On Vacation!!!

Today we started our trek home. We said goodbye to Glendive for this time and drove across North Dakota and into Minnesota.  Our first stop this morning was Udderly Cool-   Salem Sue. She is a giant roadaide cow. We visited her a few years ago and wanted to stop again ;).  Then, we made our way to Bismarck, North Dakota to the North Dakota Heritage Museum. We were impressed! We spent a lot longer at the museum than we anticipated.  One of the exhibits was of a mummified dinosaur! "Dakota" is a juvenile Edmontosaurus.  After our dinosaur look alike contest in Glendive, we opted for a fish look alike contest in Bismarck.  We grabbed a quick bite to eat, and then we were off again.... with a short stop in Jamestown to see the world's largest Buffalo.  The live buffalo were difficult to see. With the heat, we thought perhaps they were in the trees/shade.  Then we drove

Today was the big day!!! We joined the Minnesota Mineral Club and had an awesome time digging for Dinosaurs at the Baisch Ranch.  It was a hot day to be digging- 99 degrees at some point. There was a nice breeze most of the day though.  We all found something... various bone fragments... gar scales, agatized wood, pieces of turtle shell, ...... Steven found a triceratops tooth. Steve found a pretty cool vertebrae.  Someone else with the club found the jaw bone of a T-rex!!! It was pretty amazing to see.  Overall, it was a pretty amazing day digging! 

Today we drove across North Dakota and into Montana.  Our first stop was the Barnes County Historical Society Museum.  We were pleasantly surprised with how many interesting artifacts they had... in addition to their dinosaurs.  Our next stop was the Badlands Dinosaur Museum.  Although some of us had been there before, it was still an awesome stop.  I really enjoy that their displays are diverse and many of them are in the sand.  We kept on cruising to fit everything in today. The boys wanted to make it to Glendive before the museum closed there.  Some of the boys tried to "twin" one of the dinosaurs. Who is the best dinosaur doppleganger?? After the museum, we went straight to the Hell Creek Music Store.  Damian found a guitar he decided he needed to bring home.  We rounded off the night with dinner at Penny&#

Today we made the trek through 4 states to Fargo, North Dakota.  Not much to share, except for car photos, sounds of snoring and giggling from the back seat!  Tomorrow will have more sites and exciting things to share! This trip we have a total of 9 people and 2 vehicles, hoping Saturday's dig is fruitful!  Today's state count: 4 Michigan-Wisconsin-Minnesota-North Dakota

We woke up to overcast windy weather in Schaumburg, Illinois this am. We didn't have any attractions on our docket today, just shopping and driving home.  We made a quick stop at IKEA and then made our way north. By our first stop, I needed to haul out my winter coat. The roads were clear and it was smooth sailing home, but I was really missing our southern sunshine and temperatures.  Last night at the hotel, I sent some of our trip photos in to be printed with 1 hr service so I could update our map as soon as we got home- 3 new states! Allan started researching another trip back to Arkansas.  We made it home to sun, cold, and snow. Hopefully spring will be here soon!  Until next time..... Today's State Count 3: Illinois- Wisconsin-Michigan Trip State Count 7: Michigan-Wisconsin-Illinois-Missouri-Arkansas-Oklahoma-Arkansas-Tennessee-Arkansas-Missouri-Illinois-Wisconsin-Michigan 2626 miles. 

We woke up to sunshine in Marion, Illinois this morning and we drove a couple of hours to Casey, Illinois. Casey is a small town with HUGE roadside attractions... like the world's largest rocking chair.  We found a giant pokeball!!!  It was a great day to walk around town and check out all of the big things... There was a pretty cool rock shop in town, and we tried fresh pretzels from Tetzel Prime. They were delicious! Then we drove to Schaumburg for the night. The weather has kind of scary- high winds and pelting rain. After we had some dinner and a quick trip to the mall we hunkered down at our hotel.  Today's State Count 1- Illinois Trip State Count 7: Michigan-Wisconsin-Illinois- Missouri-Arkansas-Oklahoma-Arkansas-Tennessee-Arkansas-Missouri-IIllinois