KC Recap

Hello!

We spent a few days in Kansas City visiting family last week followed by a couple of days at the Lake of the Ozarks with friends before getting back to Lex late Tuesday night.

Today, I’m recapping our trip…

…and linking up with Andrea and Erika for Friday Favorites because of course a KC and lake trip include lots of favorites.

We try to get to KC every summer, but we were intentional about doing so this year in order to celebrate my Gma’s 90th birthday!

Last Wednesday was our travel day. It’s about a nine hour drive from Lex to KC. Times really have changed now that the kids are older…that drive sure is easier!

Once we got to KC, we went to my dad’s house and met up with my brother’s family who had also travelled from Lexington. We had tacos for dinner and then went to my mom’s for a few hours. We were in bed by 10:00 after a long day of travel.

Thursday we had a slow morning. Hayden’s been training all summer for cross country season. With the heat indices over 100 for our entire visit, he had to get up early to get his workouts in. I will give him credit….he did so every morning we were in KC with no complaints. I did a workout using the Beachbody app (another reason I love it!). We got ready, and then met my mom and Gma for lunch.

In order to beat the heat, we took the kids putt putt golfing which was fun.

After putt putt, we went to Rally House to pick up some KC Royals gear for the game the next day. Hayden had outgrown his last KC hat, and I couldn’t find mine…we all had luck picking something out.

Later in the evening, we went to my mom’s friend’s backyard pool. He always lets us come over when we visit, and the pool is a great spot to cool off!

Piggy backing at he pool is apparently all the rage, and my brother wins for most fun (and strongest?) uncle.

We had a late dinner and then headed to bed.

Friday morning we were up early for family photos. With 103 degree highs that day, we knew we needed pics early, so we wouldn’t melt.

Here’s a sneak peek:

The photos turned out so good. The photographer was the same one who took our wedding photos as well as the kids when they were babies. I will share more next week 🙂

After the photos, we all went out to brunch. Then, we went to my mom’s house for a couple of hours. We had pizza at my dad’s before heading to the Royals game.

Of course, we are “crazy” for going to the game in that heat and the Royals aren’t having the best season, but it was still fun to do. We knew since it was a night game, it wouldn’t be too bad…and it wasn’t. It was definitely humid, but that’s better than being hot.

I joked that Travis purchases tickets based off the price of beer in a stadium and the team’s record…haha The $12 seats were all we needed.

Hayden and Travis walked around before the game started, and Hayden was pumped because he got Bobby Witt Jr.’s autograph on his new hat!

During the 4th inning, Hadley joined the younger cousins at the “Little K” where they met Sluggerrr and rode a couple of rides.

On the way back to our seats, Hadley got this pic of the sunset. So pretty!

Unfortunately, the Royals lost, but we were all still smiling…

…because it was Firework Friday after the game.

These fireworks were spectacular!

Definitely worth more than the $12 ticket price!

It was past 11:00 when we got home, so we showered and hit the hay!

Saturday was our hottest day in KC! The heat index was above 106! That being said, we had a slow morning, and then Travis and I went to see Where the Crawdads Sing while the kids hung out at my mom’s house.

I loved the movie as much as the book. Travis really enjoyed it too!

Then, we went to celebrate Gma’s birthday with dinner and dessert. She had over a week of birthday festivities which included a happy birthday yard sign from my mom and aunt, lunch and cards with her Bridge group, dinner out at a Mexican restaurant (she sent me a photo of her wearing a sombrero and having churros for dessert) with neighbors, and then my mom and aunt organized for many friends and family near and far to send her cards for her birthday. Then, of course, she celebrated with us!

On Sunday, we were headed to the Lake of the Ozarks to meet friends, but we were able to have a slow morning and then go to Whataburger with my mom for lunch. My mom has been there, but we all were excited to try it. Patrick Mahomes owns a couple of them, so Hayden asked me to let Patrick know (via Instagram) that Hayden approved of the burger. It really was a good meal.

Then, it was time to say goodbye to our family which is always tough. We’re always sad to leave.

Then, we drove the 2.5 hours to the lake! My college friend’s family has a condo on the lake near the dam. I grew up going to the Lake of the Ozarks with my grandparents, and have so many fond memories. I don’t think I’ve been back there in 20 years!

This was our view from the bedroom:

We all got changed, and got on the boat for a few hours.

Leslie and I were neighbors in Jones Hall at MU and have been friends ever since.

Her son just turned 12, and her daughters are just a couple of years younger. The kids had lots of fun together.

The kids all took (many) turns tubing.

We all swam and floated in the lake a bit…

…before the boat ride back to the condo.

The sun was setting as we parked the boat, and the air temp was definitely cooling off with rain on the way.

Since it was about 8:00, we had pizza for dinner and were in bed around 10.

It rained overnight, and we took it easy on Monday morning. The slow paced morning with cooler temps was amazing.

Leslie and I went for walk, and then we went to check on the guys who were fishing off the dock.

Around 1:00 we got on the boat, and went to Dock Knockers for lunch. There’s nothing better than lunch on the lake.

The kids fed the fish…

…and then we had lunch.

After that, we spent the next few hours on the boat.

Everyone took turns tubing, and then it was the moms’ turn! We held on for dear life, and had lots of fun.

After we were finished tubing, we noticed smoke coming off a nearby boat…and then we saw people jumping in the water! We motored over there, and a couple other boats were helping out. Thankfully, all was ok, but that was a sight to see!

We pulled over into a nearby cove, and swam for a bit before heading back to the condo.

We grilled out for dinner and then played the Disney version of Apples to Apples. It was a great way to cap off the day.

On Tuesday morning, the plan was for the guys to go fishing before we headed back to Lex. Even though it was raining, they did get up early….so early that I didn’t even hear them get up. I got up around 8:30 and enjoyed another cup of coffee on the screened in porch. We went from 106 degrees on Saturday to 66 on Tuesday morning. It was bliss.

The rain was coming down pretty hard, so the guys came back early from fishing. Everyone had breakfast, and we packed up. We said our goodbyes and were on the road around 10:30.

We really enjoyed our time at the lake and appreciate our friends for being such gracious hosts!

As the kids get older and get busier, sometimes it’s more difficult to get back home. When we do, I love that we are able to do things that I enjoyed doing when I was growing up like go to Royals games, and going the lake was the icing on the cake.

I hope you have a great weekend! Next week is August. I have a love/hate relationship with August. haha