Today we went to Laura Ingalls Wilder’s old homestead. It was very fun and interactive. We got to see the places she lived, a church, a schoolhouse, and a barn with horses, ponies, cows, and chickens! I got to ride a horse.  Joe and I got to steer a horse drawn wagon! We also got to make our own dolls and rope! There was an awesome schoolhouse where we got to learn from a teacher. We also got to learn about some things they made like grain, rope, hay twist and dolls. Today was very fun and now we are on our way back to Ohio!

Last night, we went to Mt. Rushmore National Park. We got there and ate a meal and headed down to the outdoor auditorium to watch the ceremonial lights. It first started with a nice speech from an ranger about us being the presidents’ legacies. Then we watched a video about the presidents and their impacts on America. At the end anyone who served for our country was honored and they had a flag ceremony. Finally they light up Mt. Rushmore and it was beautiful. We all loved Mt. Rushmore and were happy that we got to learn about four of our most important leaders.

Yesterday, we went to Zion National Park. We used the handy shuttle buses to see the many breathtaking views of Zion.

At one stop we decided to hike the Emerald Pools and we saw some of the beautiful waterfalls and small ponds. We hiked some more through the hills and valleys and decided to get back in the car to drive up the mountains. We drove through a 1.1 mile tunnel cut through the mountain and saw some more cool views.

75% of the family agreed it was the most beautiful thing in America but my vote goes to the one and only Grand Canyon.

So far, on our long journey, the boys and girls have been keeping up with the license plate game. But, the girls have taken a lead! Us girls have only 3 states left including New Hampshire, Vermont, and Hawaii! The boys however need 6 more states than us! They need North Dakota, Vermont, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Delaware, and Hawaii! Wish us luck, we’ll surely win!

A few hours ago at 9:00 P. M. CST we spotted a few lightning strikes. Thirty minutes later we were in dark clouds, pouring rain, golf-ball sized hail and scary thunder and lightning! It was so bad we had to pull over and stop at a gas station. I guess maybe next time we shouldn’t make fun of Oklahoma…

After 7 hours of driving (357 miles) of driving we arrived in St. Louis, Missouri and headed towards the St. Louis Arch. When we got there we got into an egg-shaped cart and flew 192 meters (4 minutes) into the air and saw the beautiful site below! Next we flew 3 minutes back down and went to Cardinal Nation for a scrumptious dinner where we saw the Cavs make an awesome #1 pick! Now we are heading to Springdale to sleep and wake up for an awesome second day!