A day in Lincoln Country

Sarah had completed a very in-depth report last year about Abraham Lincoln's life. When I discovered that his home of Springfield was quite close to our travels in Illinois, I couldn't resist taking the family there. It would be a perfect extension of her studies. We rented a cabin with 2 lofts and brought along Nathan's brothers Adam and Sam.

I love renting cabins for our trips instead of doing hotels. We prefer the KOA campgrounds and have never had a bad experience in the few years we've used them. The cabins are always clean and I love the fact that customers bring their own bedding. I never have to wonder if the sheets are actually clean. The campgrounds also have playgrounds for children (Have you ever seen a hotel have that?), fun games to check out at the front desk, swimming pools, mini golf, and other fun activities. I LOVE the porch swing that is a staple at every KOA cabin. Who doesn't feel drawn to swing on a porch for a while and listen to birds?

This particular campground was fantastic. It was nestled in some beautiful tall woods. That alone is a great selling point to me....I love being in nature and out of the city.

They had a great swimming pool that we all enjoyed for a few hours.

Our favorite part was an AIR PILLOW. I had never heard of this before. It's a giant inflatable rectangle that you can jump on, very similar to a trampoline. It was SO much fun!

The children really loved roasting marshmallows by the fire. Daniel was so eager for the candy that his method was modified by haste. He would promptly thrust the roasting stick deep into the flames so the marshmallow would immediately catch fire. He'd blow out the flames and eat the burnt-outside-raw-inside candy in delight. He never had the patience to discover the pure joy of perfectly-toasted marshmallows! Luckily for Dan, Matthew was generous enough to toast several marshmallows into perfection and share with him.

We enjoyed playing games in the lofts late into the night. I love being with family! It's so deeply rewarding!

When we were visiting Springfield, Sarah decided to do the Junior Ranger program (Lincoln's home is a National Park site, so remember to look into the JR program there.). The Lincoln Home Tour was particularly educational. I loved it!

Our family going into Lincoln's home

 We explored a historic district hosted by costumed interpreters. There were some ladies demonstrating laundry techniques of the 1860's. They sweetly asked Sarah if she would like to try doing the laundry, to which she replied, "Sure, but I already know how to do it. I teach people how to do laundry at my farm, too! I washed all the clothes I could find in our cabin" Ah well. We had fun anyway.

A really fun part of the district was learning how to play children's games of the period. This was the first time I've seen 'Graces' played, even though I've read of it several times. It was very fun, so we purchased a set for ourselves to play at home.

There is so much more to see and do in Springfield (Lincoln's tomb, the Presidential Library, several history and art museums, etc) we could have spent a few days there. Unfortunately, the children spent the entire day repeating one thing: "We want to go to Grandma Kingsley's house! Can we leave yet?" 

I was very disappointed to leave Springfield so soon, but honestly I couldn't be angry at the children. Grandma Kingsley's home is so magical and heavenly, I can't blame them for wanting to go there without delay. Everything else pales in comparison with her home. 

I want my home to be just like hers.