Weekend, Weekend

Has this been a long week for you? Seems like everyone is feeling stressed right now. Monday started off with my usual morning chat with Britney.....she called and I launched into some typical complaint or joke about the kids being kids.....and was stopped abruptly when she told me her grandfather died. So sad for the Starnes family.....funeral arrangements and Blake's flights to Dallas to be with everyone.....lots of prayers and thoughts for so many we love.

All of my little annoyances seem very trivial in comparison.....Lainey's being super feisty these days...challenging me in new and different ways....the terrible twos for sure. The boys are surprisingly cooperative at the moment, but daily rain has kept us inside, turning even the best of attitudes into fussy ones.

So, the weekend is near and I'm working on a game plan to cheer everyone up and have some summer fun, as the leaves are starting to change in scattered areas, which means the weather will be soon, too. No complaints from me.....but I do want to enjoy the sun while we have it.

Maybe a trip to Deanna Rose Farmstead?

Little ones are always happy here.

We found a butterfly garden and nature walk last trip and I can't wait to get back to take trail into the woods.

Feeding animals...

And, lots of walks on their beautiful grounds.

A project to complete for Blake and me. Well, kind of me. Blake paints and I usually watch. 2 coats have been applied so far....now, we just need to distress and then put an antique glaze on plus hardware. Isn't this piece darling? LOVE it.

Definitely a night out at Worlds of Fun.

Lainey wants to go on the "skoo bus" again.

And, maybe the kangaroos.

Jack and Carter ride a lot together, which warms my heart. Brothers can be so sweet.

All 3! What fun they have.....and equally, Blake and me watching them.

I think that might cover it for us. You? What's on your agenda?

Deanna Rose Farmstead

We are so fortunate to live just a few miles from one of the most precious "petting zoos" on earth. You'll see that it's much more than that....it's a farm, a collection of playgrounds, a one room old-fashioned school house, dairy barn, fishing pond, an abundance of educational opportunities.....all disguised as FUN. 12 acres, almost 200 animals, and more.

The best part? It's free!

Built in 1978, it began as a small farm dedicated to honoring the first Overland Park police officer killed in the line of duty. Beyond that, its intention is to teach children about a disappearing entity....the family farm.....which once inhabited most of Kansas.

I can't say enough about how precious this place is. We visit about once a week....leave donations as we can.....feed the animals.....and walk the grounds.

Little Lainey checking out the playground.

In a cabin just for kids.

The sand pit.

The grounds are beautiful and everything is tailored for children.

And, as said before, it holds a wealth of opportunities for kids to learn about our heritage here in the Midwest.







Our new favorite attraction.....not just here.....at all venues. The penny machine. $.51 buys each child a souvenir. Carter has quite the collection going!





I love these old fashioned "watering holes".

Not sure they had these hand dryers on the prairie, though.

Time to feed the baby goats. $1 buys you a bottle. Of course, Lainey put it directly into her mouth. I checked before, anticipating just that. Non-toxic for kids.

Lainey seemed eager to help at this point, but once we got in, she was terrified of them. They're pretty aggressive when a bottle comes into view.

Jack took charge and fed them.



Jack and the goat. I love his willingness to keep trying, even though he was already frustrated with their jumping on him!


Tractor bikes.....their favorite thing to do here.

The fishing pond. I opted not to do this until Blake is present. Jumping in after one kid leaves one unattended, after all.



Everything is picture perfect....and this post doesn't even include the flower gardens. Absolutely gorgeous.

A new entrance being built. They're adding a general store, an ice cream parlor and more.



They don't miss an opportunity......everything is precious.

Mother's Day Weekend

Our first weekend in our home landed on one in my honor, oddly enough. It was the perfect beginning of our reunited lives here in Kansas.

The fun started with our first visitor, Shannon. We've been friends for years and she taught me all I know about the blogging world.

With Payton, her precious daughter.

They brought these gorgeous hydrangeas, one of my favorite flowers.

Carter with Blake, her son. Although they're close in age, they have little in common interest wise, so we were thrilled to see how well they got along. Shannon and family live in Wichita, so we have many future visits ahead!

Saturday included a visit at the Deanna Rose Farmstead here in town. One of the cutest places I've ever been, inside Kansas or out. More pics to come in a separate post.



It's a petting zoo/playground haven/carriage ride and more.

Here is baby Laine checking out the white mama goose nesting while the gray daddy sends out words of caution for being too close!

After the farm, we drove to The Plaza for a walk and some shopping.



Like mother, like daughter.

Mother's Day brought a morning of sleeping in, more flowers (from sweet friends, the DeCoccos in Colorado), lovely and creative gifts from Blake (more later) and a picnic!

I really love receiving flowers because I enjoy them for at least a couple of weeks.....changing the water often....pulling out dying pieces.....cutting the arrangement back as needed.....creating a few different looks for each grouping. Here is about mid-way through for the lovely tulips.

That afternoon, we headed out to Loose Park in KC. Beautiful, beautiful area and rated "best place for a picnic" in the city. Agreed. We'll be back!

Lainey got started immediately looking for our meal because she eats more than any child I've ever seen.

Delish.

The middle child. In so many, many ways.

Found it! Help yourself, Laine.

"Mae-ee's going." (Lainey's going. Do something, Mom!)

The sweet boy who first made this day possible for me. We had no idea what lay ahead for us.....what an honor it is being his mom.

It started raining and so we had to cut our stay short. Lainey refused to let go of her second piece of chicken, this time a leg.

Still eating. No idea how she's so little!

Reminds me a bit of Kramer here eating Kenny Roger's in his bed.