Picking new places to visit

We've just returned from nine days on the road, so I thought I'd share a few photos of sights we saw along the way! Recognize this place?

If you're a fan of History Channel's "American Pickers," you do. It's the famous Antique Archaeology in LeClaire, Iowa, which my husband, a great fan of the show, decided he wanted to visit while also checking Iowa off of his list of States I Have Visited.

If you're a regular viewer of the show, you might recognize some of these goodies, such as the Laurel and Hardy masks.

Here's a giant advertising character that greets you upon entering the shop.

Some items for sale. (No teawares that I could find!) And, alas, no Mike, Frank or Danielle, although it was still nice to see where they do business.

Here's the iconic car that is featured in lots of shots, with the Mississippi River in the background.

LeClaire was quite a pretty little town, and we were able to enjoy lunch and a bit of sightseeing afterwards. I loved this great store, Grasshoppers.

I bought some jewelry pieces there and a cute little folder of "Gardener's Tea."

At LeClaire Antiques and Appraisals, an antique shop along the main street there in town, I found my official souvenir of LeClaire, this pretty floral teacup. It was an $8 find made by Old Royal Bone China in England.

Now, the real reason we were in Iowa was that we were headed up to Wisconsin to see a new grandson, sweet little Andrew ...

... and his big brother Michael! Michael, we learned, is adapting well to the family addition, except for when Andrew cries during his favorite cartoon, "Bubble Guppies," which earned Andrew a wee little whack from his brother one morning!

And here Alex and I are with both boys! We enjoyed a great visit with their parents, Heather and Brad, and hopefully provided a little help during their first week at home with the new baby. (And we did manage a little shopping excursion one afternoon, so tomorrow I'll share the bargains I found.)