St. Louis our first family of 3 vacation

After much consideration on what to write about for my first official post I decided to write about our family vacation this past weekend. We decided to go to St. Louis mostly because of the free Zoo but after some planning on Dusty's & opinions on my part, we came up with a weekend full of fun for everyone.

A little background first. Oliver rides in the car horribly! He gets in and can last about 30 min. before he gets upset & just screams. He doesn't sleep longer than 30 min. normally & it takes a long time for him to get to sleep. We have been on trips that were roughly 3 hrs. long and he cried the last 2 1/2 hrs. of it. So that being said...

Fri: We are headed to Springfield to see the Abraham Lincoln Museum!! After deliberation on when to leave before his nap hoping he would sleep on the way or after his nap hoping he would be happy for longer. We decided to go before his nap thinking he just might sleep on the way. About 20 min. into the ride he got fussy thankfully he went to sleep with the bottle & it lasted about 40 min. through the minor construction we faced. We got to Springfield sat outside & had a very nice lunch. We then continued onto the museum, it was better than I expected! Oliver did a good job, he started off in the stroller then moved to the carrier on Dusty which he hated then moved to the carrier on me, he shortly fell asleep then so we were able to enjoy the plays/videos.

Onto St. Louis we go! Once again Oliver did well, Praise God! We met up with Doug, Kary, Lexi & Brayden for dinner at the favorite pizza place & it was AMAZING! They then offered to let us take the BMW out & get Ice Cream (just us 2) we accepted! Much to my delight it was a manual (that means I got to drive, not dusty!!!) We headed to Webster Groves got some ice cream (rocky road & salty caramel) took a nice walk & headed to the Mangers to pick up our munchkin! We enjoyed time with them at their beautiful home & then headed back to the hotel for the night. (Oliver slept well!)

Sat: We got up, got ready, picked up some Panera, I mean St. Louis Bread Co., & went to the Zoo! We chose to park on the street (b.c. it was free) so we walked a good quarter mile. We then set off! Oliver ended up in the carrier (again) and fell asleep shortly. It was a beautiful day to take a stroll around the Zoo & look at all of Gods beautiful creatures! Oliver woke up & so we decided to go to the Sea Lion show, it was not a disappointment! Benny sure gave us a show! We got thru half the Zoo & headed back to the hotel & went swimming! Oliver did great in the big pool at first he was a little skeptical but slowly and with encouragement from strangers warmed right up. That night we headed to the Cheesecake Factory split a meal & walked around the mall, riding the Carousel with Oliver & getting some Orange Julius!!

Sun: We went out to breakfast and then headed back the the hotel, took naps, went swimming & then got ready for Fireworks! We went & ate dinner at Fuddruckers, our favorite hamburger joint, so whenever we got to a new city we check to see if there is one in the city, it was not a disappointment! After lots of phone tag between us & the Manger's we finally decided what we were doing, riding the Metro Link to the Arch to see the Fireworks.

**CAUTION** (weak stomach's skip this section)

The Metro Link was an experience in itself! It was about a 25 min. ride to the Arch. About 5 min. into the trip we noticed Ollie pooped his pants. No biggie, right? We will just change him quick. WRONG! Oliver had an explosion! Once I realized it I quickly looked for a change of clothes, NONE! Sooo here we go, we have a huge mess and no clothes to change him into. I got out a couple baggies cleaned him up w/ wipes & stuck the wipes in diaper in one bag & the clothes in the other bag. So there we had it a naked baby on the Metro Link. Did I mention it was the 4th of July so there were plenty of spectators! We got off the link and I quickly headed to a restroom to try and salvage his nice Ralph Lauren outfit. I ended up washing it in a sink that was clogged from the day w/ gross water I cannot describe how disgusting the bathroom was, let alone the sink, & then trying to dry it under a machine. I tried my best, it was still pretty damp but at least poop free!

Off to the Arch we go! While walking we realize Oliver is not alone in being wet, there had just been a huge down pour 15 min. prior, so thankfully we missed that. We met up with the Mangers found a spot & sat tight for a couple hrs. Doug went off to get some drinks & Dusty went off to get some funnel cakes. Doug came back after about 1.5 hrs. & Dusty was finally told to come back after close to 2.5 hrs. & the fireworks had begun. Dusty was pretty upset he wasn't able to get funnel cakes for everyone. Anyways, we all loved the fireworks including Oliver, one exception Brayden was not too fond he put on a little show too, I wasn't sure if I should laugh or feel sorry for him, he got used to it though!

Metro Link part II: After literally running to the Metro to get in line before others we waited for probably 30 min. total, then we got on. :0) It was more crowded than I ever thought it could, then it stopped again & MORE people got on! Dusty quickly made friends with the young loud boys, Oliver slept on me & I sat very still next to a man who was VERY intimidating. At one point one of Dusty's new "friends" said "Stop pushing me the door is opening!!" and if you were there you wouldn't have doubted it! Anyways we made it stink & all. We said our goodbye's to the Mangers & headed back to the hotel.

Monday: Dusty & Oliver went & picked up some St. Louis Bread Co. and let me sleep in. We then packed & left! Oliver fell asleep again! (lasting about an hr!!!!) We stopped at a rest stop had some lunch and continued on! We got home around 2 p.m. & everything was put away by 3 p.m.!

We had a lot of fun & would recommend STL to anyone! Praise God for safe travels, a happy kid & time to spend with family!