For a quick visit and to stretch your legs during a long drive, this place is great. Kids' activity…read moreroom has several hands-on ways to do art. Lego mosaics, a huge Lite-Brite type board (for those of you who remember those), and a life size horse sculpture you can reassemble. Oh, and it's free. Outdoor sculpture garden covers about an acre and has many large sculptures kids can run among. My two boys, 7 and 10, would have liked to stay longer. Permanent exhibit is small but has some notable artists, like Mary Casatt. Not sure if I was supposed to pay for going in that room? Oops. Temp exhibit for next couple months is photos of rock stars, plus autographed guitars from the collection of a local radio guy. Costs $5 and my wife opted for me not to see it. Some of the guitars are hanging in the main lobby, like Clapton's and BB King's. Not that you would drive to Mt. Vernon *just* to see it, but if you are passing thru on I-64, give it a look for an hour or so.

Well worth a visit. Frequently changing displays and great special events. Not too near the hotels,…read morebut only about a mile away. A pleasant little walk.

The bowling alley has a great atmosphere and I will never go any where else. They have the best…read morehappy hour from 3-6. Their service is first class and the food is really great. They have the best pizza in town. The bartenders are very knowledgeable and will treat you like family. This is a place you can feel at home!

We got charged for bowling shoes that we didn't even borrow, and then the owner proceeded to yell…read moreat us for not using shoes. He never gave us our money back and he insulted my sister's unborn child. Never going back again.

Colton was our guide and offered a wonderful and memorable tour. Such a fun petting ranch for both…read morechildren and adults! There were many rescue animals and the cost was reasonable.

What a wonderful place for children to interact with all kinds of animals and see a working farm…read more My grandson got to bottle feed to a baby cow, hold a baby pig and there's a parrot, zebra, swans so many animals besides farm animals. You won't be disappointed you made the trip.

It has been three years since I started this review, and I feel like it deserves to be completed…read moreand posted. The Aviston St. Francis de Assisi Parish Picnic and Festival has become a summer annual tradition for my partner's family for many years. We travel the 4.5 hours from Chicago to the rural town just to take it all in. Here's how it works: -Buy your dinner ticket (just $9 for all-you-can-eat "Thanksgiving-eque" dinner) which runs from 3:30 until 8 pm. They're so organized that you can also get carry-out between the hours of 3-7 pm. The picnic kicks off first with an old school Polka musician playing tunes while you wait under a tent for your dinner ticket number to be called. -Meanwhile, check out the Country Store pitched under a tent with handmade quilted items, pastries and vegetables for purchase. -Once your number gets called, step into the Old School House building, downstairs into the cafeteria to choose one of the many pie slices made by local women. Place it at your seat to save your spot and get in the food line. Fill up your plate with a selection of delicious fried chicken, roast beef, green beans, stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy, cucumber salad, cole slaw and bread. Some of the freshest homemade dinners you'll ever eat!! I think the chickens are killed shortly before the picnic, just sayin'. -After filling up on food for the evening, go directly to Kopff Field where wooden benches sit to play several rounds of $1 (per card for 4 rounds) Quilt Bingo, beginning at 6:30 pm. If you are the only round's winner, you'll earn a gorgeous homemade quilt made by ladies within the town. If it's a tie, you used to earn a pair of white towels, but they recently switched it to WalMart gift cards. Just beware of all the chain smokers in the vicinity. -Once you're all Bingo-ed (or smoked) out, step up to play Poker. Winners win a six pack of beer or southern Illinois' own, Ski Soda (a citrus orange-lemon soda similar to Squirt or Mountain Dew). -If you get thirsty and aren't very lucky at playing Poker, visit one of the several Beer Booths to drink your sorrows away (requires tickets to be purchased and sold by the cup or pitcher). There are also a tropical-themed Margarita and a wine booth. -For the kids, there's several small carnival rides, games, basket raffles, and toys for purchase. This will easily keep them busy for hours, plus a field and playground to run around in are also nearby. In the end, it's all about walking out with a quilt in hand, having a good time, and supporting a small town in need of support. If you ask me, it has been worth driving from Chicago--even though we get the occasional, "You ain't from 'round here, are ya?"

The community really works hard to bring this all together. There are rides for the kids and you…read morecan buy a wristband that is good for the whole event. There are games and raffles. There is the country store for those of us not lucky enough to win the things we want. Lol. All and all it is a great family event. There are people who come from all over, you should come too.

I love this winery and the people who own it! We always have a great time visiting and the wine is…read moresooooo good!

We wanted to try somewhere new and found Crooked Creek Winery. We really liked the atmosphere with…read morehorses and a very laid back relaxing area. Our host was excellent with suggestions and tasting the different wine types. We also had pizza and it was very good. We stayed inside, but if the weather was nicer, we would have spent time outside.

