Home Again in Kansas City

Our 10 days in our old hometown have flown by, as expected. The biggest reason for our visit was to celebrate my Mom's big birthday. Much of our immediate family was in town for the celebration. Those who weren't here were definitely missed. We all had a great time.

Most importantly, of course, is that Mom had fun. She received lots of birthday wishes and lovely gifts. My sister Susan and her family gifted this quilt they purchased in Amish country near their home in Pennsylvania. It's absolutely beautiful!

The weather in Kansas City is much more enjoyable than it was when we arrived. We've enjoyed many walks on our favorite nearby walking path along Turkey Creek.

No, I didn't do it! Another big "to-do" during our visit was a bit of skin cancer surgery for Paul. All went well, thankfully, and he's recovering nicely. He already looks much better! All we can say is, wear your sunscreen!

Look! Bullwinkle's twin followed us home from Colorado. New friends Carrie and Bill stopped and parked next door for a few days. This was their first visit to Kansas City, so we squeezed in some time to happily show them around.

They toured the Truman Library and Museum, a Kansas City "must do", on their own. After a tasty lunch at our favorite barbeque spot, Fiorella's Jack Stack near Union Station, we took them on a driving tour around some of old favorite sights around Kansas City.

And, we made time to see a few new favorites, too. We hadn't really taken a good look at the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts. It's gorgeous! Well done, Kansas City!

We'll hit the road again tomorrow. But, we'll be back very soon. And, next time, we promise to stay longer.

North Central Kansas

If you're going to cross Kansas in late August, you need air conditioning. And, we're so pleased to report that, at long last, our moose is cooling like a champ! The team at DM Mobile RV Repair in Loveland replaced the mess Winnebago made of our heat pump and made us very happy! Many thanks to them and the good people at RVP Products (our heat pump manufacturer) in Wichita. Y'all did good! (Winnebago Factory Service is another story!) It was warm when we waved so long to Don and Mary Ann and pulled out of Loveland last Thursday morning. Having spent more time on I-25 this Summer than we had ever intended, we opted for a "blue highways" route east out of Loveland through Greeley and Fort Morgan. We clipped the southwestern corner of Nebraska for about 10 minutes before we headed south through the western edge of Kansas. When we arrived in Goodland in the early afternoon, this was the outside temperature! Fortunately, life inside our moose was cool and comfortable. (Finally!)

Our favorite Kansas overnight campground (in Ellis) was another 130 miles down the road. But, with the temperatures rising, we wisely called it a day early and chilled at the Goodland KOA, just off I-70. The park is perfect for an overnight. The lovely couple who own the place go out of their way to make sure their guests are comfortable. We felt a bit like we were staying at a bed and breakfast!

The temperatures had cooled off to the mid-90s (gasp!) by the time we arrived in the familiar Salina KOA on Friday. Life with a fully functioning air conditioner is awesome!!

Our Salina stop was timed to enjoy the Labor Day weekend with Paul's sister and her family. We had a great time catching up with them all.

A highlight of our holiday weekend was a fun and informative driving tour of North Central Kansas. (Hey! Don't knock it until you try it.) We loaded up with Susan, Doug and Kate and headed north to Minneapolis, Kansas. This charming town of about 2,000 calls itself "A Great Place To Call Home". By the looks of things, it probably is. We took particular interest in this block building at the end of Mill Street. Susan and Paul remember this building as the home of Aunt Winifred and Uncle David. Today, it's a charming four-suite inn that has been lovingly transformed by owners Pat and Brian. While we were gawking outside, they invited us in and showed us around. It's beautiful!

The owners were as interested in hearing about Paul and Susan's memories of the house and the family as they were sharing what they knew. This is a photo of the building circa 1911, when it served as home to Aunt Winifred's family and her father's veterinary practice.

When Aunt Winifred graduated from medical school in 1912, she set up her office in the front of the building. She married Uncle David, who was the high school shop teacher, and the building was their home until she passed away in 1967. In 1962, Minneapolis celebrated Dr. Winifred's 50 years of practicing medicine. Pat and Brian shared this scrapbook page that commemorated the occasion. We had a wonderful visit. We so appreciated these friendly owners making time to share their lovely inn with us.

From Minneapolis, we headed west into Russell County to visit the Grassroots Arts Capital of Kansas, the tiny town of Lucas. Along the way, Kate was buzzing about the newest addition in Lucas. She had heard all about, but had yet to lay eyes on, the town's new public restroom. Her enthusiasm was contagious. We couldn't wait.

While you ponder the question of why five intelligent adults would drive to a town of 400 people to see a new public bathroom, let us fill you in on "Grassroots Arts". According to grassrootsart.net, the term describes "art made made by people with no formal artistic training (usually of retirement age) using ordinary materials in an extraordinary way." Remember, Lucas is the capital of this phenomenon in Kansas. And, apparently Kansas comes in third among states, behind Wisconsin and California.

