Thursday, July 29 - Union Station and Crown Candy

5:42 a.m. - Walked 1.3 miles with Pam and Clarabel

8:51 a.m. - Placed order at Cappucino's for breakfast items - French toast, eggs, sausage, pancakes, muffin, scone, and caffienated beverages.

10:27 a.m. - Departed for downtown St. Louis: destination Union Station.

The minutes and hours are counting down. We have seen and done (and EATEN) so MUCH since arriving nearly a week ago. As I look at our lists of "THINGS WE PLANNED TO DO," "PLACES WE PLANNED TO GO," and "PLACES WE PLANNED TO EAT," we have checked off everything! There are 268 images in the picture folder on my desktop and an infinite number of treasured memories of our moments of laughter and times of silliness engraved in my mind.

There is such an eclectic array of things to do in the St. Louis area that Mary and I are planning to make this an annual trip. One of our favorite experiences at Union Station today was the interactive demonstration at The Fudgery complete with samples and purchases.

We were treated to great food and fun music videos at Hard Rock Cafe St. Louis. Mary and I had fun walking around checking out rock legend icon items displayed on the walls around the restaurant--like KISS rocker Paul Stanley's guitar and Alice Cooper's sequined patriotic costume. We, of course, had to pick up a Hard Rock Cafe souvenir before leaving as well.

Sometime after we had secured our trip plans here, we caught an old episode of Man vs. Food on the Travel Channel. It showed him attempting the 5 malts in 30 minutes challenge at Crown Candy in downtown St. Louis. We immediately knew that would have to be one of our must-see stops. It's one of St. Louis' oldest and most popular attractions. This was completely evident by the line of people standing outside waiting to be seated. Crown Candy Kitchen opened in 1913. The history is fascinating and the ice cream is wonderful. I encourage you to click on the link I have included here to learn more.

Back at Pam and Matt's, Mary and I started consolidating our purchases from the week and getting some laundry done in preparation for leaving tomorrow. Supper was a quick bite from Steak 'n Shake, so Mary and Pam could watch the results show of "So You Think You Can Dance."

I have had an absolutely fantastic week here in the O'Fallon area with my sister and brother-in-law and my daughter. Thank you Pam and Matt for showing us such a great time!