Day 21

Hey Ya’ll!! It’s day 21, sadly, and we’re making our way closer and closer to the east coast.  After barely getting any sleep last night, we were awakened by none other than Licky Vickie at 5:30am!! “Wake up little darlings, wake up!!”

We got on the road bright and early and headed for St. Louis, Missouri, home of the gateway to the west!! After a few hours of driving, we stopped at the Missouri rest stop to use the restroom and even got to see the Chiefs and the Royals stadiums from the rest stop!  The counselors had a surprise competition waiting for us in the parking lot.  Everyone was told to get into their groups and in straight lines.  A BALLOON POPPING COMPETITION!!!!!  It was so hot, but SO MUCH FUN!!!!


BALLOON POPPING CONTEST!!!!!!







When we got back on the vehicles, we watched THE LION KING!!! What a classic movie!! We were so excited to watch it!

On a sad note, today we stopped at our LAST EVER FLYING J PIT STOP! Almost everyone bought the super delicious pizza that was on sale for 2 for $5.  We couldn’t pass up that deal and we couldn’t eat another turkey or ham sandwich!

We finally made it to the arch and it was even bigger than expected, probably the tallest monument we’ve visited.  We had to sit outside and wait for about 15 minutes before we could go in and get our tickets. Thankfully, there was a nice breeze coming off the side of the arch to keep us cool! Some of us bought homemade lemonade to keep cool!

The wait inside was even longer but when our small groups of 5 finally made it to the little “eggs” that we were supposed to ride in, it was super fun!  They were somewhat compact and there wasn’t much room for everyone to move.  Some of the groups even started to sing our song, Today, while traveling 630 feet into the air.  The view at the top was breathtaking and we were able to see the Mississippi river (again) and the city of St. Louis.  We all waited at the bottom for everyone to get done and enjoyed the delicious fudge that was available in the gift shop. The mint chocolate was the best!

Josh, Dan, Darieon, Charlie and Colton


Peighton, Mckenzie, Harrison, Logan and Dylan


Gina, Anna, Kathryn, Sydney and Mikayla


Alex, Meredith, Emily, Brae and Hannah


Cameron, Hannah, Daniel, Becca and Naz


Chris, Jeff, Zach and Ross


Samantha, Erin, Laura, Carolyn and Katie


Jennings, Megan, Evan, Madison and Ellen


Jaqueline, Meggie, Chloe, Sally and Khristina


Dani, Taylor, Mitchell, Nyah and Ayla


Makayla, Emily and Grace


Matthew, Riley, Caroline, Megan and Aulden


Elizabeth, Preston, Trey, Tripp and Brylee

Liz, Reid, Shannon, Donovan and Sam


Emily, Olivia, Hannah, Evin and Carrie


Graceanna, Kelli, Meredith, Maddi and Lexie


John, Laura and Ashley

Maddi welcoming our future TWBer, Austin! 


 

 

Maren, Parker and Josh
Taylor and Ayla 
There's always time for a selfie!


 



Our gal, Naz! 


Aulden and Chloe wake up FLAWLESS!

We boarded back on the vehicles and headed to our favorite place… WALTERS WORLD!  The cooks bought our dinner while others bought BREAKFAST for dinner (sausage, eggs and pancakes… WE WERE SO EXCITED).   

Lake Carlyle in Illinois was where we camped.  The bugs were also super intense here like they were last night and we’re pretty sure that everyone has spent a majority of their money on bug repellent items. Wal-Mart may have to restock their shelves!

As our day is coming to an end, everyone is starting to realize that the trip is ending very, very soon.  Everyone acts like a family here and it’s going to be very hard for everyone to say goodbye in 2 days. We’re cherishing these moments but we’re also missing you all and can’t wait to see you soon!!


Love Grumpy’s<3