The City I Most Want to Visit in Each State, Part 9: South Dakota to Vermont

This is the ninth post in a series. I recommend reading the first, second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth posts before this one. Today I'll be picking the city in South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and Vermont that I most want to visit, then listing my top 2 attractions in each location. 

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The City I Most Want to Visit in Each State, Part 9: South Dakota to Vermont

 

The city I most want to visit in South Dakota is the capital, Pierre. When we traveled to the Dakotas in 2023, I went back and forth about taking a 2 hour detour (each way) in order to visit Pierre. It would have meant cutting something else from the trip and there was nothing I was willing to cut. So we didn't make it to Pierre. When we do, I want to tour the South Dakota State Capitol and visit the South Dakota Cultural Heritage Center. 

Memphis should be on the list of cities we've visited, not the cities we want to visit. We had everything scheduled - flights, car rental, hotels, and tickets for all of the activities we were going to do Memphis. But it was not to be. Our two-week trip ended up being a zero-day trip. Three months later, we rescheduled a portion of that failed trip, but we had to cut out Memphis because Trevor's spring break wasn't as long as winter break when the trip should have happened. All that to say, Memphis is the city I most want to visit in Tennessee. When I go, I will be visiting all the major attractions, but the two I'm most excited about are the National Civil Rights Museum and the Memphis Rock and Soul Museum.  

The city I most want to visit in Texas is Houston. One of my rules is that I can only pick cities I'd never visited, beyond the airport. In 2005, we flew into Houston, got on a bus a few steps outside the terminal, and rode to Galveston where we boarded a cruise ship. The process was reversed at the end of the trip. I'm not counting that as having been to Houston (although if I'd died stepping onto the bus, my death certificate would indicate that I had indeed been to Houston). I would like to actually experience something in Houston; specifically, I would most like to see Holocaust Museum Houston and the Eternal Gandhi Museum.

The city I'd most like to visit in Utah is Moab. Billed as the "ultimate basecamp for red rock adventures," Moab is a great city to visit even for the less adventurous who want to look at red rocks, not go mountain biking on them (raising my hand). Not only is Moab beautiful in its own right, but it is where to stay to visit Arches National Park and Canyonlands National Park. 

The city I most want to visit in Vermont is Stowe. We were only about 10 miles from Stowe when we visited Waterbury so I know that it is a stunningly beautiful area. The top two things I want to do are the History Tour at von Trapp Family Lodge & Resort and visiting the Vermont Ski and Snowboard Museum. 

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What do you think of my picks? Do any of these sound like places you'd like to visit? Let me know in the comments!

Beautiful Vermont

Vermont is one of my very favorite states. It is stunningly beautiful and full of interesting things to see and do. I would return to Vermont in a heartbeat. Someday!

Beautiful Vermont (affiliate link)

When we visited Vermont in June 2023, we were amazed by how lush and green everything was. No wonder it is the Green Mountain State! Naturally, I wanted to scrap the page using green to highlight that, which worked well for Game 3 of the BYSS Winter Olympics. 

I earned two points for Twisted Scissors: one point for using green and black and a second point for incorporating circles. I'm counting the dots on the background paper as circles. Which they are. Go, Scissors!

The Best and the Worst of the 50 State Seals, Part 5

This is my last post rating the designs of each of the 50 state seals. I suggest starting with the first post, which gives the background and explains the criteria I'm using for grading. 

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Rating the State Seals: South Dakota through Wyoming

The state seal of South Dakota was designed before statehood, then modified in 1889 when it became the 40th state. It features scenes of agriculture (farmer, cattle), commerce (steamship), industry (smelting furnace), and natural resources (hills, river). The state motto and the year of statehood appear around the outside. This is an attractive seal. While there are some generic elements, I appreciate the details that make it unique. Question: I'm not a farmer; should he really be plowing furrows that are knee-deep?

Design: 4, Representation 3.5 = 7.5

Tennessee's state seal, most recently updated in 1987, takes a different approach to depicting agriculture and commerce than other states do: the words are literally written on the seal. Images of agriculture include a plow, wheat, and cotton. A riverboat represents commerce. Roman numerals XVI show that Tennessee is the 16th state, admitted to the Union in 1796. I don't like the addition of these words at all. It makes the seal look really crowded. And what is up with the tiny doghouse that is dwarfed by the plow and wheat? I'm assuming it's supposed to be a people house in the background. 

Design: 1.5, Representation 3 = 4.5

The state seal of Texas is two-sided and was updated in 1992. The front features a 5-pointed star in the center, representing the Lone Star State. An olive branch (peace) and a live oak branch (strength), tied together with a ribbon, surround the star. I like the simplicity and symbolism of this seal but it feels incomplete. Adding the date of statehood (1845) or the state motto (Friendship) to the empty portion at the bottom would make this design so much better, both aesthetically and in representing the state. 

