A Wild Time in Kansas with SEVEN Friends (by Walden)

Mom and me in a UFO (Science City)

After having so much fun in the biggest sand box EVER (Great Sand Dunes), I didn’t think our trip could get any better. And as we drove out of Colorado east from Colorado Springs (August 12), I figured I was right. We waved good bye to the amazing mountains in our rear view mirror, and said hello to the huge, dry fields of nothingness in front of us. It seemed like we drove forever that day! I kept asking for MORE ACTIVITIES, but I go through activities (coloring books, dot-to-dots, mazes, kid magazines) pretty fast and soon there weren’t any more. I then beg for the iPad for hours on end, even though I know I won’t get it unless I take a nap. I also pretend to take naps (that only last for about five minutes) in order to get the iPad. It usually doesn't work, but I always try. We stopped for lunch outside a neat museum in Kit Carson, CO, which was an old depot with a railroad car outside it. The museum was closed and I didn’t get the playground I had requested, but it was okay.

Scott Lake State Park

After LOTS more driving (nope, didn’t take a nap… yep, still got the iPad), we finally made it to a place called Lake Scott State Park in western Kansas. And fortunately for Mom and Dad, they DID have a playground. It’s a neat place. Everything looks flat and dry, and then suddenly there is a lake in a canyon surrounded by craggy bluffs and trees. The lake is spring-fed and made by a dam. There weren’t many people there, so we found a cool campsite right next to the lake and within walking distance to a fishing deck. I went fishing with my SpongeBob SquarePants fishing pole, but I didn’t catch anything except for a plant (probably because Dad doesn’t put a real hook or bait on the end). We also walked to the playground, which Dad called “old school.” I loved going fast on the metal merry-go-round, but Mom and Dad got sick when they went on. The playground is right next to the beach, and I couldn’t resist going in the water and splashing as the sun went down. It was a HOT day!

Merry-go-round at Scott Lake

That night, I got to see my first fire flies blinking on and off, on and off around our campsite. I ran after them and tried to catch one, but they were too fast. I had to go to bed before the stars came out. That always makes me mad, because I love looking for constellations. Dad stayed up late, though, and saw all sorts of shooting stars. He said it was a meteor shower! I wish I could have seen a shooting star!

Stone shelter at Scott Lake

The next morning (August 13), we took a hot hike along the bluffs of the park and climbed up to the top of a hill to go inside a neat stone shelter for an amazing view of the park. We visited an old house (Steele Home) where people used to live near the river. And we visited the ruins of a pueblo (El Cuartelejo) where more people lived hundreds of years ago. Dad said it was a very “historic experience.” Before lunch, we got to go swimming again, and this time Mom and Dad weren’t wimps… they put on their swimsuits and we all splashed together. Then, we had to drive a long, long way again (this driving thing is getting old).

Swimming at Scott Lake

We didn’t get to our campsite until the sky was really dark. We had to drive down a long, bumpy, gravel road. The place was strangely called Pottawatomie #2 State Fishing Lake near Manhattan, Kansas. Mom and Dad liked it because it was free camping. We found a place to pull in under a big spreading oak tree near the water. The stars were coming out, and Dad and I spent a long time trying to see a shooting star. I never did see one, but I did get to see all of my constellations, like the Big Dipper and my Draco.

Our campsite at Pottawatomie #2 Lake

Flint Hills Discovery Center

The next morning (August 14), we got to visit a special museum called the Flint Hills Discovery Center in Manhattan, KS. It was a ton of fun! I was a little scared of the big screen projected on the top of the lobby, which sometimes showed a thunderstorm. The exhibits had things to push and pull, but there was a lot of writing. In one area, we got to go underneath the ground to see the roots of prairie plants and creatures that lived there. Making a model train move was one of my favorites. We also watched an amazing movie about the prairie, where we could feel wind, see fire, and watch as real snowflakes fell on our heads! On the top level, there were lots of activities for kids, like crawling through a tunnel and sliding down a slide, and playing with Mr. Turnip Heads and giant Lite Brites. But the BEST part of all was outside the Discovery Center, where I got to splash in fountains that squirted water into a stream. How fun!

Flint Hills Discovery Center

Playing in the fountains

 After that, we drove to nearby Konza Prairie to see what Dad called the “real” tallgrass prairie of Kansas. Dad carried me on his back in the backpack, but he seemed pretty hot lugging me around in the 90-degree sun. Oh well! I loved seeing all of the different kind of grasshoppers leaping this way and that, which I learned were the biggest grazers in the prairie. We also saw a collared lizard, and waves of tall grass growing on the hills.

Konza Prairie

Grasshopper at Konza Prairie

The Beckley family... and me!

