Road Scholars

We finally hit the road on our long awaited RV / camping trip around the US and are now across the Mississippi, a 6 day journey so far as the Appalachians slowly unfurl into the prairies of the Midwest.

Juni adds Ohio.

    

Last night in Missouri we had a torrential downpour with flash flood warnings that lasted all night but at least we only sprang two minor leaks.  The leaks are patched up, the food and beer supplies are replenished and we are fueled up on Kansas City style ribs here in Topeka, ready for our last leg across the Prairie.  

Yesterday we were in the town of Hanibal, Missouri, the childhood home of Mark Twain and the inspiration for his Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn books. We intended to relive a childhood memory of mine, taking a paddleboat down the Mississippi, but it was a dreary rainy day so we decided to skip the boat ride.

Whitewashing

Instead, we visited the Mark Twain homestead, a highlight in a somewhat dismal town, then went straight to the Mark Twain Caverns where we were camped.  The cavern tour interwove the scenes of Tom Sawyer with the walk which suitably freaked out Emily during the scary parts, especially when the guide turned all the lights out.

We are really enjoying the freedom of having no particular place to be, stopping when we feel like it, camping on the fly and extending our stay when we like a place.  The 'flat' part of this trip has been the biggest surprise.  Originally thinking of the Midwest as something to be 'gotten through' on our way to the Rockies, we've lingered longer than planned as we've discovered interesting places.

Exploring the Motorcycle Hall of Fame

Greenfield, Indiana, where we camped for two nights, has a well-preserved, thriving downtown where Juni got quite possibly the largest kids breakfast I've ever seen, misleadingly called the "Little Lincoln".

 Nearby is the Conner Prairie Museum, the best place you've never heard of, and definitely the best interactive history exhibit I've ever seen.  It spanned the time when Indiana was still a frontier, pre-statehood, focusing on both the Native Americans and the settlers.  Outside, the children could pick a job from that time, then go around the town performing tasks.

Making beds, prairie style

Inside the museum, the kids could do engineering projects around Indiana industry, to include building several types of windmills.  I'd definitely visit this museum the next time we are in the area.

Springfield, Illinois, another two night stop was just as interesting.  The kids earned their first National Park Junior Ranger badge at the Lincoln Homestead, complete with pledge.

Juni takes his oath.

The Lincoln Presidential Museum did an excellent job presenting the full life of Abraham Lincoln and the country during the time of slavery and the Civil War, in a way that was accessible to both adults and kids.

When we're not out and about, the kids love riding their bikes around the campground and trying out all the different playgrounds (so far Wolfies Campground in Ohio is their favorite with it's huge pirate ship playground).

Wolfies Campground

Road Schooling is going well. In addition to museums, the kids write in their travel journals daily (their 'morning work'), then, depending on the day's plans, we do 'bookwork' at the campground (3Rs) followed by whatever field trip is on the agenda.

Schooltime

  If it's a driving day, they do Math drills in the car on the iPads, then listen to an audio book (biographies of historical figures on our route), then watch and discuss a science video.  By lunchtime, we are finished with the 'structured schooling' portion of the day but not with the invaluable learning they get just from being free to explore.

Tomorrow is our last haul across Kansas then  onwards to the Rockies.  Fingers crossed Tornado Alley stays quiet....
 

Meet the Lincolns