If you’ve been following my blog for a little while, then you likely know that Hayden and I are trying to visit every state by our 50th anniversary. Over Hayden’s spring break, we headed up to Wisconsin to check another state off the list. Let me just tell you – it was an adventure.

We decided a few months ago to take the Amtrak up to Chicago then to Wisconsin Dells. Our cars aren’t the best in the snow and ice, and we just didn’t want to chance it. We didn’t realize the adventure that awaited us. I have been on the train many times to Chicago – it’s typically pretty great – and this was the first time that I took a train from Chicago to a different destination. Our first train, from Effingham, IL, was 20 minutes behind, and then that same train ended up being an hour late to Union Station in Chicago. Once arriving, we had time to find our next gate and get ready for our next 3-4 hour train ride. Our second train, that would take us from Chicago to the Dells, was running behind, and I decided that it would be best to buy a bottle of water at the train station instead of on the train. I thought it would be cheaper? Well, the vending machine ate our money! So, we ending up spending $5 on a bottle of water anyway – oh how fun that was! Not long after, we were on our train headed to the Dells.

Our second train ended up arriving an hour late to the Dells and in the middle of a snowstorm. Weeks before our trip, Hayden and I had double checked to make sure that there would be Ubers available for us once arriving. Well, it turns out all the Uber drivers decided to not drive in the snowstorm. So, after a brief freak out, I found a random taxi company, and they planned to meet us at the train station. We hopped off the train into two inches of snow on the platform as more snow heavily fell around us. Luckily our driver arrived not too long after, but Lord help this sweet man, he had no clue where he was going. I feel confident typing that because he told us, “I have no clue where I’m going” as he held his GPS. {Side note: I have a love hate relationship with snow storms. I LOVE how pretty they are when you are at home, but it freaks me out to no end to drive in one.} Nonetheless, we made it to our resort, and we were dropped off at the front door. Only to find out about 20 minutes later that the resort did not have a shuttle and our cottage was on the opposite side of the resort. So Hayden and I trudged through the storm with all of our luggage for over a half mile at dark (it was about 8:30 at this point). I can’t even begin to tell you how grateful we were for the fireplace and heat when we finally made it!!!

The next few days were a little less dramatic, well, minus the time we thought I had a concussion from snowboarding {I’ll tell that story another time}. Hayden and I thoroughly enjoyed getting to ski and snowboard for the first time on bigger hills than our backyard. The bunny hill was 3x as big as any hill I’ve ever snowboarded down. It was so much fun to ride the ski lift {even for Hayden who isn’t fond of heights}, and it was such a blast to go snow tubing. The base snow was around 12-15″ which was something neither of us had ever seen. We learned SO much. I know it’s just a few hours away from STL, but it’s crazy how much we didn’t know about ski resorts, snow tubing, skiing, and snowboarding. {Oh, and I can’t forget we ate at one of my FAVORITE restaurants… Giordano’s in Chicago. Seriously best pizza ever. I know it’s not Wisconsin, but y’all I had to share!}

I think that’s what I’ve enjoyed the most about these trips – learning about different cultures and different parts of the country. Yes, it sounds so stinking cheesy, but I tell y’all it’s crazy how diverse our country is. From visiting Arizona last year to visiting Wisconsin this year, life in different parts of the U.S. is just soooo different {revolutionary, I know!}.

Anyways, excited to see what state we conquer next. I’m thinking we might nab Iowa this summer. Who knows?! We’d love to hear your suggestions!

Take a look below at the pictures we took with my real camera. I have so many more with my iPhone – because a lot of crazy things happened, but I’m not sure y’all are ready for that craziness yet!

xoxo,


Please note Hayden’s rubber boots.   We left his snow boots at home – this was all Walmart had!