Mindy - I absolutely LOVE your place! So glad we finally got a chance to come visit, and I'm very…read moreglad you guys share your little piece of heaven with the public. It's gorgeous. This place has what most wineries need - wines to suit everyone's tastes. Personally, I'm a dry red drinker, but I enjoyed almost every wine I tasted, including the sweet stuff. I was surprised to see they had a great tasting wine for those who prefer dry to the semi-sweets all the way to the sweet ones. That's an exceptional selection! We arrived when the place was hopping with a couple big parties on buses, but heard Shannon giving a tasting later in the afternoon when there wasn't such a crowd. For those who love wine and are interested in the grapes and process, find the time to do a tasting with Shannon. I was a little sad I missed the story behind the wines when we did our tasting. Regardless, the scenery was incredible and the wines were fantastic. You gotta Love a place where they treat you like family, even on your first visit!

Been around for awhile now. Maybe a year. They buy and sell Magic Cards, video games, and DVDs…read more They also sell RPG systems, dice, figurines, as well as board games such as Settlers of Catan and others. The business is kinda small, but hopefully they can make more room to accomadate the growing number of people coming up for Friday Night Magic as well as their other gaming tournaments. Supposedly, soon they will also start to get in comic books into the store. Hopefully, a good selection as well as graphic novels. The two owners are for the most part pretty easy to speak with. They are very into Magic the Gathering themselves and have pretty decent knowledge of a lot of what people want. Sometimes, they get pretty busy with all the people trying to buy things and you have to wait awhile, but nothing too long. A decent business with a bright future as long as the owners are smart and grow slowly and continue to get along with their patrons.

I am an out-of-town or who come to town to enjoy myself with this particular gaming shop. I've…read moreactually driven hours out of the way just to stop here. They have a fantastic selection of family games, card games, wooden puzzle games, and etc. etc. etc. This tiny little hole in the wall (I know the owner John is looking at getting a larger place) truly is a fantastic stop. For those of you who are not that interested in playing Magic, or Yu-Gi-Oh, no worries. Stop in anyway and don't let the external trappings dissuade you. The owner, John, and his wife have chosen an excellent selection of games. You'll find games suitable for the very youngest kids, for instance 5, 6, and 7 years old, through to very challenging and intense games good for multiple day long gaming sessions. John is very knowledgeable about his games, and if you talk through what you like with him he will be sure to show you some new things you've never heard of before that you will enjoy. Very good selection of Ticket to Ride modules, Dominion games, and many others. Also if you are a card gamer, he has several table set up for card duels. Very delightful place.

I have a confession. Whenever my wife goes away for any extended period of time. I turn into a…read moreaimless, meandering sack. Sure I miss her, but it's not that lonely, "sobbing on the bathroom floor in a pile of vomit & cat litter" mess. I literally forget how to live. I end up drinking from the toilet and eating hair of the floor. The couch? Forget it, I've got no idea how it works. So, this weekend I was proactive. I stocked up on Wii games, hit up StarClipper for a fresh stack of books, stocked the iPhone with podcasts for a few nice long walks, a stack of "Jon & Kate Plus 8" on the DVR and I read the manual for the couch. After playing Speed Racer on the Wii, I got the urge to see it on the big screen. A movie like Speed Racer, no matter how bad the acting, has to be experienced on the big screen. The closest showing was an hour away in Nashville, IL. Why not, I didn't have anything else to do. I set out with my bottle of Crystal Light and bag of chips. Thankfully the Yankees were playing at the same time, so I got to listen to them beat up on the Astros while the Corolla chugged along 64. When I finally pulled in, I first thought "Frank Capra, is that you?" What an adorable little town. A few families had already pulled up and their kids were running around the parking lot. Small town Americana at it's finest. If I wasn't such a cynical bastard, I would've teared up a little. The State shows one movie at one time. If you didn't want to see Speed Racer at 730 then you could stay at home & churn butter. Walking inside, there was literally one woman inside a short booth working the register. the register wasn't electric. Other establishments keep a manual register around for kitsch value, The State theater actually used theirs. Once the show started, that's when the warm nostalgia gave way to an old, fuzzy projector. I would've had better picture quality on the two-inch screen of my iPod. The screen went black while they were manually changing the reels. i felt like I was watching a bootleg print I bought for $5 off some guy on the bus. And aren't rural folk supposed to be nice & polite? Respect your neighbors & some shit? These people wouldn't stop their incessant yapping. I don't mean to hate, but the picture was really crappy. Growing up, the Canarsie Theatre was our hometown theatre. It was known for it's kosher popcorn and sticky floors. I swear I walked out barefoot at least three times because my sneakers were anchored to the floor from years of spilled Coke. it was gross & charming, but at least they got the picture right! I raced home and kissed my 50" plasma. So much for my romantic, small town adventure.

Nashville is the emitope of wholesome, small-town Americana. Great town, wonderful families…read more Population: about 3500. So, as you'd expect, there are a few churches, a park, a small main street, and a hundred year old crappy yet picturesque movie theater. I have only a couple of experiences here. One--no movie, just a halloween costume contest. I made my daughter a gorgeous home-made costume, and she was beat out by a $5 wal-mart cheapie (turns out it's who you know in a small town) and Two--a free kids movie promotional one summer. We had a great time, but the picture quality hasn't been improved since the 30's I'm guessing. Still, since it is the only movie theater option in this small town, you may want to check it out.