Girls Weekend Pictorial

Last weekend, my best friend since childhood visited me.  She took the Missouri River Runner (Amtrak) from St. Louis to Kansas City.  She arrived on Friday afternoon and left Monday afternoon.  It was  a great weekend filled with giggles, girl talk, and of course, shopping!

This is Kansas City’s beautiful Union Station.  The inside is even more impressive, but I have yet to master indoor flash photography!

These two cuties were my guest greeters…they were beyond excited that Shannon was coming to visit THEM!  LOL

After departing the train station, I took full advantage of the fact that we were in downtown Kansas City (I live BEYOND suburbia!) and as it was dinnertime, treated our guest to authentic Mexican cuisine.  Manny’s is a favorite restaurant of ours…not so much because of the food, but because of the ambiance and the memories associated with the place.  Chris took me here on our first date and we’ve celebrated subsequent wedding anniversaries and of course new baby excitement!  What pregnant lady doesn’t crave chips, salsa and guacamole?

 

After dinner, we went home. (It was a cold and rainy/snowy weekend.) As you might have read in other posts, I am working on the gift of hospitality for Lent (and beyond).  So, to greet my special friend, I purchased fresh bouquets of roses and tulips to have in her room.  I also purchased a few little items from Bath and Body Works (shea butter infused socks, bubble bath, lotion) to make her stay more comfortable.  Oh, and I removed any and all traces of toddler toys from the freshly scrubbed bathtub in my guest/hall bath!

On Saturday morning, I put Daddy on babysitting duty and Shannon and I took off to The Plaza, Kansas City’s uniquely beautiful outdoor shopping venue.  Of course, with rain/sleet/snow, we did little shopping. Fortunately, the Nelson Atkins Museum of Art is just a few block off The Plaza and we spent a snowy afternoon indoors.  I must say the art is much more beautiful in the company of a girlfriend than 20+ Third Graders on a school district field trip!

After several hours perusing art (I never tire of staring at one of the 3 panels of Monet’s Water Lilies) hunger drove us back to The Plaza where we enjoyed appetizers and beer (okay, Diet Coke for me) at O’Dowd’s Little Dublin.  The stout looked delicious and the Potato/Ham/Leek soup was to die for!  We also shared Farmhouse Potato Pancakes (it was a carb-laden meal!!!)

Best Friends since childhood!  We’ve known each other since we were 8-years old.

Sunday was the main threat of the storm with lots of freezing rain and snow.  We didn’t venture out, but rather stayed inside warming ourselves by the fire, taking naps, and doing lots of snuggling with this cutie:

(I think Ben’s found a new best friend!)

Monday meant the return trip home and after dropping Mary off at PreK, Ben and I took Shannon back to Union Station for her return trip home.  It was a lovely weekend that we do annually in January/February (note to self…change the date!) and I am already looking forward to next year’s visit!