Meanwhile...back in KC

Ethan and Kassie got up early to take the "littles" to the WWI museum. 

Megan stayed back and worked on her homemade pizzas....when I tell you she has it down to a science, I really mean it. She is serious about making pizza. 

And we are all the better for it!

I, too, had big plans. December is coming. I need to store up energy and collect inner peace. 

Mathew arrives this morning! He's hopped up on caffeine, pretty wired and pushing through. 

aaaand we have plans to go thrifting! We are searching for various kitchen necessities...is there anything better than going thrifting when you actually need something? So satisfying. 

Who knows? We might find a solid gold Christmas tree!

SBL: Trip to St. Louis

 I've been wanting to go out to St. Louis for a long time now. Some (Mark) call it the "armpit of America".  

We shall see. 

First stop...the zoo!

And it didn't disappoint! We loved it all, the animals, the architecture, the layout. Perfection. 

One of our favorites was the butterfly dome. Delightfully magical. I could've watch the leafcutter ants for ages.

The buildings were full of these beautiful touches. It made the place feel so special.

Another highlight was sitting on the grass watching these poor zookeepers try to persuade a large bird of prey to come on back into captivity. The escapee was unconvinced. Can't say I blame him (her?)

Like all good road trips, we finished the day off with a ride in the elevator, 

A dip in the hotel pool,

And falling asleep to the History Channel.

Day 2 was dedicated to the City Museum. 

Not your typical museum. 

It was all about climbing and exploring and ascending and descending. 

Crazy cool.

A view of the roof:

On the roof!

Rooftop Ferris wheel? Sounds perfectly safe. 

Our last day we spent at the St. Louis Arch. Maybe I'm a total newb, but I loved it. It's so breathtaking the way it shines in the sun. We were appreciative tourists. 

We didn't get to ride up in it (not that sad), because we needed to head back home and there was still 4 hours till the first tour left. I was prepared to gird my loins and go, but I was spared. 

Time to get home...but first!

Subway Sandwich time! 

I actually just took this photo because Laney was diggin that girl's haircut. Had to grab a pick to show at the next haircut!

SBL: Bucket List Knockout

We are on a mission to get some checkmarks up on that bucket list. 

I mean...we are making memories! (But, I really love those check marks too)

We stopped by Black Hole bakery to see what all the fuss was about. We went out on limb and selected a few savory pastries. We're sophisticated like that. The reviews were mixed. We might be happier sticking to glazed donuts from Price Chopper.

Then we were off to a showing of Alice and Wonderland at the Coterie Theater. It was excellent. And it was freezing. I was so sad for Anna and Laney. It's pretty hard to climb inside of a tank top for warmth. 

We set off to find the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum and then we would go find the American Jazz Museum. 

We didn't know that they are in the same building!

I'm gonna go ahead and put these two in the same category as the Prairie Fire. 

Cool to see once. 

SBL - Modern

School starts tomorrow....so we need to squeeze in a few last bucket list items. 

We have been waiting for the Pulsology exhibit to come to the Kemper Museum of Modern Art. 

The entire room is under a canopy of lights hung in waves. There are sensors throughout the room and when you but your hand under one, it sinks up with your pulse. The lights will then start pulsing with your pulse. It s a very cool mix of art and technology.

We popped over to the Musuem of Toys and Miniatures. Man, there was some very cool stuff back then.

Not cool enough to make me wish I was born back then...but still.

Off to Betty Rae's for some ice cream...

And back home to make good on my promise to let the girls color their hair before school starts. 

I was nervous, but I think it looks pretty cool!