The Midwest... It still feels like home!
The Midwest still feels like home. After being away from the Midwest for 40 years, just driving down the cornfield-lined highways makes me feel like I'm "coming home". Even though, the warm south has been home for more than 30 years.
I am from Springfield, Illinois but my family moved to SW Florida when I was 10. For the first several years after moving to Florida, most of our summer vacations were spent going back to Illinois to visit. For the last 30 years, though, I really only made it back to Illinois for weddings or family reunions.
August 2017 would have been my grandmother's 100th birthday. However, she passed away 7 years earlier. I come from a very large family and my grandmother was the heart of it.
A couple of my cousins who still live near Springfield thought that 2017 was a good year to get our family together in honor of what would have been our grandmother's 100th birthday. The reunion weekend was the last weekend in June.
There are more than 130 people in our family including my father and his siblings, my cousins and spouses and our children and their children. Nearly everyone was able to attend and it was very special to see everyone.
Heading Home to see Family
I decided to take both of my kids with me; my 25-year-old daughter and my 13-year-old son. My son had never been to Missouri, so this would allow us to check that state off of our 50 state journey.
We flew into St. Louis and planned to spend the following day visiting the St. Louis Arch, before heading into Springfield. We left for the airport with plenty of time to get us there an hour before takeoff.
As we were on the shuttle taking us from the parking lot to the baggage terminal I got an alert that our flight had been delayed. GREAT! We could have stayed at home a little longer before heading to the airport. Oh well, we'd make the best of it.
Flight Delays - Never fun!
The rest of my family were driving into Illinois because they were going to extend their trip into their summer vacations. I had to return home after the weekend because we had our annual vacation to the Keys planned for 3 weeks later. While sitting at the airport, I was regretting that I wasn't in one of the vehicles with my parents or siblings because our delay kept extending later and later.
We were finally able to board the plane, but it was looking grim that we'd make our connection in Atlanta. I was preparing for the likelihood that we'd be spending the night in Atlanta, getting to St. Louis the following day and potentially having to cancel our plan to visit the St. Louis Arch.
We landed in Atlanta with 10 minutes before the takeoff of our connecting flight. My daughter got off the plane first and realized the connecting gate was 2 gates away so she started running towards the gate and luck would have it that they were holding the flight for us. Whew! We boarded and were on our way to St. Louis. BUT, our luggage would not make it!
One Item I WILL NOT travel without!
Ever since this trip, with the flight delay - I will NOT travel without a small, under seat roller bag. One that is easy to manage at the airport.
I make sure to include any medicine that I can't go 24 hours without, in case of lost luggage. In addition, I'll pack any necessary clothing accessories to fit the weather at our destination, to be prepared to accommodate my outfit for a change in climate.
With this, I can deal, better with any delays or lost luggage for a day or so.
When we got to St. Louis, I had to go to the American Airlines baggage department to determine how to get our luggage once it arrived. This seemed like a real hassle - having to spend the night without any toiletries or a change of clothes, etc. But - we rolled with it and luckily, our luggage arrived early the following morning and it was surprisingly easy to pick up at the airport which was only 10 minutes from our hotel.
We were able to shower, change and start the adventure. I had visited the St. Louis Arch as a child before moving away from the Midwest but was seeing it again from the eyes of my kids.
St. Louis Arch - Iconic Monument
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St. Louis Arch -
Britt and Jane in front of the Arch -
My kids - St. Louis Arch
While we were at the top of the Arch, taking in the sights, the 'elevator - chair tram' broke. Yep, we were stuck at the top. It's much roomier than you would think, but there were a lot of people up there. The idea that we were stuck indefinitely was not a comfortable feeling. We tried to relax and see what we could see outside the windows.
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Alex at the top of the Arch -
The city of St. Louis from the top of the Arch
I had purchased tickets to ride to the top of the Arch, and then take a river cruise along the Mississippi River. Due to the delay at the top of the Arch, we missed our Riverboat ride. Once we got back to the bottom, we had to go to the ticket booth on the river to request a refund. All of the problems we were having, beginning with our flight delays was beginning to seem comical.
We decided to have lunch at a restaurant near the Arch and then head into Springfield. We were due to check into the hotel in Springfield around 5:00 and then hook up with my cousin.
During the drive, heading East on Highway 55... as we were beginning to drive past cornfields I had the strangest feeling... like I was home! I was born in Springfield and grew up in the country until I was 10.
From the age of 10 until now (with a few short stints living in other places) I have lived in Naples, Florida (40 years), but driving through the Midwest, passing the cornfields, farms, silos... the wholesomeness of this part of the country felt like HOME! It was odd for me, but very comforting.
I was getting very excited to see everyone. I've always felt so lucky to come from such a large, loving family. I couldn't wait to see my cousin, Liz.
My cousin, my best friend!
The following morning, my cousin (my favorite cousin and my best friend while growing up) and I met some old grade school friends for breakfast. I had not seen these girls for 40 years and truthfully, never felt close to them. My cousin was the popular girl in school - me, more her sidekick. But it was wonderful to see them again and catch up after so many years.
Reminiscing
The following day we were able to drive around and reminisce. My family (mom, dad, and siblings) took our kids to some of the places we used to enjoy when we lived in Springfield. Our favorite candy shop, Steak n Shake (it was in Springfield that we were first introduced to Steak n Shake), the area of town where my mom grew up, the part of town where I grew up, etc. It was wonderful to show our kids where our upbringing took place.
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Pease's Candy Shop -
Steak n Shake, Springfield
The next day was the day of the reunion. I was so excited to see family. I've always enjoyed seeing my family - immediate and extended and loved any reason to get together and visit. The reunion was at my aunt and uncles in their spacious back yard. There was good food, games, pictures and plenty of visiting.
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Fun with games
The reason for our existence...
My aunt and uncle live next door to the house my parents were living when I was born until I was around 3 years old. When I was a toddler, my grandparents lived next door so I was very close to them.
Exploring Springfield with my kids
The day we were to fly home, our flight was leaving St. Louis in the evening so I decided to drive around a little more before leaving Springfield. I really was not sure when I'd make it back. I decided to take my kids to a really cool park - Washington Park. It's huge and beautiful.
We drove around the park enjoying the beauty. I remembered having taken a picture of my 2 kids from 10 years earlier when we were in Springfield for my grandmother's 90th birthday - 2 years before she passed away. We decided to re-create the pic...
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2007 -
2017
This was a quick trip, but very fulfilling for me. So fun to see everyone! Tell me below - where do you feel most at home? Where you were born? Where you live now? I'd love to hear!
With Serenity,
