Walking the Decks of History

September 18, 2011

What to do on a rainy fall day? 

Take advantage of the news from late last night… 

We saw a quick clip on the news about a WWII ship that was docked in Chester, IL.  So here it was almost 11:00 and I am googling to get more information.  What exactly was this? 

A little investigation led us to find that this WWII ship was stationed along the bank of the Mississippi River and open for tours over the weekend.  We decided to make the 1 1/2 hour trip to let the boys see a piece of history.  I mean how often does the chance to tour a battleship here in the Midwestern US occur?

Sunday we got the boys ready to go and loaded up to head out on our adventure.  They kept asking where we were going.  Drives them crazy to not know what is going on.  (I have absolutely no idea where they get that from!)  After many guesses and hints, they finally got that we were going to the Mississippi River.  This is always exciting.  The river is intriguing to all of them.  Watching barges, crossing great bridges, sometimes tossing rocks into it…  Braden especially loves it.  We cannot take a trip to IL without making sure he gets to see the bridge that we cross on that particular trip.  There are three routes that we commonly use to make our crossover to IL depending on who we are going to go visit.  He can already tell you a lot about the river and issues tied to the river.  (This past spring’s floods were a topic of much interest for him.)

As we crossed into IL, the boys could look off the bridge and then saw the ship!  They couldn’t wait!  Raindrops hit the window about that same time.  Hmm…  Quick check of the radar.  (What did we do without our instant access to cyberspace?)  The rain shouldn’t last long.  We will find a parking spot and eat some lunch before we head to the ship…

So much for a picnic along the river…  OK we did still have our picnic, just with three anxious boys cooped up in the van instead of sitting along the riverbank.  Lunch is done, rain still falling.  “It won’t last much longer.  Let’s go on.”  My trusty weather man’s prediction.  Glad I grabbed the umbrella as a last fleeting thought before we left the van.  The WHOLE time we toured the ship, it rained.  In and out and around the various decks.  Each time raindrops were falling.  Until the end once we were off the ship.  The wetness did not dampen enthusiasm though.  The boys caught as many details as they could.  All of them were excited about getting to walk through a huge ship, see military tanks, check out the monsterous engines, see where the soldiers would eat and sleep, and climb around old deuce and a half trucks on display. 

Create a photo album

Then as we stepped of the ship and looked along the river, Tanner started pointing and chattering.  “Two boats!  One going that way.  Other one go that way!”  Two barges were crossing paths right there.  Sooooo Cool!  Then his little head spun around to look up along the road as a freight train rumbled by!  A little later another longer freight train passed by going the other direction.

Here are a few more pictures from the day.  Click where it says “View Full Album” to see all of the extras and to see them a bit larger.

View Full Album

Ship, barges, trains, big military trucks!  Wow!  A boy’s dream day, rain or not.

Summer Days

Time Flies When…

…swimming in the pool

…checking for fresh eggs

…petting baby bunnies

…riding big boy bikes and trikes

…growing garden goodies

Time Flies When…

…visiting and playing with friends

…going to vacation bible school

…going to cub scout day camp

…celebrating birthdays

…hanging out with the family

Time Flies When…

…watching dragonflies

…catching lightning bugs

…listening to martins

…capturing tiny toadlets

…watching clouds in the sky

Time Flies When…

…going on a camping trip

…fishing in clear Missouri streams

…kayaking for the first times

…skipping rocks in the water

…finding a tarantula on the camper tire!

Time Flies When…

…conducting fun science experiments

…building forts in the house

…racing hot wheels

…making lego creations

…pretending to be cowboys

Time Flies When…

…devouring pumpkin blossoms

…picking garden goodies

…canning salsa

…baking zucchini bread

…trying watermelon for the first time

What has kept time flying for you this summer???????

A Camping We Did Go

We finally got to take our new pop-up camper on our first official camping trip.  We did get to use it a few weeks ago for a weekend visit to my parents too.  That was the perfect test run for the first time using the camper.  A cool night, rain, hail, breezy, a warmer night…  The weekend gave us the whole gamut (is that how you spell that word????) of weather conditions, and the camper and occupants all faired just fine.  Good to go.

