Kansas City October 2026

I didn’t take any pictures on this trip. But here’s a picture of Joanne’s new robot cat, Fluffy!

Friday 10/16

We are here visiting Joanne, my mother in law. Lee’s sister Mary, who lives in KC, is on vacation so Lee and his other sister Cathy are taking turns visiting Joanne while Mary is gone.

We stayed at Mark and Mary’s house, and fed their cat while we were there. Rosie is a noisy and bossy little thing! I don’t think I’m used to cats anymore. I used to definitely be a cat person and I think I’ve turned into a dog person. Sophie can be pushy, especially when she wants a treat, or is ready to go on a walk, but not like Rosie!

Joanne will be 96 in December. She really is amazing. She still lives independently, and does great for the most part, but she is beginning to show her age. She has slowed down a lot. She has fallen several times, often with no consequence but sometimes with resulting injuries. She is very stubborn and refuses to use a cane or a walker with any consistency. In a way it’s good because each time something happens she fights to get her mobility back. But then she falls again.

She doesn’t eat as much as she should but this is not uncommon in the elderly. But Lee brought along all kinds of yummy things to entice her to eat. She had a small bowl of beef stew and some French bread for dinner, and then two scoops of ice cream too!

We had a nice visit this afternoon. It’s a long drive from Minneapolis to KC, about 6 hours without stops. Lee did most of the driving but I drove for a couple hours before lunch. Yesterday it rained, for the first time in weeks, and then the weather turned sharply colder, and windy. There are frost warnings in Minnesota tonight. Frankly it’s about time. It’s not much warmer in KC.

Saturday 10/17

I woke up early this morning, even before 4 which is crazy. I fell back asleep for a little while but by 4:30 I was wide awake. I laid there for about 20 minutes and then I was up.

I puttered around for a couple hours, eating breakfast, drinking coffee, and reading the paper on my phone. Then I did my PT exercises and went for a walk. There aren’t very great places to walk here but I walked a mile on Wornall Rd and then back and that was ok.

Then we went over to Joanne’s and basically hung out with her for most of the day. We went down to lunch with her. The food is ok, not wonderful, not terrible, but they did have wine and coffee. I had coffee, not wine!

We went to Aldi’s to get the granola that Joanne likes and then to Trader Joe’s for a few other odds and ends including yogurt to have with my breakfast tomorrow. Then we went back to Joanne’s and watched Mizzou get creamed by Ole Miss. 

Joanne has a robot cat that she has named Fluffy. Don’t laugh, it’s very realistic! She has always had cats, but when her last one died she admitted that she just wasn’t up to taking care of a cat anymore. Her kids got her Fluffy and she really likes it. She can pet it, and it purrs or meows. She doesn’t have to feed it or clean the litter box, and she can turn it off! haha.

We went over to Gail and Phil’s for dinner. They have moved to KC to be closer to their daughters and grandkids, a common theme these days for people our age it seems.  It’s been a major change for them. They lived in their house in Columbia for over 45 years. They had so many things to go through to sell their house. And it was hard to leave all their friends and connections too. We know how it is, but we’ve done it so many times and learned how to let go and then make a new life in a new place. It’s not easy though.

We ate carry out Mediterranean and talked talked talked, catching up on things since the last time we were together. Old friends are the best!

Monday October 19

Yesterday we mostly hung out at Joanne’s. When we got to her apartment she was attending Mass online so I went for my walk then. I walked all around her complex, through the adjoining townhomes and a nearby neighborhood, again about 2 miles. 

Because it’s so hard for her to get around right now we ordered lunch and Lee went to pick it up. We got the fried chicken to share. Joanne said it was good, and it was! Lee had brought her some of the gumbo he made so we had that with the chicken. A nice lunch, except that he bought some quick-cooking rice to go with the gumbo and we both thought it was terrible. Kelsey has educated us about rice and there’s no going back!

