Saturday, October 24, 2015
From the kids at 5:30 pm when we returned to the RV....I asked each of them to share highlites and lowlites today:
Q- Highlight - Everything….Museum was awesome and liked dad being with us all day.
No low lights.
Mena –
High: movies about Lincoln in the museum….they were awesome and I liked having Daddy with us all day. I liked the ghost and the chairs moving in the 2nd movie.
Low: That Summer had to stay in the RV – and that the family ate my chips at lunch when I went to the bathroom with mom.
Franki
H: Just put everything – I can not pick specifically....it was all good.
L: Nothing
Wow what a change a day can make and new scenery and adventure together.
It was a great Saturday touring all the historical sights in Springfield, Illinois as a family. We started with the Visitor Center meeting Jim (talked baseball since Q had Blaine’s ST Louis sweatshirt on again and I had a ROYALS tshirt on). He said he enjoyed the game last night, great Royals win and he said he will be rooting the Royals on against the Mets. Right on JIM, so will we!
The visitor center was in the neighborhood of Lincoln’s house. We obtained our tickets for the 11:15 am showing of the Lincoln House.
While in the visitor center, I also met Kathryn Canavan, she is an author that wrote the book, Lincoln’s Final Hours, she was hosting a book signing in the visitor center. She shared with me that she studied Lincoln’s assassination and his final hours in the boarding house where he has taken after being shot at the Ford Theather in Washington DC. She studied the tentants of the house and all the visitors. She mentioned that she studied it all for about 4 years and then took a year to write the book. Kathryn asked Franki where we were from and she told her KC but then went on to say that we were living in the RV and this was our 2nd week of our voyage to stay on the road maybe a year or as long as we can. She was very kind and shared lots and lots of information about the Ford Theatre and places in DC where she did much of her research. She signed a post card for Franki and talked about the tentants of the boarding house and what many of them went on to do after they witnessed Ab Lincoln’s death after being shot. Thanks Kathryn for all the great information – we will read your book and share it with others.
We then walked down the neighborhood to Ab Lincoln’s house on the corner. Beth (didn’t catch her last name) was our tour guide -she was great and very informative tour guide and we learned much about Abraham Lincoln and his wife Mary Todd and their 4 boys – Robert, Edwin, Willie and Tad (we think the names and order is correct). The stories were very humorous and sounds like they (Ab & Mary) were pretty laid back as parents. Often laughing at the boys and their antics. Sounds familiar – a lttle bit like when your around the Fercho kids – uh? One of their boys died in the house and Ab was asked to be the president in that house. It was weird to think about life back then and how they lived ….some things so different yet some still very much the same. And wow…..if the walls and furniture could talk ….would love to hear the stories they would tell. So very cool to be in the living room and bedroom of such a great man.
We then moved to the Lincoln Library and Museum – it was well worth the time and the fee to attend. The movies about Lincoln were fascinating and a great way to learn a lot about him and his life and his time as the 16th President of the US of America. It was also a wax museum that brought Lincoln’s life to a very vivid form of learning as you felt like you were there and a part of the his life. It went through this childhood to his life in Springfield and then presidency and ultimately his death and even his casket viewing back here in Springfield. One of the tour guides let us know that Disney helped Illinois with the museum and being a Disney fan myself – I could sense their mark on the exhibits. It reminded me of my family move to Florida when I was in 3rd grade and we went to Disney for the first time and one of the things I most loved was the RCA dog in one of the exihibits that depicted life in the past, present and future. Disney has a magical way of helping you experience life- today I felt like I was back in Lincoln’s time – and a member of the Springfield community. We were at the museum probably 3 hours – it was so enjoyable. We all loved it.
