Day 2: Where are we now?

Man, am I beat. It has been a LONG day, but quite enjoyable.

The kids did a lot of their school work in the room this morning while I took a walk around the area. I am determined to continue exercising while we are on this trip lest I move up a waist size.

We got going around noon and set course for St. Louis. I did not realize that the mountains/hills went this far north. On top of that, we noticed that the leaves were beginning to turn, making the scenery that much better.

Arriving in St. Louis, we made a beeline for the St. Louis Gateway Arch. It was a good thing, because we were one of the last ones to make it to the top before they closed for the day. It was quite a site, and I would post our own photos except for the fact that I forgot my compactflash card reader at home. Doh! I\’ll pick one up at Wal*Mart tomorrow.

Rather than camp out in St. Louis, we decided to get another start on tomorrow by driving into Illinois. We ended up in Jacksonville, a pleasant little town just a bit southwest of Springfield (tomorrow\’s destination).

This evening, I had the opportunity to be a guest on the nationally syndicated, Online Tonight with David Lawrence. We spoke of the trip, technology and blogs, among other things. I\’ll be doing a weekly call to his program to keep him posted on our exploits.

As for now, I am pooped. Heading to bed and eager to start a new day. We plan on going to Beardstown to visit a friend of Mary\’s, Springfield to learn more about Abraham Lincoln, and Champaign/Urbana, to visit my old University stomping grounds. I\’m sure the kids will be fascinated to see where I wasted the better portion of four years.