Then Elsa and Charlotte came over, and Sam as well. Charlotte is 4 and a real sweetie. She made me help her with her “heart” book. She made the hearts and she had me do the words because “she doesn’t know how to do words yet”. She told me what to write though! 

She also cuddled with Lee and hung out with Joanne as well. Like I said, a sweetie.

For dinner we ordered carry out from a nearby Italian restaurant, North Italia. It was a great choice. We got a lasagna entree, roasted artichokes, and an arugula salad with fennel and avocado. It was all very good! And it was plenty of food for 2 people that don’t eat very much, and me!

So now we are getting ready to go say goodbye to Joanne, and head back to Minnesota. It’s been a good visit, and an eye opener for me. It’s so hard to imagine my dynamic mother in law finally showing her age, but she is. It’s hard on everyone, but especially Joanne. She’s always been so independent and it’s very hard for her to admit she needs help, but she does. We’ll see what happens next.

Grand Marais September 2026

 

Monday 9/14

Lee and I both agreed that this year the drive seemed exceptionally long. Maybe it was all the construction on Hwy 61. Maybe it was being cognizant of the incoming rain and hoping to beat it, which we did. Anyway, we were very glad to finally arrive. 

When we checked in I asked if they had any sites with full hookups available and they did so we grabbed one. It’s very nice to have a sewer hookup and not worry about filling up the dark water tank. Also very nice for Lee to not have to deal with the dump station after we leave.

We had lots of time to get set up and take Sophie on a nice long walk before the rain started. It had been following us all day from Minneapolis. By the time we were ready to go to dinner however it was raining hard. 

We had appropriate clothing but we still got pretty damp walking the half mile to The Angry Trout. We didn’t mind though and had a glass of wine while waiting for our table. We got wild rice fritters and then we both got a cup of soup. I got the chowder and Lee got their soup of the day which was Korean tofu. His was spicy, but they were both good. Then I got a side of the fish of the day, Lake Superior herring. I got it when we were here 3 years ago and it was delicious.

Now we’re hanging out in the RV listening to the rain pitter patter loudly on the roof. It’s supposed to rain until around 2 am and then get windy and cold(er). No more rain though!

Tuesday Sept 15

As the rain stopped the wind picked up. I got up around 5:30 am, ate breakfast and was generally lazy until I was ready to go for a bike ride. I was afraid it would be wet and gloomy but no, just very windy. It started out overcast but it wasn’t long until the sun came out and it was just beautiful out!

It’s such a nice bike trail. I wish it was longer. Someday. It’s not easy, almost 500’ of elevation gain in 10 miles, long inclines. The way back was faster, more downhills and the wind was at my back mostly.

When I got back to the RV Lee and Sophie were gone. They went mushroom hunting. I changed out of my biking clothes and just hung out, crocheting, reading, playing with my phone. They got back around noon. They had fun but no mushrooms of any consequence. 

Around 1:30 we walked into town for coffee and then walked around a little. Way too windy to walk along the sea wall, we would have gotten drenched. 

Wednesday September 16

At 4 Sophie and I went on another walk, this time around the campground and the smaller loop on the little Sweetheart hiking trail. 

We had steak, baked potatoes, lettuce and tomatoes with blue cheese crumbles for dinner. After dinner I suggested we walk over to the Lake to watch the sunset, when we got there it already set, or that’s what it looked like. It was a little before 7 and it wasn’t supposed to set until 7:15. But we couldn’t see exactly west; that was obscured by a point. So I’m planning on going up the Sweetheart trail with Sophie again today and see if we might get a better view there.

This morning was much colder (low 40’s) but the wind was calm. After breakfast I hopped on my bike and rode the Gitchi Gami trail again, trying to improve my time over yesterday, which I did. That trail is such a workout!

Thursday September 17.

Yesterday continued. 

At the end of my ride  yesterday I continued into town. My idea was to get a donut but the donut place really is closed so I got a muffin at Java Moose instead, and gobbled it up as soon as I got back to the camper. 

