DC to CA: Day 4--Sioux Falls, SD

Today's travels took us from Wisconsin, all the way across Minnesota, and into South Dakota. They featured lots of games of I Spy, more riddles from Amalia, and the Jolly Green Giant (oddly wearing a gigantic Harley Davidson t-shirt)!

 We did not, however, stop at the SPAM Museum, which we also passed. 

 After getting to the hotel (and, yes, sneaking in Jake), we headed out to see the city's namesake. 

On our way, we drove through several quaint historic districts and the downtown area of Sioux Falls. It was so lovely we joked that we might just stop driving and settle down here. 

 See how much Amalia loves it?

 The Pierce Family completely blocking the Falls. 

 More sisterly cuteness, which is amazing considering all of their hours in the backseat these days. 

 Andy and Lily's selfie. 

 The girls squeezed through the bars to lock themselves into the "dungeon." 

 This is what happens when you turn your back on Amalia for two seconds. 

 "I want to climb one more rock! Just one more. Please?"

Heated hotel pools. Best. Invention. Ever. 

Tomorrow, Mt. Rushmore.

DC to CA: Day 3--Wisconsin Dells

Day 3 featured our much-anticipated (by Andy and me) surprise trip to Mt. Olympus Water and Theme Park in Wisconsin Dells. When we were planning our itinerary, we knew we had to go here since Lily has been crazy into Greek mythology for the past several months.

Or course, as soon as we walked in and she saw the Endless River ride, she said, "They should have called it the River Styx. It's almost as if they don't know Greek mythology at all."

 We stayed at Zeus' Village nearby in an unauthentic, but very cool treehouse cabin. 

While we were waiting for some storms to pass, we headed over to Buffalo Phil's. (I believe that's him on the buffalo.)

 Oh, yes, there were other creepy old men statues that the girls cozied up to. 

 Can you touch your nose with your tongue? 

 The big draw of this place is that a train delivers your food right to the table. 

 After dinner, we headed back over to Mt. Olympus for the dry activities (i.e., the rides). 

 Amalia made many friends. 

The highlight was definitely the go-karts, which both girls got to drive all by themselves--no tracks or anything!

 Amalia Andretti

Lily was in the bigger ones. She handled them like a pro.

All in all, the park was a great success. Lily admitted she had a lot of fun even though she was disappointed in the lack of adherence to the Greek mythology particulars. (This after she felt one of the fake Greek columns, noting that it was either plastic or styrofoam, and said, "This place isn't Greek at all. They should have just called it Fun World.")

DC to CA: Day 2--Chicago

I fulfilled my promise our second day out! Amalia got to see some horses at a service plaza on the Ohio turnpike.

Plus, we got to meet up with my good friend Jen Henry who drove up from Tiffin, OH to meet us for breakfast. It was great catching up, even if the ambience in the service plaza left a bit to be desired.

From Ohio straight on to Chicago. After we unloaded our bags and snuck Jake into our hotel room (a recurring theme on this trip), we headed out to Navy Pier.

 The view of Lake Michigan from the ferris wheel. 

The Chicago skyline. 

Speaking of sneaking, we also snuck Amalia onto the swings even though she was about an inch or two shy of the height requirement.

After cooling off with some Italian ice and ice cream, we played in the water a bit and headed back to the hotel. 

Then we set out for dinner with our friends the Castros, who live in Chicago. 

Lily and Sofia were best buds in the "Threes" room at their old DC daycare. 

 They picked up right where they left off without missing a beat. 

My other favorite part of Day 2 were some of the in-car time-passing activities. Lily had a set of cards with riddles on them, which she was reading aloud for us to guess. Not one to be left out, Amalia (who can't read yet), looked at the pictures on her cards and just made up her own jokes. For example, "What did the dinosaur say when he said moo? 

Answer: Hey, I'm a cow! (Followed, naturally, by hysterical laughter.)

DC to CA: Day 1--Cleveland

We arrived in Cleveland late Wednesday afternoon. Once we snuck Jake bird into our hotel room and unloaded our bags, we set out on a walk to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Lucky for us, the HoF is open until 9pm on Wednesdays. And we took advantage of every minute of it. 

The first attraction inside for the girls was the unintended Marilyn Monroe vents by the windows. 

 For Lily, rock and roll is all about the fashion. 

 The King

 Checking out the Rolling Stones exhibit. 

Grooving to the Stones. 

 

 So much good music. We could have stayed there for hours. Lily particularly liked "Wild Horses."

Pink Floyd's The Wall

That's Lake Erie behind the girls. 

 Yes, I know. Andy caught me on my phone. 

 The Cleveland skyline