Snow Day in Spring, WHAT?!??!?

Cheers for snow cream and hot chocolate!

Snow fluff 

Snowman snacks on a stick

Beautiful Princess Tiger Lily

Dolled up Picasso

Snowpocalypse '13

Since I am so uninspired by the 8+ inches of snow we had dumped on us last night I will share what we did during the last Snowpocalypse. We played outside for awhile but the snow was so deep that Princess Tiger Lily couldn't walk and her too big boots kept getting stuck in the depth of the white stuff. So she settled on eating the snow, apparently it tasted best when licked off her glove. I told Picasso to fill a bowl of clean snow and we will make a surprise in the kitchen. Once we had our fill of outdoor play we headed back inside where I stripped off the wet outer layers and warmed up. Finally dry and warm I told them we were going to make snow cream! I just added stevia until it was sweet enough and then mixed in some vanilla to taste and milk to make the right consistency. It still ended up like a snow ice milk more than ice cream but the girls were delighted that we had a fun treat. I promptly made some hot chocolate and we sat down to watch a show with our snack. The next day we didn't venture outside but stayed indoors and had a jam packed day. For breakfast I baked a dutch baby pancake which was fantastic! We then made snowman pops from bananas and other fruit accessories, mixed up "snow fluff" (shredded toilet paper with warm water and ivory soap, I just googled snow crafts and happened to have the stuff on hand), we had a crazy, loud, and rockin' dance party, and taking a cue from Emily Post we decided to act civilized and proper so I curled their hair, put on some makeup, and they dressed up as beautified princesses. Thankfully Daddy came home from work just in time to give me some relief and while they played together I made dinner. We were snowed in for a few more days and after all that I was depleted of creative ideas and we just stayed in our jammies and watched too much tv until the magical white powder that fell from the heavens mysteriously melted bringing joy and hope to all in our region.

Fanciful Friday @ Bloom Baking Company

A few weeks ago I decided that I need to set boundaries on how much sugar I give my girls (and myself) throughout the week. So I created Fanciful Friday and each week we get to go out and have a sweet treat. Last week we enjoyed cake pops from Starbucks and today we made the trek to the City Market which houses one of my very favorite bakeries, the Bloom Baking Co. They make everything from scratch and offer a delicious array of pastries, cakes, cupcakes, french macaroons, and bread. Be still my heart. Homemade bread slathered with creamy, salty butter is one of the best treats ever! Today they were sampling their foccacia, brioche (which they use to make their amazing bread pudding), a multi grain bread, and a white bread with sesame seeds on the top crust, mmmmm! After we each had a tiny taste of these homemade butter bearers we went inside to behold their sweeter selections. Princess Tiger Lily decided on an iced oatmeal cookie while Picasso debated for awhile. She finally chose a vanilla bean cupcake that had bright green frosting garnished with a delicate pink flower. I stuck with my favorite, the Bloomberry Cupcake. It's vanilla bean cake filled with berries and frosted with a vanilla marscapone frosting. Let me say that there is no one around that has such a delicious frosting as this. It's different than your standard buttercream and so light and fluffy without being overly sweet. It's so delightful I could eat a whole bowl with a spoon. That being said my other favorite bakery does have the best traditional buttercream around, but I'll post about that at a later date. The girls couldn't bear waiting to have their treats so I let them eat them in the van on the way back home. I was the patient one this time and enjoyed mine later : ) Until next week....

We're off to see the Wizard, the Wonderful Wizard of Oz (Oz Museum in Wamego, KS)

The weather forecast for Kansas City included snow even though it's officially Spring now so I wanted to get away from the powdery white flakes and see something green. Emerald green to be specific. So we followed the yellow brick road (in our case Hwy 70) to a little Kansas town called Wamego. This adorable munchkin sized village houses the Oz Museum which holds the largest collection of Wizard of Oz memorabilia. We first made a stop next door to Toto's Tacoz and ate lunch. The girls had munchkin tacos and I had a Toto taco, which pleased our palates and filled our bellies. Thankfully we didn't have to eat worm filled apples like the Tin Man and Dorothy did on their journey to see the Wizard, ewww! We stepped inside the museum and it felt like we took a hot air balloon ride to a magical land. You have to walk through the gift store which had no lack of Oz related mementos to purchase and then we entered Oz. There was all kinds of movie trinkets and autographed pictures and replicas of each character. We sat down in the theater and watched the end of the Wizard of Oz movie and then continued our visit to the Emerald City. Although I couldn't look at each and every piece since Princess Tiger Lily was running around like a whirling tornado, it was a really neat experience and it took me back to my childhood. The Wizard of Oz was one of my very favorite movies and it warmed my heart to share it with my girls, even though Picasso hasn't seen the entire film yet. Before we left we drove around the square and saw this old Dutch mill and a few little prairie bldgs. We clicked our heels together and chanted "There's no place like home, there's no place like home" and we magically were taken back to Kansas City via the gold Odyssey. The End. 

