January 14, 2011 ROAD TRIP!!

Luke and I headed to Dodge City for the day. It was time for our semi-annual trek west. While Dodge is my home town, Luke also lived there for a couple of years as a little guy and, of course, spent lots of time there with his grandparents. Now that Mom is in Wamego, there is no reason to return to Dodge. Except to visit the cemetery and eat at El Charro!

We planned our arrival for noon so we would have to grab lunch at the best Mexican place on the planet. Which we did.

Then we decided to order some for take out!
Next stop, Maple Grove Cemetery. Dad died on January 19, 2002. He's been gone almost 9 years. Because we were in western Kansas, there was snow on the ground in some places, grass was showing in other places and it was 50 degrees! Luke and I strolled around the cemetery and enjoyed the wonderful weather. Uncle Charlie and Nellie Barnes are buried nearby, so we stopped there for a "visit" as well.

A trip to Dodge wouldn't be complete without a tour of all the houses that Luke remembers.

This is the house I grew up in. Imagine a basketball goal, a big tree where the mail box is now, a privet hedge along the left side of the driveway and no trees in the front yard and you have the house as it was when I was a kid. It was a great house.


There are a couple of wind farms between Wamego and Dodge City. (I often have to remind Curtis about the difference between "windfarm" and "windbag". He has commented that he lives with a "windfarm"! He's so silly.)

About 10 hours after we left, we returned home to the Flint Hills. The sunset gave the landscape a beautiful pink glow.

It was a great day. I'm so fortunate that I have a son to go places with and that I have a son who wants to go places with me!