Downtown Montgomery

Yesterday we ventured out beyond Deer Creek and went downtown. First we went to the corner where Rosa Parks refused to give up her bus seat, and visited the Rosa Parks Museum there to learn about the Montgomery Bus Boycott of 1955.


Then we went to a nearby diner for some home cookin'.

We loved walking up and down the sunny Montgomery streets, and were on our way to visit the Alabama State Capitol Building. We walked up all the stairs, saw the revered Confederate statues, and promptly turned around. No Thanks. We did, however, stop two blocks away at the church where Martin Luther King, Jr. was a pastor.

Last night, the Meissner boys (and I) went to a Montgomery Biscuits Baseball game! The weather was gorgeous, and yes, we ate tasty biscuits. Unfortunately, the home team lost to the Jackson Generals, but we got to watch some fabulous fireworks afterwards.

Baseball buddies Karl and Nathan.

More Fun in Florida

We spent another beautiful day on the beach today!

This boy joined in with Laura and Karl to battle the waves.


The kids also had fun at the hotel pool.

Alabama Road Trip Part 4: The Gulf Coast

Today we drove down to Destin, Florida, for an overnight visit to the Gulf of Mexico. Our hotel is right on the beach, and that's where we spent our afternoon. We all loved the fine white sand, the ocean waves, the cooling breeze, and the ample sunshine. The kids decided, though, that ocean water tastes much worse than lake water.



Laura and Karl LOVED sculpting with this sand.

Tomorrow: more beach-bumming!

Alabama Road Trip Part 3: Montgomery!

We had a very restful day yesterday at Steve and Megan's. The kids caught up on homework. Matt caught up on work. I caught up on soaking up some warm Alabama sunshine.

We ventured out into the city only to have lunch and make a Target run. On the way down south, we had passed dozens of IHOPs and Waffle Houses, but never stopped at them because we only did fast food while we were driving. Yesterday, though, Laura's wish came true and we sat down to a table full of pancakes at IHOP.


Karl loves butter.

When Megan and the kids got home from school, the cousins had a blast playing together.


Laura and Karl are happy to have a cousin with a trampoline!


We got to have dinner outside, while we thought of everyone in Minnesota enjoying the April snow.


After dinner it was jam session time!


While Karl was playing one of his guitar pieces for everyone, Laura nonchalantly walked in and proceeded to lie on the back of the sofa and started reading.


So, to sum up Alabama so far: trampolines, guitars, cute cousins, sunshine, and very tasty cookies!

Alabama Road Trip Part 2: Memphis

Yesterday we spent the morning in Memphis. Our first stop was the Lorraine Motel, where Martin Luther King, Jr.was assassinated. It was eerie how well they kept the motel in the same condition it was in 1968. They even had the same kind of cars parked out in the parking lot below his room that were there that date. Attached to the motel is the National Civil Rights Museum. We found it quite interesting that to get there, we had to drive past the Jefferson Davis Memorial Park.


Our next stop was the place Matt had been looking forward to the most in Memphis: Sun Studio, where Elvis, Carl Perkins, Johnny Cash and many others got their musical starts.

Before our tour started, we had a snack in the cafe.


Karl got to sing into a microphone that was actually used by Elvis Presley!


Sun Studio is still an active recording studio, and has all the original acoustic tiles and the same setup (with updated equipment of course) that was there in the 1950s.

After lunch, it was time to head to Steve and Megan's! As we've been driving south, it's been like being in a movie where the seasons change really quickly. We started out in snowy, freezing temperatures with bare trees, then watched the trees start budding as we drove through Missouri, and now we're in the middle of summer with hot air and bright green trees and blooming flowers. Today is a much-needed down day for us, so I think I'll go work on my tan now.

Alabama Road Trip Part 1: St. Louis

Yesterday we took off on our big road trip to the South. We woke the kids up at 4:00 am, they slumbered excitedly out to the car, and we started driving away from the snow in 32° weather.

This is what we left behind:

The kids were well prepared for the 12-hour car ride to our first destination, St. Louis. It was a grueling drive, but they were absolute troopers. Not a single complaint. Of course, the calisthenics we did at each break seemed to help take the edge off their restlessness. ("Ok, let's do some jumping jacks! Now stand up on your tippy toes and reach high while you turn in circles! Now run to the car!")

We got to St. Louis a couple hours before dinnertime. We knew we wanted to visit the City Museum, which is a crazy madhouse of fun for kids and adults alike. We also knew that last night was probably our only chance to go, so Laura and Karl spent the evening climbing through tunnels, watching acrobats, playing on a huge outdoor sculpture of a playground, and walking 10-flights of spiral staircases through a cave in order to slide down a 10-story slide (I chickened out about halfway down and made my way back down).


By the end, Karl's energy had plum worn out and he crashed. Hard. Unfortunately our visit ended on a bad note with exhausted kids, so I'm not sure how they'll remember the visit to the City Museum. They'll either remember the super fun they had playing, or the scary cave excursion and playground mishaps. Either way, it was a very interesting place to visit. And both kids overcame their fear of heights and conquered the huge slide!


After a great night's sleep (those kids fell asleep FAST) and a maple syrup-filled breakfast, we were ready for the highlight: the Gateway Arch.


The kids were very excited to actually TOUCH the arch.

We took a tram inside the arch to the very top. Matt was not so sure (we all have this fear of heights issue), but we made him go. He and Laura closed their eyes all the way to the top (even though the little pods just had tiny windows that looked out into the inside of the arch so you couldn't even tell how high you were). At the top, we got out of the tram and got to look out the small windows that overlook St. Louis. Laura and Karl would like to inform you that they were higher than the Statue of Liberty and the Washington Monument!


Here are some views from the top of the Arch:


Matt didn't actually see any of these views, because he refused to look out the windows. In fact, he said just seeing those pictures made him sick. He sure looked sick while we were up there...

After our ride, we went back outside into the beautiful spring weather. Laura had had enough running by then, and decided to take a break in the arch's shadow.

We continued our journey by driving on to Memphis, where we are right now. Tomorrow promises to be another exciting day, so stay tuned for updates!

Readers’ Theater

This morning, Karl's first grade class presented “Readers’ Theater”—short plays, but since the kids are newly minted readers, they read from a script rather than memorizing their lines.

Karl played the part of the Big Bad Wolf in “Little Red Riding Hood,” and he did an OUTSTANDING job. See for yourself:



Karl was justifiably proud after his performance.


Grandma was there to watch Karl...


...and she snapped this picture of the two of us.


You did a great job Karl!