We left Monday morning and drove directly to our state house...the thing Andrew was most looking foward to. We were able to take a tour, and I'm sure the other family that was with us was not pleased to learn they were with social studies geeks! Honestly though, it was a lot of fun and we all learned a lot. We are blessed with an amazing building in which to run our state. Dinner that evening was at Outback with dessert following at Graeter's (some of the best ice cream in the state) and then a dip in the pool before bed.
Tuesday morning we ventured further east to Roscoe Village, a restored canal town. It was at least my fourth visit there, dating back to my childhood when we made the trip with my family. Of course things change over time, and again, lots of things we already knew being social studies geeks, but there was still a lot to be learned and a lot of fun was had.
Unfortunately, it was on the way back to the hotel after we regained a cell signal that I received word about my grandmother. I really wanted to just sit down and have a good cry, but that didn't seem prudent in front of the kids. It all just feels so overwhelming right now...not to mention that Mom still needs someone with her most of the time, and I just don't know how I can make everything happen without something getting short changed. It was a tough pill to swallow.
But, life with kids helps to keep us resilient. We stopped at a Max & Erma's on the way for dinner, and ice cream sundaes for dessert and lots of laughter during dinner put smiles back on our faces. We tried for a quick dip in the pool again, but thunder was a sign to get out after only five minutes, and it rained most of the rest of the night.
We decided yesterday morning that we would pack up and head home since a) there wasn't really anything we wanted to do today and b) Mom was still needing someone to stay with her and I needed to do my share. Our last stop yesterday was the Zoo...and it is one of the best in the country! On the downside, we received a call from the mechanics working on my husband's car, and it seems as though a replacement vehicle might be in our more-nearer-than-we-had-planned-and-hoped future. I'll be honest, my anxiety levels are pretty darn high right now.
The zoo though, was so much fun. The kids loved seeing all of the animals, and while it was HOT, HOT, and HOTTER, there is a tremendous amount of shade and we were really impressed with that. We took a ride that was supposed to be finding "lost" dinosaurs, and they had giant mechanical replications of such things. Thomas, however, was none too pleased about this. At age ten, we thought he would be past his fears of something that he knows isn't real, but not so much it turns out. It was very sweet and little annoying, all at the same time. My favorite animal was seeing the gorillas. By the time we got to the polar bears, we had been out in the heat about four hours and Thomas especially, was beginning to wilt. We were home by dinner and I'm grateful I was able to get a good night sleep in my own bed before I head up to care for Mom tonight.
While the financial aspect of things is causing my great anxiety thanks to the vehicle situation (and I know it will all work out), I am very grateful we were able to make some memories these last couple of days!
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