Design: 3, Representation 2 = 5

Utah's state seal was adopted in 1896 and features a shield in the center. On it are a beehive (the state emblem), the word Industry (the state motto), sego lilies (the state flower), and 1847 (the year pioneers arrived in Utah). Behind the seal are the American eagle and US flags. The year 1896 is when Utah became a state. Ordinarily, I wouldn't be a fan of having national symbols on the state seal, but with Utah represented in so many ways on the center shield, I don't mind it. It's a very attractive design. The only thing I don't like are the dots on either side of the text. 

Design: 4.5, Representation 4.5 = 9

The state seal of Vermont was designed in 1788, replaced with a (better) design, and then reinstated in 1937. It includes a 14-branch pine tree (Vermont is the 14th state) rising from a forest of much smaller trees. Above the forest are several floating items: grain, a cow, and wavy lines (possibly representing the Connecticut River). Below the forest is more grain surrounding the state motto, Freedom and Unity, plus more wavy lines (possibly representing Lake Champlain). I'll say it - this design is hideous. There are so many things wrong with the design that if I listed them, I'd just end up with a list of everything on the seal. The only thing saving this seal from being the very worst is that it incorporates the state motto and 14 branches (and possibly the water boundaries) that are unique to Vermont. 

Design: 0.5, Representation 2.5 = 3

The state seal of Virginia was designed in 1776 and standardized in 1912. It is two-sided; I'm focusing on the front. It features Virtus standing on a man representing tyranny, whose crown has fallen off his head. She's holding a spear and a sword. The tyrant is holding a broken chain and a whip. The state motto (Thus Always to Tyrants) appears below the fallen tyrant. OK, I get it: this was designed immediately after the Declaration of Independence, when vanquishing the king was at the top of everyone's minds. But that was not unique to Virginia then and it certainly isn't now. Other than the state name, the state motto is the only thing that says Virginia. There is another problem with this design. 

Design 1.5, Representation 1 = 2.5

Washington's state seal, designed in the 1850's when Washington was still a territory then updated in 1889 with statehood, features a portrait of the state's namesake. This seal is distinctive, if boring. I wish the natural beauty of the Evergreen State was featured as well (or instead). 

Design 2, Representation 2 = 4

The state seal of West Virginina was adopted in 1863, when it became a state. It features a boulder with the statehood date. Two men, representing agriculture and industry, lean against the boulder. In front are crossed rifles and a liberty cap. The state motto ("Liberty out of Fidelity") appears at the bottom. Two thoughts: The miner looks like a skeleton. There are periods after State of West Virginia and Montani Semper Liberi. Why? 

Design: 2, Representation 2.5 = 4.5

Wisconsin's state seal was redesigned most recently in 1881. It features a shield with a plow (agriculture), pick and shovel (mining), arm and hammer (manufacturing), an anchor (navigation), and the US Coat of Arms. Above there is a badger, the state animal, and the state motto. Below, a cornucopia (abundance) and 13 lead bars (mineral wealth and the 13 original colonies). There are 13 stars below that. (Wisconsin is the 30th state.) I love that there is a badger and the state motto on this seal. Other than that, meh. 

Design 2.5, Representation 2.5 = 5

The state seal of Wyoming was revised in 1921. It features a statue in the center with the banner "Equal Rights" as Wyoming was the first to give women the right to vote (in 1869, while still a territory). Other banners highlight livestock, mines, grain, and oil, four of Wyoming's major industries. A rancher and miner stand on either side of the statue. At the base is an eagle and a star with 44 printed on it, as Wyoming was the 44th state. The two dates represent the organization of the territorial government (1869) and statehood (1890). This is a very nice seal. It's aesthetically pleasing and does a good job of representing Wyoming's history. 

Design 4, Representation 4 = 8

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Here are the results! For the states that are tied, I've listed them alphabetically. 

1st (tie): Arizona, Minnesota

3rd: California

5th (tie): Ohio, Utah

6th: Kansas

10th (tie): Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming

16th (tie): Delaware, Hawaii, Nevada, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota

19th (tie): Colorado, Nebraska, North Carolina

24th (tie): Florida, New Hampshire, Missouri, New York, South Carolina

27th (tie): Maine, Maryland, North Dakota

31st (tie): Iowa, Michigan, New Mexico, Rhode Island

35th (tie): New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Texas, Wisconsin

37th (tie): Tennessee, West Virginia

41st (tie): Kentucky, Louisiana, Indiana, Washington

45th (tie): Alabama, Georgia, Massachusetts, Vermont

47th (tie): Illinois, Virginia

48th: Mississippi

49th: Arkansas

50th: Connecticut

This was a fun (if incredibly time-consuming) exercise. I'd love to hear your thoughts. Let me know if you agree with my rankings or if yours are completely different!

