Kansas City Christmas Lights
December 20, 2010
Last night was our annual Christmas light tour! With beverages of joy (i.e. peppermint hot chocolates & caramel apple spiced ciders) Caleb & I (plus two friends) cruised around the Kansas City metro checking out Christmas light hot spots. Much joy and merriment was had by all!
We’ve always enjoyed Christmas lights this time of year. However, a couple of years ago, I got the bright idea to google “christmas lights in Kansas City.” (See my post from 2008.) Lo & behold! There was someone who was documenting all the great houses, businesses, and neighborhoods that go crazy with decorating this time of year!
You can find that website here – created by Keith Stokes.
This particular site lists most of the great light locations in Johnson County and even lays out suggested map tours. We like to pick some of our favorites and make our own route. Either way – this website is an awesome resource.
Last night we visited a couple of places for the first time. Paulie’s Penguin Playhouse – was INSANE… Over 150 inflatable Christmas themed penguins IN THEIR YARD. You can actually walk through their yard and they even have a snow machine. If you have small children that can handle the 20-30 min car ride there… this might be a fun stop. Here is a long review of it.
Another one, that you’ve gotta stop and see at least once in your life is Mike Babick’s House. All of those individual “store front” windows have moving animatronics inside.I’ve never seen anything like it. Honestly, (as I mentioned in the post from 2008) all the moving creatures kind of creep me out, but it’s incredibly impressive that he does this to HIS HOUSE.
We also particularly enjoyed driving through “Christmas Place” a small neighborhood that completely decorates each of their homes. It’s located at 131st Place West of Antioch Rd in Overland Park.
The Ultimate Holiday Tree is pretty impressive – a giant tree shaped LED light screen coordinated with Christmas music. Again, amazing what lengths people will go to decorate their homes. This house was even featured on a TV show.
I do tend to be a sucker for displays in which the lights coordinate with the music (you just tune your car radio to a particular radio station to listen). Places like Vince & Associates light display on Metcalf . That’s probably the biggest one I’ve seen. I’m not a huge fan of their music selection this year but the size of their display is rather impressive.
Anyway… if you’re looking for a fun holiday activity in Kansas City – check out the Johnson County Light website, hop in your car, turn on the Christmas tunes, and go on an adventure!!
‘Ingredient’
May 17, 2009
Caleb and I tried a new restaurant for date night a couple of weeks ago. It’s called ‘Ingredient‘. I think it’s only here in the KC area (sorry out of towners!), and we went to the one located near Town Center (right behind California Pizza Kitchen for those of you locals.)
It’s a large menu specializing in salads, sandwiches, and pizzas – gourmet style. They have their own specialty dishes or you can get your own salads and pizzas made to order – featuring ingredients like (but not limited to): roasted red peppers, honey glazed carrots, edamame, kalamata olives, avocado, fresh strawberries, capacola ham, gorgonzola cheese, soy mozzarella, caramelized pecans, and plantain chips. And that is a VERY meager sampling of their many ingredients!
It’s kind of a setup similar to Panera, but a little more expensive(prob between $10-$16 a plate) and with a more extensive menu (not just the coffee and bagel thing). They have a nice little outdoor seating area as well. We sat outside on a beautiful night and it was wonderful. We actually split a salad and it was still satisfying (for the record Caleb wasn’t super hungry or it probably wouldn’t have been enough for him!)
They have a large menu and they even have a breakfast menu (only served in the am so haven’t experience that yet) so there’s lots to choose from. You can find their menu on their website (their website is not a good indicator of the experience, by the way). If you like healthy yummy food you oughta check it out! 
Christmas Light Adventure!
December 24, 2008
Yes, yes… I know. Me and my adventures. Nevertheless, last night we (myself, my dashing husband, his sister, and our dear friend Kari) bundled up and went searching for Christmas light displays.
I did my research ahead of time and found that there are actually A LOT of places to visit in Kansas City that have pretty neat displays. A lot of them will be going until Dec. 31st so if you have time… you could still catch some!