When I got back Lee and Sophie were off mushroom hunting again. They came back while I was taking my shower. I spent a lot of time relaxing, reading, crocheting. At 1 pm we went into town for coffee. 

Later Sophie and I went for our afternoon walk. I wanted to try to do the overlook Loop from the Sweetheart Trail and see if I could do it without getting lost. So we did it counterclockwise and it worked. It isn’t long but it’s very tough, lots of climbing and clambering over rocks. Sophie managed all of it except one place where I lifted her up. She probably could have done it on her own but I didn’t want to take a chance.

After dinner we went on a sunset walk again. I figured out a place where we could actually see west but unfortunately clouds had rolled in and there wasn’t much of a sunset. Still pretty though.

This morning I took Sophie on her morning walk so Lee could hook the trailer to the truck and we could start on our way home. We’re going to stop at Split Rock Lighthouse State Park on the way.

…..

We are home now. We did stop at Split Rock on the way. I’m so glad we did! We opted for just entering the State Park, going on a short walk and admiring the view. Then we were on our way.

We really do love Grand Marais, even if it is a very long drive. The next time we go back I might take the car and drive to a different section of the Gitchi Gami bike trail. And Lee says he might go fishing!

California September 2026 - Hi Reia!

Din Tai Fung

 

Just a reminder, no images of Emi and Reia on social media with their faces showing. Sorry!

Friday Sept 4

Time to go to California and meet Reia, Emi’s little sister! She’s just a little over 6 weeks old, and already 11 lbs! She’s the cutest thing, with 2 inch long black hair sticking up all over her head! She is starting to smile, and she’s very strong, she is already holding her head up pretty well.

Reia is very loud. She is good at letting her wants known. I am hungry! I am sleepy! I have things to say!

Lee managed to get over the Lake Darling cold right before it was time to leave for California. I have symptoms, but they are so mild, a slight cough, a little congestion. I can’t tell if I’m just getting over a very mild version or about to get deathly ill.

We arrived here yesterday afternoon. I wore a mask on the plane, and any time I was near Reia inside. And I washed my hands and used sanitizer every time before I touched her. I’m not wearing a mask today, but still sanitizing of course. We shall see.

Last night we went to Howie’s for pizza, pasta and a salad. It was delicious, I was hungry. We ate outside and it was windy and cool. The people at the table next to ours had a little baby too. Their
s was only 1 week old!  

Saturday Sept 5

Yesterday Emi went to preschool. The rest of us went on a long walk in the morning, almost 4 miles. Reia slept a lot yesterday. I had to be reminded that newborns sleep a lot, like dogs, lol. When she was awake and not eating Lee and I took turns cooing and making faces at her, trying to get her to smile and copy us. When she was tired we held her. She is a very cuddly baby. When I was a new mother I found it very difficult to just hold my baby, with all the things that needed to be done weighing on my mind. But as an old person it’s pretty nice! Until I start to get warm; she is a little furnace! Then I had to trade off or put her down and cool off. 

We had Vietnamese for lunch. Dan and I had Bahn mi sandwiches, Lee had a curry and I forget what Kelsey had. Later we went out to this new Japanese coffee shop, Yutori. It is very very popular, and I can see why. They sell the standard coffee and matcha drinks but also some different specialty drinks you won’t find anywhere else. Dan got a miso latte and I got an orange ginger one. Mine was delicious!

I spent a lot of time in the afternoon just holding Reia, hanging out on the couch while she napped on my chest. Very relaxing for both of us!

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Note, added 9/24/26: I need to add a clarification here. Emi is riding a pedal bike! She started to learn how about a week before we arrived. At first Dan was holding on to the seat to help her get the hang of it. Her balance is really good but she needed to understand how to use the pedals. As soon as she got that part she was off and rolling! We watched her in amazement; she won't be 3 until December! This will make the story about going to the playground later in this post a WHOLE lot clearer!!

