Herbert Hoover Presidential Museum Day Trip

It's official. Sandy has named our group the TMBC (Tuesday Morning Breakfast Club). I LOVE IT.

Anyway -- one of the things on our summer PLACES TO GO list was America's First Ladies Exhibit in West Branch, Iowa.  At the Hoover Presidential Library and Museum

The Hoover Library is just an hour's drive. YIPPEE. So, we started with a wonderful breakfast -- and arrived about 10:00...

Linda P., Sharalan, me, Linda K., and Sandy...

I couldn't take pictures of the First Ladies Exhibit -- so these are all from the permanent museum collection...

If you ever get near West Branch, Iowa --YOU SHOULD GO HERE.  Herbert Hoover was a fascinating man, who was President during one of the most difficult times in our country's history...

The story of Hoover Dam is worth the whole trip.

Hoover really did take on the task of feeding the world after WW I....

This is a diorama -- don't you love the shadow of the miniature clothesline??

Turns out -- I was still walking around the Museum when the rest of the TMBC was OVER IT...

We all enjoyed America's First Ladies Exhibit -- and it will be in West Branch until October 26.  GO THERE IF YOU CAN.  As we discussed the exhibit, we all had the same feeling -- that the wives of our American presidents mostly had sad lives.  There wasn't one woman who you envied, or thought, boy-o-boy-o -- she was SO LUCKY.

Martha Washington, Mary Todd Lincoln, Betty Ford...they all had their demons.  Like most people, of course -- but the nature of their husband's job meant they had to deal with their problems in a very public way.  Or, more likely -- they locked themselves into a dark, lonely room....for about 4 years.  Ugh...

Being First Lady is a thankless job.  The only woman who I think made a difference during her time was Eleanor Roosevelt.  And THINK ABOUT HER LIFE IN THE WHITE HOUSE.  Double ugh.  Dealing with World War...a husband who was a womanizer....all the haters....her sons going off to fight in that far away war....She was a remarkable woman and she had a busy life full of purpose and accomplishment.  But I'm pretty sure she was also very sad...with few true friends,  days full of fear and nights all about lonely.

Here is another good example of why I am SO GRATEFUL FOR MY LIFE.  It's the little things, y'know??  Thank God John decided he didn't want to be President of the USA...