First, Kansas City

I got back last week from a trip to Kansas City, Missouri and St. Louis to visit Chris, Matt and their families. It was a great trip and it was nice to visit them in their own homes. The grandkids are certainly more relaxed in familiar surroundings. 

I flew into Kansas City first. Meg and Maggie picked me up and we were home in time to meet Ezra and Travis at the bus stop. I was so happy that they are not too old to run up to me and give me a big hug in front of their friends. 

The first thing the kids wanted to show me was their Halloween costumes. Ezra is Percy Jackson, my kind of costume, a sword and new Percy Jackson t-shirt, Maggie is Elsa, one of Meg's piano student's grandmother made the dress, and Travis is Harry Potter, a whole new generation of kids is reading the books.

Megan, Maggie and I visited a couple of museums while the boys were in school that Meg wanted to see before they left KC next June. The Aribia Steamboat Museum tells the story of the white

Steamboat Arabia whose hull was pierced by a walnut tree snag near Kansas City on September 5, 1856. She carried 200 tons of cargo bound for settlements up the Missouri River.  Lost for 132 years, it was actually found deep in a corn field next to the river because the river had changed course since she sank. The exhibit was was filled with things, carefully restored, necessary for life on the western frontier.  Thousands of boots and shoes, china and kitchen supplies, farm implements, nails rusted together in the shape of the box they were in, cloth and sewing supplies, and even printing materials that were going to Council Bluffs for a magazine published by a member of the church. I was a little lustful of all the antiques displayed.

Of course spending time with Ezra, Travis and Maggie was the best. I went to soccer practices and Ezra's game. Watching Ezra play soccer reminded me of watching Matt play at the same age. A little painful. He was not totally engaged and agressive enough when he played.  Poor kid. Travis on the other hand could have played for hours. 

We made Halloween sugar cookies, it wasn't nearly as bad as I remember when I made them with my kids.  Grandmas must be more patient, or kids are better behaved for their grandmas or maybe I have picked up a few tricks along the way and frosting from hell to breakfast doesn't bother me the way it used to.

We also went to see Dr. Chris at his school. My son the dentist. He is using a $20,000 microscope that he had to buy for his residency, "the better to see your root canals, my dear." That's Ezra's teeth you see on the screen behind Chris.