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The break started in a big way, as Franklin
Middle School presented the musical "Annie, Jr.". Jake was in
the
chorus and played a New Yorker. He used tons of hair gel.
Jake loved doing it - and the
musical
was great.
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| We drove to St. Louis for a 3 day visit, staying at a new
Marriott
Residence Inn. It was perfect for us: a pool open all day and a
"room" with 3 separate rooms. On our
first night we went to a fancy restaurant, Lorenzo's Trattoria on the Hill. Martha
had the best meal, braised ossobuco. We sat at the table in the
kitchen, and the boys watched the chefs prepare their dinner. |
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The next day was beautiful and perfect for visiting the St. Louis
zoo. Although the zoo is free, we sprung for a package of
stuff that included riding the miniature train, a kids petting zoo, a
3-D movie about going underwater, and a seat-moving ride involving
dinosaurs. The conductor on the train told Jake that guys in Cubs
gear get thrown to the lions.
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Bill announced early that his 5 favorite animals are 1.
elephant 2. giraffe 3. zebra 4. monkey 5. yak.
We saw each of these, or a close relative. The giraffes were a
particular favorite, especially their tongues. We learned
that elephants have 6 sets of teeth each of which last about 10 years.
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The monkey house was very interesting. We watched a
young chimpanzee throw stuff and otherwise goof on a group of larger
chimpanzees, who would sometimes lazily chase after their
tormenter. |
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We liked The Magic House.
Everyone liked the Rube Goldberg-like ball
sculpture that made noise. Some of us tried out the Van de Graff
generator, although not Matt who thought it wouldn't have much effect
on his hair. Bill liked the magnetic fishing, and releasing the
fish into the lake through the underground river. Ben
liked Clifford, but slugged the full-sized version in the face
when he appeared. ("I don't like mascots.") We did a zillion
things, but didn't get to everything before it was time to go home. |
 
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