We intended to camp another weekend in but weather just did not cooperate.  So we decided this was the weekend.  Packed up and ready to go, we headed to Ferne Clyffe State Park near Goreville, IL (just 10 minutes or so from I-57 and I-24).  This is one of our favorite spots to go camping or even just take a day trip to.  If you are ever passing through that area and need a break, check it out!!!!  We love it for the awesome trails, exploring opportunities, great playground areas, and nice quiet campground.  It is close to home too.  We can be there in  about an hour.

Despite some torrential heavy rains, lots of thunder, and light up the skies lightening through the middle of the night, the trip went just fine!  Riley would even argue with you whether it really rained that much let alone stormed like it did.  He and TanMan slept like rocks.  Braden, Ross, and I waited out the storm together and all finally got to doze back off when things calmed down.

 

Once we got our campsite picked out, everyone got busy helping set up camp.  Riley and Braden started looking for sticks and wood for a fire, Tanner and Ross started setting up the camper, and I started taking pictures of everyone’s progress.  (Ha Ha!) 

Had to stop for a snack too. 

   

Rileyis Dorkus making silly faces, Braden the Cicada hunter, and sweet TanMan lovin’ every bit of the camping trip.

Along with the actual camping, we hiked a couple of trails.  One the first evening that was short little hike along the bluffs near the campsite.  I didn’t even take the big camera and haven’t downloaded the pics from the other camera yet.  We came back and played at the playground with our camping neighbors and their two kiddos.  They were nice folks, and the boys kind of liked having some other kids to hang out with.  Kept them all five busy when we were cooking and tearing down camp.  =)  The next morning was our big fun hiking adventure.

The Waterfall Trail…

 

A nice short little trail…  Water was running in the waterfall after the previous night’s rainfall. Not many people were out yet.  Quiet (well as quiet as a hike with three young guys can be!)  Serene.  Peaceful.

While the boys played in the water and explored, I played with my camera.  I have been trying to get more familiar with the manual settings for our SLR camera.  so I practiced a little with the waterfall to get more of the blur effect.  I think this one turned out great! 

Then we discovered…

…a box turtle hanging out in the water at the edge of the waterfall.  I took him to safety and took some pictures while I was at it.  After I got my pictures, I tucked him up in the rocks off the beaten path a little ways.  Hoping that someone else didn’t find him and try to take him home.  They just don’t make good pets and are best left where they are found.

The boys played in the water…

 

  building dams and channeling the water…

then destroying the dams and letting the water go…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nobody was in a hurry to go.  Several other families came and went.  Looked at the waterfall for a few brief moments and then moved on.  I love how we get our guys to stop and look around.  There is so much more to see than what is obvious!  It is good to take time and explore a little deeper.  That is how we discovered the box turtle, the millipede, the frog way up under the rock…

  

 

TanMan and Braden climbed, moved rocks, threw rocks into the water, sat together helping each other, and walked up and down the creek.  When it was time to go, TanMan was the most reluctant.  He kept pointing back and saying “water”.  He did not want to leave. 

 

Nova was a patient girl while we were playing around in the water.  She enjoyed watching everyone that came and went.  Even got quite a few pets from various folks.  That social lab that gets no attention from us!  =)

On the way back to the van, we made a few more stops…  Braden and Riley led the way…

We checked out some stepping stones leading to a trail across the creek…

TanMan, Ross, and Nova patiently waited while the other two boys got soaked discovered how quickly they could make it across the stepping stones and back again.

 

Then the boys discovered a GIANT earthworm as we walked to the van.  Everyone had to take a turn to hold it and check it out.

  

Finally we got everyone back in the van and went back to camp to pack up and head for home.  The boys are so ready for a longer trip!  Hopefully soon we can take a few days to go explore somewhere else!  Now that we have air conditioning, I can handle summer camping!  There will be many more trips to come!

Just Another Trip to Town…

This winter, we took many weekend trips to town.  Picking up groceries, heading to the man mall (a.k.a. Lowes), eating at McDonalds.  You know, just ordinary stuff.  Most of the time however, these trips include some fun sights.  We have watched army helicopters land at the little airport in town, seen a HUGE semi truck in an abandoned parking lot (I think it had over 30 tires on the rig!), picked up a few geocaches, gone to the farmers market, bought a couple of rabbits, and the list goes on and on and on. 