We knew we'd arrived at Bowl Plaza when we saw a giant roll of "toilet paper" sitting next to the giant grassroots toilet. (Look back at the first photo. Can you see it?) Bowl Plaza just opened in June as the Grassroots Capital of Kansas' response to an unmet need for its estimated 10,000 visitors every year. The "first flush" at the new privy was auctioned to the highest bidder.

The entire structure is covered (inside and out) in unbelievable mosaics created by Mri Pilar of broken bits and found objects. This is the mirror in the women's restroom. A quick peek in the men's restroom revealed boy-themed mosaics made out of things like Hot Wheels cars. This is the most fascinating public bathroom we've ever seen! Without a doubt.

A quote from a visiting Archeology student is embedded into a wall in the lobby of the plaza. We couldn't agree more!

Another thing that will make Lucas an "interesting dig" is the Garden of Eden. This is one of the reasons so many I-70 travelers stop in Lucas (and why the town needed a new public restroom). The former home of S.P. Dinsmoor is one of the 8 Wonders of Kansas and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.  This large scale example of Kansas folk art was a 20-year labor of love for Mr. Dinsmoor, who started the project in 1907 (at the age of 62) with the construction of the limestone log cabin. His worked moved on to the garden, where he used 113 tons of cement to construct 40-foot tall trees to display his sculpture.

In addition to these towering sculptures, Dinsmoor constructed his own mausoleum on the property. So visitors can stop by and say "hello" to this famous grassroots artist.

According to local lore, Mr. Dinsmoor's wife complained that she didn't see him enough. So, he crafted this self portrait just outside the kitchen window so she could always see him waving at her. Mr. Dinsmoor continued his work until he went blind in 1929.

The Garden of Eden is one of those things that has to be seen to be believed.  It's too hard to explain. But, it's definitely worth a stop.

To celebrate Labor Day, the family piled in the car and headed southeast to the tiny town of Florence. As the temperature soared into the 90s, we grabbed our seats on the shady side of the street to watch this town of almost 500 celebrate the day with a parade.

The main attraction (for us anyway) was the appearance of the middle school and high school bands from nearby Marion, Kansas. Kate's friend Barlow is the music director at both schools. On parade day, he started things off by conducting a wonderful rendition of the Star Spangled Banner.

The Florence Labor Day Parade was small but mighty. There were lots of flags and roaring motorcycles.

And, you can always could on the Shriners to be at a parade, even if it's only three blocks long.

We didn't have to wait long to see the biggest "act" in the parade.

They looked and sounded fantastic! Way to go kids! That's a mighty fine band director you have there.

The biggest surprise of the weekend was a visit by California Winnie club friends Bob and Linda. They were passing through Kansas and decided to stop and stay for a couple of nights. They enjoyed touring the Eisenhower Library in nearby Abilene and we really enjoyed catching up with them. We wish them safe travels as they make their way back to the Bay Area.

Another of the Wonders of Kansas we'd yet to check out is Cozy Inn, in downtown Salina. With lots of  instructions from family, (Be prepared to smell like onions for days. And, whatever you do, don't even think about putting your sack of burgers in your car!) we finally made time for a stop.

It was hot and humid when we dropped in, so we sat at the small counter inside and ordered a sack of burgers.  Beef. Onions. Bun. That's it. No cheese. Ever. We're not sure we'd call these sliders a "wonder", but the place has a fun history and serves up a tasty little burger. Definitely worth a stop. And, yes, the onion smell does linger.

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We left Salina this morning and headed east on I-70. Before long we were in our old stomping grounds and set up here in our "home park" in suburban Kansas City before noon. We have a busy 10 days ahead of us. So, we're sure to be on the run. 

The good news is the heat is supposed to break. Halleluiah!

May in Kansas City

Our merry month of May in Kansas City has passed so quickly. It's hard to believe that we're hitting the road tomorrow, already. We've seen a number of travelers pass through our local RV park. This little Scamp was one of our favorite neighbors. Bullwinkle looked especially huge sitting next to this little "marshmallow".


Much of our time this month has been spent with family. From action-packed Saturday soccer games,


to Mother's Day flower planting for Mom, we're so glad to be able to have an extended visit in our old hometown. Overall, the weather has been great. We had just one evening of severe storms. That makes this May in Kansas City a really good month!


We also enjoyed time with a few friends. There just never seems to be enough time to see everyone. We had a great time catching up with long-ago roommate Gretchen and meeting her not-so-little pups. It had been a couple of decades since we'd seen each other, but it seemed like just yesterday.


On an outing with friends Cathy and Dale and their family we discovered a local burger hut that we had yet to visit. Grandstand Burgers is dangerously close to our "home" park. We liked it so much we enjoyed it twice during our stay.


As always, we took care of a zillion different errands this month. It seems almost everything is easier for us to do in Kansas City. Unfortunately, our efforts to buy a new Jeep fell short. Several dealers encouraged us to look. (We couldn't quite see this "gecko" Wrangler following behind our moose.) But, it seemed nobody was terribly interested in actually selling us one. Lucky for Rocky, his travels with us will continue!


