Week of October 25th – Illinois

It’s Illinois and that means Road Trip! What better way to celebrate the “Land of Lincoln” then to take a trip up the road to Springfield, IL. We’ve lived in St. Louis for over 30 years now and it’s a excursion we’ve never taken. It’s not exactly a bucket list item but certainly worthy of an afternoon trip.

But first we needed a plan. There was music to select for the ride and snacks to give us sustenance along the way. All Illinois inspired, of course.

But planning needed fuel, as well, so the search began for the best Chicago-style hot dog available in St. Louis. In case it’s not common knowledge a Chicago dog is an all-beef frank topped with mustard, chopped onions, sweet pickle relish (the neon green variety), a dill pickle spear, tomato slices, pickled peppers and a dash of celery salt. They say that this completed masterpiece has been "dragged through the garden" because of all the veggies included.

Another night of planning was nourished with a Chicago deep dish pizza but I’m partial to the dogs.

So with the CD changer loaded with Illinois natives, Miles Davis, Dan Fogelberg, Allison Krauss, Herbie Hancock and the soundtrack of the movie “Chicago” and an Illinois snack bag filled with Beer Nuts, Quaker Oats granola bars, mass quantities of Tootsie Rolls and Kraft favorites Oreos and Nutter Butters, we headed northeast to Abe’s hometown of Springfield. As luck would have it, it turned out to be a beautiful fall day and we were treated to the added perk of viewing the late changing leaves along the way.

The first stop was Lincoln’s home and a walk around his neighborhood. The size of his home was underwhelming but the tour guide entertained us with Lincoln anecdotes.

After a walk around downtown Springfield and a delightful lunch at Robbie’s we moseyed down to the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum. The buildings, attached by a skywalk, are beautiful examples of stature and grace in architecture. The holographic reenactments and the dioramas in the Museum were quite impressive and most educational. Sadly, we realized that we had missed an opportunity to take our son on an historical adventure when he was in Grade school.

On our way out of town we stop by Frank Lloyd Wright’s Dana Thomas House which seemed to be in the middle of the railroad tracks. Too late to see the inside though.

With violets, the Illinois state flower, gracing the table and Mike & Molly on TV we toasted Illinois, here’s to you Abe.

Color in Illinois with a salute to honest Abe, Tootsie Rolls and the Cubbies and head back west to Big Sky Country – Montana. 49 down – 3 to go.