Now that I have my sometimes smarter than me Android phone, I am able to document more of these everyday moments.  Here are a couple of collages that I put together on my new PhotoGrid Android app then emailed to myself so that I could post it here.  Really like this app so far.  Amazing what phones can do today!  Amazing what all this technology can do!  You know, I never even used email until I was out of college a couple of years!  So many changes in such a short time.  Imagine telling these guys about the days when I was a kid and the phone was attached to the wall with a cord and you could not leave the house to talk.  Since the phone is our go to communication to keep in touch with family across the miles, I think that will be more amazing to my guys than life without so many of the other modern conveniences.

Here are the men planning out their manly irrigation system for this year’s garden.  Plants will go in soon.  Very soon!  TanMan did take a little extra time to peruse the many options for painting his room now that his crib is gone.  Yep, no more baby bed for this big guy!  Time to put together a bigger boy room now.  Out with the yellow stripes (it isn’t as bad as it sounds!) and in with the new…  He hasn’t picked the new color yet.  =)

On our way to Wal-mart, we had to detour to the next door parking lot to take a look at these mighty machines.  Guess their drivers were eating lunch.  The boys were all in awe, and walked around and around the trucks to take in every detail. 

Sometimes it is easy to get caught up in the daily grind of life.  To focus on the mundane tasks.  To think that life is boring.  Simple trips to town like this are a good reminder that there is excitement and opportunity everywhere you look.  Sometimes you just have to remember to branch outside the box to find those moments.  It helps to be looking at the world with the youthful eyes of our little guys too!  Search to find ways to overlook the mundane of your world too.  Let us know what you discover on your next adventure to get groceries!

Lego Mania

Yes, we have hit that stage…  The age of legos!  The boys have scored big in lego sets between Christmas and Birthdays.  Many afternoons are spent building, and building, and building.  And once in a while creations are taken apart, pieces to be used for a new creation.  Last weekend we opened a couple of more new sets and built a fire rescue brigade.  Braden and I built a fire boat, and Riley built the fire rescue truck.  Braden’s approach is to grab a little life boat and a mini figure and play at the table as I do the rest.  Every few minutes he checks my progress and goes back to his guys. 

 

Legos are right up Riley’s alley.  He loves the detail of putting something together and does great at following along with the instructions.  He is determined and focused.  He likes seeing the finished product.  He then likes to take things apart and rebuild it.  All is good unless someone (a.k.a. Dad) has made modifications to the original.  That throws him off.  We are working to encourage him to create his own ideas and be flexible with substituting pieces if he can’t find the exact one the instructions show.  He will get it… 

 

Of course, once the build is finished it is time to play!  We had quite the entourage of lego rescue vehicles in the living room.  I felt quite safe!  (TeeHee)  TanMan even gets in on the action once he wakes up from his naps.  (Most lego building is done while TanMan sleeps.  He has a tendency to latch on to a handful of legos and stake claim to them, not wanting to give them up for ANY reason whatsoever!)  He grabbed a little life boat and fought with Braden over a couple of guys, then was content to play along with the big boys.

Braden just grabbed his helicopter and headed off on his own.  Easier than having that pesky little bother brother following him around.

 

See…  Quite the crew!  Perserverance and determination resulted in one mega fire boat, one ladder truck, three helicopters, and a rescue truck.  Not bad for a couple of hours of building.

A Giant Adventure…

Wow!  We have had a busy few weeks.  I was going to show what we did this weekend, but I still have to figure out how to get my pictures off of my new phone.  Not sure if I have the right cable to connect to the computer, so I might have to email myself the pics that I was going to share with you from our trip to town.  Technology…

So instead we are going to take a blast back to the very, very recent past…  Sunday, March 6, 2011…

The weather had been cold, damp, and dreary.  The weather forecast was promising for this day though.  Sunny and mid to upper 40’s says the weather man.  Braden has been wanting to go on a picnic and take a picnic basket.  Why not?  We haven’t been to Southern IL for a while.  Let’s get up and go in the morning.  4:30 pm, decision made. 

