Leaving kids behind

 We had left our sliders open that night and geese honking woke us up early.  As I spent time with the Lord, I thanked Him for the time we had with our family and thanked Him that His eyes are on us.  I asked that we would all walk faithfully with Him and grant us safety as we all would be traveling that day.  "Continue to instruct us and teach us in the way we should go."

We ate up what food was left in the fridge and packed some to take with us.  Jill took most of what was perishable since they'd be home in 2 hours.  Mindy's were flying and Josh's and us would need to stay in hotels.  We all packed our suitcases.  Claire was getting last snuggles with Tenley.

One more "Ring Around the Rosie".

We all gathered in the "treehouse" and Papa told everyone he enjoyed us all together.  Several of us prayed and Papa closed with a prayer of blessing over the family.

Mindy's family was waiting to leave until last minute as their flight out of Madison was later that afternoon, but the rest of us needed to head out.  We met at Macs for lunch before leaving for our homes.  Josh's were going back to Arkansas via St. Louis.  (We had taken Emeri up the arch last year.)

We would be going to South Dakota for a little adventure, and Emeri was going home with Jill's family as Emeri and Sophia were going to be camp counselors at a church camp that coming week.

Macs - a good macaroni and cheese place at the Dells

After final hugs, we headed out on 90 toward LaCrosse.  We'd been on 90 before, but coming east, not west.  And we would be going on roads unexplored.

Jason sent a picture of Mindy with the girls on the plane.

Time for Jason to have an "alone" seat as last flight, he had the girls.

 It's fair.

We passed this Wisconsin auto that sported a KU decal.  

Our Kansas auto has a (Wisconsin) Packers decal.  We also are KU fans, of course, having gone to KU.

We came to LaCrosse, but didn't take time to explore it as we'd been there before for a wedding of a friend's son in 2018.

Even took a boat ride.  And took tours of the Hixson House,

 and the Henry Ford Museum.  

Leaving Wisconsin into Minnesota, crossing the Mississippi River.  

We decided to take a scenic route on 16 so cut south at LaCrosse to get onto it.  Maps took us off 16 on some unknown road (I told you we'd be on unknown roads!) to Bratsberg and then up on 43 to 90.

This is the town of Houston, Minnesota.  In 2022, the population was 996.  You suppose it is 1000 by now?  Compare it to 2.303 million of Houston, TX.

Look closely at the mural of the library above!!   I found a photo on-line so you can see it better.

And another mural, this time an owl painted on a museum called the International Owl Center.  "Their mission is to make the world a better place for owls through education and research."  They do not allow service dogs into the small building.  

We continued our journey.  We didn't take time to visit the museum.

But it would be cool.

Oh boy, it was curvy.

Rushford had beautiful planters.

We got back onto 90 after that fun little detour and made a stop at this rest stop.  It is the most modern and clean restroom we've ever been to.   Notice the grass roof?  Here is a photo I found on-line:

And here is what was written about it:

Sod houses helped early European settlers survive on the windswept prairies of southwestern Minnesota. When MnDOT decided to rebuild two rest areas on I-90 near Jackson, they drew on that history to create sustainable, maintainable, traveler-friendly buildings. The Clear Lake and Des Moines River rest stops, at mileposts 72 and 69 respectively, were carefully sited, oriented, and landscaped with native plantings to prevent snowdrifts across walks and against the doors. “At a lot of the first-generation rest areas, these things were not taken into account,” said Robert Williams, MnDOT’s rest area program manager during design and early construction. The all-glass fronts of each rest stop provide clear sight lines in and out of the building and are sheltered by a wide overhang that evokes sod house construction. Children’s play lots, dog exercise areas, picnic shelters, green spaces and sidewalk loops that overlook Clear Lake and the Des Moines River Valley make the rest areas soothing for weary travelers. The overhangs and glass fronts facilitate solar capture, decreasing the heating and cooling load. Green roofs offered a more cost-effective option than the usual rubber roofing membrane, and also provide cooling and stormwater runoff capture. MnDOT didn’t fail to protect the neighbors. “We used bird-safe glass to minimize birds flying into the windows,” Williams said.

We continued on 90 and noticed lots of water in the ditches.  Looks like there had been a storm here.

We looked for a place to stop and were having trouble.  Lots of tourists this time of year and hotels were pricey, to say the least!  We kind of stayed at a dumpy place.  We shouldn't complain.  We had been listening to the Insanity of God while on the road about the persecution of Christians.  Who are we to complain about a 2✩ hotel at 4✩ prices?