Well, we’ve been back from our trip to Kansas for four days now, so I guess I should write something. I have quite a few pictures to share, but haven’t got around to editing them yet, so that will come next week.
Kansas and Traveling Top 5
1) Bribe Your Kids
Kind of, not really, but kind of. I did, if you want to call it that. I packed our carry-on bags with TONS of snacks, and electronics. Lots of electronics. Coloring books, markers, fun stuff, iPods, iPod touch, a Kindle Fire HD, Kindle keyboard, candy, Nintendo DSI, books, and more candy and snacks.
Seriously, it really works. I will always travel like this, because the kids stay quiet and entertained and give me less of a headache trying to entertain them.
One thing I also bought was “ear planes” ear plugs for all of us, which helps reduce pressure when you land. We all suffer from sore ears when we fly, so these are a lifesaver. Look for them on amazon or at your local drug store.
2) Airports kind of suck
Coming from a giant wonderful airport called SeaTac, to a dinky airport called Kansas City International, I was in for a big shock. First off though, SeaTac… the kids and I got to the airport early, and with plenty of time to spare, just like I planned. There was no line at security, and we walked right up to the TSA officer. He got our boarding passes scanned, checked my ID, and just as he was about to wave us through…an alarm went off and the airport shut down. Yeah, completely shut down. We were waiting there for a half hour before the all clear came through, and then we were able to go through the metal detectors. Thankfully I had enough time to spare, or we would have been in trouble.
Second…Kansas City International is the world’s worst airport. Tiny, cramped, and their bottled water tastes like garbage. Not to mention, $4 for a 1 litre of water was ridiculous. What really frustrated me was that we had problems at security again, but this time the TSA agent didn’t like how our boarding passes had printed out. She made us leave the line, go all the way back to the Alaska desk, and have our boarding passes re-printed, and go through the line again. Ugh. We were running through the airport at this point. Then once we got through, we had nowhere to sit and the airline didn’t let families with small children board first, so everyone went before us. Ok, I can understand boarding by row, but come on…families with any young kids should be allowed to board first. I’ve never had any problem doing that elsewhere, but had to wait a half hour this time. Kids take time to board, they need to get settled and get their stuff out, and in disallowing us to do that, you make other passengers wait.
3) Kansas is great
Not going to lie, I really liked it this time, even more so than January. It could be that we got a few little “privileges” with the housing office, and explored the area a bit more, but I felt more at home. And perhaps it was because it was my second time visiting too. Either way, I am looking forward to moving, and counting down the days. Washington will always be home, but home truly is where your heart is, and my heart is with my husband. I can’t wait to make a home with him when we move there.
I’m sure Andrew was a little annoyed with me, but I INSISTED we visit our house a few times. I also insisted we go to the housing office to see if we could get a tour inside, but since our house was being fixed up after the previous tenants, they let us see inside the model home…WOW!! It is about 250 sq feet smaller than what we have now, so we will have to downsize, but the houses are really nice. Our bedroom furniture will also fit quite nicely into the master, and we have a huge closet too! I love all the storage space, there are a TON of closets. He didn’t think they would let us see a home, but the squeaky wheel gets the grease 😉 It pays to ask sometimes! After we saw the model home, we drove down the road to our actual house and peeked in the windows. It looks great, and we are pretty excited to fill it with our furniture and memories. And on the plus side, we’ll be getting a few new pieces of furniture including a new kitchen table/chairs, and new washer/dryer, and a new desk.
4) Homesick
I really miss Kansas. I really miss my husband.
I was on our local Army post yesterday and I didn’t like it nearly as much as our new home in Kansas. Kind of funny because everyone wants to get stationed here at JBLM, but to be honest…Ft Riley is a bit better. Much less “civilization”, which does take getting used to, but it’s not as crowded like JBLM. We have a lot more limited selections where we will be living, and no Panda Express/OldNavy/Sephora/Target within a 10 minute drive. “Sad Face”. We will adapt though, and it’s not the end of the world.
What we do have is the awesome Wizard of Oz museum a half hour away, which I have visited twice and just love. Target and some major chains are about 20 minutes away, and we just got a Starbucks! Woohoo!! There is a huge lake nearby for swimming/camping, and the post has a ton of pools to take the kids swimming. Ft Riley is a very family friendly post, and I like that.
I just really miss being in Kansas. I like Ft Riley, and I like that I will have my husband home every night (usually).
5) Always Come Prepared, and Never Assume
Ok, this is a friendly little love jab at my husband, and I can’t help but say it. I should have brought pots and pans with me to Kansas, because he didn’t have what I needed haha. I cooked twice for us while we were there, and dinner one night was almost a disaster.
He had requested I make Ziti, which is a family favorite, and on the way back the apartment, I found out he did not have any spices. No spices? who doesn’t have spices? I can’t make my ziti without spices!!! Specifically rosemary, thyme and oregano. Really Andrew? you didn’t have spices!!!! So off to Wal-Mart we went to get the spices, and then while at the apartment, I started cooking the sauce. I casually remarked to him, “where is the pot so I can start cooking the pasta”. Ummmm….what? you’re using it. I had a minor freak out to be honest, and was pretty frustrated. He only had a saucepan/frying pan, so I had to cook the sauce first, transfer it to a separate bowl, and then cook the pasta on the stove top in a sauce pan. Oy. It would have been much easier if we had a pot! How does someone not have a pot? You’re a bachelor honey…and you still don’t have a pot? talk about being a minimalist…or would that be just relying (too) heavily on your George Foreman? 😉
Thankfully dinner turned out delicious, regardless of cooking the pasta in a saucepan, and he had tons of leftovers. And thankfully we wont have that problem anymore, because next time we’re there, I’ll have my own cookware!
Glitter is My Prozac 