We have no proof of our great day

Yesterday was a gorgeous Sunday without humidity and we were lucky enough to be downtown enjoying it. Grandpa and Elizabeth came over our house and we loaded up the van and headed down to Findlay Market for the Blue BBQ Festival. We grabbed sandwiches, had some Barbarossa, and we enjoyed the atmosphere before heading down to park at Fountain Square and then head over to the Carew Tower.

The Carew Tower was built in 1929 and because it was during the Depression the original plans changed and some of the material was replaced with lower grade material. After reading that you'd think the place was not much to look at, but that's not the case at all. I showed the boys the tiled walls made by a local company called Rookwood Pottery. We looked at the gold man on a horse by the entrance. But while their mom was oohing and ahhing over the architectural details, the boys got a kick out of the revolving door. Ben liked it so much, in fact, that he didn't get out of it until Daddy got in to help him.

When you walk into the atrium you take an elevator to the 45th floor. Here, you get onto another elevator to the 48th floor. The difference between the first elevator and the second elevator is quite dramatic. The second elevator is like getting into a coat closet. We all fit in and when it let us off at the 48th we climbed a set of stairs, paid $2 per person (it's free for kids under 6!) and got a bird's eye view of this beautiful city.

I'm sure it's common in whatever city you live in, but I've found that usually the only time we do touristy stuff is when people come to visit you from out of town. The last time I was on the observation deck of the Carew was in 1990 when I had an exchange student living with me. This was Kevin and the boys' first time up there, and it was great to have Grandpa and Elizabeth with us because they were able to point out landmarks, explain what certain things were, and tell stories about growing up downtown.

Unfortunately, we brought a camera with us whose battery was still in the charger at home. They sold disposable cameras at the desk where you pay your admission, but you're going to need more than that to capture these great views. No problem--we already have plans to go back, this time with our camera in hand!