Arkansas Vacation

I've been in Arkansas, visiting the kids, for just a couple of days. I got here Thursday afternoon and I go back to Utah tomorrow. It's been a great trip. 

Allie was a sweetie and drove me to the airport EARLY Thursday morning. I got a row of seats all to myself when the flight attendant pointed out that there was an empty row. I laid down and slept. It was great. I had a 5 hour layover in Denver. Once again, I found a spot to sleep. That took me a while. I sat down near my gate for takeoff and listened to my audiobook. About 2 hours after sitting down, I realized the arm rests from my row of chairs were gone. It was the perfect place to sleep, but by then there was a woman sitting at the other end of the row of seats. I was determined to sit there longer and to get the spot for a nap. After a while, the lady sat across the aisle, but left her stuff in "my row." Finally she boarded her flight. I still had about an hour until I had to board my flight, so I laid down on the seats and took a nap. I think it's easier to sleep because the masks we have to wear makes me feel like nobody can see me. LOL. 

Flight to Arkansas was fine. Got here around 3:30 pm. We got excellent BBQ for dinner. I had a BBQ pork sandwich with baked potato salad and baked beans. DELISH! Oh, and I had a Dr. Pepper shake from Whataburger. It was fantastic. So good. 

I woke up on Friday, sure it was about 8:00 am. It was after 10:00. What a great morning so far! We got moving slowly. We left the house at 12:20 to drop Kamiko off at a lunch meeting. Then Bekki and I went to see the site of the Bentonville Temple and we went to Crystal Bridges, a lovely museum in Bentonville. It houses all of the Walton family art and has some great stuff. Bekki said she used to go there all the time when she was first here and single when she was feeling nostalgic for home and culture. Some highlights, besides just spending time with Bekki, were the Norman Rockwell Rosie the Riveter and a Frank Lloyd Wright house. I'd always wanted to see a home by Wright, famous architect. There was also an Ansel Adams exhibit that we were hoping to see, but there were no tickets available online. We went and asked at the counter and they had walk-in tickets available. YES! The photos were so amazing. Adams was born in San Francisco and was a conservationist, a member of the Sierra Club. He took many photos of Yosemite. It was such a great day. What a day!!!! We got back and Bekki and I made Greek Chicken, zoodles, and roasted potatoes for dinner. We also cooked up some spaghetti squash and chicken in the instant pot for later use. We then drove to Fayetteville to see the lights in the square. There are so many charming things here in NW Arkansas. 

Our sweet Dotty May

Norman Rockwell's Rosie the Riveter

The sewing nerd in me loved these pieces made of carefully placed spools of thread. You look through the prism and you see the piece of art - Mona Lisa and The Last Supper.

The beautiful hallways of the museum. The museum itself is a piece of art

The front of the house offers privacy, with limited windows

backside, plenty of windows

Today we slept in until about 9. I went to Walmart to get boxes for the kids (they're moving next week) and to get hot chocolate for tomorrow's celebration of Santa Lucia. Cinnamon rolls are in the oven right now! Then we went to Bentonville again to see The Momentary, a contemporary art museum, also funded by Walmart, Waltons, etc. It had a fascinating exhibit by a black artist named Nick Cave. We went to a famous coffee place to get hot chocolate. The didn't hear our order correctly and only charged us for and made ONE. We each got a taste. It was really good. 

Came back home and the kids got ready to go to a Christmas party. Their friends were nice enough to invite me, but I opted to stay home. I had yummy pasta salad for dinner and I'm watching "New Girl" while the kids are at their party. It's been such a fun trip. I'm so proud of all the things Kamiko and Bekki are doing here. They serve in their ward, they help the missionaries, they work at their chosen jobs, and they take good care of cute Dotty May, their doggie. 

Tomorrow we feast on cinnamon rolls, hot chocolate, and scrambled eggs and the kids get their 2020 Christmas Tree ornament. Santa Lucia.