We left the museum to head to the Sara Dana Thomas House that was built by Frank Lloyd Wright. After being in his home in Chicago we were all excited to see his designs on a larger level. Sara Dana Thomas had deep pockets and it sounds like her and Frank had fun designing it together. She loved butterflies and it is fun to see the butterfly designs through the house. It is an amazing house and one of his largest and most elaborate Prairie-Style designs. Dawson and I love the designs of Wright and as we learn more about him and his designs we see their influence in and around our lives but can see ourselves getting more into his designs and influence. The house went on and on and our tour guide there, Mary Caroline, was great and she talked several times specifically to the kids – our 3 kiddos were the only kids on this tour. It was a small group and very fun to have the kids be so involved in the tour. Mary had them count the stairs in the house and they all counted a different amount of stairs – Franki actually asked me for a notepad and pen to keep track of the steps. Franki counted 103 stairs, Mena counted 93 and I can’t remember what Q counted – actually I think he stopped counted. Funny – Mary never really gave us an answer. But she was intriquied with our story and spent a little time with us after the tour…she is in one of the pictures attached.
We left the FLW house and drove by the new state capital building long enough to take some photos. We then ventured out to the cemetary to see Abraham Lincoln’s tomb. It was incredible. It was a great way to wrap up the day after learning so much about him and his family. This country is what it is today because of what he did years ago. Abraham Lincoln – I think all the Fercho’s have a new understanding and appreciation of you and your influence on this country.
We then headed back to the RV to let poor Summer out and have dinner. If Springfield is not on your bucket list –add it now. Totally a great place to come as a family to experience some amazing history. Even though we spent the day in Springfield – we could stay for a week and still not see it all. Come for a long weekend and increase your knowledge and appreciation for Abraham Lincoln and others in our nations history.
We debated coming down to Springfield but we let the kids decide and we are so glad we made the trip down here. Double J camp ground owned by Liz and Larry – right off Highway 55 is also awesome! I love how it feels here – like a little neighborhood of campers and I love that their WIFI is strong. I think as I look over this week – as a family, we were adjusting to this lifestyle. I struggled with not getting a good wifi signal again at this campground. I want to be able to connect and update the blog and use the internet for school too. Crazy how dependant I am (my family) is on technology. I hate it – but I love it. You know the feeling – as a mom – I get so tired of the kids on electronics but to be honest – I do the same thing. It is crazy to think about the old days without it – and what the world will look like soon as it contiues to evolve.
I will say this week I did have many doubts and although I never said it outloud was thinking about how nice it would be to go back home. It has been exactly 2 weeks today that we left home. The first week, it was all new and we had Haylie’s wedding to look forward to and Fercho family members to see and visit with while in Madison. This week, well we were on our own not knowing where we were headed next. It was a little unsettling to say the least. (Read more about this on my “Tiffany’s Blog” site soon.) We liked Lehman’s and Chicago but pulling in here Friday evening just felt good. Like being on the move was good for all of us and day together as a family did amazing things to all 5 of our spirits.
Today – I had many moments of near tears – thinking several times – “this is how I dreamed this trip would look and feel”….my unsettledness is starting to go away. We made some amazing memories today and learned A LOT along the way. We have to check out of here tomorrow am by noon. We are off to Leonard and Feleica Allen’s driveway in Whitelande, INDIANA (just about 20 miles or so south of Indianapolis). Another people connection – Leonard’s daughter, Amy Allen Crosier is one of my dearest friends. Amy and I lived together before Dawson and I got married – she was my roommate when I lived in Medford, Oregon. Amy and her family are great people and they feel like family, so I am excited to be able to take this bus and crew to his house. Dawson has some appointments set up in Indy so we don’t know yet how long we will stay but – we won’t be driving on Tuesday evening as we will be watching our boys in blue be ROYAL!!!
Thank God for a great day as a family and although the day itself was overcast, windy and chilly – we as a family rose above any gloom and had a fabulous day! We learned a lot and met some great people. I need to create some business cards this week. We need something to hand out when we meet people on this journey. I started to do it before we left home and then didn’t complete that task. Need to do that now.
Heading on down the highway tomorrow …..more later. Indiana here we come.
