Sun up to Sun down times three equals Springfield, Ill.

Hoping to venture out with the kids this summer and do something more than just a day trip, but finances still an issue?

Not to worry. Here's a trip the family can make in two to three days and the kids will have a great time: Kansas City to St. Louis to Springfield, Ill., and back to KC via Hannibal, Mo.

2009 is the 200^th anniversary of President Abraham Lincoln's birth, and Lincoln just happens to be the "favorite" president of my wife's niece, Hannah.

So with that in mind, coupled with the fact the folks in Springfield (where Lincoln spent most of his life and where he and all but one member of his family are buried) have created an outstanding museum to their favorite son, plans were made for a three-day weekend trip.

We left Olathe at 6 Friday morning and was in St. Louis, parked, and Hannah, 12, and I (wife Terri was chicken) were heading up to the top of the Gateway Arch at 11:10 in compact round-shaped tram cars that rotate as they travel up and down the arch to keep passengers level. The trip down is much faster than the trip up.

It was Hannah's first trip to the observation deck where she slowly eased her body onto the rail and almost reluctantly peered from the highest point in the arch (630 feet) through the window to the tiny small people and cars below. It was crowded, but we went from window-to-window on both sides of the arch.
People with queasy stomachs beware: In a strong wind, you can feel the arch swaying every so slightly.

The arch is designed extremely high winds and engineers "estimate" that in a 150 mph wind the arch would sway only 18 inches at the top.

French-American architect Eero Saarinen conceived the arch in winning a national competition in 1947 to honor President Thomas Jefferson. But the engineering technology to construct the arch would not be understood and available until 14 years later. In 1961, just months before construction began on the arch, Saarinen died at age 51.

The first section of the actual arch was placed on Feb. 12, 1963. As the two sides of the arch were constructed, specially built cranes inched their way up as sections were completed and installed. The final section was put into place on Oct. 28, 1965. But because the sun had warmed the two sides of the arch, which had to be exact in order for the last section to be placed, the stainless steel structures were expanding. They had to be cooled with running water and jacks had to push the legs apart as the final section was slid into place.

The structure was built on time, within budget, and with no loss of life.

Below the arch is a museum of westward expansion filled with a multitude of artifacts and exhibits. There's a theater documenting the history of the arch and how it was constructed.

It is a national park and the throughout the grounds there are plenty of trees to provide shade for picnics or naps or for just getting your land legs back after coming down from the top of the arch.

There are plenty of places in the area to grab something to eat for lunch.

And instead of heading out for Springfield, we decided to make a day of it and took in the Old Courthouse, which opened in 1845 but wasn't completed until 1862 and is just west of the arch. It's also part of the National Park Service.

Next was the St. Louis Science Center where youngsters and adults enjoy learning about physics, dinosaurs, aerodynamics, and health all through hands-on exhibits. Not only can people watch a tornado form, but they can reach out and touch it.

There's an exhibit about global warming and recycling. There's a planetarium and an OMNIMAX Theater. You can even build your own arch. Be sure to try it because it's not as easy as it looks.

Not far from the Science Center is the St. Louis Zoo. We ended up spending about two hours at the zoo in order to miss afternoon rush-hour traffic. Hannah's favorite animal: The mother peacocks and their chicks waddling throughout the zoo grounds.

We left St. Louis about 7 p.m. and headed into Illinois with plenty of daylight left. An hour later we stopped in Litchfield, and old Route 66 buffs will want to remember this. In Litchfield and not far from the motel where we stayed is Ariston Restaurant, an original from the Route 66 days where for $66 you can get a 66 ounce prime rib with a baked potato.

I settled for a hot roast beef sandwich with mashed potatoes and brown gravy. It was great, but someday I want to go back with $66 in my pocket for that prime rib.

We were on the road by 8 the next morning and arrived in Springfield in less than an hour. It's only 46 miles from Litchfield.

Although Lincoln was born in Kentucky, he spent most of his life in Springfield, practicing law there, became a state representative in 1834 at age 25, and lost his bid for Illinois Senator in 1858 to Stephen A. Douglas before becoming president in 1860.

First stop was the Lincoln Museum located across the street from Lincoln Presidential Library. Both are located across the street from the town's old train depot, which is now a museum and meeting place.