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Dan and Kelsey made Caesar chicken wraps for dinner. They were great.

This morning we went to Din Tai Fung and then walked around the mall and the fake San Jose downtown. No waiter water accidents this time!

Dan, Kelsey, Emi and Reia are all going to Hong Kong on a tour with Kelsey’s family over thanksgiving so they purchased this attachment for Reia’s stroller that Emi can sit on. They practiced using it on our walk. I think it will work, except on some of the escalators where there isn’t an elevator. But many things may have changed. It’s been a long time since we’ve been there.

Tuesday Sept 8

We’re going home today. Leaving for the airport soon. I haven’t written anything about our trip since Saturday afternoon so I’m sure I’ll forget something that happened!

Sunday we drove to the school by their old house and played at the playground and then Emi rode her bike. Dan decided to see if she could start to learn to start herself. We all thought this would take a while but she picked it up in a couple of tries! She is so coordinated! It’s just that her mental/emotional capacity is not at the point where she can be trusted yet. I mean she won’t be 3 until December! Thinking about the boys, it will probably be next spring before they can pop Reia in the bike trailer and all ride down the trail together.

We had sushi for dinner Sunday night. It was very good!

Emi had a hard time Sunday night (and so did Daniel poor guy). She took off her diaper sometime during the night and then had an accident around 4:30 in the morning. It took her a while to get back to sleep but she did. Then when Lee got up around 6:30 she was standing in the door of her bedroom. She announced “I pooped!” So Lee got to clean that up. 

Monday was our day to hang out with Emi. We planned to take her to Shoreline Park and ride the pedal boats. But (no surprise) Emi fell asleep almost as soon as we got in the car. She slept for an hour so then it was time for lunch. We drove to Mountain View’s nearby downtown for gyros. We parked and then realized we had forgotten Emi’s shoes!! So we carried her into the restaurant. After we ate we decided to drive back to their house and grab her shoes and then go to a playground instead. Maybe we’ll try Shoreline Park some other time when it’s not so busy. 

We went to the Magic Bridge playground in Mitchell Park instead. She had a wonderful time. Magic Bridge has lots of structures that encourage imaginative/creative play and Emi was in her element. A stage! A store! A boat! It was 2:30 before we could drag her away. We could have stayed longer but it was getting pretty warm and I wanted a coffee. We went to the coffee shop we used to go to near their old house but it was just packed so I said forget it and I lived without an afternoon coffee for once. I survived!

That evening Dan made burgers, corn on the cob, and watermelon. Emi ate her weight in watermelon! It was all good.

That’s it. We are on our way home. We’ll be back for Emi’s birthday in December. She will have changed by then, and Reia will have REALLY changed! Oh well we will see them on FaceTime.

"I'm Baking Tofu in the Oven"

Lake Darling Resort 2026

 

Monday August 24.

This year instead of renting some cabin we are trying a resort. So far I really like it, clean, quiet, no strange decorations or questionable cleanliness.

We drove up from the cities this afternoon. The weather is perfect, warm enough for the boys to play in the lake; cool enough to sit outside if we want. The weather is supposed to be like this all week.

There are a lot of lakes in this region of Minnesota. We stayed on a different lake near here a few years ago. The main town is Alexandria and it’s only a few miles away.

All we’ve done so far is unpack, get settled, watch the boys play, and eat dinner. They have played in the lake and the sand, played on the playground, kicked the soccer ball around, and even gone kayaking.

This was another example of how they are growing up. They could both manage their own kayak. Sarah took a kayak too and all three of them went out toward the middle of the lake. She was ready to come back in but they didn’t want to. We let them stay in the kayaks but they had to get closer to shore.

Dinner was breakfast for dinner. Pancakes, bacon, sausage, potato pancakes, avocado toast, fruit. Kris made it with Erik’s help because Suzanne had a bad cold. It was all delicious. I did most of the cleanup.

