Vacation Recap - Kansas

We are back, unpacked, and in our regular routine after our end-of-summer hop, skip, and a jump trip to visit family in both Kansas and Colorado. We had a great time and made lots of memories. I might be buried under photos and struggle to get back into regular posting, but I'll try my best to post our recaps this week. Thank you for your patience.

First up, KANSAS!

We left last Friday and spent approximately four days in the blazing sunshine and happiness of the rolling fields and loving company of Dan's family. Grandma picked us up at the airport and we headed to grab a bite to eat at what seems like our new Kansas tradition - train delivery lunch service at Fritz!

Placing your order on the table phone and having a little train deliver your food is SO fun. The burgers are great and the tater-ties are even better (get-it! railroad ties = tater ties which are elongated tater tots and they are YUM). 

Plus, a quarter ride is always a perk.

We spent Saturday and Sunday in Elsmore visiting with Dan's extended family and our dear Aunt Judy, Aunt Kandi, and Uncle Willy. We visited the kitties, harvested their epic garden, drove the lawnmower, and played. Such special bonding time that we all loved. Oh, and yes, Black Bolt and Rainbow made the cross-country trip with us.

On Saturday afternoon we headed to Uncle Willy's house and had a water fight to cool off and shot off some daytime fireworks.

We ate some EPIC homemade fish tacos and then the kids got to experience up-close night-time fireworks. This was a real blast. We had so much fun picking which one Dan got to shoot off next from the big boxes of option.

We spent the night at Uncle Willy's house so that on Sunday we could go fishing at the lake!  It ended up being quite HOT and the fish weren't biting much but we caught a few little guys and the kids had fun regardless. 

After fishing for a bit we headed back and the kids got to drive the tractor around with Uncle Willy. This always terrifies me but I put those fears aside because the kids absolutely LOVE it.

The rest of the afternoon we spent with Aunt Judy, Aunt Kandi, and Grandma playing at the house and making SLIME!! This was the first time the kids got to MAKE slime and they loved it. We tried a hair conditioner + cornstarch recipe and I really liked the texture.

We headed back to Grandma's house that evening and spent Monday morning hanging out. We played with Dan's old Legos, got some more use out of the Buzz Lightyear ride-on toy which is a crowd favorite, watered the plants, and made MORE slime all before 11 AM.

For the afternoon we got spontaneous and headed into Kansas City. We got delicious barbecue for lunch and then took the kids to the Deanna Rose Farmstead. We took Kip here when he was almost two and so this time around was much more fun for him. It wasn't crowded at all since school was already back in session there and we had a blast. They did the playground, the petting zoo, gardens, riding the toy tractors, learning about Kanza Native American tribe, and panning for rocks and gems. 

We ended the visit with a sweet treat. It was a perfect little day of adventure.

We left for the airport Tuesday morning to hop on a flight to Denver. 

We had a WONDERFUL visit in Kansas and I think the summer is my favorite time to go there. It's just SO summery and filled with so many unique experiences for the kids...I mean where else are they going to drive a lawnmower and ride a tractor?! I always try to remember to get a family photo before we go and I hate that I didn't do that this time. But I did get this sweet shot I'll treasure and Dan got the cute ice cream selfie above.

And we can't forget about dear sweet Baby. What a gem of a pup. We love her too.

Until next time, Kansas! We'll miss you!

Check back later this week for our Colorado recap and camping catastrophe (sorta).