Monday, March 30, 2009

Coffee Talk


While in Kansas City, Blake took the kids to breakfast each morning. I opted to sleep in and settle for Starbucks instead. While calling on rentals one morning, Carter ordered my coffee - not an easy order with the specifics I request - and returned with my cup looking like this. It made me smile all morning long.

Sunday, March 29, 2009

Question Of The Week

Who is crazy enough to drive three young children 1,748 miles by herself in a matter of 5 days? Kidding! You all know the answer to that one.....too easy.



Instead, another easy one:

We've been very lucky these past couple of years to spend Easter out here with family in Colorado. Linda goes entirely out of her way to prepare a wonderful meal and it's non-stop fun with 8 kids running wild. As we venture into Kansas, we'll have family visiting us there. I want to build traditions and am always lost when it comes to Easter.

***What are your plans for Easter? Favorite foods? Routines?

Saturday, March 28, 2009

Friday Night In Kansas City

After a LONG day house hunting, we ventured out to the Legends Shopping/Dining District near the Kansas Speedway. So much to see out there.....beyond the main area, you can visit the race track, The Great Wolf Lodge, Chateau Avalon, and more. Lots of historical information on site, too, so we'll take a walk out there one day to see what we can learn!

How happy is this Daddy with his baby girl?





Cute, old fashioned bowling alley.

Definitely will be back to eat at Jazz.....a favorite of ours from living in Austin.

The fam.

Took the kids to eat at the T Rex Cafe which is like the Rain Forest version times 10! Has anyone been to this restaurant? Maybe there is one in Dallas now? Jack is so into dinosaurs right now.....it was a ton of fun.



This monstrosity greeted us at the door. The little ones were speechless.



They ask you at the front if it's your first visit and seem to seat you accordingly. We ate upstairs, which is exciting in itself for the kids.

The restaurant was very animated. Lights, sounds, mechanical dinosaurs, and a pretty fascinating meteor shower entertained us while there. A mama and baby dinosaur lurked over our table and moved around at regular intervals.

Lainey looked like this for most of the meal:

And, Jack, like this:

After dinner, we shopped a bit and then went into Dave & Buster's so that Carter could play games.

Lainey got her groove on with the dance machine.

Jack thought he played lots of games. No tokens for him.

Lainey, too. And, there is Carter in the back actually playing. He LOVES this place.

Punkin Laine.

Thursday, March 26, 2009

The Plaza

Wednesday afternoon brought us down to The Country Club Plaza. I learned that it was the nation's first suburban shopping district, designed and built in 1922. It's filled with fantastic art, statues and lots to do. Can't wait to spend more time here! It really is all of my favorites combined into one....history, culture and shopping!



Dinner that evening... I almost had a heart attack at this point. Jack voluntarily ate a piece of calamari. Shocking to his usual palette.

The kids giggled and giggled each time the dinosaur emerged with a new piece of food in his mouth.

The Plaza Bunnies arrive each spring adorning the streets with color. They were created in 1930 and are made entirely of plaster of Paris.



Several more in the area yet to see.

Such irony.....Carter's trademark bunny ears on the bunny.

We did a little shopping and ended up at the book store for the final installment to Carter's Captain Underpants chapter books collection. Upon searching for it, he found another series to get started on......Goosebumps.

While there, Lainey brought just about every stuffed animal she could find to Blake.

Road Trip

Made it to Kansas in under 10 hours, which is a small miracle considering I had 3 kids in the car. Lots of stops, time to run around and play......we try to make the journey as fun as the destination.

In the car:





And, at a stop along the way.....













Had a wonderful night out at The Country Club Plaza last night. Some shopping, dinner (with much needed wine!), and a tour of the historical Easter bunnies on display. More on that later with pictures, too. Out to find a house!

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

On Our Way


We are joining Blake in Kansas City for several days! Lots on our list to do.....both for our future home and for the kids, too. Checking out the KC Zoo, shopping at The Plaza, pictures with the Easter Bunny.....stayed tuned!

The Magic Of A Carousel

Not an every-zoo-trip routine.....I keep the train and carousel rides sparse so that they don't lose their magic. But, when we go....it's so sweet to watch Lainey. This time, she refused to let me hold on to her. Such a big girl!