I’m eager to hop on my bike tomorrow and check out the trail that goes right past the resort. Who knows, I might try a kayak or a paddle board myself!

Tuesday August 25

I woke at 5 but went back to sleep until 5:30.  I was the first one up of course. I actually got my act together and by 8 I was out the door, ready to tackle The Central Lakes bike trail. I went east toward Alexandria, took a picture of Ole the Viking, and then continued on for about 10 miles, a little way past the tiny town of Nelson. It was perfect weather. A little breezy but not too hot or cold. It’s a very pretty trail! I went a little over 20 miles total. Tomorrow I’ll go west and see what it’s like that direction.

After a shower and some lunch I worked on my next crochet project, just a scarf but with some very fine merino wool that was donated to the auxiliary. I’ll put it in the sale.

The boys and Erik were kicking a soccer ball around and I decided to join them. It was fun until I lost my balance and fell. I banged up my hip and I’m sure I have a bruise on my leg. Kirby commiserated with me. “I hate to fall,” her said. “You’re a lot closer to the ground than I am”, I reminded him. “Yeah, but it’s still scary.” He’s right. I tried so hard to right myself but it was no use and down I went. I’m just glad I didn’t break anything, and I fell on my left side, not the side that had the pinched nerve!

After recovering from my fall I decided to go kayaking with Sarah and the boys. First Kirby had a meltdown because there weren’t any life jackets to his liking (which means one exactly like Leo had). Frankly I was ready to leave him behind but he finally decided he could stand to wear one of the available life jackets. 

Sarah used a paddle board. We went down the shore of the lake and then turned around and went back, a few times. We only went out for about 20 minutes. 

Afterwards I waded around in the water to cool off. Now I’m back on the screen porch, relaxing again.

Wednesday August 26

Later in the afternoon Marvin, Kris’s new dog, got outside. He’s a rescue, and she hasn’t had him very long, and he doesn’t listen very well yet. On the positive side, he’s in love with Kris so even though he was very excited by being loose outside, there was no way he was going to run away. But we couldn’t catch him, he was running in circles around Kris, very fast. Finally, even though Kris said he wasn’t very food motivated, I went inside and got some real turkey breast. Whoa! He was definitely interested in that!! He came to me to get a bite but I still couldn’t pick him up. So I gave him another bite, and another, and another, all the while slowly walking back to the villa until he was finally back inside. We seem to lose a dog every time we go to a cabin! This is a tradition we could do without!

Lee made dinner last night: steak, veggie burgers, ratatouille, French bread. It was very good. I was pretty tired and got to bed a little earlier, 9:30.

This morning I was up and ready to go on my bike ride by 7:30 AM. I went west on the trail, 20 miles to the little town of Brandon, and back. It was very pretty, but very windy so going west was pretty hard. Of course coming back was easier, and a lot faster too!

I got back in time to take a shower before Sarah’s brunch was ready. Scones, egg bake, fruit salad. So good! And it was all vegan too.

Today has been very relaxing. I did go on a walk later. I went east on the trail and back, 3 miles total. 

The only other excitement was the boys were playing with some boomerangs and one ended up on the roof of the villa. Lee got his fishing rod and started casting. At first he didn’t have much luck but then the lure got caught on a shingle above the boomerang and he was able to use the line to nudge the boomerang off the roof! We all cheered! Lee lost a lure but he saved the boomerang!

We went out for dinner last night in Alexandria. The Garden Bar. It was pretty good. Alexandria is big enough to have some nice restaurants. Lee and I split the pastrami sandwich and a Caesar salad. 

Then we went back to the villa and had a fire and s’mores. Or the boys did anyway. I had a marshmallow with a graham cracker, no chocolate. I figured out years ago that I like that better. We watched the fire and chatted for a while and then some people watched a Harry Potter movie and some of us went to bed.

And that’s it for this year’s cabin. I really enjoyed this place. I would be happy to come back here again next year, but I guess we'll have to wait and see what everyone else thinks!