A Day in Dayton
Day 6: Ice Cream, Airplanes, and Animatronic Dinosaurs
We started the morning in Dayton, checking out a few neighborhoods to see if any felt like a good fit. It didn’t take long to decide…nope, not for us! So, we packed up and headed out to Young’s Jersey Dairy, ready for some good old-fashioned family fun.
Because of Ezra’s alleged allergies, we stayed peanut-free and kept the EpiPen close, just in case. I had my eye on a Buckeye treat (because, well, Ohio!), but I passed, better safe than sorry. The kids didn’t seem to mind; they were far too busy climbing on the fake cows, pretending to drive the tractors, and spinning joyfully on their favorite farm animal on the merry-go-round.
When it came time for ice cream, everyone got a scoop of something special and it was worth every sticky smile and candy colored face. Before we left, we stopped by the gift shop, where the kids picked out matching shirts to remember the day. Arabella even spent some of her own money on a little pig toy, proudly carrying it out like treasure.
Our next stop was the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force, and it absolutely blew us away both in size and in what we learned. The place is huge! We barely made it through a portion of the exhibits before everyone started to run out of steam. What we did see was fascinating: displays about the Holocaust, women’s roles in aviation, and the Wright Brothers’ original materials. The kids were wide-eyed, soaking it all in. Before we left, they each picked out a dog tag trinket as a souvenir, something to remind them of everything we saw and learned.
As the day wound down, we crossed into Indiana to visit a quirky spot called Uranius. The kids grabbed some candy and were amazed by the life-sized animatronic dinosaurs that moved and roared around them. It was such a fun and unexpected way to end the day. We watched the sunset on the drive back to Ohio, the sky glowing pink and gold as the kids dozed off in the back seat.
Tomorrow, we head to Cincinnati : our final stop before the trip comes to an end. It’s hard to believe how quickly it’s gone, but what a journey it’s been so far.