All our love,
Tiffany and the Fercho’s
From the kids at 5:30 pm when we returned to the RV....I asked each of them to share highlites and lowlites today:
Q- Highlight - Everything….Museum was awesome and liked dad being with us all day.
No low lights.
Mena –
High: movies about Lincoln in the museum….they were awesome and I liked having Daddy with us all day. I liked the ghost and the chairs moving in the 2nd movie.
Low: That Summer had to stay in the RV – and that the family ate my chips at lunch when I went to the bathroom with mom.
Franki
H: Just put everything – I can not pick specifically....it was all good.
L: Nothing
Wow what a change a day can make and new scenery and adventure together.
It was a great Saturday touring all the historical sights in Springfield, Illinois as a family. We started with the Visitor Center meeting Jim (talked baseball since Q had Blaine’s ST Louis sweatshirt on again and I had a ROYALS tshirt on). He said he enjoyed the game last night, great Royals win and he said he will be rooting the Royals on against the Mets. Right on JIM, so will we!
The visitor center was in the neighborhood of Lincoln’s house. We obtained our tickets for the 11:15 am showing of the Lincoln House.
While in the visitor center, I also met Kathryn Canavan, she is an author that wrote the book, Lincoln’s Final Hours, she was hosting a book signing in the visitor center. She shared with me that she studied Lincoln’s assassination and his final hours in the boarding house where he has taken after being shot at the Ford Theather in Washington DC. She studied the tentants of the house and all the visitors. She mentioned that she studied it all for about 4 years and then took a year to write the book. Kathryn asked Franki where we were from and she told her KC but then went on to say that we were living in the RV and this was our 2nd week of our voyage to stay on the road maybe a year or as long as we can. She was very kind and shared lots and lots of information about the Ford Theatre and places in DC where she did much of her research. She signed a post card for Franki and talked about the tentants of the boarding house and what many of them went on to do after they witnessed Ab Lincoln’s death after being shot. Thanks Kathryn for all the great information – we will read your book and share it with others.
We then walked down the neighborhood to Ab Lincoln’s house on the corner. Beth (didn’t catch her last name) was our tour guide -she was great and very informative tour guide and we learned much about Abraham Lincoln and his wife Mary Todd and their 4 boys – Robert, Edwin, Willie and Tad (we think the names and order is correct). The stories were very humorous and sounds like they (Ab & Mary) were pretty laid back as parents. Often laughing at the boys and their antics. Sounds familiar – a lttle bit like when your around the Fercho kids – uh? One of their boys died in the house and Ab was asked to be the president in that house. It was weird to think about life back then and how they lived ….some things so different yet some still very much the same. And wow…..if the walls and furniture could talk ….would love to hear the stories they would tell. So very cool to be in the living room and bedroom of such a great man.
We then moved to the Lincoln Library and Museum – it was well worth the time and the fee to attend. The movies about Lincoln were fascinating and a great way to learn a lot about him and his life and his time as the 16th President of the US of America. It was also a wax museum that brought Lincoln’s life to a very vivid form of learning as you felt like you were there and a part of the his life. It went through this childhood to his life in Springfield and then presidency and ultimately his death and even his casket viewing back here in Springfield. One of the tour guides let us know that Disney helped Illinois with the museum and being a Disney fan myself – I could sense their mark on the exhibits. It reminded me of my family move to Florida when I was in 3rd grade and we went to Disney for the first time and one of the things I most loved was the RCA dog in one of the exihibits that depicted life in the past, present and future. Disney has a magical way of helping you experience life- today I felt like I was back in Lincoln’s time – and a member of the Springfield community. We were at the museum probably 3 hours – it was so enjoyable. We all loved it.
