Our Whirlwind Trip To Kansas

 I took over 1,100 pictures during our weekend last month in Kansas, so it's taken me a while to get this post ready. I picked out my favorite [over 100!] to help me recap our adventures there visiting Aunt Nicole, Uncle Michael, Parker, and their newest family member, Grant.

But, to be honest the true adventure started before we arrived in Kansas. You see Ryan was already out West turkey hunting, so I flew alone with the kids. I was fortunate that Big Daddy agreed to drive me, Ma, and the kids to the airport so she could help me to our gate. Getting through security and to your gate at the busiest airport in the world is difficult enough. Then throw in herding two little children and toting all their stuff  [and yours] required for the trip and you've got a lot of chaos going on!

We ended up getting to the airport with plenty of time to spare, so we all sat in the common area just outside security and the kids ate some "brunch" and played with Ma and Big Daddy. When it was time for us to leave, we said good-bye to Big Daddy and Ma used her escort pass to help us through security and to the gate. Our plane was on time and so were we! A nice airline employee offered to help me with my things, so we hugged Ma and got on the plane. At that moment it felt a lot like when Ma left just a few days after Rachael was born- I was terrified, but knew I could do it. I carried Rachael's car seat through the narrow aisle of the plane, hoping not to hit anyone in the head as I passed by all while managing to keep up with two excited kiddos. We sat toward the back of the plane. I got Rachael's seat buckled in and everyone settled just before it was time to take off. Thankfully David now weighs enough that he doesn't require his car seat on the plane and we were able to all sit together in one row!! Two very big blessing.

"Ready for blast offs-in" As David would say.

 

  

Even Puppy was buckled in.

Everyone was very well behaved.

 

They stayed busy the whole plane ride, no one napped. David thought about it for a moment as he laid his head in my lap. [Do you think I liked that?!]

 

We only had one major incident. About an hour into the two hour flight David informed me that he needed to go to the bathroom to poop. Oh. Dear. I knew the little bitty bathroom would not be big enough to accommodate all three of us, but I was afraid to leave Rachael alone because I wouldn't want her to freak out while we were gone. So I questioned David about the seriousness of his claim and he assured me that he DID need to go. As I was talking with him the kind lady directly across the aisle must have heard our conversation and said, "How can I help?" She actually offered to take David to the bathroom or come sit with Rachael while I went with him. Of course, I wasn't going to put a random lady, no matter how nice, in the position of having to wipe my son. And I felt like her moving into my seat might overwhelm Rachael more, so I just asked the sweet lady to keep an eye on her from a distance. I was wearing a bracelet that Rachael had been eyeballing and wanted to wear, but I was keeping as my 'ace in the hole' for just such a time. I took off my bracelet, handed it to Rachael, and told her that I needed to take David to the bathroom. She was fine with that. David and I hurried to the bathroom and all I could imagine was Rachael screaming at the top of her lungs while I was in there. It's not like the airplane bathroom is a quiet place, so I couldn't hear anything if something was wrong with her. I rushed David to finish up so we could get back to her. As we got to our seats the sweet lady told me that Rachael was doing fine until about 30 seconds before I got back. She was just starting to get worried. When I sat down, Rachael cried a little, out of relief I think. After that everything went smoothly. 

We landed in the [much smaller and easier to navigate] Kansas City airport and Ryan was there to greet us! We were very happy to see him since it had been 10 days since he left on his hunting trip.

Ryan had already picked up our rental truck, so we drove up toward Ft. Leavenworth and during the drive the kids fell asleep. They needed to take a nap because I knew there was going to be lots of fun for them that afternoon/evening. So, Ryan and I enjoyed the quiet together as we drove around some of the rural towns nearby. 

Uncle Michael's Dad [Mr. Mike, retired Army Colonel] was kind enough to reserve a room for us to stay in at Ft. Leavenworth while we visited. That was REALLY cool! To be able to stay on post was an incredible experience. Because we were guests, every time we arrived at the front gates of Ft. Leavenworth, Ryan and I had to show our ID's, open the glove box, console, and hood, roll down the kids' window, and get out of the truck. It was serious stuff, but boy did I feel safe there! The kids favorite part of our suite was the "couch with a BED in it!". They had never seen one before and we so excited to play and sleep in it.

 

After their truck nap and once we got settled into our room, we headed over to Uncle Michael and Aunt Nicole's house, just around the corner. Of course, my first order of business was to hold my newest nephew, Grant. SO precious!!

 

Of course, Little Mama wanted to love on him too.

 

 

And then, she took him from me...

She is such a Mama In Waiting that she even had to make sure Aunt Nicole knew what she was doing while she burped him.

