Last show of the year!! And what a great place to go for a show ☀️
We stayed at an RV resort near the beach – the kids really enjoyed the hot tub at our site. The pool & lazy river were a bit cold since it was late in the season, but still fun.
We had some fun at the show –
Enjoyed the local cuisine –
And some time on the beach –
As we made our way towards our last show, we made a stop at our home-state National Park. Hot Springs is the only NP in AR – and actually the oldest NP.
While Yellowstone was the first official NP when the NPS was created in 1916, Hot Springs was the first land set aside by our federal government as a reservation in 1832 – later becoming a NP. It has a wonderfully diverse history – from healing springs, to playground for the wealthy & corrupt – it is a very unique park indeed.
Since we have been here several times before, we just spent a day or so exploring the newly renovated Visitors Centers, which are now inside some of the original bathhouses on Bathhouse Rowe. You also have to be 14yr to take in actual hot springs bath at one of the few remaining working bathhouses, so we promised the kids we’d come back once they were a lil older – to get the full experience 🙂
We also enjoyed the park campground –
This annual RV fly-in is one that we’ve been going to for years, and is one of our favorites. There is camping right next to the runway, and a nice lodge nearby as well. It is not really a “show” like the others – it is really just a big group of airplane folks getting together to hang out for a weekend in a beautiful place.
Drew was the honorary ballon launcher for the ballon bust – a new addition to the activities this year, which was a big hit.
I am very blessed to have supportive friends who scheduled a girls’ trip on one of the few weekends I was home this year.
We chose Kansas City this time due to its close proximity – but it is also a beautiful city. With over 200 fountains, it has more than any other city except Rome – who would’ve thought in the Midwest.
We did some shopping, visited a local distillery, and generally just hung out & talked. We may have also had a few races on the rented scooters while getting around town 🙂
Our last shows are towards the end of Oct so we are back in AR for a few weeks.
After some reflection & discussions about where we want to live when we get done with our trip, we have decided to build on our existing land on the west side of Fayetteville. We already have a hangar on a private community airport with a grass runway so we are going to build a small “hangar home” inside. We may build a larger house up the hill later, but we want to get settled there first.
Unfortunately, as we were delivering our new tractor to the property, we discovered a tree had broken off at the top & fell into the hangar 😟
Well…I guess this is where we will start on our construction first 😏
This one was at a fairly remote airport, but the customer turn out was good & we camped on the grounds so we were close to all the action.
Madi also discovered her talent for sales – she spent most of the time selling lil disco ball hover drones for a fellow vendor. Just need to get her started on autopilots next 🙂
We are getting close to the end of show season now – only two more to go!
On our scenic route through WY, NE, and IA to our next show, we stopped in St Louis. While I disagree that the arch should be a National Park – it is really more of a National Monument – it was worth a day to visit, and share the historical significance of the area with the kids.
It was a bit cloudy, but still an impressive sight.
We stopped for a few days in Denver – Drew had an ASTM mtg so we took the opportunity to visit my sister & her family again. So grateful for everyone that has let us come visit them this year!!
We didn’t get stay long cause we had to get to our next show in IL, but we also stopped in Ft. Collins to visit my cousin Brittany & her family ❤️
50 in 365 