I had a bunch of cabin fever one Sunday, so I packed up the kids and headed out into the chilly weather.
I took the long way around to get to Union Station. Despite the wind and the cold, we got out and I gave the kids a tour of my old stomping grounds. I lived on Quality Hill in my early 20's and this part of downtown holds a very specific place in my memory and my heart. The nostalgia runs deep.
This part of the park wasn't there and some of the old places I used to walk have been torn down and luxury offices and condos have been put up. It's sad, but I guess that's progress. I lived in that black and grey building in the back.
Overlooking the downtown airport and the river
Lewis and Clark sat on top of this bluff and claimed it to be an excellent location for a military fort
Union Station at Christmastime - my heart
Charlie, as always, was a rockstar sport and went on the baby train with his sister.
Union Station has a year round display of model trains, but they go all out at Christmas time.
Kids done with mom taking pictures
My favorite part. This little sassafras was getting her picture taken and when her parents made her stop to let the next people go, she asked if she could sit in our pictures. She wasn't done, I guess. Hilarious, she was so cute. I said absolutely, get on in there.
Sometimes it gets a little all-about-Maggie around here so Charlie and I went out to get some time together. We parked at the City Market and took the streetcar down to Union Station for lunch and general wandering.
We ate at Harvey's in Union Station (which is more about atmosphere than food quality) but we got the best seat in the house and actually had a really good time. They have the paper on the tables and we were making ourselves crack up with our stories and drawings. Charlie has his struggles, but man, he is hilarious and so creative!
There is dinosaur exhibit there right now. Our little trip was too short notice to get tickets, but we went and saw the giant dinosaur.
We'll never be those people who have endless amounts of time to take our kids to art exhibits and other culturally enriching activities, but when the Nelson had a Picasso exhibit, I knew we had to get down there. So on St. Patrick's Day, we packed em all up and headed downtown.
It was so fun watching Charlie absorb it all and getting his take on things.
We took a little time to wander the other areas. Maggie was pretty much a nightmare, so we were on a limited timeline.
The shuttlecocks out on the lawn of the Nelson are one of the most iconic landmarks in the Kansas City area, so we had to go out and see them.
It was a COLD morning for a soccer game, but the sun was out and it warmed quickly
Charlie's game was at 9, which was perfect. So we went to the game and then headed to the zoo
I have to say, he is a pretty good little soccer player. And having him run for 40 minutes first thing in the morning, really helped his energy level at the zoo.
Brrrrrr
Ready! It was pretty chilly when we first got there, I was a little nervous. But it slowly got warmer throughout the day and we were almost hot by the time we left! Thank goodness for the stroller to hold our piles of layers as it warmed.
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Cousin Love
Ready to go home, Charlie was crabby and moo-ing like a cow at this point. We went full throttle from 9am-4:30 - we were DONE
The only picture from the house. We grilled out and tried to watch a movie (three of the kids cashed out....). It was SO good having them down here. My three favorite girls!!