6:30 am, Morning comes, we look out the window.  Where is the sun?  Where is the inkling of warmth?  It is coming, it is coming.  Pack a picnic lunch, grab some coats, camera ready, head out the door.  Load up kiddos, load up dog, load up us.  Roll on down the drive.  The boys have no clue where we are going, just that we must be going to have a picnic.  Fun! 

Driving along, we look out the window.  Where is the sun?  Where is the inkling of warmth?  It is coming, it is coming.  We arrive at our destination.  Lunch now, or hike first?  It is still cold, lets hike first.  Everyone will be ready to eat by the time we get done.  Everyone is rearing to go at this point.  It is still cold, bundle up boys!  Coats, gloves, hats… A hiking we will go!

TanMan and I headed up the rear of the pack.  The bigger guys and Nova darted on ahead.  There were rocks to climb, clues to find, adventure awaiting.

 

There is always time to take a moment and share a cool find with your brothers, or take the more adventurous route to see what lies ahead of us.

And when you reach the top, take another moment to hang out with your buddies.

As we trudge on, I look around.  Still cloudy, still cold.  Where is the sun?  Where is the inkling of warmth?  It is coming, it is coming.  I certainly hope…

Whoa!  Look at this!  Can we move it.  Riley recruits his strapping little brothers to help him out, and they didn’t budge it one little bit!  But, they sure gave it a go.  I think it might take a bit more to get that log further off the trail.  Maybe that is why it is still there.  ;)

   

Someone was getting tired, and cold, and had worn out little legs.  Daddy saved the day and carried him the rest of the way.  A catch twenty two though…  This led to getting colder than everyone else.  Those muscles weren’t getting used, made for a cold little man by the end of our little one mile hike.  We trudged on.

Giant City State Park near Carbondale, IL is such an awesome area!  We love to come hiking and camping here.  So lucky to have this spot so close to home.  We can be here within an hour.  So many areas to explore close to home…  We have vowed to do these kinds of trips more this year.  It is awesome to watch the expressions from the boys while they explore.  Even when it is cold. 

I looked away from my camera…  Where is the sun?  Where is the inkling of warmth?  It is coming, it is coming.

   

 

 

After stopping at the “alligator rock” near the end of the trail, we continued on down the last stretch of trail and finished up our hike. 

Everyone was cold.  And hungry.  And cold.  And thirsty.  And cold.  (oh, did I already mention that?!?!?!)  Time for our picnic on this sunny, bit warmer day.  Darn it, the weather man lied!  You shouldn’t lie ya know?  Anyway…  We now had tears, maybe wails, from TanMan (he was cold, and he does not like to be cold, and he lets his unhappiness be known very loudly!) We had other cold, hungry boys.  But a picnic we shall still have!  TanMan and I gathered our rations from the picnic basket and hopped in the van with the heat cranked as we sent the others on their way.  They headed to the pavilion to have a picnic, at the picnic tables, with the picnic basket.  Hardcore folks. Hardcore.  Little bit of cold is not stopping this crew!  They shivered and scarfed their food down and then came back to pile into the nice, cozy, warm van to finish their picnic.  We stopped in the little visitor center at the park, grabbed a geocache, and finished thawing out a bit before we headed home.

But that is not all, folks.  Oh, no…

I was still looking around…  Where is the sun?  Where is the inkling of warmth?  It is coming, it is coming.

It was at home!!!!!!  Who knew!!!  That sun and little bit of warmth was waiting for us in our own backyard!  So we took advantage and got a teeny bit of yard work done.

Goodbye little dogwood tree.  I will miss you so.  You just could not endure the drought from last summer.  Goodbye little pine tree.  You also did not fare well…

Of course this job meant getting the old Case out, and getting the old Case out means rides for boys, and that makes everyone forget being cold.  We will have another picnic and hike on another warmer day soon.  Ross always says that good things come to those who wait, so we will just have to wait a little longer.

You know what I love about my guys?  That no matter what the conditions might be, they trudge on and are such troopers.  Despite my repeated reminder of how cold it was, everyone had a blast!!!!!!!!!  These guys are the greatest in the world!  I am glad that the four of them are mine!

Looking forward to spring days and  more adventures for 2011!