Thelma & Louise Part 4 aka Daisy and Buttercup

If you think this is cute you should see Buttercups picture!

We were up and at it early, we were anxious to see our first "real" Little House places. Across the river we went and back in to Pepin Wisconsin. Lots of fishermen in town and we wanted to do our thing!

The Lady in their little Museum was very sweet and was very impressed that we knew the REAL story and that I had a first Edition Book. She was very nervous to sign it but she did and put a stamp in it too. It's really a special book to me because it was the first one I received "The Little House in the Big Woods". This is where Laura and Mary were born. Pepin has dedicated a small Park to Laura Ingalls Wilder and they have a LIW Society there but it seems to be struggling a bit.

This is at the location of the "Big Woods" house, but as you can see the woods are gone. They are attempting to plant tree's around the little log house reproduction and one day it will look more like it did in her description. It felt like very hallowed ground to me.

Standing where Laura and Mary played and all their cousins and where they drove off in their wagon leaving the little house all alone in the big woods:(

Of course Buttercup had me hunting for her "Letter Boxes"!!!!! and I found it! I found it I found it!!!!!

And she fills out all the "stuff" she needs to fill out and then I get to rehide it! She's special that way:)

We would have stayed at the "Little House" longer, but a big storm came up and hail came down and we got out of there pretty fast.

We visited several little Churches and communities while we were in that area. All mentioned in some of the biographies that are written about Laura.

We found this really cool old cemetery that had Many Ingalls on the stones. I'm sure they were related. I'm sure there are still many around that community related because some of the stones are not that old. I took this pictures because of the pretty bush :)

One of my most favorite places we visited! The Little Plum School! It reminded me of the grade school I went to. I wanted to rename it "LACAMAS"!!!!

I was playing teacher ~ My pupil didn't mind!

It had all the modern conveniences!

We just HAD to ring the bell! We had to I'm telling you!

Ewwwwwww this teacher looks mean!

This is the Durand County Court House. This is where Pa came to sign over and sell the Little House in Big Woods. It also was the scene of a "Hanging".. Quite a long involved story about two guys who committed some horrendous crime and one was captured and a mob drug him out and hung him from an old oak tree! Isn't it amazing how every little town has something fascinating in the closet !

In Laura's book she talks about how Pa took Ma and the girls to the edge of this beautiful lake and she tried to carry all these pebbles home. It's hard to imagine this beautiful lake in that little bitty girls eyes. In my mind, when I have read this a zillion times, I never imagined it that big .

So cute..SO CUTE CUTE ! were about where they were when they crossed the lake when it froze solid.

Then we were back on the Minnesota side and on the LIW Highway. We didn't know there would be this much to see. South Troy Minnesota is where the Ingalls family were when their baby boy "Freddie" died. The exact spot where he is buried is not marked and never been totally identified but they have this little very respectful little monument and a lovely little Church.

This shows Freddie's death certificate.

Very sad, but very nice to know he was not forgotten.

On down the highway we past by Rochester Minnesota which is the site of the Mayo Clinic! I didn't stop~

We were very close to Spring Valley where Almanzo's family but Buttercup said nooooooooo we had to move along!

This was really one of my favorite days. I have many favorite days but this was fun just wandering around the different communities. It was just a great deal of fun. Mostly it was fun to be sharing the day with my "Buttercup" :)

This was our final stop. Found out Marlon Brando went to boarding school there! and was kicked out!

On the road with TWO(count them) TWO BOYS!

To the Beach to the beach to the Beach! Papa and I took two of our little boys to the beach! Liam had never seen the Gulf and Riley had seen it but didn't get to play in it cuz it was so cold!

It was our 'back to school bash'!

Doing the happy dance at the first motel! WOW were they glad to get out of the car!

And the next day we arrived!

Oh man were they happy to get their feet in the water! and hands in the S A N D !!!!!

He just wanted to squeeze and squeeze it!

I loved wearing his shirt in Alabama :)

Watch out Liam your just a half a body away!

My very handsome guys!

He LOVED jumping the waves!

He never got burned!

If someone walked back in the dark, that could be dangerous!

He doesn't see the shark approaching :)

On the one rainy day we went to the Sea Park and saw Dolphins and seals and all sorts of stuff!

My favorite picture of Riley. He's watching the Sea Lions.

A great evening on the beach.. Oh boy we hated to leave!

At the motel on way home. They had a ball swimming!

This was just "some" of the commentary on the way down there!

L= Liam

R=Riley

P=Papa

G=Grandmommy



L: We need lots of gas!

R: Were not driving a semi!

L: What’s a Semi??????

P: A really big truck.

L: As big as yours?

G: No baby it’s like those long ones that have trailers.

L: Then how much gas do we need.

P: LOTS!



L :Watch out car!

L: Got your sun glasses on Riley?

R: Nah, don’t need them.

L: Are we on the Florida Hwy?

L: I think Riley fell out!

L:I’m hungry! (we’ve been on the road 25 minutes!)



L: There are too many TN cars. After we leave TN. We will be in California!

G. Where did that come from???



L: When I get to FL I’m going to ride on a humpback Whale!

L: We need one of those!!!!! (Jet Ski)

R: OH YEAH!!!!!



L:I want to see a movie

R. Ok Toy Story 1,2 or 3?

(15 min later)

L: It’s OVER!

R: NO WAY!

R: Are we going to eat at Shoney’s?

G: NO!

R: ahhhhhhhh

G: Ok, if you eat liver and onions we will.

R: NO WAY

R. Are we stopping soon?

P: No we need to go 150 more miles.

R: Papa, can you go 200 miles per hour???? :)



L: Have you seen my suitcase?

P: No. Did you bring clothes?

L: No.

P: are you going naked?

L: YES!



