Our first destination today, National Frontier Trails Museum, was only a few minutes away from our campsite in Independence. Before we went inside we had a good time taking silly pictures with the statues outside, trying to imitate them the best we could.
Once inside we decided to start by watching their 20 minute movie about the frontier and moving west. The content of the movie was very interesting but the quality of the film was awful. It wasn’t holding Lily’s attention so she brought the silliness inside and was performing goofy dances and making us laugh while the movie played. Next we went to pack our wagon for our trek out west. They had all kinds of necessities to choose from meat to clothing to everything in between, including a butter churner that was almost as tall as Lily. There was a scale in the wagon and it would light up orange if the weight was approaching capacity and red if you went over. Then we packed and tried to balance the basket that would have been kept on the back of your mule or oxen.
One of the funnier anecdotes shared in this museum was displayed with a rattlesnake. A soldier had gotten bitten by one and the doctor gave him all the whiskey he could drink before treating it. After that, soldiers would go to the doctor claiming they were bit and were miraculously cured after being told the whiskey would be given after the treatment. Another of my favorite displays was a rocking chair. A man had tried to go out west and failed. He walked hundreds of miles back and on his way saw this rocking chair in someone's trash. Knowing his wife would love it he went to get it and carried it the rest of the way home.
We could have stayed a while longer at this museum but we wanted to get to Kansas City, Missouri. Before leaving we tried to go into the Railroad Museum just in back of this one. We were ready to be impressed as the sign on the door said but no such luck. For some reason they weren’t open as they should have been.
Before heading into Kansas City we couldn't resist a quick stop at Dave's bakery for some treats.
Our first stop in Kansas City was the Roasterie. As it came into view we saw the actual airplane located on top of their building. It was perched on top of the building on top of metal bars as if it were taking off. It is apropos that an airplane is their logo as they air roast their coffee. The Roasterie was a gorgeous facility. They had a coffee/gift shop in the front and their production facility in the back. We started out in the coffee shop with seats at the bar. Adam and I each got a flight of coffee where each of the three were made from the exact same coffee, but brewed differently. It was so interesting how much the taste varied and we thoroughly enjoyed each little cup. We went on the 12:30 tour. It started with a movie. One of the more interesting and inspiring parts told how the company's founder had a huge love for coffee and just as big of a determination to make a career out of this love. He travelled overseas on the quest for the best coffee beans he could find despite all the naysayers. The air roasting method he chose differentiates them from most others. We had to put on hair nets after the movie to go onto the production floor. They had all their coffee beans in burlap bags labeled and separated by the country it came from complete with codes that would let them track each bag back to the farm and crop. Their quality assurance was very impressive. We got to see Baby, the original air roaster that was used when first starting and was only just recently retired. The man had such confidence in his dream that he spent $13,000 of his $15,000 in the bank on Baby. Of course with the name of Baby, there was the inevitable Dirty Dancing reference (which made all the adults chuckle and left the kids perplexed). It was very warm with the roasters going and Lily started not feeling very well. We got to see and learn about the air roasters they use now too. The tour guide brought us back to the movie room and grinded some coffee beans. He made two batches, one with a French press and the other in a pour over. We sampled both and discussed the differences. It was so interesting to see the varying opinions and the distinguishable tastes. I was in the minority liking the pour over better.
Next we headed over to Boulevard Brewing Company, conveniently located right around the corner. We decided not to do the tour here because we weren’t sure if the hour long tour would hold the girls attention. Instead, Adam and I read through the beer choices to create our second flights of the day. The girls entertained themselves by playing in the adorable selfie camper they had set up. We had our lunch here too. We all shared a cheese plate, warm pretzel bites and veggies with dip.
After hanging out here for awhile we went over to Union Station which was very grand with beautiful architecture and gorgeous old world detail. We wandered around the toy train exhibit and made our way outside onto to the bridge. We enjoyed being in the fresh air and got our sillies back. The girls wanted me to pick them up but instead I started singing upside down, inside out and round and round you turn me and having them dance with me. We were turning around in circles, bending over and jumping around singing this song. When one of the freight trains went by we did the hand motion for a horn. The conductor saw us and we were engulfed by the sound of the train whistle blowing. On that blaring note we ended our time in Kansas City and back to Independence we went. I made Adam take a little detour so we could see the building with the tall, swirling spiral that soared into the sky. It was a church that looked like it could have fallen right out of Oz.
Obsessed with the 1950's vibe of this town we had to go to Clinton's Soda Fountain for ice cream (before dinner, shh, don't tell Mom). The look inside, complete with the black and white checkered floor and backless bar stools by the counter took us right back in time. Even though the ice cream wasn't homemade we all enjoyed it. We strolled the streets a bit before getting a Greek salad again from Square Pizza for dinner. We took it back to the RV and ate dinner at our picnic table. It was a peaceful way to end our day.
