We left for Des Moines Friday morning without much of a plan.
First stop was Memory Bound Papercrafts, which never disappoints. I picked-up several of their custom stamp sets together with papers and a big stack of pre-cut card bases.
After that, I explored Walls of Books, which is just a few doors down in the same shopping center. It was a wonderfully curated mix of new and used books, so of course I had to bring a few home.
Next, since it was a lovely sunny day (and forecasted for rain on Saturday), my husband suggested the Greater Des Moines Botanical Gardens. Honestly, I didn't even know Des Moines had a botanical garden, so I jumped at the chance to go check it out.
You enter through the Garden Shop, which then takes you into an Indoor Greenhouse Garden Dome. I don't believe I've ever seen the mix of plants that they had thriving in that dome. It wasn't as hot and humid as many other similar spaces we've visited across the United States, so we could really take our time and enjoy the experience.
There is even an indoor waterfall, which provides wonderful relaxing sound.
Outdoors (and some indoors) was an amazing collection of water lilies.
The wall was too high for me to get a great shot, but you can get the idea of the size of the water lily area.
There was also a lovely waterfall outdoors.
We loved that there was a bench where you could sit in the cool mist under the waterfall.
One of the most unique plants (to me anyway) was this Kintzley's Ghost Honeysuckle. The blue leaves were so lovely.
It was an absolutely perfect way to spend the afternoon. We headed toward our hotel and decided to go for an early supper at Hessen Haus German Restaurant.
We started with a German Beer for Rod and a Pear Mule (the monthly flavor) for me. They hit the spot.
We ordered the We shared the Hessen Starter Combo with Pretzel Sticks, Rouladen Rolls, Sauerkraut Balls, and Cheese Curds.
We paired it with a Brat added to Spaetzle Mac & Cheese.
I scarfed down the apple crisp and ice cream before I remembered to photograph.
Saturday, the rain stayed away, so we were able to enjoy the Des Moines Farmers' Market in the morning and then walk to our first-ever viewing of Hamilton at the Des Moines Civic Center (we loved it).
We did enjoy a gorgeous planting of hydrangeas in every color in the planters down the entire block in front of one of the downtown banks.