2021 :: week 48

 

November 21

We recently got Lauren an alarm clock and it has done wonders for our relationship in the morning. She has been getting up in the morning by herself without any reminding from me and we are both loving this change.

November 22

John Family Staycation 2021 officially began Monday. The Marriott Downtown is one of Elliott's favorite Kansas City landmarks, and he gets especially excited to stay here. When Tony got off work we checked into the hotel. On our way down we briefly shared an elevator with Ronnie Brewer (former Utah Jazz player and current recruiting coordinator for the Arkansas Razorbacks) who was in town for the CBE tournament. We walked to Main Street and caught the streetcar to the City Market and got a delicious dinner at Pigwich (one of our favorite places to eat as a family in KC). We rode the streetcar back and then swam in the pool. After we tired ourselves out swimming we returned to our room and watched Monday Night Football while preparing for the next day.

November 23

We planned a "Kansas City from the rooftop/scenic viewpoints" tour, but it was not as easy to execute as we had hoped. The observation deck at City Hall was closed, but we were able to go to the roof of the Downtown Branch of the KC Public Library. We spent some time there, visiting the vault, perusing the shelves and playing with their Magnatiles. We visited Green Roof Park, adjacent to the Power and Light District. The park wasn't quite as pretty as it was when we last visited in the summer, but it had a cool view. At this point we got hungry and headed to Arthur Bryant's for some historic KC BBQ. Unfortunately we got there right with the lunch rush and had to wait for quite awhile. The ribs and burnt end sandwich were delicious and helped us get over our hanger. At this point we decided to divide and conquer. Anthony dropped me and the three younger kids off at home so we could rest and he took Will back into the city. They went up the tower at the Liberty Memorial, visited The Scout statue at the nearby Penn Valley Park and the Lewis & Clark Statue at West Terrace Park on Quality Hill. Will asked Tony if he could see where the Kansas City-Omaha Kings played, so they visited the Hy-Vee, formerly Kemper Arena and the Municipal Auditorium. They had an adventure checking out those two buildings and it has ignited Will's interest in history. He has mentioned to both Tony and I a few times that he "really likes history." We had a fun day and look forward to doing more staycations in the future. 

November 24

Papa and Nana sent a Christmas box and it arrived on Wednesday. One of the things they sent us was a bag of "snowballs" so we could have an indoor snowball fight. The kids got really into it and all of us were rolling around on the floor laughing at one point.

November 25

We had a great Thanksgiving Day, but I didn't take many pictures. It was one of our busier Thanksgivings. In the morning Will and Anthony went to SMS to play Turkey Bowl football with a group Uncle Matt assembled. Lauren and I went to a church in North Kansas City to assemble "blessings bags" with Memaw and a few friends from church. That evening we gathered at my parents house to have dinner with the local family, Dana and Laura (Jill's roommate from BYU). 

November 26

Our neighbors hosted a Friendsgiving on Friday. It was fun to gather together, eat even more good food and spend time with friends. 

November 27

After spending the day attending to miscellaneous chores to prepare for the week ahead, we went to Elf at the IMAX. Seeing a "holiday classic" at Union Station has become a staple on our "Christmas Season Bucket List" over the years. I was a little worried at how Miles would do, but he did fine. I had to hold him and distract him with candy, but the crowd was mostly families and he wasn't even close to the loudest kid there. I love hearing my kids laugh, and there was lots of laughter from the big three. Miles got excited whenever they talked about Miles Finch.