Every time we travel as a family, we get a new set of challenges and learn a ton along the way. Austin has gotten to the point where he likes to run around and explore everything. He also has his opinions. He doesn't hesitate to let us know his opinions, too. This trip has probably been the most challenging so far.
Many people think we're a bit crazy for taking these kinds of trips. They often view taking a young child on a cross-country trip as an impossible task. While it is definitely challenging, it isn't impossible. It's actually pretty manageable with the right preparation and mindset.
For us, we value being able to see family and friends. Being able to do that overcomes any obstacles and frustrations we have along the way. I also like to get perspective from traveling. When you travel as a family, you definitely get perspective on things. Things can be done much differently in different parts of the country.
On our first trip with Austin, our main thing was ensuring we had good stopping points. Austin was still bottle-fed. This made it easy to have everything in order and stop at regular intervals. On our second trip, Austin could eat the same food we did. That allowed us to be more flexible with our stops. On the other end, he was now mobile, so we had to keep a greater eye on him. He did seem content with a small play area as long as he had toys.
On this trip, Austin is fully mobile. He can run and is getting faster by the day. He is no longer content in a small play space. He wants to explore the whole room if we let him. We have to really keep an eye on things to make sure he stays out of trouble. Overall, he isn't very picky with food. He is also more flexible with his schedule.
We can explore a little more because of this. We do have to keep it within reason because he can get grumpy fast and loudly share his discontent. That loudness in a confined space can wear you out a bit.
With the greater flexibility, we decided we'd take a different route. We had initially planned to go to Austin, TX, and visit friends before heading to Bryan. Nobody was available, so we had some extra time. We planned to go through Illinois, Missouri, Arkansas, and Louisiana. This is instead of our usual route on I35.
Before the trip, I took the 6-hour round trip to Marshfield so my parents could watch Maya while we were gone.
When we arrived, Maya jumped on the bed and hung out with Jordy.
When I got home, I made a Pep's Taco Pizza.
The following day, we loaded up the car.
We stopped at Kwik Trip for gas. I saw a Tesla parked at the pump, so I wondered what they were stopping for.
After a few uses, the strap broke on the 20L MOLLE backpack I bought. I guess they all can't be winners.
I tied it together to make it work in the meantime. I'll have to see if I can more permanently repair it.
We drove past the Belleville High School. It appears it was bring your tractor to school day.
We then hit the highway. We had a way to go, and Victoria was driving.
We took a back way into Illinois. The only way we knew we were in Illinois was that the road had slightly changed.
Before you knew it, we were on the interstate.
We stopped at a rest stop along the way. They had a nice playground, so we let Austin play to expel some energy.
When we hit the road again, there was a sign about not crowding the snowplows. This would be a pre-cursor for later in our trip.
Our lunch stop would be in LaSalle, Illinois.
We looked at a few places but settled for Mickey's Massive Burritos. I'm glad we ended up there since they lived up to their name, and the food was delicious!
We hit the road and went over the Illinois River. I've bowfished on this river several times and passed under this bridge in a boat.
After the river, we got to the area of Illinois that is flat, nothing.
Austin was getting fussy on and off, so I rode in the back with him.
We drove until it was snack time. We stopped at another Illinois rest stop.
I always love passing by Country Classic Cars. Since Austin could be distracting, I made sure to watch for it on the map.
It is always cool to see what they have outside. I need to stop again one of these days!
We were soon in Belleville, Illinois. We had literally driven from Belleville (WI) to Belleville (IL)!
I saw a massive cathedral.
Since I hadn't visited the St. Clair County Courthouse, we stopped there. It was nice being able to claim another county.
We then went to the Hampton Inn in O'Fallon.
The room was nice and big. This would definitely be good for Little Dude to run around in.
He has also learned how to open doors with the lever handle. We made sure the door was secured so he couldn't wander out.
I saw that they were taking a more zero-waste approach to the toiletries.
Overall, we're finding Hamptons to be a bit more toddler-friendly. Besides pushing the microwave buttons, there wasn't much he could get into. We were able to fix that by putting his pack 'n play in front of it.
For supper, we decided to get some St. Louis-style BBQ. This place was right next to our hotel, so it made it easy to get there.
They had an interesting assortment of sodas and sauces.
I got some ribs and cheesy hashbrowns. They definitely hit the spot.
We can came back to the hotel. I noticed there were some people who traveled further than us. I always find it interesting to see Canadian plates.
We watched some cartoons before getting ready for bed.
The nice thing is that with the extra room, it was easy to locate the pack 'n play a little way from our beds.
We also figured we could sleep in a bit. I usually get up at 6:30, but I was able to set my alarm for 7:00.