Standing Horse Craft for Kids

Did you know that there are 17 states which have named a horse as one of their state symbols? Thirteen states have an official state horse, including: Alabama (Racking Horse); Florida (Florida Cracker Horse); Idaho (Appaloosa); Kentucky (Thoroughbred); Maryland (Thoroughbred): Massachusetts (Morgan); Mississippi (American Quarter Horse); Missouri (Missouri Fox Trotter); North Carolina (Colonial Spanish Mustang), Oklahoma (American Quarter Horse); South Carolina (Carolina Marshy Tacky); Tennessee (Tennessee Walking Horse); and Texas (American Quarter Horse). Two more states have named a horse as their state animal, including: New Jersey (Horse) and Vermont (Morgan). Virginia has a state pony (Chincoteague). North Dakota has an honorary equine (Nokota). With so many state honoring this animal, it was the obvious choice for my next craft. 

In order to represent multiple breeds of horses for this blog post, I made my craft two sided. You can opt to make yours the same on both sides (like a normal horse) or different (like mine). Affiliate links below. 

Standing Horse Craft

Materials: 

• chipboard
• microtip scissors
• Folk Art paint
• embroidery floss
• craft glue
• binder clips

Steps: 

Create a pattern for your horse. You can draw a horse or find a photograph you like and cut that out. Trace the pattern twice onto chipboard. Cut out both horses. Paint each horse with a base coat of paint. (Remember, I made my horse two different colors intentionally.) Let the paint dry. 

Finish painting the horses. For my brown horse, that meant giving it a second coat and adding dark brown for the hooves. For the spotted horse, I added the spots and the striped hooves that are characteristic of an Appaloosa. 

Wrap embroidery floss around the four fingers of your non-dominant hand, going around 12 times. 

Use the scissors to snip below your pinkie to make 24 strands that form a tail. Glue the hair in place on ONE of the two horse pieces. 

Wrap embroidery floss around two fingers, going around 12 times. Snip that to make the mane. You'll be gluing it along the back, then folding it over toward the front. Start by putting a line of glue on the back of the horse, then lay the mane in place. Repeat as necessary until the mane and forelock are as full as you want. Let the glue dry. At this point, the mane will be sticking up. To make it lay flat, spread glue along the front side and press the mane into it. Trim as needed. Repeat the process for the second side of the horse, as desired.  

To make the horse stand, spread glue on the back side of the body, neck, and head of one horse. Do not put glue on the legs. Press the two sides together, then secure them with binder clips. (I took the picture before adding the rest of the clips. You'll want one by the throat and one over the tail. 

When the glue is dry, remove the clips and you'll have a horse that stands. I opted not to add facial features, but that's a personal choice. 

12 of the Most Memorable Local and Regional Desserts Across the US

I'm a firm believer in trying the local specialties whenever we travel. And of course that includes dessert! Below are 12 of the most memorable local and regional desserts we've tried during our travels across the US. Most of these are not available anywhere else (except by mail order) and some of these are so good that it's well-worth a visit just to try them! 

Maple Creemee - Vermont; Kringle - Wisconsin; Smith Island Cake - Maryland  

Huckleberry Cheesecake - Montana; Gooey Butter Cake - Missouri; Derby Pie - Kentucky

Hoosier Pie - Indiana; Bourbon Balls - Kentucky; Chicago-Style Popcorn - Illinois

Biscochitos - New Mexico; Buffalo Berry Candy - North Dakota; Water Ice - Pennsylvania

I would happily eat any of those right now, but the two that I think about the most are Derby Pie and the maple creemee. They're soooo good! Are there any other local or regional desserts from where you live or that you've discovered during your travels? Let me know in the comments!

The Best Tour in Every State, Part 5

This is the fifth and final part in my series about the best tour I've taken in every state. I recommend reading the first post (Alabama through Georgia), second post (Hawaii through Maryland), third post (Massachusetts through New Jersey), and fourth post (New Mexico through South Carolina) before this one. 

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South Dakota

We have taken a number of excellent tours in South Dakota, but there's no question which is the best: the Buffalo Safari Jeep Tour at Custer State Park. My only complaint about the tour is that they should call it the Bison Safari Jeep Tour. During the two-hour tour, we saw many bison, pronghorns, and prairie dogs. We learned so much about the native plants and animals of the area. I'd happily take this tour again and again. 

Tennessee

The best tour I've taken in Tennessee is Old Town Trolley Tours in Nashville. This hop-on-hop-off style tour took us to the most popular locations in the city, including the Ryman Auditorium, Marathon Motor Works, Centennial Park (home of the Parthenon), the Belmont Mansion, Music Row, and the Frist Art Museum. Our guide was outstanding. 

