Home 4 The Holidays
It has been nice to have some time to slow things down and hang out with family all across Missouri. We are very excited to be in Missouri and not miss out on their holiday celebrations. It has been a long time coming, and we are very excited to celebrate with everyone!
Mile - 4132
Quote of the Blog: “Actually, the best gift you could have given was a lifetime of adventures.” - Lewis Carroll
Song of the Blog: “Carol of the Bells” - Trans Siberian Orchestra (TSO!!!)
Just before the holidays, we squeezed in a quick trip to Springfield to be with our sister-in-law Kelsey for her big graduation from Occupational School! It was conveniently also my brother’s birthday, so we had a fun night on the town celebrating! Maybe too much fun… The next day we checked out a restaurant called Finley Farms, which was located in an old mill on the banks of Finley River outside of Ozark, MO. It is a farm to table restaurant and the food was delicious! We didn’t get a change to tour the venue, but there is also a museum, speakeasy, farm and gift store. I just had to pick up a “Finley Farm’s” t-shirt for our niece Finley. After dinner, we went to see comedian, Ismo, at Blue Room Comedy Club. He is a Finnish comedian that often pokes fun at the English language. He was very funny and we would 10/10 recommend going to see him at a venue near you. We finished this weekend off with the World’s Largest Fork!! Pretty big if you ask me!!
After spending 10 years living away from my family, it was simply wonderful to be a part of all of the holiday magic this year! It was Billy’s first time celebrating the holidays in the Midwest and the first time in a very long time that even Billy and I were able to share the holidays together without one of us working. It was pretty special to have the time to savor the holidays together this season! Part of the reason that we decided to start this travel life, was to spend more time together. It was often a challenge for us to line up our days off together, when we were living in MT, but we are making that a priority in our lives now. The task is much easier now that Billy is working a remote job and can choose the days/hours that he is available to work.
Then we were off to Kansas City for the final weekend of 2022. I have always loved walking around the Country Club Plaza, though it is even more special during the holiday season, when it is beautifully lit! After a great dinner at Kona Grill we made it an quick night out, and headed to the Early’s! We celebrated New Year’s Eve at my sister’s, donning our best “Denim and Dazzle” attire. We were planning on an early evening, but must have been having too much fun because we stayed up until 1am.
Babs Tailgating @ Arrowhead!!!
A late night made for an early morning on Sunday, as we set off to Arrowhead Stadium to cheer on the Kansas City Chiefs vs the Denver Broncos. Billy and my brother had been planning and making lists for this tailgate for months (which I was not allowed to be part of), so it was very exciting that it was finally the big day. We left the house by 7:30 am and we were able to skirt right through the entrance without a wait. We enjoyed brisket breakfast burritos, with the brisket being supplied by Q39 in Kansas City. It would simply be criminal to tailgate in Kansas City without some bomb-tasting bbq. We drank mimosas, played cornhole and had a few beers, as we anxiously anticipated the big game. When we purchased the tickets, we had thought that this game might have some meaning in determining the play-offs. While it did not have importance in the outcome of the season, it is just a good healthy rivalry between the two organizations. The Chiefs won and we certainly had a blast celebrating.
We spent a couple of more days in KC, so that I could finish up all of the assignments required to be credentialed for my first travel contract. I am sure that it will get easier with each contract, but the assignments for this first contract seemed quite extensive. On our way home , we decided to detour the drive to Rolla and St. James to get an idea of what our next area is going to look like. Needless to say, Billy is stoked with the river we found and we will have an ample amount of outdoor exploring to do! Then it was back to Kirksville to get packed for our first rotation in Rolla! One of our last adventures while in Kirksville was to head down the road to Macon, MO for dinner at the notorious Pear Tree Kitchen & Bar. Billy got a classic Missouri Pork Tenderloin Sandwich; which includes breaded pork loin the size of your face. Great times spent my dad, Karen, Rick & Lisa.
Missouri Pork Tenderloin’s Go Big!!!
Billy is the master of tetris and car packing at this point. It is hard to know exactly what we will need, but I am sure that we will learn more with each assignment. It is also super helpful to have all of our possessions in MO, so that we are close if we need to grab something for this trial run.
It was wonderful being able to spend time with my parent’s these last couple of months. It also gave Billy and I time to decompress after we uprooted our lives and left that comfortable life that we were living in MT behind. We are grateful for this time and looking forward to writing our next chapter in this adventure as we make our was to St. James/Rolla, MO.