Much to his surprise, Rachael was also very happy to see her Uncle Michael.

 

David headed straight for Parker's toys and they played trains together. 

 

I love this one!

 

Finally, Rachael let Daddy have a turn with Grant.

 

David was too busy to be interested in Grant that evening, but don't worry he makes up for it. 

After playing inside for a while, the older kids wanted to go "race" outside and wanted Parker to come too. These were some of the most precious moments! 

 

 

They would all three get lined up and off they would go. David always won, Rachael came in a distant second, and often times Parker never left the starting line. It was too funny!

 

But then his Uncle Ryan came to help give Parker a winning chance!

I'm pretty sure they could have played this for hours.

After a delicious dinner and small celebration for Uncle Michael, who had graduated that day from Kansas State with his first Master's degree, we went back to our room. 

The next day was Parker's 2nd birthday party!! How is it possible that he's already TWO?! 

It was at a really cool party site close by that had an old barn, lots of activities for the kids, an old tractor, some farm animals, and a train to ride in!

They had a blast.

 

 

 

 

 

  

After all the fun activities, it was time to sing Happy Birthday!

 

And eat!

 

 

 

It was a really fun morning celebrating Parker's birthday! 

Rachael tried to give the Birthday Boy a hug, but....

 

We all went back to our room and took a much needed nap. Once everyone was awake, we then went for a guided tour of Ft. Leavenworth with Uncle Michael. He was able to ride in the truck with us, which made learning about the post extra special.

The beginning of the Oregon Trail is on Ft. Leavenworth. 

 

It was our first stop and a great opportunity for some pictures with everyone. 

 Us with Twinkle and Bing.

Us with Uncle Michael, Aunt Nicole, and Parker. [Grant was sleeping in the car nearby] 

Just us.

 

 The history in that spot is overwhelming. As we stood there we talked about all the people that walked right where we were. In the rain, snow, wind, heat they were tired, hungry, sick, scared, but still they pushed on because they wanted a better life for themselves and their children. 

 Very close by were some train tracks. The kids liked walking on them and even found their own railroad spikes to take home as souvenirs!

Next we went to the tip top of Ft. Leavenworth and had a beautiful view of the Missouri River and the kids got to sit on some canons! 

Rachael sat on this bench and played peek-a-boo with me and the camera. I love these.

 

Then Twinkle suggested I sit with her, and she captured these photos that I will always treasure. 

 

And Ryan got this one of David that I just love.

Next we visited the first chapel on post which was built in 1878. It was gorgeous inside and out.

From there we walked across the street...

To the original front gate of the fort. When it was first built, the main purpose of the fort was to provide a place to wage battle against the Indians. One can only imagine the gruesomeness that took place here.

 

 

 

 

After our grand tour of Ft. Leavenworth was completed we went back to Uncle Michael and Aunt Nicole's house for dinner and more time together.

This was when David really wanted to hold Grant. To be such a rough and tumble little boy he was incredibly gentle and sweet with Grant. 

 

 

Of course, Rachael needed to check on him. 

 

They then helped Parker open the birthday gifts they gave him. 

 

 

And for dessert...S'mores!!

 

 

 

Sunday morning we came back over to say good-bye to everyone and maybe get just a few more pictures...

 

 

All four "Whitelaw" cousins. 

8 weeks, 4 years, 2 1/2 years, and 2 years old!

 

ALL of us!

 

We tried to get a picture of Twinkle and Bing with all their grandchildren, but Parker was not interested. But, I did get this precious one. I love Rachael's hand on Twinkle's leg and the way David is looking at Bing, SO cute!

 

And just David and Rachael with their paternal grandparents. 

 

Once we left Ft. Leavenworth we still had some site-seeing to do before catching our flight back home!

There was this incredibly cool restaurant, called Fritz's, that Aunt Nicole and Uncle Michael had been telling us about that brought your food to you via a train. We HAD to see that. It worked out perfectly because it just so happened to be our lunch time when we arrived at the restaurant. 

Upon arrival the kids each got a conductor's hat. 

 

 

Once we decided what we wanted to eat, Ryan placed our order over a telephone.

 

Each table sat under the "railroad tracks" and everyone watched with hopeful anticipation when they saw a train coming to "serve" food. 

 

All the food was in a box carried on the underside of the train. [I tried to point a red arrow at the box]

 

 The train would chug along the track as all the customers were hoping it was coming to their table. When it had arrived at its proper destination a lever flipped up and stopped the basket of food while the train kept going. Then the food was slowly lowered down to your table and people would cheer for you. Every time. It was so funny. Grown-ups were just as into it as all the kids there.

