Memphis Pics

A little art designing at the Children's Museum

Safety first.

Lucas really can't wait to drive!

Lucas loved the monkey!

Emma found a giant egg!

Lucas got really tired at the zoo, we were wishing we could do that!

Lucas preferred the stroller to the cold water. He cried if we got in the water!

Here's Emma somewhere along the Mississippi River, splashing around!

These are the Peabody Ducks swimming in the lobby of the Peabody Hotel!

Memphis Day 2

So yesterday we went to the Memphis Children's Museum and had a good time. We were very disappointed with the way that other children were being allowed to act, as well as the adults surrounding them. For an area of our country that boasts hospitality and manners, we haven't seen too much of that yet. We returned to the hotel for lunch and naps, which weren't very successful. We went to the Hard Rock Cafe for dinner and did some walking around on Beale Street. There's a huge amount of music history here that we didn't even realize!
Today, we got up and after breakfast, tried to get Lucas to nap, but once again failed. So, we packed everyone up for the day, with the plan to return after dinner. Our first stop was the Memphis Zoo. This was a huge hit! Both the kids loved watching all the animals and Emma's very favorite was being about 2 feet away from 2 huge, sleeping hippos! We saw polar bears, snakes, komodo dragons, and even the rare panda bear! We also saw many other animals to complete the trip. We enjoyed a picnic lunch and a little ice cream and then we were off to the next stop.
Our second stop was to drive past Graceland. Tim and I are not big Elvis fans, but when in Memphis...it really wasn't all that exciting for us. In fact, the neighborhood it was in was quite depressing.
So, from there we went off to a place called Mud Island. It's an island in the Mississippi River that we had to take a monorail to get to. On the island we were able to explore a huge topographical map of the Mississippi River, which was complete with the Gulf of Mexico. It was even filled with water. The kids were able to walk in the "river" which Emma loved! Lucas didn't like the cold water.
From there we went to the Peabody Hotel to see the Duck Parade. Not knowing that this was such a big deal, we got there at 4:50 and the parade was starting at 5:00. The hotel lobby was packed! Even so, the kids were able to watch the ducks sitting in the fountain, in the hotel.
From there we went to dinner at a little dive called The Neely's. The couple that owns this place has a show on the Food Network. We just had to try it out and boy our stomachs are full. Lucas ate a whole side of BBQ baked beans and cried for more!
Now the kids are bathed and sleeping. Tim and I have successfully packed everything that we can for tomorrow morning. We plan to leave early in the morning with the hopes to get home in time for bed! This has been a great vacation and has been filled with great family time.

Driving to Memphis

We are here in Memphis, Tennesee and arrived yesterday. We are really enjoying our trip so far. Yesterday was a very long day. We left our house in Racine at about 5:15 in the morning and with taking only 4 stops, we arrived at our hotel at about 5:30 last night. It's a very nice Residence Inn by Marriot. We were pleasantly surprised with our room. We have 2 baths, 2 bedrooms, a living area, and a kitchen. We also were happy to hear that dinner is included in our room. We had a small dinner last night of hotel tacos. Both kids enjoyed those and were really happy to not get back into the car! The kids were awesome in the car, sleeping, playing, singing, and just being great little travelers. We returned to our room for baths, a little TV, and then off to bed. Emma woke us up this morning with, "I have pink eyes today, Daddy!" Sure enough, Emma has pink eye. It's a good thing that I thought to pack our pink eye medication!!! We put the drops in, waited a few hours, and then headed off for the museum. It was a tough decision, but seeing that her eyes weren't goey and she wasn't rubbing them, we choose to take the risk and go out for the morning. We had a great time! There were some pretty neat things for the kids to try out and even Lucas got to take his turn at driving a few things. We retrned to our hotel for lunch and then it's been nap time. Tim was able to find room in the van for his golf clubs, so he took off for the afternoon and I've been reading and watching a little TV. All in all, we're having a great time and really getting a chance to spend time together and rest!