5 states and a wildlife park

Nauvoo

Missouri

We got up in the morning and drove though the ozarks to St. Louis and the gateway arch. It is very big and very shiny. Unfortunately we did not buy tickets in advance   Also there was construction going on. Bit kids still got out and ran around. 

After we went to the arches we headed for Hannibal Missouri 

This is where Tom Sawyer was from. We went to the caves here. They were pretty awesome. I think the kids were not quite prepared for the 52degree inside. But they all had fun anyway. 

We made it to Nauvoo and are staying in a hotel right next to the temple. We're pretty lucky to get to stay so close. 

Road trip

I love road trips. And I love my kids. Mixing the two

Should be wonderful too right?  I love beef jerky. And I love chocolate milk. One time I mixed the two and threw up all over the Smith Fieldhouse lawn at BYU. But surely this is gonna be better. 

We packed up the car and had no more than 5 hours per day planned in the car. We had fresh fruit in coolers. We had sandwiches. We had 64 hours of DVD entertainment. 

Our first discovery on this trip was that Chic-O-Stix are gluten free vegan and from Lufkin. I doubt anyone from Lufkin knows what vegan or gluten are. But. We got a stick of deliciousness and stopped in Texarkana. 

The. Ext day we got up and went to Hot Springs Arkansas. We went to an alligator farm and petting zoo and the kids fed hotdogs to alligators. They were pretty pumped. We then ate pancakes at the best pancake house I have ever been too.  

The Pancake Shop! Oh man is it worth the trip. I'm tempted to go back just for the pancakes. They also have a lot of gems and mining. We want to go back and do the crystal mine and then the diamond mine. 

We stayed in Poplar Bluff Missouri 

I need to tell you something. I've driven through parts of Missouri and it is pretty. But never stayed

Missourians are the nicest people. We went to Dairy Queen and I got blizzards for the kids. A man came up and said "Are these your Bosses?"  I said they were. He then asked to share something with them and then gave them all a dollar. They all said thank you and then he gave them two more and said he love to see kids and families happy. 

The next morning Bridget got up and went to the grocery. Everyone so kind and helped her find what she needed. Then they let her cut in line.