Texas

The best tour we've taken in Texas is the Lone Star Riverboat Sunset Cruise in Austin. The tour begins with a narrated scenic cruise during the daylight, then the captain positions the boat by the Congress Avenue Bridge in time for the bat flyout. 

Utah

I've taken many great tours in Utah, but my favorite has to be the Great Salt Lake Tour. The narrated tour took us through downtown and past a lot of interesting sites on the way to the Great Salt Lake. There, we caught live sea monkeys and then had the chance to swim in the lake (we waded). Our guide was excellent and we learned so much!

Vermont

Oh how I agonized over this one! Ben & Jerry's Factory Tour or Rock of Ages Quarry Tour?! I went back and forth a dozen times. They're both so good! But I'm going with the Rock of Ages Quarry Tour. I learned so much during the tour. The smaller size and more relaxed pace (relative to the larger group and strict timeline at Ben & Jerry's) made for a really enjoyable experience. Don't miss either tour when you're in Vermont. 

Virginia

The best tour I've taken in Virginia was a ranger-led tour of Yorktown Battlefield. That was part of the April 2000 trip I took with my fellow 5th grade teachers and our students. We all learned so much about this important site from colonial times and the American Revolution. 

Washington

The best tour I've taken in Washington is one of the most unique tours I've taken anywhere. It's called Beneath the Streets and that's literally what it is: a tour of what's beneath the streets of Seattle. It was so interesting to learn the history of a place that not a lot of people know about and even fewer see. 

West Virginia

I haven't actually taken any tours in West Virginia, so I can't pick the best one. However, I can highly recommend the outstanding West Virginia State Museum. 

Wisconsin

The best tour we've taken in Wisconsin was the Milwaukee City Tour by Untapped Tours. Most tours are either driving or walking, but this was both. I loved that, as we were able to visit places that were far apart, but still get an up-close view of them. It was a fantastic tour. 

Wyoming

I've only taken a single tour in Wyoming (so far!), so I'm calling Cheyenne Street Railway Trolley the best tour in Wyoming. We really enjoyed our trolley ride and learned a lot about the fascinating city of Cheyenne. 

That wraps up my version of the Best Tour in Every State! If you have any tours to recommend, please let me know in the comments. 

50 State Quarters: Coloring Pages Using Crayola Crayons

I've finished four more 50 State Quarter coloring pages: Vermont, Maryland, South Dakota, and Florida. I went back to basics, as these are all done with Crayola crayons.

 

There's something relaxing and fun about coloring with crayons (good quality crayons, that is), but crayons are not the best choice for these specific coloring pages. It is really difficult to get into the small spaces, particularly the letters. Crayons don't blend well, so I struggled with trying to use the limited colors I have to create textures and shadows.  

Curious to see how other art materials have behaved on these coloring pages? So far, I've used: 

• Ohuhu Kaala markers (Nevada, New Jersey, Oregon, Wisconsin)
• ink and Prismacolor colored pencils (Connecticut, Idaho, Missouri, Montana)
• Flair pens (Delaware, Indiana)
• Sharpies (Maine, South Carolina)
• Stabilo Woody 3-in-1 (Colorado, New Hampshire)
• Folk Art acrylic paint (Wyoming, Rhode Island, Mississippi, Michigan)

 It's been so interesting trying out different materials. I have some clear favorites, but I'm going to wait until I finish all 50 coloring pages before ranking my choices. It feels like I've been working on this for a long time (because I have) and I'm not even halfway through!

Color Matching Challenge, Inspired by My Favorite States

Do you remember the graphic I made for my blog post about the best state? I used the eyedropper tool on PicMonkey to create a palette based on it and created a collage called "The Colors of California." Then I put empty boxes beneath each color in the palette so that I could practice color matching with acrylic paint. How did I do? 

I've never been especially good at color matching, but I'm actually quite pleased with how I did on this. I ended up making five more palettes. Can you guess which state inspired each of the following color palettes?

They are my favorite states! I've arranged them below in the same order they appear in the graphic above, which is the same order in my blog post. I did not make color matching swatches in this same order. It's pretty easy (for me, at least) to see when I was losing the light and settling for "matches" that aren't all that close at all. 

You are more than welcome to print my blank collages and try your own color matching. I recommend printing onto Neenah Vellum Bristol and mixing with the 18-color set of Folk Art acrylic paint (affiliate links). If you're already an experienced color mixer and want a real challenge, use just red, blue, yellow, white, and black paint. Too difficult for me!

In total, I matched 36 colors (with varying degrees of success/failure). But I didn't just paint in the swatches you see above. I used my mixed colors for a kid-friendly group project. I'll show you that tomorrow.