St. Louis with Grammy

A summer tradition we have had for quite some time has been a summer visit with Grammy combined with a trip to a city within driving distance, and ideally one that has a baseball stadium.  This summer our destination was St. Louis.  Unfortunately, John was not able to join us because he was at a conference in Canada.  We did our best to have fun without him (and we were very successful).  Our first stop was the lobby of the Union Station Hotel.  It was gorgeous and the concierge tipped us off that if we came back later we could catch their nightly light show, which was pretty amazing.  The show had images of trains rolling back and forth across the ceiling and a full array of colors.

Because this was the first time for Grammy and both girls to see the Mississippi River, taking a river cruise was a necessary first step.  Grammy understood the historical journey more than the girls did, but Callie and Reese enjoyed pointing out the massive logs and other debris that was floating down the river along with us.

Of course you can't think of St. Louis without thinking of the Gateway Arch.  And we were quick to take advantage of the ride to the top of that architectural wonder.  It is not a trip for someone with claustrophobia, but it is a phenomenal view when you get to the top.

The girls enjoyed the ride to the top and because it was not crowded at the time we got our own little compartment for the trip.  Once we got to the viewing area Callie and Reese couldn't wait to look out the windows.  Sarah got the opportunity to talk about how she and John had been in this same observation deck over twelve years ago as they made their way across the country.

That's right, it's the arch again!  This time we needed to take the iconic picture from the courthouse where the Dred Scott trials began.  We spent quite a bit of time in the courthouse - we took a tour and participated in some national park ranger activities to learn more about the case.  In the end, Callie and Reese earned two different Junior Ranger badges.

Sometimes timing is everything.  The day that we decided to visit the arch happened to be the same day that they were celebrating the kickoff of summer, which meant food trucks and fireworks.  Since the girls are not huge fans of the noise that fireworks produce, we decided to watch them from the porch of the courthouse instead of the banks of the Mississippi.  From a pictorial standpoint it worked out perfectly.

St. Louis has a fantastic zoo that just happens to be free.  Because we have all become zoo aficionados we were quick to review the map and strategize the best approach to seeing all of our favorite animals while we were there. This picture is pretty cool because it mimics another photo of the girls when we were at the Atlanta Aquarium with Grammy and watched some belugas from the same viewpoint.

As we were making our way through the zoo, the girls and Sarah decided that the next zoo visit needs to be a photo shoot of only animal rears, inspired by the zebras' unwillingness to show us their faces.  So watch out, there may be more animal butts in future posts.

Grammy also wanted to check out the Botanical Gardens while we were in the Forest Park area, so we made our way over there.  This was certainly a beautiful spot with many unique features.  If we had more time we could have spent several hours walking through it all.

We can only imagine that many wedding and senior photo shoots take advantage of spots like these throughout the grounds.  The problem for us is looking at this picture we see how Callie is growing older and looking more mature.  Not to mention the fact that her legs seem to go on forever.  And third grade is right around the corner.

Speaking of school, this little confident five-year-old will be starting kindergarten before we know it.  We don't think she'll have a hard time making friends, or at the very least entertaining her teachers.  She seems to always have a good attitude and is always ready to crank up the energy for a few giggles.

One recommendation that we got before heading to St. Louis was to visit the City Museum.  We weren't sure what to expect, but we enjoyed it more than we thought we ever would.  The museum has a fascinating origin story - it basically began with one man's art studio in an old office building downtown.  He created some climbing structures for his kids and himself, and it grew into the ultimate hands-on museum experience.  Here you see Reese and Callie climbing and exploring in one of the wire tunnels.  Everyone is encouraged to explore.  There are no maps or brochures, no guides or docents.  Just come on in and have fun.  The only tip you get is to write your phone number on your kid's hand in case you get separated.

On the second floor there is the Snow Flake Lady, who has a room all to herself, dedicated to arts and crafts of all varieties.  She is particularly skilled and has a personality that is an intriguing mixture of directness, endearing sweetness, and folksy charm.  We had so much fun making snowflakes with her that we bought her book.  She has amazing talent when it comes to designing snowflakes that look like a variety of animals.

We took a break from the museum to eat a picnic lunch under the Arch, but while Reese and Grammy headed back to the hotel pool, Callie and Sarah decided they needed to take in more of the museum. This time they hit the wire tunnels on the outside of the museum and went down the ten-story slide. Seriously, if you are in St. Louis you need to check this place out.

Another must see on any child's visit to St. Louis is the Anheuser-Busch Brewery, of course.  Okay, maybe not a must see for kids, but the girls did enjoy seeing all the Clydesdales, along with Clyde the dalmation who roams the grounds. As pictured here, all of the wagons used for parades and other events are on display.

The adults enjoyed the two free samples of beer provided during the course of the tour.  It's amazing how many different beers Anheuser-Busch now distributes.  There were plenty of options to pick from and it was a great way to prep for the real reason we were here, to see the San Francisco Giants play the St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium.

And here we have Grammy with Callie and Reese at what is now their fourth baseball stadium together.  (Callie and Grammy got in a fifth before Reese was born).  It is such a wonderful tradition, and we are already thinking about next year.  We hear Pittsburgh has a wonderful stadium.