I found a lot of the info here.
For those of you who don’t live around here the rest of this may be meaningless. But for those of you that do – you should check these places out!
The first place we tried to visit was Longview Lake’s – Christmas In the Park or Lights on the Lake. Fortunately we had read that it could take hours of bumper to bumper traffic to make it through. So when we got about a mile away and saw a long line of cars at a standstill, we knew it was time for moving on. I think their display is only through the 25th, so if you’re interested, better do it soon!
Next we headed to Metcalf to watch Vince & Associates lights (see photo above) dancing to the 96.9 on the radio. We watched from the parking lot of the Baptist church across the way and it was SO cool! Caleb and I had driven by there before and weren’t aware that it was tuned to a radio station, and just thought it was an epileptic seizure waiting to happen. However, with the music it made a lot more sense. Definitely go check this one out!
Next we went to Candy Cane Lane in Prairie Village. It was a quick drive up and back the cul de sac but very fun.
Then we were on to another ‘dancing’ Christmas light display. The ‘Dorr Family’ Christmas display. This one we tuned to 91.1. It was hysterical because they had little elf and Santa faces lit up on the roof, that sang along with the music. Very cool though hard to convey with words. Definitely worth the stop.
We continued on to Mike Babick’s house. And quite frankly, we weren’t sure what to think. Here is a link to some more pictures of it. On one hand it was really cool and super impressive that he had built it. On the other hand all the animatronic stuff kind of freaked me out. I think that’s just me though… Definitely worth the drive for the gawking factor. (You can actually go up to the house and look in all the windows. I think sometimes you can even go inside and visit with him.)
We stopped at one more spot that’s not really worth mentioning but was still fun to see. I had no idea that Kansas City had such cool displays to offer. It was definitely worth the gas (plus we had to stop at Starbucks to enjoy some salted caramel hot chocolates!) I’d recommend the whole experience!
(Only the first photo of this post is my own. The rest I got from this site.
Fall Day Photos #3
November 14, 2008
The last of my ‘fall day’ photos.
Ok, I have a feeling I’m not going to explain this right, but here goes nothing. In the photo below, Caleb (note the ‘C.P.’ initials on his gloves) is pointing out what I believe is a wound in the tree. And he was showing me the phenomenon of ‘included bark’. I think he said that included bark is when there isn’t live tissue the whole way through – that it’s a weak bond. Whatever that means! But you can at least see where there was at one time 3 separate parts to the tree… and the bark actually grew all around it. Pretty neat – even if I don’t understand it!
A friend of Caleb’s bought him this hat as a joke. He wears it a lot as a work hat. I couldn’t pass up this detail shot while he was getting cleaned up. 
Fall Day Photos #2
November 12, 2008
A few more photos of our fall adventure (I think I call everything that brings my heart joy an adventure.) Most of these are very self explanatory. Except the one with the “wood borer”. I think that’s how you spell it. You’ll find the explanation at the picture.
Ok, so you can see our little friend the wood borer here (click on the photo to see him large and in charge). Caleb pointed him out to me, and told me that it would have taken him a long time to have gotten that far. Not incredibly fascinating, BUT I still love finding things like this!
The last of the photos soon…
Fall Day Photos #1
November 10, 2008
Last Sunday, Caleb needed to work on chopping up a trailer load of wood he had acquired, and he invited me along to take pictures. I’m so glad he did, because it was probably our last really beautiful fall day this year. One morning this week I woke up, and all of the leaves had seemed to fall off overnight.
I’ll have 3 posts total on the photos I took, and here is the first.
Caleb hauling the wood to the “chopping spot” (that’s my term… I’m sure there’s a real name for that spot.)
I thought these roots looked like a little tree!
Caleb would like me to remind all of you at home – to NOT follow his example… and wear safety goggles!
Yep, that’s a lot of wood folks.
