Wednesday, June 2

Prairie Band Casino and Resort   Mayetta, KS $15.75 per night

We're back in this campground for a third time. We were here on July 4, 2008, and again on August 9, 2009. On the way we passed through Kansas farm and cattle country. Everything is lush and green from all the recent rains.  After we set up the trailer, we drove to a nearby hardware store and then a grocery store.

Thursday, June 3
Today Frank worked on the computer, while Tom did laundry. Frank also ordered meds from Walgreens. We went to dinner at the Casino's Buffet.

Friday, June 4
Tom started the day by faxing informtion to the IRS that they requested for taxes in 2009. The Casino did the faxing for free. Frank continued working on computer issues. Dinner was the Seafood Buffet, which was quite extensive.

Saturday, June 5
Days here have been very warm, like in the mid-90's. So prior to breakfast Tom washed the truck, then came in for breakfast. We drove south into Topeka to a Verizon store and bought a new modem, as the older one was broken. Then off to Walgreen's to pick up meds, then a grocery store which is a spin off of Kroger. Tom did more laundry. Interesting that next to us at the base of the water faucet of the next site is a Mother Killdeer sitting on her four eggs. She has been sitting on the eggs, which are beige and brown, the same color as the stones, since we got here. If we approach too closely, the Father Killdeer comes by and yells at us while pretending to have a broken wing. He is trying to lure us away from the nest.

Tuesday, June 8

St. Louis West KOA   Eureka, MO $42.07 per night

Wednesday, June 9
Today was a work day at the trailer. Frank worked on computer files, while Tom did laundry. We also visited Whole Foods which is about 25 miles from the campground. We have not been in a Whole foods store in over a month and really miss their selections and fine quality. Expensive, but good.

Thursday, June 10
Today we drove further in St Louis and spend about four hours at the Missouri Botanical Gardens. What a magnificent place. Garden founder Henry Shaw W came to St. Louis in 1819 to open a business selling hardware and cutlery. As St. Louis flourished, Shaw's business expanded to include investments in agricultural commodities, mining, real estate, and furs. Shaw's business success provided him with a substantial fortune and allowed him to retire in 1840 at the age of 39. During the next decade he continued buying property. His eventual holdings of about 1,000 acres included the land he had seen his first year in St. Louis. By the 1850s Shaw had resolved to spend the remainder of his life in acts of philanthropy and began to provide a great deal of support to develop many St. Louis cultural and social institutions. Shaw also had a strong interest in botany and gardening,. He decided to give the people of St. Louis a garden like the great gardens and estates of Europe. Shortly after 1851 Shaw began development of a ten-acre site near his country home. He eventually created a beautiful garden of approximately 70 acres which he gave to the state of Missouri.  

Friday, June 11

Scott AFB Fam Camp   Scott Air force Base, IL $15.00 per night

Saturday, June 12
We began today with a trip to the BX and Commissary. The rodeo started at 3:00 pm so we headed over around 2:00. It was hot and humid all day. Around 5:00 the storm hit with nearby lightning and heavy rains. They postponed the rodeo twice while waiting for the lightning to pass. During the second episode, the rains came down in sheets and flooded the arena turning it into a quagmire. Some of the tents that were setup for fans to have lunch and dance under, flooded with about 1 to 2 inches of water. Here are a couple of photos of the rain. By 5:30 they officially canceled the rest of the rodeo for today.  

Sunday, June 13
Due to yesterday's cancellation they started the rodeo at 10:00 rather than noon as had been planed. Of the events that were canceled yesterday, they ran both Saturday and Sunday's heat's today to allow contestants to cover all the events. The weather was even hotter and more humid than yesterday and the heat index over 100 took its toll on the contestants as well as the small croud of dedicated fans who showed up today. Sunday's rodeos usually have fewer folks show up than Saturday but this croud was unusually small. Much of the difficulty, and sometimes humor, was due to the extremely muddy conditions in the arena. It was a very difficult competition and some of the contestants even lost their boots in the mud.   Check out the main gallery for more rodeo photos and the mud of Sunday.