All three are located within walking distance from the Old Capitol Building, which is in the center of old downtown Springfield with buildings dating back to the mid- to late-1800s. That is across the street from Lincoln's old law office.

And all those things are within a small walking distance of Lincoln's Springfield home, which is open for tours as long as you get a free ticket from the park service center.

There is a fee for the Lincoln Museum: $10 for adults; $7 for people 62 and older as well as for students with ID; 44 for children 5-15; children 4 and under are free. And here's a tip: When you buy the tickets at the counter, have your kids say, "Happy Birthday Abe," and they'll get a free poster.

Pay the fee. The museum is worth it. Visitors enter into the Plaza where they are greeted by waxed figures of the president, his wife Mary, and their three sons in front of the White House. But be sure to look around for someone lurking in the background, watching, planning and waiting.

In the museum there are two theaters with must-see performances.

Lincoln's Eyes is shown in Union Theater that provides visitors with a unique perspective of the president's eyes in a multi-screen, multi-layered special effects presentation that surrounds the audience with action on three sides that shows the strain and suffering of losing two of his three children and the weight of the Civil War.

In the Ghosts of the Library Theater, Lincoln's story and the purpose of the library and museum is creatively and spectacularly told in a combination of live actors and Holavision technology. It is amazing and truly entertaining.

There is a play area for children (adult supervision required) in Mrs. Lincoln's Attic where they can play games, color, and try on period-style clothing. Nearby there is a replica of an old Indiana log cabin where Lincoln taught himself to read by candlelight and the light of the burning logs in the fireplace.

The museum is filled with priceless artifacts from Lincoln's life and presidency, including one of the five existing copies of the Gettysburg Address written in his own hand.

In the Old Capitol Building, visitors are free to roam the rooms where representatives sat, where senate debates took place and where State Supreme Court decisions were made.

In Lincoln's home, the entire block along with homes have been purchased and renovated by the Parks Service. Twice Lincoln added onto his home in Springfield, and because of three newspaper drawings, park officials know exactly where many of Lincoln's original furniture and wall hangings were when the family lived in the home.

There are plenty of other museums and things to see and do in downtown Springfield that have nothing to do with Lincoln, such as Illinois Fire Museum or the Museum of Funeral Customs. But when you're done downtown, don't forget Lincoln's tomb in the Oak Ridge Cemetery north of downtown.

It's large and impressive with statues depicting Lincoln's political career as well as Confederate and Union soldiers. It's where two thugs from Chicago once tried, and nearly succeeded, in stealing the president's body and hold it for ransom. It's where Lincoln now is buried beneath 10 feet of concrete and where his wife and two of their three children are buried (the oldest is buried in Arlington National Cemetery in Washington, D.C.).

It's a solemn place to visit and pay respects to the 16^th president. In front of the tomb is a large bronze bust of Lincoln with an extremely shiny nose where people rub it for good luck. It's a tradition that began in World War II when soldiers, before they left the train station to go overseas, rubbed the bust's nose in hopes that would help them return home safely. 

The last stop on the trip was scheduled to be in Hannibal, Mo., boyhood home of Samuel Clements (Mark Twain). Hannibal is just more than 100 miles from Springfield. There are plenty of places to stay, but if there are a baseball tournament and other events taking place, Quincy, Ill., is less than 30 miles away, which is where we had to stay.

It's not that bad of a drive back into Hannibal. There's a fee to tour the house where Clements grew up, but it also allows visitors into other museums throughout town. Taking in the museums, walking up and down the main street as well as walking along the Mississippi River, takes less than three hours.

We were told our ticket would allow us to see the cabin where Clements was born near Florida at Mark Twain Lake in Mark Twain State Park. So we went. But it doesn't. It's run by the Parks Service and costs $2.50 a person. You can't go in the cabin, but you can see it from the front desk. That was good enough for us.

It was a nice drive and along the way home we stopped at Union and looked at one of four wood-covered bridges in Missouri. It was, how should I say, a bridge made out of wood that was covered with a roof. What surprised me was how high the creek water at one point at reached to damage the lower part of the bridge.

It took us just more than three hours to drive back home taking "scenic" route 24 to Richmond and then down 13 to I-70.

It was an inexpensive three-day trip; one I wouldn't mind doing again, only this time on my motorcycle and with $66 in my pocket for that prime rib.

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