Mississippi River Museum (Day 2 - Dubuque, IA)

On our 2nd day of vacation last week, we also went to the National Mississippi River Museum in Dubuque, Iowa.

Alex had a lot of fun in this hands-on room. You could open different draws to look at things, touch things on the counter, etc.

If you can enlarge this, I bet you'll learn some "scat facts" that you never knew. I found this very entertaining. :-)

My nephew, Baby H, at 5 months old LOVES to watch the fish in the aquariums.

Brian "Fox" Ellis was the highlight of our day for me. We just happened to be at the museum the day this incredible storyteller was performing "River Stories." We listened closely as he told tales for about an hour. And, I even bought 2 cd's so we could listen to him again and again. He was performing that night as Audubon, but we had to head on to our next destination. He's got lots of information, lesson plans, etc, on his site so you might want to check it out.

Alex at the wheel of a stemboat!

Reading with Mark Twain. Oh, we learned from the storyteller that "sawyer" was a term riverboat men used for a log or tree that was caught in the water and was dangerous. So, Tom "Sawyer" meant someone who could cause trouble.

An otter eating his lunch.