Southern Roots And Snow Boots: The Heartland

Wow! Can you guess how many states we have been thru in only three days? Nine! (Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Pennsylvania, New York, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri)

Our morning started well and we were out the door on time. We had mapped out an 8.5 hour day with a two hour stop in the middle.

Ohio is a lovely state of corn fields and farms. The state takes pride in its roads and every rest stop is modern and clean. I was amazed by the sea of corn and likened it to a person seeing the east coast ocean for the first time. Wow! I also noticed that certain farms post signs regarding the type of corn grown. Three types were Agrigold, Beck and Asgrow.

In Indiana we stopped at Conner Prairie (connerprairie.org). It's a historical reenactment park in the middle of suburbia. We visited the Indian camp where we learned how to throw tomahawks, tan a hide, and visit the trading post.

Next we visited the homestead and got take care of baby calves and one week old goats. Molly learned the art of weaving and using your garden to dye wool. She announced her dress was made from sheep :).

We finished with the prairie town. Molly was a healer, Andy a Gardner, and I a cook. Very fitting roles for our family. The big news in town was the land sale. We missed it, but it was the talk of the town. Some folks were not keen on Dr. Campbell's running of the sale. The town was set in the 1800s and Indiana had been a state for 20 years.

Lastly, I need to mention the factories we passed to highlight the American Economy. We passed the Ft. Wayne Indiana Chevy Plant, Vera Bradley Plant, and Nestle.

We are now finishing up a very long drive on I70. We had to stop for a car top carrier adjustment. Kids are good but we are all tired.

Tomorrow we spend all day in St. Louis and have tickets for the arch at 9am.