Lincolnpalooza

 Today we had an adventure in Springfield.  It was all day, all Abe.  We allowed The Kid to bring his cousin.  I never want to visit another museum unless these two boys are with us.  From the time we got in the car for our 2 hour drive, it was a learning event.  In the car we played Presidential Trivia.  I bought them journals.  They started working on those last night.  Look at their faces in these pictures.  They love to learn.  It is an amazing thing to watch.  The only time during the entire day they got a bit bored was driving around the cemetery.  Hubby and I LOVE old cemeteries and this one is amazing.

Our second stop on the tour was a visit to Abe's house.  We stopped by the information center.  The boys were given books to complete to become Junior Rangers.  Right up their alley. 

 This was inside Abe's house.  Yes, I did buy The Kid a new hat.  Offered to get one for his cousin too.  He declined.  They hung on the Ranger's every word. 

 Here they are having their books checked so they could get their Junior Ranger books.  Rangers and tour guides love these boys. 

 Here they are waiting to interview the Ranger.   He was a grumpy old guy.  He did not appreciate what he had in front of  him.

 Sorry girls, you are going to have to wait.  These boys have questions to ask.  If you are wondering if the boys even noticed other kids on the tours, No.  They only have eyes for facts. 

 Journals in hand it is time for the Main Attraction.  The Lincoln Museum.  The Cousin was the only one of us that had been at the museum before. 

 Inside the museum waiting for a show to start.  These boys are not going to waste a minute of their time.  They have notes to take.

 Waiting for another show to start.  The shows are fantastic.  Between the shows and the displays the history is so much more interesting and easy to follow for all ages.  Normally, I am not into history or museums.  I really enjoyed it.  We went through a couple displays a second time. 

 Here they are in the center of the museum standing by the penny that is in the floor.  This is the end of the day and they are still having a good time.

 The Kid asked Hubby to stand next to Abe so he could check their heights.  Normally, this would not have been something Hubby would have done.  For these kids, anything.  He was "in love" with sharing the day with the boys.  Someone that enjoyed sharing history with him.
                                          
 Everyone needs to go to this museum.  It is so amazing.  The displays are so real.  This is outside the White House.  There is a scene in the White House of Mary Todd Lincoln sitting in a darkened room mourning the death of her son, ripped my heart out.

 There was an entire room dedicated to dresses of the era.  I loved this dress.  You will not see a picture of the boys and their journals in this display.  They breezed right by the dresses.

 We were almost the last people out of the museum.  We spent about 3.5 hours.  I think you can calmly see everything in 4 hours.  Sometimes the boys rush.  We were fine with that.  After the museum there were a few more places to see.  We walked over to the Old Capital Building.   The great thing about today was, no crowds.  Had it been about 20 degrees warmer, we would have done more walking. Look how beautiful this building is.

 I stayed in the car while the boys checked out the Capital Building.  It was starting to rain.  It was cold.  I was tired.  They were still going strong.  The last place we drove by was the Governor's Mansion.  It looks empty.  Not well cared for.  Did not waste my time with a picture.

Hubby said they build museums for these boys.  He had the best time listening to their questions.  It is not just that they are smart, (but they are smart), they love to learn new things.  If they could have had their own private tour guide, they would have been over the moon.  One volunteer did take an interest in them.  She took them through a display.  I was so proud to be with them.  I never want to go through a museum without them.  Part of our fun was watching and listening to the boys ask questions and discuss what they were seeing.  They understand so much from the Lincoln era.  We were so impressed. 

Hubby said, "Didn't it remind you of the time we took our kids to Thomas Edison's home and laboratory?"  That made us laugh and laugh!