A highlight of our month was a day we spent in nearby Lawrence. Our niece Emily has expressed an interest in attending the University of Kansas School of Journalism in a couple of years. So, we jumped at the chance to show her around our alma mater. We met with the J-school recruiter, who impressed all three of us. Paul and I were ready to pursue our journalism degrees one more time! We toured our favorite college campus from many vantage points. This view down Jayhawk Boulevard from atop the new Oread Hotel is our favorite. Doesn't that prospective Jayhawk look happy?


Things are definitely warming up here in Kansas City. The neighborhood pool is open and the humidity is on the rise. So, it's time for us to head to cooler climates. But, first, we need to make our return trip to northern Iowa. We'll make our way there tomorrow. We look forward to returning to Kansas City when things cool off in the fall.

Meanwhile, we wish our hometown family and friends a happy and safe Summer.

Two Months in Kansas City

The last two months have simply flown! Our two-month stay in Kansas City comes to an end tomorrow. We've been very busy and had tons of fun. Unfortunately, we just didn't take many pictures. Here's our best effort at a recap.

Our first stop in Kansas City was Worlds of Fun. Every body and thing at our house was due for an annual check up during our stay, and Bullwinkle was first up with his annual visit at Kansas City Freightliner, just around the corner from our site o' fun. The extra special treat of this two-night stay was meeting up with friends Anne and Craig, who were making their way home to the southern California desert. (We didn't get a picture of these two, but that's their beautiful Ellipse back behind Bullwinkle in the photo above.)

This was our third stop at Worlds of Fun. But, it was the first time we'd been there while the roller coasters were running. It was fun to watch (and hear) park goers enjoying the rides.

From Worlds of Fun, we made our way to our "home" park in Merriam on October 1st. Moments after we got parked in our most familiar surroundings, we were off and running. It seems there's always plenty for us to do in Kansas City, and never enough time. Between doctor, dentist and vet visits, and catching up with family and friends, we were always on the go.

We enjoyed an evening at Shawnee Mission East High School, where our niece and a hundred or so of her friends performed at the school's fall choir concert.

One afternoon, Paul and I visited the campus of crosstown rival Shawnee Mission West High School for a parade celebrating Paul's alma mater's 50th anniversary. The Junior ROTC group got things started.

The school invited its alums to participate in the parade. The handful of folks in this photo represented the tens of thousands of graduates from the '70s, '80s and '90s. Needless to say, most of the alums from these decades were working on this weekday afternoon!

The students, however, were celebrating in full force. Dressed in everything from togas to tie dye, they had a great time saluting the past. One of our favorites was the strings section of the school's orchestra. As these musical kids strolled along, they played the opening riff of The Beatles' hit "Birthday", then shouted the lyrics. They were definitely having a good time.

One of our annual Kansas City pre-holiday traditions is the baking of what seems like a zillion crescent rolls (from scratch, of course) for our family holiday meals. With the help of my happy baking nieces, we actually rolled up 14 dozen of the tasty delights. This year, we experimented and tried a couple batches of sweet versions. The chocolate chip and peanut butter crescents were a unanimous favorite.

We enjoyed time with many friends during our stay. We caught up with former co-workers, neighbors and folks we hadn't seen in a very long while. Like we said, though, there just wasn't enough time to see everybody. So, we're looking forward to catching up with more friends when we return next May. We were also fortunate to catch up with far away friends, like Cindy and Rick, who joined us for a virtual happy hour. (We just love Skype!)

We were also blessed to meet virtual friends for the first time during our stay. When we learned that fellow travelers Bridget and John were staying an hour or so south of Kansas City, we made a date to meet them over some tasty home cookin' at Miss B's Cafe in Louisburg. It was great to meet them both. We look forward to seeing them again down the road.

We met a few new faces during our stay, too. "Barlow" is niece Kate's special friend. Lucky for him, Uncle Paul approves! (It was great to see you both!)

As our stay drew to a close, we especially enjoyed celebrating Thanksgiving with our family. Here's Paul's half our clan at its celebration. We also enjoyed a wonderful dinner at my parents, but I didn't take any pictures. (Curses!) It was fantastic to spend this special holiday with everyone.

During our "downtime", limited though it was, we tackled a few special projects. Paul took care of a bunch of odds and ends for the moose and squirrel. I wrote a 50,000-word novel (and I use that term so loosely) as part of National Novel Writing Month, and knitted two scarves for the Special Olympics Scarf Project. (I encourage all you knitters and crocheters who pass this way to click on that link. It's a wonderful project in need of a lot of scarves! You'll find all the info you need to make your contribution. Then, stitch away! You'll be so glad you did!)

After these two very busy months, it's time for us to head south. We'll miss our family and friends, of course. But, truth be told, we really have to go. After all this activity, we need some rest!

More soon from the road.