Hello blog buddies! Hope you all had a wonderful holiday weekend. We sure did! I'll just jump right into the recap!
Friday-
We left around noon to head to St. Louis, Missouri. It is about a 3 hour drive from our house. St. Louis is a very special city for us. We went there in 2004 when we had just begun dating and really fell in love with each other on that trip. Then, in 2005, Jason surprised me and took me back for a weekend getaway. At the end of the trip he proposed at the Botanical Gardens!
We have so many great memories of the city!
Anyway, Friday night we checked into our hotel, and got ready for dinner down the street at PF Changs. We enjoyed our meal and Lilli did fantastic. We sat outside in the shade on the patio and enjoyed the evening. L just loves to people watch...something she would do all weekend! We hit up Target for some goodies then came back to the hotel to swim.
The water was a bit cool, but she enjoyed it anyway. We came back and called it a night, knowing the weekend would be busy! She slept fine in her Pack N Play (thankfully we had a suite so she was in the living room) after crying initially when we put her down. Thank goodness for a good sleeper!
Saturday-
We got up, had yummy free breakfast and then had a shuttle take us to the
Zoo. Seriously, the best part of staying at our hotel was that we had a van that could take us whereever we wanted to go within a 3 mile radius. We were the only ones in the van, so it was like having a private driver! Then when we were ready to leave we just called them and he came and picked us up!
The Zoo was crowded and hot, but we enjoyed it. Such a good Zoo and the best part is that it is free! Here are some of my favorite pictures-
Lilli was decked out in her zoo outfit...
Thankfully, when it was her nap time, she just fell asleep!
Lilli and Daddy, circa 1918!
Riding in the van like a big girl!
Back at the hotel, she found fun in the pillows-
She also loved the cabinets. She's a mess.
We rested in the room, then headed out to the Boathouse for dinner. Of course, we had to get a family photo!
I wanted to mention that we had plans to eat dinner at this place called Crown Candy Kitchen. I had read about it on tripadvisor and knew it sounded like something we would enjoy. Even though I jotted down, "iffy neighborhood" on my directions, we didn't pay much attention to it. Well, after getting lost (because the road ENDED, literally, with no warning) we asked a cabby in a Walgreens parking (random!) how to get there. His reply, "well, it is in a rough area...wear a helmet. I'm not kidding." We took that as a sign that maybe we shouldn't go there! We had a good laugh about it, but I am still bummed I didn't get to try it!
Sunday-
We ventured out to
Grant's Farm, the 281-acre ancestral home of the Busch family. We had watched a TV show that featured the farm and I was so excited it was in St. Louis and we could visit it. It did not disappoint!
Lilli and Daddy fed the baby goats
We saw an animal talent show. She loved it, clapping and dancing with the music.
She had a blast on the carousel!
But the best part (for her AND me!) was seeing the Clydesdale horses. I couldn't wait to see them in person, and they were more beautiful than I imagined.
We even got to pet them! We loved this guy, named Jerry
I think Lilli wanted to climb that fence, I could barely pry her away!
She liked the baby one, I think.
I keep telling J that Lilli needs a pony. Really, I want a pony, but what's the difference?
Monday-
We had a hectic morning, due to the fire alarm going off in our hotel! Thankfully it was just an alarm and Jason and I were both awake, but I hated to get Lilli up before she was ready! (Although I would rather complain about that than an actual fire!!)
We drove out to our favorite place, the
Missouri Botanical Garden. If you haven't been there, you really should visit it soon. It is beautiful. This is our third trip there, and I still want to go back. You would have to go every month to see all the flowers in bloom.
Lilli loved these lights/balls
My favorite part of the MoBot, the Japanese Gardens
We fed these beasts, I mean fish, at the Jap. Gardens
And took lots of breaks to sit and enjoy our surroundings
Lilli found this fountain and although she didn't go through it, she had fun walking around the edge!
Finally, we made it to the Gladney Rose Garden, where Jason proposed. I wanted a picture of the three of us in our spot!
5 Years Ago:
and now:
Back in 2005, after the proposal, Jason took me to this area so we could sit and talk. I had a million questions for him, "when did you get the ring??" "how long have you planned this?" etc. Well, it wasn't until he started telling me how he had taken my parents out to dinner and asked my father for my hand in marriage that I finally lost it and started bawling. My dad had such a sweet answer and Jason was so proud for pulling it all together.
We sat here - and I cried like a baby!
Lilli wanted to play with the balls one last time
Then we said bye to the gardens!
And just like that, it was time to go home. :o( We had planned to go to a cute restaurant called Three Monkeys, but it was closed due to Memorial Day. So we drove around and finally ended up at Hooters by the Arch of all places. I think I stuck out like a sore thumb because the Cardinals were playing later that day and I had on no red! Oh well, Lilli loved the balloon the Hooter girl gave her and I'm sure Jason didn't mind the Hooter girl's balloons...hehe.
We can't wait to go back again!
