Sometimes you just need a vaca. It doesn't have to be somewhere fancy...it just needs to be somewhere different. A change of scenery with new restaurants and new adventures. And a couple weeks ago, we needed a vaca so we packed up the car and headed to Des Moines, Iowa. I know what you're thinking...it's definitely not somewhere fancy and are there even new adventures there? Not to worry. We kept busy.
We went to the zoo. Guys, this is a lion! A lion! The zoo in KC is great but the lions are always lazily tucked away in some safari corner. This is the first time I've seen a lion so close. And after seeing it so close, I think I'll stick to figuratively "chasing the lion."
We also got to see this bear up close. He was pretty friendly. He didn't even try to eat our faces off.
We ate at some new restaurants and I found a sandwich that you have to try. Seriously, you have to try it. Well, no, you don't. But you really should. It's fried meat covered with pulled meat covered with smoke meat covered with more fried meat. And it's surrounded by french fries. It sounds overwhelming but it tastes delicious.
Our hotel had a pool so we spent some time there. We went to a totally cool pirate park and had a great time making friends (and going down the slide again, and again, and again). We went to a science place and a sculpture park too.
We went on our yearly college visit too. It's out of state and tuition would be crazy so we just walked around a bit.
On our way out of town, we stopped at the state capitol. We saw the statues and the fancy wall paper and the shiny dome. On the way back to the car, Lily had a tumble and we made an unexpected stop at the local hospital. Luckily it wasn't too big of a deal. I was holding her hand when she stumbled and her elbow joint slipped out of place. A ligament got stuck in between her elbow bones and it resulted in a very unhappy chica. We stopped by the ER and they got us in right away. The doc did his magic and we were on our way in less than an hour. We were so thankful to be so close to the hospital!! And, in case you didn't know, kids under the age of 5 have really loose joints so it's best for them to hold your finger or for you to hold their upper arm. Or you could use one of those backpack kid leashes. (I think that might be going on our Christmas list.)
We had a great trip and a fun time together which is what going on a vaca is all about! But maybe next time we will skip the ER visit.
