all honesty, the kids started to moan when I … [Read more...]
If you are a St. Louis Cardinals fan or you just like like baseball, you can do what we did and check out Busch Stadium. We're not huge baseball fans but we thought it would be really fun to walk around and check out this historic stadium. Sadly just as we arrived it had closed, there was no game, so we headed to the team shop and perused the goods. We didn't buy anything but it was fun to look around. To … [Read more...]
Every guidebook we read said that Ted Drewes Frozen Custard was a St. Louis original not to be missed so we were really excited and intrigued to try this unique dessert treat. When we arrived there was a line which we found out is a constant thing here. When we finally approached the window we were given the choice of a frozen custard or a concrete. The custard is a lot like ice cream only creamier and richer. I … [Read more...]
Think of the state of Illinois and you instantly think of the big city of Chicago, the famous Windy City. Sitting at the shore of Lake Michigan, Chicago teems with life, culture, history and art all of which we had the opportunity to experience as we explored the city. From gleaming skyscrapers to historic immigrant areas like Greek Town and Little Italy Chicago is a diverse city that comes together by a shared … [Read more...]
The Chicago Architecture Boat Tour is wonderful way to relax and learn about some of Chicago's most iconic buildings and must for anyone visiting the city. We took an hour-long cruise on the waterways learning about the history of the settlement of the city by the Potawatomi Indians who named the area Chicago which means "stinky onion"-how about that for an interesting little factoid. We cruised by many … [Read more...]
Wow, everything you ever wanted to know about the Windy City is under one roof at the Chicago History Museum. We found this museum to be a fantastic place to learn about the history of the city, it's diversity, and it's role in the American economy. We started off in the kids area which has some really fun interactive exhibits. The kids loved "becoming" a chicago hot dog and riding an old fashioned bicycle. … [Read more...]
Did you know that the Chicago Post Office is the busiest in the nation? The Chicago Post office offers tours and after making arrangements a few days in advance we headed over right after our visit at Millennium Park. We met our tour guide, a wonderful gentleman who informed us he'd been working there for 43 years. He proceeded to tell us what happens to a piece of mail after we put in in the mailbox showing us … [Read more...]
Millennium Park is a great place to start (and start early, there’s a lot to do in the Windy City) your adventure in Chicago just like we did because you can do it before 10am before most other things open. We got really lucky as we were able to walk from our hotel which wasn't that far. Millennium Park is an incredible public space filled with artwork and areas for concerts. We walked through the Lurie Garden … [Read more...]
