We left Sunday afternoon and after we hit Aurora, MO, our GPS took us some funky way that ended up being very cool. Very scenic, lots of hills. We got to our hotel, which was a Lodge around 7pm and checked in. It seemed dead. No one was anywhere, not in the hotel, not on the roads. We realized we'd come in the off-season. Plus, it was a Sunday night, probably not a big night for all the crazies.
We headed out to find a restaurant and, unbeknownst to us, went the wrong direction. We found one non-chain restaurant, so that was where we ate. It was BBQ and also very dead. Our food wasn't fantastic, but we got some really good blackberry cobbler for dessert. After dinner, we went back to the hotel and I put on my maternity swimsuit for the first time (what fun that was). Adam's face said it all when he saw me in it. Beached whale maybe? We went to the hot tub and since preggos aren't allowed in hot tubs, I just put my legs in. We don't need documentation of the maternity swimsuit, so here's our hotel room. Looks a little 80s, but it was actually pretty nice. It even had a jacuzzi tub that I used but the jets were placed in strange places that weren't conducive to a back massage. :(
The next morning, we slept in a little, but the little guy isn't letting me sleep in a ton these days. He needed a restroom and FOOD. I soon discovered that our hotel did NOT have breakfast. GASP! I was cranky. We quickly showered and headed out to find breakfast. After Adam's first restaurant choice - Dockers, was closed, we found another little dive that had a buffet. Mmmm...french toast.
Our next stop was the Titanic Museum. We went on a 90-minute self-guided tour with headsets that had audio clips about different things. It was very interesting and very sad. The museum was located inside a building built to look like the ship, in half-scale. So we got to use the Grand Staircase! We touched an iceberg, and felt what 28 degree water is like...you could time how long you could keep your hand in it, and I didn't last long. It was crazy to learn all about what happened with the sinking and the timeline of how it all took place. Also crazy to see items that were recovered from the ship. Didn't realize we were about to get run over in this photo...
Next up was the Hollywood Wax Museum. We had...a little too much fun here. When you first go inside, they make you stand in this scene that looks like you're being crushed in the grip of King Kong and they take your picture. The guy taking the pictures kept trying to get people to scream out loud, like they were really being taken by King Kong. Everyone was too cool to actually do it. Everyone except my husband. On the count of 3, he screamed at the top of his lungs and even made a few people in the line jump. Way to go. We didn't buy the photo though. But we got lots of others!
After all that crazy fun, it was time for a late lunch. We went to McFarlain's, a restaurant that advertised sweet potato fries. I'm a sweet potato fry NUT. I could probably eat them every day. They were amazing.
Next we went to see the Alps, an IMAX movie. It was really cool, it was a documentary about a guy who was determined to climb the Eiger mountain because his dad had died trying to do that 40 years earlier. There were lots of crazy shots from the top of the mountain and flying over it. Sweet.
My baby (I like being able to blame everything on him) needed a nap after all that, so we headed back to the hotel and I slept awhile, while Adam enjoyed cable tv (which we don't have at home). We made another trip to the hot tub and got in the pool too. The pool was very heated, the perfect temperature, and felt great on my aches and pains.
After we changed and got ready, we headed out to find pizza. That was what I wanted. We found pizza, but it was not good. Think Cici's but about 10 times worse, inside an arcade, mini golf course, and kiddie play area. GROSS. Oh well, it was pizza.
Then we headed back to the IMAX theater to see the new Matt Damon movie, Green Zone on the giant screen. Sounds like a good plan, right? BAD idea. If you haven't seen this, it's filmed as if the guy holding the camera is just walking around, not stabilized on anything. Which might be okay on a regular screen. But on this giant screen, and for a person like me who gets motion sickness relatively easily, this was not a good combo. I got so nauseous and sweaty, I kept having to look away. As soon as I'd look back, it would start all over again. Since we were in the middle of a row of people, I didn't want to make a scene of leaving, so I laid my head back, closed my eyes, and took a nap. One of the advantages to being pregnant: being able to fall asleep almost anywhere. I got a pretty good nap in, and Adam woke me up when it was over.
We left Tuesday morning to head back and had a pretty uneventful trip home. Which was good! I love road trips, and I had a heating pad going for my aching back, so we were set. When we got home, I picked up the puppies from Adam's parents (thanks for dog-sitting), and Axl has been glued to my side ever since. He's such a big fat mama's boy, but I like it, so it's okay. :)
One more thing checked off the pre-baby checklist...and I'm nearing the third trimester. Weird!!
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