Day 2, Little Boys

We started the day off right by happening upon tree trimming. Unfortunately, they were finishing up but the guys were super nice and answered Elias’ questions. 

Sea Life Aquarium!

I LOVE aquariums and yet the actual ocean petrifies me. I guess it’s the safe way to enjoy the ocean. This was my favorite room. 

Elias touched a starfish! He thought it was a cool experience but didn’t want to do it twice. Levi also touched a starfish. I could barely get his little arm down deep enough in the water without his shirt and face going in too, and as soon as he touched the starfish he jerked his hand out of the water touching his shirt and his mask, and splashing my face with salt water…a little of which made it into my mouth. Gross. 





Levi LOVES turtles. He loves them at the zoo at home too. We walked into the sea turtle exhibit and if he hadn’t been bucked into the stroller he would’ve jumped all the way out. He was saying, “Mama! Mama! Wowie wowie!” over and over. We played a fun game with one of the workers about guessing what sea turtles eat. Then he gave each boy a rea shark tooth for playing. You should’ve seen their eyes. What a treasure!

They talked for a long time about the turtles. 




The aquarium had so many sting rays, and all different types. It was so cool to see them up close. Elias kept asking me, “Is THAT the one that killed Steve Irwin?! It’s so big. Wait. That one is bigger. Is THAT the one?!”





Levi immediately chose a little turtle at the gift shop and wouldn’t let go. Elias found a small LEGO set (shops are connected) and settled on a little turtle in the end as well. 





We went home for lunch, nap/quiet time. Elias built his set, Levi and I napped. 

When we were refreshed we headed back out for more adventure! It was raining quite a bit so we rigged up the umbrella. Elias said, “This is fun! We would not do this at home.” I was so proud of his attitude. 

We checked out a (lame) free exhibit for about 5 minutes. 

Then we went to the chocolatier! We had just missed them making 3 three-foot-long fudge logs, so we picked one treat to take home and share with everyone. Elias chose a chocolate peanut butter cup the size of a muffin. HUGE!

Then we stopped in the Crayola store. It had an interesting display, and we found some new Water Wows we’ve been wanting. Perfect for the ride home tomorrow. 

They didn’t wait for the ride home to start playing. 

We met up with the big boys and headed home to dry off and relax. 

A trip to KC wouldn’t be complete without BBQ, so my aunts and uncle brought a feast for dinner. It was delicious and fun to see them. 

Day 2, Big Boys

Legoland! 

Logan said they spent a ton of time at the KC model. 







We didn’t think they would get to do the Ninjago exhibit, but they were able to! 



I think this is the Kansas City Speedway…my uncle was an architect on this project. 

They went on this ride three times. 




They watched two 4D videos. After 5.5 hours of Legoland they were finally exhausted. 

They each picked a small set as a souvenir. Lewis got the street sweeper which has been on his list for a loooooong time. 

Augustine got a Ninjago set with a lot of cool pieces. 

Family Trip, Day 1

We found a park one block away! It has all kinds of equipment that’s new to us. 

This is a merry go round. The whole thing spins. 



Then we walked to Crown Center to check it all out and find some dinner. 

It was fun to watch the boys discover it all. 

We looked at the Legoland display…they will go tomorrow. We also looked at the Aquarium windows. I’ll take the little boys there instead. 

There were lots of fountains, but not the kind you play in. The boys didn’t understand why they couldn’t go in the water. 



We went to a fun restaurant for dinner…the first time since covid. I was a bit nervous for the boys but we went early and there were very few people. It got busier right as we left. 




You order your food on the phone there at the table…

a train brings your food on a track above you…

and drops it off on an elevator!



You get to watch the trains go throughout the restaurant dropping off orders. 

After dinner the boys needed to look at the Legos one more time. 



Turns out every so often there is a fountain show set to music, so we watched that too. 



Then we walked home looking forward to tomorrow!

Family Trip

In the year that shall not be named we had planned to take the boys to Legoland. Of course, that didn’t happen but here we are making up for it now!

The big boys kept themselves mostly entertained and were great helpers for the little boys. 

Waiting a year has its benefits…he ate his lunch (and doesn’t nurse anymore…BIG plus), took 1/3 of his nap, and played happily the rest of the drive. 

Elias faked a nap, said “hey mom” 100x, and asked lots of questions. 

Our Air B&B is just enough, and is within walking distance of everything…even a super cool park. Here’s hoping the rain forecasted for the next two days is light because we plan to walk in it. 

Another Butterfly Goodbye

Lewis had a hard time walking away from this one because it didn’t seem like he could fly. Its wings were different than the first two.