The next morning, Austin had a great time looking out the window. He liked seeing the water, or “Lala” to him. He also enjoyed seeing the various animals and people walking.
The breakfast area was packed, so we found a nook off to the side.
There was a nice variety, and the breakfast was delicious.
After breakfast, we hit the road and made our way into St. Louis.
Victoria found a parking garage and reserved a spot before this. This would make it easy to walk to The Arch.
We made it to the courthouse. It looks like there was work being done on it.
We then made it to the Arch. The weather was less than ideal, but it was still awesome to see.
We got closer to the Arch. It's always awe-inspiring to see it.
We got back to the car and stopped at a park. This would be a good chance for Austin to run around before the next portion of our trip.
We then made our way back to the car. We had a nice view of the Mississippi River.
The parking garage system was interesting. You load an app and pay. Since that's the only time we'll park there, it's one more app I'll have to delete later.
We then hit the highway and worked our way to Crystal City. We passed under the massive road cuts.
Our lunch stop was at Taco Bell in Crystal City.
Victoria got some type of burrito, and I got nacho fries.
After that, we explored the town a bit. I liked the houses.
The courthouse was impressive!
We then headed south on US-61. We saw a TON of semis.
It wasn't a fun road to drive on. It also gave us a bit of a scare. While going over a hill, we almost ran into the back of a semi, since we couldn't see it until we were over.
We made it to the courthouse. It appears there was a bit of work being done on it, too. I didn't mind, though, since it took everything to get there.
While the trip over the hill was a bit scary, the town was interesting. I especially enjoyed the murals.
From there, we made our way to Jonesboro, Arkansas. Here's the courthouse there.
After that, I rode in the back with Austin while Victoria drove through Arkansas.
Our next courthouse stop was in Camden, Arkansas. We took a slight detour to see a historic building.
We then crossed the border into Louisiana.
Of course, some of the car was getting dirty. We all enjoyed the ride through Louisiana, though.
We drove through quite a bit of farmland on the way to Natchitoches Parish.
When we got there, it was getting dark, so the pictures weren't the best.
We checked into the hotel and got dinner from Arby's since we've been to the other local places.
I got a large half-pound roast beef and Victoria got a whole half chicken. The food was good, especially since I hadn't had Arby's in a while.
After that, we went back to the hotel.
The room was so nice! It was pretty big and seemed very toddler-friendly.
The bathroom had the refillable toiletries.
The room also had a recycling bin.
It's still a double bed room, but the open desk/closet design makes it feel like there's way more room. Along with the window overlooking the desk, there weren't a ton of places for Austin to get into. I was able to work while he played relatively safely around me.
This was also one of the first places where Austin slept decently well. There was enough room to put the pack 'n play further from our bed, and the air conditioner wasn't overly loud.
The next morning, Austin looked out the window for about an hour before Victoria was ready.
The lobby/dining area was also unique and toddler-friendly. There was a lot of space between the tables and booths.
The food was laid out well, too.
I got my usual: eggs and sausage.
After breakfast, I stopped at the Starbucks in Bryan to get a coffee. I'm not a coffee person, but it was nice to have something I could sip on the way to College Station.
We then made it to College Station, our destination for the next few days. We headed to the Brazos County Courthouse. We made it in time for us to cross over the river for the courthouse.
The Courthouse in Bryan, Texas, is within walking distance of the old one.
After that, we went to Little Rock so we could go to the zoo. On our way, we drove past the state capitol.
At the zoo, we got an annual pass. It was barely more than getting single-day tickets, so it made sense to get it.
We saw a few animals; one of them was a lion.
The Heritage Farm was super cool. They had a lot of Arkansas animals there.
Austin loved the goats!
They also had their Christmas lights up, and it was super cool to walk through. I think Austin enjoyed the “tunnel” of lanterns.
After that, we got back on the highway and drove through Texas.
We went through a lot of little towns. One of them had their Christmas decorations up.
Overall, I enjoyed seeing the different little towns we passed through.
For lunch, we stopped at a Wendy's.
Along the way, we saw another courthouse.
At one stop, we saw this sign in the restroom.
Austin also liked to show off his feet.
We visited another courthouse.
I watched for gas prices along the way since we had plenty of gas. They were way better than they had been up north. I waited until we got to College Station and then filled up. I even found the cheapest gas station via a Google search.
We made it to the hotel and checked in.
The next day, we drove to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, to visit Victoria's uncle. We stopped at a gas station that had good Wifi.
While we were on the trip, there was so much flat land.
We made it to Baton Rouge and visited the courthouse.
Victoria's uncle was at his store, so we did that. We ate at his house. Then, we checked into the hotel in Baton Rouge.
