St. Louis

For a long time my mom has wanted to go back to Illinois to visit some family that she has not seen in a very long time, including her cousin, aunt, and her grandpa. Finally, this fall my mother, brother, and I made the trip to visit everyone. They all live just on the other side of the Mississippi from St. Louis.


We had so much fun visiting and dining out. My mom and her cousin Laura seem like long lost friends. It is uncanny the similarities between the two of them, even though they haven't seen each other since they were ten!

Spencer and I with Laura's kids: Connor and Claire.

Another part of our visit was to visit my great-grandfather Carl Killibrew. The sweetheart is over 90 years old and still as sharp as a tack! We really enjoyed spending time with him and his darling wife Becky. They were wonderful hosts.

They took us on a beautiful drive alongside the Mississippi on a historic highway known as River Road. We still had some great fall colors on the bluffs. We ended up at a darling cottage called Pere Marquette where we ate lunch overlooking the river. Lunch was delicious. It all seemed very picturesque. I kept having the urge to read Mark Twain or imagined Huck Finn floating down the immensely wide river. They also showed us the house my great-grandpa built and the artillery factory where my great-grandmother worked.

Our last day there we spent in the city center of St. Louis. It is very interesting city. It holds a lot of history of old industrial America. Part of the city seems abandoned from past years of shipping and railroad expansion. It is possibly the least touristy large city I have been to, but still had an amount of Americana charm with its brick building and nostalgia of the American Dream.
Little did I know that the St. Louis arch was actually constructed as a monument to President Jefferson, the Louisiana Purchase, and westward expansion. The trip up the arch is not for the claustrophobic. Five people cram into a tiny pod and are slowly lifted up to the very top.

With few tourist sights to see, we made our main event a late lunch at Pappy's Smokehouse. Yet again, the Travel Channel pulls through with a winning restaurant. We definitely wanted good BBQ while we were there. When we arrived, the line wrapped around the restaurant. We patiently waited for at least an hour before we could order our food. Was it worth it? Yes, yes, yes! The best BBQ I have ever had. Everything was fall apart in your mouth delicious. I couldn't shovel the sweet potato fries in my mouth fast enough. Deep fried corn on the cob is exactly how corn should always taste.





Afterwards, we hit up the mall and forced ourselves to eat another delicious meal at the Cheesecake Factory for mom's birthday.

Although it was a very short trip, I was so happy to be able to do this with my mom. Our great grandpa is such a character. And my mom's cousin and her family are great fun. It meant a lot to my mom to go visit everyone. It's nice to know that no matter how long you are apart, family always turns out to be great friends. {At least in our case} :)