Then, we made one last big drive to Shawnee, Kansas to visit Mom and Dad’s friends who live there. Dad has known Chris Beckley since they were classmates in middle school. According to a story they told, when they were younger, Dad led Chris to some ice volcanoes along Lake Michigan, and they fell through the ice up to their waists in the cold water. But I guess they’re still friends! When Chris married Susie, Dad stood up in their wedding. But Dad hasn’t been able to see Chris and Susie for many years because they live so far away. In fact, since Dad had seen them last, Chris and Susie had five kids!

Playing on a playground

One of the things I miss most on this trip is being able to play with other kids. I sometimes meet one on the playground, but we usually have to leave right away. Having the chance to play with FIVE kids was like a dream come true! I had some trouble remembering their names, but Mom and Dad helped me with them: Max (the oldest), Anthony, Josephine, Ambrose, and Veronica (the youngest at 2). They were so nice! Max and Anthony even let us stay in their bedroom upstairs, which had all kinds of neat toys like a big stuffed elephant and Buzz Lightyear. Veronica was a tough little girl, and she scared me sometimes. Mom and Dad thought it was funny when I came in and said, “The little baby is trying to get me!” But we all had so much fun playing on the swing set, having hiking adventures through the backyard, and playing trains and kitchen downstairs. Their dad, Chris, even played his trombone and button box for me.

Touching a snake

While we were visiting, we got to do all sorts of neat things in the Kansas City area. On the first day (August 15), we went to the Schlagle Library and Environmental Learning Center  to see a naturalist program about how animals stay cool in the summer, and I got to touch a real snake. We went to an amazing playground for lunch with all sorts of spinning devices… including a merry-go-round that is much more fun with other kids (rather than Mom and Dad). Then, we drove across town to Missouri to visit the Burr Oak Woods Nature Center. It was an amazing place with huge fish tanks (we loved to watch the fish get fed worms), live snakes, and a play area with a tree, nest, slide, and jumbo chipmunk. We all took a walk on the Discovery Trail, which led to a natural playground, through a woods, over bridges, and to a wildlife viewing blind. It was another hot day, and we were all exhausted by the end of the hike.

Exploring a jumbo nest

Peeking through a wildlife blind

Exhausted after a full day of hiking

The next morning (August 16), we went to church with the whole family. For lunch, Chris and Susie treated us to grilled pork chops and chicken with homemade rhubarb sauce and cheesy potatoes. For dessert, we roasted marshmallows on the grill. What a treat!

Helicopter at Science City

Then we drove to downtown Kansas City to visit the Union Station Science City. Wow! It was one of the best museums I have ever seen (and I’ve seen a lot on this trip)! Looking for mysteries in a spooky hotel, playing music in a park, running in a big gerbil wheel, flying a helicopter, playing in a water table, climbing through a sewer pipe, crawling into train cars, walking through a cave, nervously watching a roaring dinosaur… there was soooooo much to do! Mom, Dad, and Max even got to ride a bicycle over a tightrope way up high! (I was too little). Afterwards, we also got to see a movie in the Planetarium about Black Holes.

Dad on a tightrope bike

For dinner, we went to a restaurant to eat what Dad called “famous Kansas City BBQ.” We went to a small place called Bates City Bar B Que near their house, and we had lots of nummy food and mountains of fries. Dad said that his ribs were amazing. Chris got a giant bowl of meat and beans that was called a “cluster duck” or something like that.

A Kansas City barbeque feast!

Chris and his bowl of bbq

That evening, the kids put on an awesome circus show for us! There were clowns, tigers, animal tamers, elephants, and magic tricks. Even I got to help out with the performance!

The circus performers

My first day in school!

On our last day with the Beckley family (August 17), Chris had to go to work, and Mom and Dad had to run some boring errands in town, so I got to stay with the kids and had my first day in school. Their school is in the basement of their house, which has desks, craft supplies, scissors (which were my FAVORITE), and all sorts of other fun things for learning. And their teacher is their mom, Susie! I spent the time cutting paper into little shapes and announcing to the class that I went poop in the toilet this morning and didn’t get the five M&M’s that I had been promised (note from Dad: this was the first poop in the toilet for Walden! We were so proud!)

After lunch, I had some final time to play with all of my new friends while Mom and Dad loaded up the Burro. It was so much fun playing, exploring, and talking to all of the kids… even more fun than big sand dunes! And Mom and Dad had a wonderful time catching up (talking about grown up stuff) with Chris and Susie. I was very sad when we finally had to say goodbye to everybody, and cried going into the car. Thank you, Chris, Susie, Max, Anthony, Josephine, Ambrose, and Veronica for all of the amazing adventures and playtime! We hope to see you again someday soon! Now we're off to follow some big river that Mom and Dad call the "Mississippi."

(P.S. from Dad: When we asked Walden later whether he would ever want any brothers or sisters of his own, he thought for a second, and then said, "No, I like my quiet time." A true Jim and Sunshine kid to the end!)

Trail at Scott Lake... Kansas is the Sunflower State!