David and Rachael thought it was the best thing ever. The food was really good too!

Once we were finished they wanted to ride on this train.

 

 

From there we walked across the road to Union Station, what used to be a huge train station.

  

Inside, the architecture and attention to details was just amazing. This was the ceiling with giant chandeliers hanging.

The kids loved running around what used to be the main terminal for all the trains. 

 

They stopped to check out this train on display.

 

One of the attractions at the station is the free train exhibit. David and Rachael loved watching all the electric trains of all shapes and sizes on various tracks chugging by in the display.

 

 

Just outside the station, the kids saw a "trolley" and wanted their picture with it, because how often do you see a trolley? 

 

As fate would have it, David and Rachael both left their stuffed puppies behind at Uncle Michael and Aunt Nicole's house. Twinkle and Bing were also leaving that day, but were driving home, so their schedule was a bit more flexible than ours. They agreed to meet up with us [at the station] to make the hand off of the two puppies. That also made it possible for them to go with us to our next stop, which I was SO excited about.

In the early 1900's Bing's great-grandparents on his mother's side [Anton and Fannie Artmaier] opened a grocery store in downtown Kansas City and they lived in the apartment above.

A customer would bring in their list and the store would collect all the goods on the list and deliver them to the customer's home via horse and wagon! How amazing is that?!

And so....here's that store today.

 

And here stands three generations of men in front of it! What a special picture!

It's no longer a grocery store, but is instead a clean-eating, vegan restaurant. But, a few of the remains of the grocery store can still be seen.

Here's the inside when it was a grocery store. See the pipe running from the stove in the middle of the room to the brick wall just over the man's head?

That place in the brick where the pipe fits is still there! Even the original bricks are still there!

 

Since we already had lunch, Bing and Ryan ordered us all milkshakes, which Twinkle and Bing recommended since this wasn't their first time visiting the restaurant. 

 

Ryan and his babies inside this very special place that holds a part of their family history. 

 

The place was so busy that we took our milkshakes outside. The weather was beautiful so we didn't mind.

Rachael really liked the flower boxes.

 

I liked this sign on the door as you entered. 

 

Ryan looking like a model in front of the restaurant. 

 

And, of course, we got a picture of our family in front of the store!

We said good-bye to Twinkle and Bing [again] and still had a few more stops we wanted to make before heading to the airport. Just a few miles down the road were the homes where Bing's parents once lived as teenagers. They lived directly across the street from each other. One day Bing's father, Wayne, later known as Bosco, was home from college and saw Ruth, later known as Gaga, in her front yard and he knew he wanted to marry her. How incredibly romantic is that?!

The houses were built in the early 1930's. All the homes were are well constructed and sat just behind a quaint, tree-lined, quite street. Each is unique and beautiful in it's own way. There were kids out playing in their yards without any cares at all. In just the few minutes we were there, it felt like the ideal all-American place to live.

This was Bosco's home:



And this was Gaga's:



In 1937, they were married in a church which was just down the rode. It was our final stop, but we would need to hurry so as to not miss our flight!

I'm sure it looks a bit different now than it did back then, but here's First Baptist Church:










The kids missed the 'tour of homes [and church]', but that was okay since our flight was so late in the evening, they needed to sleep now.





We made it to the airport and to our gate with time to spare. Since we had a larger than usual lunch followed by very filling milkshakes, we just ate the various snacks I had packed for dinner on the plane. Both kids ate great and were very good the entire flight. They loved recapping the weekend and also excited to get home to their puppy, Chief!

But, during the descent David started to feel sick. The poor little boy ended up throwing up all over himself and his seat! Fortunately, we were at the very back of the plane and the sweet flight attendant helped us as soon as she saw what was happening. Ryan had made friends with the lady he was sitting next to [with her 6 month old baby] and she kindly instructed him to get the pack of wipes out of her bag in the overhead and that I was to use as many as needed. The flight attendant held the bag in front of David's face and helped me get him cleaned up. Poor David was so embarrassed. As soon as it we touched down the flight attendant allowed me to unbuckle David. Thankfully, I learned a lesson on David's very first plane ride a few years ago and have ALWAYS had a change of clothes for each kid in their carry-on, just in case. I don't know what we would have done without those clothes....carried him naked through the busiest airport in the world?! Ryan changed David right in the aisle because getting him to the bathroom would have made an even bigger mess. We got him all cleaned up and exited the plane as if nothing had happened. David felt fine from then on. We made it home around 11:30pm that night. We were all exhausted but so very glad we were able to make the trip to Kansas.
So many fun memories made and special places visited!