Monday, August 31 - Sioux City, Lemars, Pocahontas and Home!

I intended to sleep in but woke up at 6:45 and wasn't happy about it but it was actually good to get an early start.  I got ready and got the kids up and we had breakfast at the hotel. My hairdryer broke on Sunday and the one in our hotel room was broken too…very strange.  Rosie had a VERY hard time waking up…too many late nights and early mornings. At breakfast, Jack took his long john donut and stood it up and said, “Rosie, look, it’s a daemonilix!”    I LOVE this picture!

"Look Mom, It's a Daemonilix!!"

We asked our hotel clerk for directions  to the Floyd monument and found a shortcut – we must have gone a good 5 miles or more out of our way the night before, not sure who gave us directions but they weren’t very good.

We made it to the monument…just a simple, white obelisk on a bluff overlooking the Missouri River.

It’s a very pretty location. Floyd was a Sergeant with the Lewis and Clark expedition and was the only member of the Corps of Discovery to die on the 3 year voyage…that is amazing, with all the extreme hardships and dangers they encountered. He became sick early in the journey with what today’s doctors think was appendicitis, and he died from a burst appendix. He died on the river, very bravely and calmy…he simply told Clark “I am going away…”. They stopped the boats and buried him on the highest point, and marked it with a cedar plaque with his name and date. On the return journey in 1806, they came back and tidied the area and remarked it.

Two Lewis and Clark campsites are in the general area also.

View Toward Lewis and Clark Campsite from Floyd's Bluff

Our next stop was in  LeMars, Iowa…the Ice Cream Capital of the World.   I have to mention that the reason we knew about this was from one of our favorite kids' books:  Go Go America...it has all sorts of quirky facts about different places in each state. 

It is the home of Blue Bunny ice cream. We were waiting at the visitor center on main street when they opened the doors at 10 a.m. with an enthusiastic “Good Morning Ice Cream Lovers!”. The kids registered in the computer guest book and we went to the first room, which resembled an old parlor with couches and a very old TV. 

It also had display cases of Blue Bunny history/memorabilia.

The video chronicles the history of this company that is still run by the same family that started it. It also explains the Blue Bunny name…the company was having a contest to name it and a local boy was walking through a department store with his mom. It was near Easter and there were stuffed blue bunnies on display. He started screaming, “I want a Blue Bunny!” repeatedly and by the time they reached the office of his father, who worked there, he was REALLY worked about and screaming he wanted/needed a Blue Bunny now! His dad said, “That’s it! That’s the name!” and entered it into the contest, and it won.

After that, we went to the room where they simulate production of ice cream and Bomb Pops!
This is done with a video to compliment it and it’s very well done…the kids were riveted.

The last room has computer games/activities and display cases of various types of Blue Bunny products.

The Kids Made Me Play a Game

Then, of course, there is a gift shop and an ice cream parlor. They bake their own waffle cones and had just made some…you can imagine how great it smelled in there! We all had ice cream…I had huckleberry, which I didn’t know Blue Bunny made! It was very good...but just not quite the same as having huckleberry ice cream from Eddies in Apgar and walking down to the shores of Lake McDonald.  Rosie had "Scooper Hero" flavor, Jack had chocolate brownie, and Logan had birthday cake. 

As we were leaving, several police cars with lights on appeared and once screeched to a stop near us and two officers got out, somewhat quickly. We wondered what interesting thing was going on, but it was simply a funeral.

Then it was on the detour-ridden road to Pocahontas, Iowa to visit Kim, a Glacier friend. We stopped at her family’s grocery store and restocked our lunch supplies, then went with Kim to the Pocahontas statue at the edge of town. It was a quick but nice visit.

Me and Kim

The Kids and I at the Pocahontas Statue

Then it was on the road home…more detours/road work but we got home shortly after 6 to very happy dogs and dad!
© 2009 Tara Morrison