L: SINGING LOUDLY

P: Someone shoot that boy!

R: Bang bang! I DID!



Day 2

L: I’m hungry!

L: Where is my Bunny?

L: Papa are you lost?

P: No, I’m trying to find a place that feeds monsters



L: I’m FULL! (5 min)

L: Were on the way to Florida, I want to be buried in the sand again! Will you do that Papa?

R: Are you going to open your mouth under the sand J

L: (LOUDLY) California here we come! (we have no clue)



L: I have a hamster! I give him fries and he gives me sugars!



P: (we had stopped to walk around) We are just pulling up here a little you don’t have to put on your seat belt.

L: I’ll just run along behind!

P: uhhhh nooooooooo



P: Were going to go in to a storm

R: I AM THE GOD OF THUNDER!

L: When we get to Florida it won’t rain!



P. Look guys were going over the big bridge!

R: OH WOW.. Is that the ocean?

G: It’s the bay

L. Bay bay bay bay… I’m so excited!



L: Papa you have a dumb GPS

P: Yes we know


R: Were here!! Can we go in too?

G. oh absolutely! :)

Thelma and Louise Part THREE AKA "Buttercup and Daisy"

Our "Semi" Daily pose with each other. Daisy with freaky hair and Buttercup is looking to blend in with flowers! We were off on our adventure from Independence Iowa!

We saw many beautiful barn quilts and many beautiful Iowa farms. I think Iowa is a real all American state.

I even enjoy the very flat parts(well that's actually about all there is).

I actually have no idea how to even pronounce this towns name but looking it up on Google I discovered it's called Methland! Wow, I would never had guessed that at all. It all looks so lovely to me.

This is our destination!!!!! I don't know why anyone leaves this country, we haven't even scratched the surface and when you look up each little town they all have something unique about them!

This was our destination for the day! Well it was our "tour" spot for the day. Burr Oak Iowa was the only place that Laura lived which she never wrote about in her Little House books. They lived here after they left Walnut Grove with a sick baby and many debts. They moved to
Uncle Peter's house in 1876 in Gillford Township MN. While they were there baby Freddie died.

They had promised to go to Burr Oak Iowa to help some people run a hotel in an attempt to get out of debt, so they buried their baby and in deep sorrow they arrived in Burr Oak.

Pa and Ma thought the Hotel was a rough place for little girls to live so they actually lived in 3 different places in the less then two year stay there. But the "Masters Hotel" is the only building that Laura lived in as a child that is still standing and is still in the same place. It would not even be considered a very large house now so it's hard to imagine as a working hotel!

This is the side of the hotel that shows the outside entrance to upstairs.

This was the Hotel before it had been restored!

And this is how beautiful it looks today. We were very pleasantly impressed with both the inside and out.

Their last baby Grace Pearl was born in Burr Oak Iowa. In one of the books I read Laura said that as Mary went blind that it was Grace's beautiful blue eyes that was the last thing she saw.

Laura loved her teacher Mr. Reed, who was a permanent resident of the Hotel. He was a great elocutionist and he taught her well and was much needed it as her life progressed.

This was a display about Spring Valley Minnesota where Almanzo's parents had a beautiful farm. I REALLY wanted to visit there but Buttercup was in a hurry!

This was a display about Almanzo as a child. It's in Malone NY. Buttercup wouldn't go there either cuz she only wanted to be gone 3 weeks.. Something about small children at home or some nonsense :)

When we first got to the Gift shop and entrance the lovely lady "Barb" told us a bus load of kids were coming for an end of the year field trip! So didn't we want to go on our own tour????? uuhhhhhhhh YEAH.....In fact 2 bus loads of kids arrived before we left but they were well behaved. It was still really nice to get our own tour!

This was behind the Hotel. I don't know about you, but I think Buttercup looks very suspicious!

I, of course was just the lovely Auntie posing in front of the bank. It has a notorious history too! Bank Robbers and stuff!

Laura wrote about playing in the old cemetery around the white stones. She and a friend use to go after the cow and bring it home that way. There was also a crazy lady and her crazy son that lived near that would scare them and they would run by her house!

Some of the beautiful white stones in the cemetery she played in. Buttercup had a "Letterbox" to find in the cemetery but, of course, she had the wrong one :) I knew those were not pine trees!

We had a lovely day exploring Burr Oak and we didn't really see it all but it was onward and upward!

Oh yes the Land of Lakes and BUGS.. Gross bugs by the zillions. but we were only passing thru at that point

The wild flowers were just beyond beautiful in late spring in Minnesota, with lots of rivers, streams and lakes and very green from all the rain.

And here is my beautiful Buttercup in her beautiful flowered top matching the beautiful flowers! I love her so much!

AT LAST WE SAW WHAT WE'VE BEEN LOOKING FOR!!!!!!!

And this is was where we were headed!

And who would guess on a Thursday night in Pepin Wisconsin you could not find a room to sleep in!!!!!!! A FISHING TOURNAMENT! Excuse me! We were coming to see where Laura was born!

So back to Minnesota we went and yes you read that right it's where "Grumpy Old Men" was filmed. Not sure why :)

We have a big beautiful country!

But they have really creepy things on the river in Wabasha! A very Catholic state! Which isn't creepy, but this stone or wood or whatever he was priest was creepy! I didn't want to sit on the bench behind him :)

We had a lovely dinner at Slippery's. The lady at the motel we were at had a hard time figuring things out but we did find this great place to eat fish! and a beautiful view!

And this was our final resting place at the Coffee Mill Inn. The lady was hysterical but I don't think she understood how funny she was. When you tell someone your address is Emmett Stone Lane and she starts it off with an "M" you know your in trouble. I think we ended up filing it out! We stayed in better places but worse too! Pretty sure its usually filled with fisherman! BUT they were all in Pepin~