The bathroom had the Dove dispensers.
For supper, we went to Sam's Southern Eatery.
I got a Philly Cheese Steak.
Austin got some fried chicken, and Victoria got some catfish. After all was said and done, we took some home for the next day.
We passed by an interesting store the following day.
We got to the hotel for breakfast. I got eggs and sausage as usual.
Austin liked watching PAW Patrol.
We hit the road and passed this business.
Before long, we were back in Texas.
For lunch, we stopped at Newk's Eatery.
I got some shrimp po'boys.
Austin was excited to be back in the car.
We passed the restaurant where we ate the previous time in Natchitoches.
We also saw rain along the way.
We lost service in some locations.
When we got back to the hotel, we went to find the courthouse. It was a bit tricky to find.
We then drove back to College Station and stopped at Walmart.
Thanksgiving Day arrived, so I drove Victoria's mom to the La Quinta in College Station.
I got her luggage out and got her checked in.
The room was amazing!
They had snacks for the Wyndham Rewards members.
The bathroom had Dove toiletries.
We then went back to Victoria's grandma's place. For lunch, I ordered a taco from Chipotle.
We had a good visit. I also did a Google search to find a map of changing tables. When it couldn't find any, I ended up finding out that there's a website where people can share info on changing tables.
Back at the hotel, Austin liked looking out the window.
We ended up packing a lot of stuff for Austin. Thankfully, the hotel room was big enough for him to spread it all out.
The next day, I got my usual for breakfast: eggs and sausage.
Victoria had her stuff spread all over the vanity.
It was our last day in town. Before we hit the road, I looked at the weather.
We then got ready to leave the hotel. Austin was watching Peppa Pig.
For lunch, we stopped at Layne's Chicken Fingers. It seemed like a good spot.
We got two orders of chicken fingers.
Victoria gave me some of her leftovers.
When we got to the hotel, it was late, so we set up the pack 'n play.
The next day, we went to Victoria's grandma's for Thanksgiving. I had some catfish and onion rings for lunch.
We then went back to the hotel. Austin looked out the window.
The next morning, I got my usual for breakfast.
After that, we took Austin to Central Park. The weather was excellent!
Austin had a blast climbing the ramp.
They had a neat lightning alert system.
It was cool to see him explore the playground.
For lunch, we stopped at Fuego Tortilla Grill.
We got some chips and queso. They were delicious!
I got a breakfast burrito. It was also good!
Austin had some milk.
After that, we went to Walgreens to get some things for Austin.
We picked up some sippy cups.
For supper, we stopped at Rudy's BBQ and got some food.
I got some brisket with mashed potatoes.
It looked like we were going to get some snow on our way home.
The next morning, I looked out the window.
I then went down for breakfast. They had a nice setup.
I got my usual.
After that, we checked out and hit the road. We had lunch at Tia Juanita's Fish Camp.
It came with chips and sauces.
I got some shrimp tacos.
While we were in the area, we stopped by Kyle Field. It's the football stadium at Texas A&M.
After that, we got on the highway and were on the way back to Wisconsin.
For supper, we stopped at a local place and got some catfish.
We kept watching the weather along the way.
After we got back to the hotel, it was getting dark.
I put up a “Do Not Disturb” sign.
The next morning, I had my usual breakfast.
We watched the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.
We spent the day at Victoria's grandma's. Victoria's mom was making tamales.
We had a great meal! I particularly liked the Frito pie. I had never had it before.
After that, we went back to the hotel and watched the Packers game.
I was diligently monitoring the weather for the following day.
We got Austin to sleep, and then we crashed.
I was up periodically at night checking the weather to ensure we'd be clear to travel.
When I woke up, the weather was looking good.
I checked the weather one more time and saw we'd still be ahead of it. I also saw that they were doing a segment on it on TV.
I grabbed some beef sticks for us for the ride.
We hit the road. I stopped at HEB Grocery.
I filled up with snacks and drinks.
I also stopped at the HEB gas station and filled up. It was $2.79/gallon. I haven't seen that in a long time!
After that, we hit the road. We had a long way to go.
We drove through Waco and visited the courthouse.
Victoria took over driving from there.
We saw a bunch of Buc-ees signs along the way.
We also saw some construction for one.
At one point, we saw a traffic jam in the other direction.
We also saw a lot of toll signs.
It took us a while to get into Houston, and then it took us longer to get out.
We finally made it out and stopped for gas.
For supper, we stopped at Chicken Express.
Victoria and I got chicken dinners.
They also had spicy seasoning.
Before you know it, we were in Texas. This courthouse was one that we visited earlier in the trip.
Soon, we were in Oklahoma.
