Meet Me In St. Louis: Part Two

The second half of our four day trip started out with breakfast downstairs at the Eclipse. We were the only ones there for most of the meal until an older gentleman came in. He sat down and hummed to himself while he waited for his company to join him. Adorable.

Ruby ate in her pajamas. Adorable.

Sebastian lost his second tooth, Ruby took a three hour nap with Brett so that I could go shopping on the Loop, I found an old locket with the photos of an older couple and two vintage sweaters, wanted to buy everything in City Sprouts but settled on one thing for each of the kids, hit up Blueberry Hill to get family photos in their photo booth, had a conversation with Sebastian about how sad he was that Daddy had to leave again, watched Ruby charm the front desk workers, and ran in to a blog reader on our way across the street to eat at Pi. She told us they were going to see The Civil Wars play right next door. We hadn't even seen their name in lights that afternoon but it still felt special being that close to a big show.

We ate with the Reeves again and I had my first taste of Chicago style pizza. I'm hooked. Ruby and Lincolm (they're only one day apart!) took turns in our laps while Diane and I talked about home births and Downton Abbey. Emma told me how much fun we were going to have at the Magic House and Stella let us use her special stick pencil to entertain Ruby.

After dinner I took a stinky toddler back to the hotel while Brett took Sebastian to Pin-Up Bowl for one game because that's all he wanted to do that day. Staying at the Moonrise was the best idea ever. Where else can you do so much and hardly get in a car? Good job, Brett.

The next morning we checked out of our fun hotel and headed to the Magic House. We had two hours but needed about ten. There was so much to explore and the kids were having a great time interacting with the exhibits in each room. A day off of school meant there were tons of kids but we didn't lose either of ours so it was a win.

We had to drive Brett to the airport after the Magic House but knew it would only be three more weeks (ish) until we saw him again for good! Woohoo! We're almost there! A quick detour to Trader Joe's and a pit stop at Indian Harvest rounded off the end of our vacation weekend.

Indian Harvest was an experience in and of itself. I'd seen it from the side of the road a few times and was determined to find the exit and explore it a bit on the way home. We got there right before sunset and were greeted by one of the owners before we even got out of the car. She wanted to let me know there was an entry fee even if I only wanted to take photos of the outside. If I wasn't so committed I might've been put off but reassured her we weren't just there to gawk.

She opened up the first teepee and led us in. It was covered wall-to-wall with Native American jewelry, pipes, arrows, artwork, blankets, knives, arrowheads, and a variety of other non-kitschy items. It was beautiful. We chatted a bit, I tried on some turqouise jewelry, the kids ran in circles with their arrows, and then she took a picture for us. I'm not sure what all else is offered but I feel like we probably got the short tour as she encouraged me not to let the kids get close to the second teepee where the dogs were barking. Not as user friendly as I would've expected but I imagine it's hard to run a business like this and not feel a bit crusty about it. Overall, I'm glad we checked that curiosity off the list.

All in all, we were so thankful to get to break up this last five week stretch without Brett at home with us with this four day weekend vacation in St. Louis. It was refreshing and plenty of good memories were made.

We've only got three more weeks in Springfield so I've got my head down and my to do list out at all times. I'm hoping we can balance out all of the things that need to happen logistically to get our family to Colorado Springs with some precious friend time spread throughout. I think it's finally starting to settle in my heart that we're leaving. It's a lot of change for a girl who likes change in small doses but I'm going to take it as it comes and hold things loosely.

What would you do if you only had three weeks left where you live? Ready, go.

xo,

Rachel