Gorsch Moment in Time: Springfield Vacation

August 2-3, 2016: We have been wanting to take the kids to Springfield for quite some time. Because we were not planning a big vacation this summer, we thought a quick trip to Springfield would be perfect. There is so much to do, it was hard to choose!

Day1: We left in the morning and arrived to Springfield around 11--we knew we had to hit up Charlie Parker's for brunch. The kids were excited to try the giant pancake and I was excited to have a horseshoe. It was perfect to fuel our sightseeing for the day! Next we went to the Illinois State Museum, we spent a couple hours here exploring the history of our state. The museum also had a nice interactive kids' area in the basement!

After the state museum we went over to the Old State Capital Building. We did a self-guided tour here. We had fun exploring and the kids enjoyed a brief social studies lesson from dad.

Next we went to Lincoln's tomb. We explored the grounds and walked through the tomb. Carver was so tired at this point, he feel asleep while Marc carried him! Of course each of the kids had to rub Lincoln's nose for good luck (I remember doing this on a school field trip when I was younger!)

We were excited to call it a day and chill out our hotel. We stayed at our favorite hotel chain--Drury Inn & Suites. The kids love that they can get popcorn and soda anytime. We also love their "kickback hour" for a quick & easy dinner. We enjoyed swimming until Carver pooped in the pool (gross and embarrassing!) then enjoyed some snuggles and cartoons before bed.

Day 2: We had breakfast at our hotel and started day 2 at Lincoln's home. We were excited to get a stamp in our National Passport. We had a tour of the house and enjoyed walking around the neighborhood to see other restored homes. The kids got to try washing some laundry the old fashioned way. For lunch we had a pizza at a cute little Italian restaurant in the downtown area.

Next up we went to see the current State Capital. We enjoyed the views outside and inside. We didn't do an official tour but we did lots of exploring on our own. The house and senate rooms were both open so we got to check them out from the balcony level. The building was incredibly beautiful!

It worked out for us that our trip fell on a Wednesday which happens to be when the Governor's Mansion gives public tours. We read that you could show up at specified times at the gate and be let in for a guided tour. Sure enough--we waited at the gate and they let us in! We got to explore the outside gardens while we waited our turn. We met a very nice security detail for the governor that used to work as a state patrolman... believe it or not, in Bowen--the tiny town I grew up in! He told the kids to stick their fingers in the coi pond and the coi fish would suck on them. They don't have teeth so it doesn't hurt. The kids were very freaked out at first but eventually they all gave it a try (I was a little freaked out as well--there were some BIG fish!) We enjoyed our tour of the Governor's mansion and learned some more fun facts about our great state.

Last up before heading home, we made a trip to Scheel's. We had never been to Scheel's in Springfield but heard it was pretty cool. We rode the giant Ferris wheel, shopped for shoes, played in the kids area, had some ice cream, and got a Starbucks for the road.

This trip was short and sweet. We definitely want to go back to Springfield again in the future--there is so much more we would love to do with the kids. For 2 days, we really packed a lot in (I'm a little amazed just writing it all!)

Charlie Parker's: