Trip to Illinois

My grandfather, Wayne McKinstry turned 75 this weekend. He invited our family and my mom’s brother’s family to visit him for his birthday.

Friday, September 4

We couldn’t leave until Luke got done with his last OTC class at 2:00 PM. My dad snuck this photo of him waiting for us.

We ate supper at a Chick-Fil-A in st. Louis. My meal included a free large mac and cheese because earlier in the week the Chick-fil-a on Glenstone had forgotten to include a medium mac and cheese we had ordered. (We don’t usually eat at Chick-fil-a twice a week, but we got a new roof on Wednesday and were traveling on Friday, so it happened.)

Scenic bridge crossing the Mississippi.

We arrived at our hotel, Springhill Suites around 7:30 and didn’t end up seeing any extended family until the morning.

Saturday, September 5

On Saturday morning we found my cousins from Virginia at the hotel breakfast. We hadn’t seen anyone from their family since June of 2024 when my dad and I went to DC for History Day.

We went to Grandpa’s house for the morning where Luke and Sawyer played Slap Jacks.

In the afternoon we went to a kid’s science museum called the Kidzeum. I am proud to say I am the one who discovered that this existed.

It included a human body that could be climbed in.

Luke and my father spent a while at the erosion water table.

This exhibit was something about getting enough exercise.

Luke and I sat in a NASA space ship.

After the Kidzeum just our family and Grandpa went to the old state capitol and viewed the room where Abraham Linclon delivered the “house divided” speech.

Back at Grandpa’s house Sawyer played more slap jack this time with his dad.

After dinner, Grandpa blew out his birthday candles.

Isaac and Sawyer enjoyed the cake.

Back at the hotel, everyone under the age of 20 took a swim. (My mother actually got in for just a few minutes.)

Sunday, September 6

Our hotel had an impressive oatmeal bar at breakfast.

We went to Grandpa’s church Western Oaks. This is the same church my mother went to in high school.

After church a kind lady took a group photo of us.

We went to a restaurant called Portillos for lunch.

We went back to the hotel and my dad and I walked to a nearby sports complex. There was an inflatable dome with courts inside. I’d never seen anything like it.

In the afternoon, we went to the Henson Robinson Zoo. It was small but kept everyone entertained. We took an extremely slow pace and probably spent longer than most people.

Luke and Reid took some selfies with a goat.

Sawyer and Isaac really wanted to ride the zoo train and their dad obliged paying $2 each. They sat in different cars as far apart from each other as they could. I thought the train was a little pathetic since it didn’t even have a track.

After the zoo, we went to a store called Scheels. It is like a cross between Bass Pro and Academy Sports.

There is a large fish tank which is leaning into the Bass Pro side. They also have a large stuffed animal display. As for the merchandise, the focus is on sports gear a d clothing, leaning into Academy Sports.

We decided to ride the Ferris wheel for $1 per person, but the cashier was too lazy to take anyone’s money, so we got to ride for free.

We ended up riding in two shifts.

My mother and her brother Dave shared a seat thanks to the urging of their children. After the ride I asked if it transported them back to their youth and Uncle Dave said it brought back lots of memories he didn’t have.

My mother and I compared reports, and it seems that my cousin Hadley and I had a lot more to say on our Ferris wheel ride than she and her brother did.

The actual ride was very short and most of the time was spent getting on and off. But it was free so we can’t complain.

In the evening we went back to Grandpa’s house and didn’t do much.

Monday, September 7

September 7 is Grandpa’s actual birthday. We all went out to eat at a restaurant called Le Peep before going our sperate ways.

We had to wait a while before we were seated. This gave everyone a chance to socialize and read the menu.

Le Peep was very busy and seemed to primarily serve an older demographic.

The food was very good and had generous portions. Sawyer and Isaac both had a “silly face” pancake form the kids menu.

A fellow restaurant customer offered to take a group photo. After we finished eating everyone said they final goodbyes and headed towards their respective homes.

On the way home we briefly stopped at a site called Cahokia Mounds, which is on the Illinois side of st. Louis. An individual could spend all day here, but we only stayed around 30 minutes.