We left the museum to head to the Sara Dana Thomas House that was built by Frank Lloyd Wright. After being in his home in Chicago we were all excited to see his designs on a larger level. Sara Dana Thomas had deep pockets and it sounds like her and Frank had fun designing it together. She loved butterflies and it is fun to see the butterfly designs through the house. It is an amazing house and one of his largest and most elaborate Prairie-Style designs. Dawson and I love the designs of Wright and as we learn more about him and his designs we see their influence in and around our lives but can see ourselves getting more into his designs and influence. The house went on and on and our tour guide there, Mary Caroline, was great and she talked several times specifically to the kids – our 3 kiddos were the only kids on this tour. It was a small group and very fun to have the kids be so involved in the tour. Mary had them count the stairs in the house and they all counted a different amount of stairs – Franki actually asked me for a notepad and pen to keep track of the steps. Franki counted 103 stairs, Mena counted 93 and I can’t remember what Q counted – actually I think he stopped counted. Funny – Mary never really gave us an answer. But she was intriquied with our story and spent a little time with us after the tour…she is in one of the pictures attached.
We left the FLW house and drove by the new state capital building long enough to take some photos. We then ventured out to the cemetary to see Abraham Lincoln’s tomb. It was incredible. It was a great way to wrap up the day after learning so much about him and his family. This country is what it is today because of what he did years ago. Abraham Lincoln – I think all the Fercho’s have a new understanding and appreciation of you and your influence on this country.
We then headed back to the RV to let poor Summer out and have dinner. If Springfield is not on your bucket list –add it now. Totally a great place to come as a family to experience some amazing history. Even though we spent the day in Springfield – we could stay for a week and still not see it all. Come for a long weekend and increase your knowledge and appreciation for Abraham Lincoln and others in our nations history.
We debated coming down to Springfield but we let the kids decide and we are so glad we made the trip down here. Double J camp ground owned by Liz and Larry – right off Highway 55 is also awesome! I love how it feels here – like a little neighborhood of campers and I love that their WIFI is strong. I think as I look over this week – as a family, we were adjusting to this lifestyle. I struggled with not getting a good wifi signal again at this campground. I want to be able to connect and update the blog and use the internet for school too. Crazy how dependant I am (my family) is on technology. I hate it – but I love it. You know the feeling – as a mom – I get so tired of the kids on electronics but to be honest – I do the same thing. It is crazy to think about the old days without it – and what the world will look like soon as it contiues to evolve.
I will say this week I did have many doubts and although I never said it outloud was thinking about how nice it would be to go back home. It has been exactly 2 weeks today that we left home. The first week, it was all new and we had Haylie’s wedding to look forward to and Fercho family members to see and visit with while in Madison. This week, well we were on our own not knowing where we were headed next. It was a little unsettling to say the least. (Read more about this on my “Tiffany’s Blog” site soon.) We liked Lehman’s and Chicago but pulling in here Friday evening just felt good. Like being on the move was good for all of us and day together as a family did amazing things to all 5 of our spirits.
Today – I had many moments of near tears – thinking several times – “this is how I dreamed this trip would look and feel”….my unsettledness is starting to go away. We made some amazing memories today and learned A LOT along the way. We have to check out of here tomorrow am by noon. We are off to Leonard and Feleica Allen’s driveway in Whitelande, INDIANA (just about 20 miles or so south of Indianapolis). Another people connection – Leonard’s daughter, Amy Allen Crosier is one of my dearest friends. Amy and I lived together before Dawson and I got married – she was my roommate when I lived in Medford, Oregon. Amy and her family are great people and they feel like family, so I am excited to be able to take this bus and crew to his house. Dawson has some appointments set up in Indy so we don’t know yet how long we will stay but – we won’t be driving on Tuesday evening as we will be watching our boys in blue be ROYAL!!!
Thank God for a great day as a family and although the day itself was overcast, windy and chilly – we as a family rose above any gloom and had a fabulous day! We learned a lot and met some great people. I need to create some business cards this week. We need something to hand out when we meet people on this journey. I started to do it before we left home and then didn’t complete that task. Need to do that now.
Heading on down the highway tomorrow …..more later. Indiana here we come.
All our love,
Tiffany and the Fercho’s