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A New Beginning for Route 66

If you’re familiar with Route 66, you know that it went through some realignments over the years to make it a more efficient route and to address safety concerns (some of those old mountain roads are downright terrifying!), which is why it doesn’t bother me that to celebrate the centennial, they did this:

Yes, they gave old Route 66 a new beginning by moving the “official” start to Chicago’s Navy Pier, which means the Mother Road now runs “pier to pier,” from where it begins in Chicago to the end at the Santa Monica pier in California. I actually think this was a really cool thing they did to honor the centennial and tie the two ends of Route 66 together, and Navy Pier is a really special location to honor a historic road.

Sometimes a fresh start is just what you need!

West End Service Station

Vintage service stations are an iconic part of Route 66 history, and there’s a repurposed one in Edwardsville, IL!

This building began its life in 1927, just a year after Route 66 got rolling, and served travelers on the Mother Road until 1964. It then became a different kind of “filling station”…it operated as a dental office! But in 2023 it was restored to its former glory, and reopened with a small museum inside:

We even got to flip through magazines that are 100 years old!

It’s a very cool place!

I’m always glad to see a historic location find a way to share the past with new generations!

Umbrella Sky Project 2026

Today I’m taking a look at this year’s Umbrella Sky Project in Elmhurt, IL!

After last year’s failed attempt to see the colorful art installation (it was raining and they were closed), I was a little worried that something would go wrong again this year. But, for the first time, we had a beautiful, sunny day to view them, and it was a very different display from the one Chickadee and I saw two years ago…this time, there was a whole rainbow of colors, plus some partially clear unbrellas that cast really cool, stained glass style shadows on the ground!

The very reflective windows doubled the umbrella fun:

Yes, I did lay down on the pathway to get a view looking straight up:

This is the perfect space for this type of art installation:

Here’s a closer look at the amazing shadows the umbrellas cast:

It’s such a joyful art project!

They’re scheduled to swap out the umbrellas for a different look partway through the summer…I wonder what colors they’ll choose next?

Keys Twin Bridge Cafe

So excited to see a vintage road sign outside the Route 66 State Park Visitor’s Center, and this sign is extra fun, because it’s a play on words! The last name of the owner of the cafe was “Key” and the sign has a distinctive key shape. I’m glad that this little piece of history was donated and preserved for future generations to enjoy!

Mani Monday

This week’s mani features something new to me and really cool…a thermal polish! Holo Taco’s “Sprout of Control” (on the index and middle fingermails) is a pretty aqua when it’s warm, but turns purple when it gets cold (it definitely needs some help to do that this time of year!)…I love the almost instant difference! On the other three nails I used “No Opalogies,” a gorgeous lavender shade packed with sparkle and shimmer.

Jensen Point

Right next to the old Red Cedar Inn is another Route 66 Roadside Attraction…Jensen Point:

I was told the there were 99 steps on a winding path up to the overlook…honestly, it didn’t feel like that many, but I didn’t bother to count them.

The views of the railroad, Meramec River, and surrounding hills was outstanding!

This location, named after the first president of the Henry Shaw Gardenway Association, not to mention manager of what is now the Missouri Botanical Garden, Lars Peter Jensen, is another spot I didn’t plan to visit (or was even aware of), but I’m glad made its way into our itinerary!

An Experimental Dinner

Happy 6/26, or as it’s known around here, Stitch Day! This year is extra special because we got to have a Double Stitch Day of 6/26/26, so of course we had an extra special dinner to celebrate! The main course was double chicken skewers…”Galactic Kebabs” which marinated in a siracha-sesame oil mixture, and “Meteoric Teriyaki Chicken Skewers,” both from Lilo and Stitch: The Official Cookbook.

We also had double drinks: “Coconut Coastal Delight” with coconut, pineapple, and ginger beer (and yes, I cracked a coconut for a cup!), and “Pleakley’s Pink Stuff Frosé” made with pink lemonade, watermelon, strawberries, and sparkling apple cider:

For dessert I made “‘Ohana Bread Pudding” like they serve at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort at Disney World. It featured cinnamon brioche baked with pineapple, topped with a caramel sauce inspired by Bananas Foster, and served with vanilla ice cream.

And of course I had a tropical outfit featuring a Lilo and Stitch print dress and the perfect Stitch-inspired accessories!

Happy Stitch Day!

Red Cedar Inn

One of the fun things about our Route 66 Summer is going where the road takes us. The old Red Cedar Inn in Pacific, MO, wasn’t originally on my list of places to see, but when we visited the Route 66 State Park Visitor’s Center, the woman working there told us about this spot just a few miles down the road. In keeping with the spirt of traveling Route 66 to have a great time, we decided to check it out.

I was thrilled to see the old sign lit up in the small museum that occupies most of the building:

It no longer operates as a restaurant, but they do still have the original bar top…I bet it has a lot of interesting stories it could tell!

Pacific is actually a pretty cool little train town…we ended up driving through most of it on 66. I’m really glad we had a chance for an unplanned side quest!

Route 66 State Park and Visitors’ Center

One of the three big field trips I planned for this year’s summer school was a trip west to the Route 66 State Park in Eureka, MO.

The Visitor’s Center is the old Bridgehead Inn, which was an original Route 66 roadhouse from 1935:

It’s a fairly unassuming building, but they have a surprisingly large collection of Route 66 memorabilia in the the museum inside:

The original name for the inn becomes obvious when you walk around outside, but I wouldn’t recommend trying to use the bridge! It appears that there is still a fundraising effort underway to restore it for (I assume) pedestrian access, which would be highly beneficial, because the rest of the state park is actually across the river, and requires using an entirely different exit from the interstate to access!

There are quite a few trails through the park, and it also contains a piece of local history, as the former summer resort town (and eventually full-time low-income housing community) Times Beach was once located here. That spot has a rather sordid but fascinating past involving poverty, an industrial disaster from the spread of the contaminant dioxin, and flooding, but is a lovely (and clean!) park today.

We are very fortunate to have Route 66 locations close enough to home for us to visit!

Stay tuned for more Route 66 adventures!