We were up and moving by nine.  At Grant’s home we had our first “asphalt picnic”.  We didn’t intend to eat out of the van in the parking lot.  Scott asked Brooke if she wanted a snack, and before we knew it we were eating for an hour.  We found a beautiful park five minutes down the road. :-)

I discovered last night that Cody is a big fan of canned green beans.  He wasn’t even waiting for me to cut them up, he was mashing them faster then I could give them to him.  He hasn’t been a fan of frozen beans or even fresh beans.  I am doing my best to make sure the kids are staying hydrated and eating their fruits and veggies.

Brooke is working hard to say the word Mississippi.  She was doubly excited to pass over the Mississippi River twice today, once into Iowa and then back into Wisconsin.  Cody has now been to three states.

Scott finally found the fuse to turn off the interior lights on the van.  We discovered last night that the fridge/ cooler combined with the lights gave the van battery a limited life of three hours.  Scott turned the van on just in time.  It moaned a little while we crossed our fingers, but then it turned over like a champ.  We decided to unplug the cooler overnight and our milk was still cold for breakfast.

Around one o’clock today Scott discovered the Grant River Recreation Campground.  The campground gave us a stunning view of the Mississippi and gave the kids some much needed stretch time.  Cody ate some rocks and Brooke tried to swing to the other side of the Mississippi.  We stayed for about an hour and as Brooke sang, “On the Road Again.”