ozmuseum.com

Legoland Kansas City

I took the girls to Legoland KC this evening and we had so much fun! We tried to go before lunch time but Crown Center was so crowded that the parking garages were completely full so we decided to wait until later in the day. We printed and used a coupon for $3 off each ticket from kcparent.com. I love that site so much, it is the best resource for parents in KC! Anyways we went in and entered a room where you can pretend to make a lego. It had lots of pipes and gadgets and a computer where you can design a lego and later go online to redeem it for free. We then rode Kingdom Quest a "shoot em up" kind of ride with laser guns and you try to hit as many targets as possible. My two year old Princess Tiger Lily enjoyed it so it definitely wasn't scary : ) As we walked through Miniland, we were all amazed at how many details they put into all the buildings and scenes. Picasso my 7 yr old got frustrated that I tried to rush her a bit, she wanted to take it all in. They had many areas of KC including the Plaza, the stadiums, the Kaufman center, and many more. They even put a touch of Kansas in there with a scene from the Wizard of Oz. Picasso and Princess TL loved pushing the buttons to make the Wicked Witch "melt" down into the floor. They built lots of  towers in the abundant lego play areas and we all enjoyed the 4d movie. We rode Merlin's Apprentice a few times and Princess TL kept giving me the double thumbs up. They do have a cafe area where you can eat and it even has wifi. We finally left as it was closing time (and bed time!). It's not nearly as big as Legoland in Florida but I think it's just the right size for younger kiddos. My two definitely had a blast!

legolanddiscoverycenter.com

Laura Ingalls Wilder Home and Museum (Mansfield, MO pt 2)

After we had a wonderful visit at the Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Co, we drove about 10 minutes and arrived at the Laura Ingalls Wilder Home and Museum. I LOVED the Little House on the Prairie books as a child and have started reading them to my oldest daughter Picasso. My parents and I have also seen every episode of the Little House on the Prairie t.v. show several times over, gotta love Michael Landon! The girls and I have been to several local pioneer sites and I desperately wanted to get a sneak peak into Laura's life. After a long drive and great visit at Baker Creek, my hubby and youngest daughter Princess Tiger Lily needed a snooze so they napped in the car while just Picasso and I went to see Laura's home. Part of the tour is watching a very short movie on Laura's history and when we finished that we were able to go inside the Rocky Ridge Farm house. It started out as a small one bedroom house but they later added on to it. It was very quaint and charming with most of the original furniture and appliances. Unfortunately we weren't allowed to take any pictures of the inside of the houses or museum, boo hoo! I would have loved to share everything we saw with you, oh well, you will just have to make the pilgrimage there yourself ; ) The house was definitely dated to that time period and I loved that it even smelled old. I know I'm a bit quirky but it makes it more authentic when it smells like history to me. We saw the desk she wrote her books at and looked out the windows to see (mostly) the same view she saw when writing. The living room was nice and had a charming little library nook that I wish I had in my home. I really didn't want to leave but alas the tour guide needed to lock the doors and secure the building. Picasso and I went through the museum and were privileged to see so many treasures from Laura's life. We saw pictures of all the family members including Ma and Pa. Just beyond that picture was Pa's fiddle, and when I looked at the fiddle and saw him in the background it was like I could see him play. I almost teared up thinking about how I yearned to hear him play that fiddle and make beautiful music like Laura wrote about. It was made in 1850 and was probably one of the most meaningful priceless treasures we saw that day. We viewed several dresses, Laura's revolver, dishes, a plethora of pictures, and a multitude of other precious items from Ma, Pa, Mary, Laura, Carrie, Almanzo, and Grace. We finished at the museum and took a short drive down to the Rock house. Grace, Laura's and Almanzo's daughter, had this English cottage built and they lived there about 8 years but moved back to the Rocky Ridge farm house after Grace moved away. All the rocks on the outside of the house were from the property and all the retaining walls and other rocks used were from right there as well. We walked through a gorgeous wooden front door and into the living room. It was light yellow and had an abundance of natural light that made it feel so inviting. One wall was a large set of french doors that they would open to let the breeze in. We then walked through the dining room and looked into the kitchen. There was the original 1929 Westinghouse stove that I fell in love with and desperately wanted for my own kitchen. It was all so very quaint! We saw Laura's and Almanzo's bedrooms and in one was a chair he made himself. The only bathroom still had the original tile, fixtures, and push button toilet. What was really interesting was the extremely low shower head. The tour guide informed us that they were both very short, Laura was 4'11" and Almanzo was only 5'4", hence the nickname "Half pint" that Pa gave Laura. This property had beautiful views of the surrounding hills and felt very serene. When we left this home we drove down to the town square where there stands a figure of Laura from her bust up. I had to have a picture with her as this was the closest I will ever come to standing next to my childhood hero. Due to the kiddos needing to potty and eat dinner we didn't stop at the cemetery where Laura and Almanzo are buried. I do wish I could have seen it but I will just have to save that for another trip. I told my hubby that my heart is full, it really touched me to be able to get a glimpse of Laura's life and see her history which has had a huge impact on my life. On the way back home to Kansas City we stopped in Springfield and visited the Bass Pro shop which is apparently the largest store in the nation. It was pretty awesome! They have a National History of Archery museum, a soon to come National Museum of Firearms, quite a few amazing aquariums, a restaurant, and a coffee bar among many other features. We didn't stay long as we were all ready to eat and get home! It was a wonderful family day and we made life long memories there in Mansfield.

lauraingallswilderhome.com