They definitely wanted to let you know there was no tolerance for the speed limits. With that being said, people didn't drive like there was no tolerance. Some were definitely Speed Racers.
OnCue is one of our favorite stops along the way. We stopped there for snack time.
I sat in the back with Austin as we drove into Kansas.
Of course, we ran into a traffic jam.
It also looked like there would be more snow in Emporia.
When we got to Emporia, we stopped at Spangles before heading to the hotel. It was a cool, old-fashioned restaurant.
I got a grilled chicken pita.
Victoria got chicken fingers.
There was plenty enough food so we each gave Austin some.
We then made it to the La Quinta.
This hotel was probably the oldest we went to. Last time, they put us in an accessible room, and it provided a ton of room. This time, the room was pretty compact, and there was a lot of stuff Austin could get into. We had to keep a very watchful eye on him.
We wonder if it's worth looking into accessible rooms in the future. It seems like they're better suited for toddlers. Sadly, we're on the fence since we don't want to end up taking a room away from someone who truly needs it.
While the hotel is older, the internet is pretty amazing.
The next morning, it appeared we'd still be ahead of the storm.
The last time we stayed, they had breakfast burritos. They didn't have it this time, so I got eggs and sausage.
We then checked out and stopped for gas.
Due to the colder temperatures, the air pressure light came on. I filled up the tires.
We hit the road, and Google warned us about the winter weather.
We were still pretty ahead of it.
It also appears that they were pretreating the roads.
Before you know it, we were in Kansas City.
For lunch, we stopped at Taco Bell in Bethany, Missouri.
We ate and then hit the road. We were soon in Iowa.
I sat in the back seat and realized how much the toys could pile up.
Our snack stop was at a Kum & Go. They are a pretty good chain overall. I really appreciated the family bathroom there.
After the snack stop, it was more riding in the back and monitoring the weather.
Our next stop was the Wisconsin Welcome Center. Victoria ordered a pizza from JonnyO's so we could pick it up on our way home.
We made it right at the pickup time we designated.
I was planning on leaving the next day to get Maya, but a snowstorm was predicted for our area. I skipped on pizza and had some meat and cheese for supper as I hit the road early for Marshfield.
I was happy I left early. The following day, the roads were nasty when I went to church.
My car also showed its cold bloodness. Even after driving about 10 miles into town, it hadn't fully warmed up. A 3-cylinder 1.0L is excellent for gas mileage but doesn't generate too much heat.
I parked and went inside.
After Mass, I headed to Kwik Trip. I decided to check out the new one.
I looked at the road gunk on my car and then got breakfast.
I visited with both of my grandmas. It looked like the storm was mainly past us.
I visited with my parents a bit, and then Maya and I hit the road.
The county roads were still bad.
I stopped to get something to eat along with the venison jerky my dad gave me.
Luckily, the main roads were clear.
While driving, I was able to listen to the sermon from the church Victoria and I attend.
I usually take US-12, but I didn't want to risk it. I took I90/94 back to Madison. Around Deforest, I saw a Buc-ee's sign. This is the furthest from a Buc-ees I've seen a sign. That being said, I think they're looking to monopolize the signs since they are building one in the area.
After a little more driving, I was soon back home!
There was a little snow for me to clean up.
Victoria said seeing all the counties I traveled through in November would be interesting. I had taken this trip and also the trip to Thunder Bay. It looks like I covered a lot of ground!
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Overall, the trip went well. I know we were all happy to be off the road. Austin seemed excited that he had way more room in our house to roam. I know we were excited that we could let him roam since everything is babyproofed. It's also just nice being in your own home where everything is in order.
Every trip we have, Austin seems to have a nice development leap. That's where there's a lot of value in travel. This time, he was starting to put phrases together. He got excited seeing semis. He'd proclaim, “Big truck!” It's awesome seeing him develop in this way.
One thing I noticed was that my right elbow kept getting sore on the trip. At first, I was trying to figure it out. I then realized I was sitting on the driver's side of the car, and Austin was on the passenger side. He was constantly throwing things. I'd be grabbing them and giving them back with my right hand. I guess I was getting a workout doing this, especially when I'd have to reach behind things.
I will say the tantrums in a close environment got to be exhausting. These are normal for his age, but it can definitely wear on a person. I'm glad I made it a priority to sleep as much as possible. I am also happy I paced myself with our meals since I didn't feel as weighted down by that.
I can't fault a toddler for being a toddler. I can fault businesses for not being toddler-friendly. I am disappointed that places are so hit-and-miss with things like changing tables. I never noticed this in the past, but now I'm especially sensitive. I'm glad some places have stepped up their game. I really appreciate them and will make sure to direct my business their way. Now, if other places would just follow their example.