Some great friends of ours from grad school (the Motts) were stopping in Kansas City as part of a big road-trip tour of mid-western MLB stadiums. We hadn't seen this city that is only 3.5 hours from us, so we decided to meet them there.
They have 6 kids, that line up nicely with ours, so everyone had fun.
We hit the KC highlights:
a famous hole-in-the-wall BBQ joint,
a walk along the Riverfront Trail and an unexpected dragon boat show (one even tipped over--ha),
a foot bath in a cool downtown fountain,
and a complete soaking at a splash park.
Then the younger kids did some hotel pool swimming while the "men" cheered on the Kansas City Royals (the real highlight and purpose of the trip for some).
We packed a lot into that Saturday, then slept in a cozy hotel room that night. On Sunday morning we found a nearby church building to attend, then spent the day visiting the LDS Church history sites of the region.
We hadn't seen the Independence Visitors' Center before, and really enjoyed the depiction of pioneer life in the displays. Our kids needed a play break, and we indulged them. They pretended to drive/ride in this covered wagon forever!
It had been years since we toured the Liberty Jail Visitors' Center, so we stopped there again. And again I was impressed and humbled by the sacrifices of our early church leaders.
I would be proud to bear my burdens with the dignity that these men showed in their afflictions. Something to work towards.
On our way out of town we drove past the site of the new Kansas City Temple, still under construction.
A great weekend. It was short, but sweet; muggy, but memorable; fun, but also functional--that's because I learned some things. Being around this amazing family was good for me. They showed me how life with lots of kids doesn't have to equal chaos. This suave mother-of-many strolled around the city with kids all around her, and sometimes too far away from her, like it was effortless. Even when one panicked on the escalator, or one fell and hit his head on slippery pavement (sorry if I am revealing too much, Joanne:)...parents were calm, situations were resolved and life moved on.
I guess I saw that from my parents when I was young...but I didn't realize what I was seeing. These observations mean more as I am in the midst of parenting myself.
Families are fun. I knew that, but I like seeing it in action.
4 comments:
We loved KC Masterpiece when we went there four years ago! My Idahoan sister in law had to inquire if the potatoes were from Idaho and it turned out that they are. =)
We enjoyed the church history sites too.
Sometime, you'll have to take your kids to the Hallmark museum (it's in Crown Center). Hallmark also makes Crayolas and there is a big part of the place for kids to do fun free stuff there and at Hallmark, you can make a little bow to take home.
Sounds like a fun weekend! And congratulations to your friend for making traveling with 6 look effortless. Because it's not. But we do it anyway, right?
Haha - I had forgotten all about the escalator incident! Also, just so you know, by the end of the trip I was definitely more frazzled, and I would say that life with 6 kids was looking very chaotic at that point - just consider yourself lucky you met up with us at the beginning of our travels.
We had a blast with you guys, though - I'm so glad we were able to meet up and spend the day together.
I would love to take a trip with you and Joanne and all our kids. I would bring a notebook and study everything you ladies do! All your travels look like so much fun!
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