More Water Fun and Mississippi River Exploration

It’s not easy to sleep in a room with three kids, but the rooms at Grand Harbor Resort in Dubuque, Iowa, was a nice size and we were all pretty exhausted from the previous night.

In the morning, we stayed at the hotel for breakfast thanks to the Dubuque Convention and Visitor’s Bureau. 

They set us up at the Tony Roma’s in the hotel and I found out they do breakfast as well as they do ribs.

I had the Banana Nut Pancakes and the kids also enjoyed pancakes with chocolate chips, while friend Amy went the low carb way and ordered a loaded omelet. We were all full when we left the restaurant.

While Amy and the kids stayed at the waterpark at Grand Harbor Resort, I headed over to check out Betty Jane Candies.

When I had mentioned on Twitter that I was heading to Dubuque, I got a few different messages about stopping at Betty Jane’s. I have to say that some of my best places have come from Twitter recommendations so I had to follow up.

Walking into Betty Jane Candies is a bit overwhelming for a chocolate lover like me. Luckily, I had already come with a specific purpose in mind.

I was told to get the Gremlins, which is Betty’s version of a turtle, complete with nuts and caramel. 

They were so popular they were even put in the Academy Award gift bags this year.

After sampling one I agreed they were the ones to get, and bought a box for my Mom, and for my friends at CI Living, whom I usually brought a special Midwest chocolate during my television appearances.

I also wanted to bring something back for the kids. There were bags of old time favorites such as Nonpareils, and non-chocolate candies like licorice, but I settled on some chocolate lollipops. 

  

Back at the Grand Harbor Resort, I took a turn on the lazy river myself, and splashed around in the water with the kids until it was time to go.

Directly across from the hotel is the Diamond Jo Casino. In addition to casino games for adults, they have a bowling alley and sports restaurant which are both family friendly.

We didn’t have time for bowling, but we did have lunch at Mojos Sports Bar. My burger wasn’t anything special, but the kids enjoyed the nachos and chicken tenders.

After lunch, we went to the National Mississippi RiverMuseum and Aquarium. There was a lot to see about the environment, land, and marine animals in and around this area. The displays also included a lot of history.

The best part was the large selection of hands on activities for the kids. They had a lot of fun with it and I think they learned a bit too.

By the time we left the museum, they were exhausted. It was a quiet ride home from a great trip to Dubuque.

Waterpark and True Italian in Dubuque

I’ve loved living in the Midwest because I can get to so many different states within a few hours. One of the (very) few things I don’t love about Champaign, though, is the lack of good Italian food. 

Coming from Long Island, you could find a pizzeria with great Italian on every corner. I have yet to find one place within two hours of Champaign that I can compare to those.

On a recent trip to Dubuque, Iowa, I was happy to discover a new city and a restaurant that makes pasta like my aunts used to.

I felt comfortable as soon as I walked into Vinny Vanucchi’s in downtown Dubuque.  The checkered tablecloths and family photos were very welcoming and I knew instantly it was a great family place. 

That was what I was looking for as I had brought along my friend Amy, her two kids, and a third child.

Amy was driving, but I tried one of their martinis from the cocktail menu. The Chuck Berry was simple and perfect, with vodka and raspberry liqueur.

We got a pizza for an appetizer. It was quite good and we probably could have finished it if we hadn’t ordered entrees too. It was packed up to take back to the hotel for the next time the kids – and adults – got hungry.

Vinny Vanucchi's also served a family style salad with Italian dressing, of course.  It was served with a garlicky bread.

I had Uncle Paulie’s Baked Mostaccioli. It is made with baked penne, tomato sauce, and three different cheese. I always find it funny that they don’t have Baked 

Ziti in the Midwest because there’s no ziti in the macaroni aisle! Baked pasta is made with rigatoni or penne. One of these days I’m going to find out what the Midwest has against ziti!

Amy got Fettuccine Seafood. It is fettucine with scallops, shrimp, and crabmeat in a cream sauce. She said it was fantastic.

The kids shared the ravioli with Alfredo sauce and kept enjoying the pizza, although it seemed like we didn’t make a dent in it.

It was ice cream for dessert for the kids while the adults shared a chocolate cake.

We went straight to the Grand Harbor Resort and checked in quickly. The standard room was a nice size, and also had a small refrigerator.

It was just minutes later that the kids begged us to take them to the waterpark and we were curious to check it out too, so we headed downstairs.

I don’t know that the Grand Harbor indoor waterpark would have been enough for teenagers, but it was more than enough for the kids we had with us, who were six and three. They loved the slides, lazy river and the kiddie play area.

I don’t think we would have gotten them out of there if the park hadn’t been ready to close for the night, though I have to admit we were having a lot of fun too.

Everyone was more than ready for bed by the time we got back to our room at the Grand Harbor Resort. We needed to rest up for a full next day in Dubuque.