These next 4 are of the “wood splitter”. This thing was so cool! It moves very slowly but with steady pressure it splits ginormous pieces of wood. Quite handy when you’re dealing with a large load – or working by yourself.
To be cont’d…
Starbucks ‘Chalk Walk’
November 8, 2008
Um, I just woke up thinking, ‘I can’t wait to crawl back into bed tonight.’ Not a good sign! But that’s not the point of my post today.
Early in October, I attended the Belton Starbucks’ ‘Chalk Walk Contest’. For those of you non-locals… Belton is about a 10 minute drive south from IHOP. And this store is one of my faves in the area. The day was beautiful (though very windy) and it was fun to see different people’s ideas for their spaces.
Everyone who entered had to pay a small entrance fee and the proceeds benefited a local charity. But prizes were also awarded to the winners.
I think my favorite was the dragon peering up through the concrete!!! Such a great idea. (As always click on the photo for larger versions.)
Wow! It’s Hot!
August 2, 2008
111 degrees?!! Oh my goodness. Reason #64 to stay inside today… How do they even determine that? I tend to imagine some weather guy step outside and say, “Well, the thermometer reads 93, but it feels like 111!” I bet it’s more scientific than that, though.
Great Chiropractor In KC
June 20, 2008
Just wanted to recommend my favorite chiropractor in the area – Dr. Bailey. He is located at 87th and Mastin (just off of 69 in the Overland Park area).
He is open Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 9am to 6pm. And you don’t have to make an appt – it’s all walk-in! I’ve never had to wait more than ten minutes and typically don’t have to wait at all.
What I love about him is that he doesn’t put you on a treatment plan, he just allows you to come as needed. This is HIGHLY unusual and I think is an excellent method.
He also only charges $25 dollars per visit. Again, highly unusual. He just really values affordable health care. Which we all know is so hard to find these days.
I’ve been going to see him for a couple of months now and have nothing but good to say of him. He takes his time with everyone he sees. Which I also really value.
If you’ve moved to the area and are looking for a GREAT chiropractor – go see Dr. Bailey!
For more info on him: go here.
Noodles For Date Night
May 29, 2008
Over the past 3 and 1/2 years that we’ve been married, Caleb and I have prioritized ‘date night.’ Typically on the same night every week, it’s just a time that we are intentional about getting some face time and prioritizing “us.” I find that its probably my favorite night of the week and it’s nice to know that we have each other “penciled in” regardless of what the week throws at us.
I usually think of ‘date night’ as an opportunity to have an adventure, so I’m always trying to come up with new ideas or places for us to try. Sometimes we just stay home and watch a movie, sometimes it’s a visit to Barnes & Noble, sometimes we go get coffee… Sometimes it’s all three.
I typically like to plan ahead of time. So, usually the night before date night, I throw out some ideas to Caleb or I ask him for some of his own. He doesn’t care what we do… so I was somewhat surprised that he started giving me some suggestions.
The convo. went like this…
Me: “So, honey, tomorrow night’s date night. Is there anything that you’d really like to do?”
Caleb: “Solve World Hunger?”
Me: “Um…”
Caleb: “Cure Cancer?”
Me: “Uh…” *chuckling*
Caleb: “Go Green!”
Me: *laughing hysterically now*
Caleb: “I know! Save the spotted owl!”
My husband is awesome.
Last night we tried Noodles & Company. The setup is kind of like Pei Wei, in that you order at the register, take a number, and they bring you your food when it’s ready. It was a casual atmosphere and I was pretty impressed at the large variety of ways they serve their noodles. I didn’t realize there were so many options – Mediterranean, American… Asian – plus salads and soups. I opted for ‘Mac & Cheese with chicken’ & Caleb the ‘Indonesian Peanut Saute’. Yummo.
We even splurged and had some Sheridan’s for dessert… can’t go wrong with frozen custard! And even though we didn’t save the Spotted Owl, the night was a success!
