From My Hometown To Yours - Melissa of Inspiration and Rough Drafts

Its Tuesday, and only four more days until the weekend but only two more days until December, what, already??!! 

Did you enter the two giveaways I have going on currently? Go here for the first one and then here for the second. 

The hometown series is back today for another episode and today Melissa is showing me and you around Overland Park, Kansas. So grab your St. Louis Rams and Cardinals(World Series champs!) gear and let Melissa tell you all about her hometown!

Hi, everyone!  I’m Melissa of Inspiration and Rough Drafts.  Although I’m a newer reader of Henning Love, I keep coming back for all the inspiration—Meg’s posts always put a smile on my face.  When I saw the invite for guest posts, I jumped at the chance to share my hometown with you all.  Though I have lived in Chicago for the past few years, I grew up in Overland Park, Kansas—a suburb of Kansas City.

Today, I’m so excited to take Meg (and all of you) on a tour of KC, especially since I was just there for Thanksgiving.  If Meg came to visit Kansas City, she would get to see two states in one trip—Kansas and Missouri—since we’d spend time on both sides of the state line...

To start the day, we’d stop by Rainy Day Books, one of the top independent booksellers in the country.  Not only do they sell books and other items here, but they also host over 300 author events throughout the year.  With so many bookstores closing, it’s inspiring to see this place thriving.

Next, we would take a quick tour of the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art.  With a range of art from ancient times to modern day, there is a little bit for everyone’s taste (I mean, take a look at those quirky shuttlecocks on the front lawn!).  What’s also great—free admission every day.

 

After all that exploring, we’d probably need to get a bite to eat.  The Country Club Plaza is my go-to spot for dining and shopping whenever I have guests visiting because it’s unique to Kansas City.  This 15-block open-air shopping district has been around since the 1920s and features spectacular Spanish architecture and European art.  During Meg’s visit, we’d take a stroll and window-shop, as well as check out some of the Plaza’s many fountains, statues and murals.  (Fun fact: only Rome has more fountains than KC!)  During the holiday season, the entire Plaza is illuminated with colorful lights.

Another fun holiday activity is ice-skating at Crown Center Ice Terrace.  Crown Center has plenty of shops, restaurants, office buildings, and hotels—plus it surrounds the world headquarters of Hallmark Cards.   The rink is KC’s only outdoor public ice-skating rink, so we could lace up some skates, glide across the ice, and experience the holiday spirit.

Once we’re tired or chilly from ice skating, we’ll warm up with a visit to Boulevard Brewery.   Founded in 1989, it’s the largest specialty brewer in the Midwest.  After a free 45-minute tour, we’d get a chance to samples some of their brews—I’m a fan of their Pale Ale.

 

No visit to Kansas City would be complete without barbecue! We have plenty of BBQ joints to choose from, but I’d suggest Fiorella’s Jack Stack Barbecue. The original location is in Martin City, KS, but all of their restaurants serve their signature dishes—like Cheesy Corn Bake (a Jack Stack family recipe of cheddar cheese, cream cheese, corn and diced ham) and Burnt Ends (cubes of beef brisket, ham, pork, or sausage, which are cooked longer so they are tender on the inside and lightly seared on the outside). Also good to know: if you can’t make it to one of their KC restaurants, they ship their food all over the country!

 

If the teams are in town, we could catch a Royals baseball or Chiefs football game, but for this tour, how about something a little different?  To wind down after dinner, we could head to 18th & Vine, the historic jazz district.  We’d catch a live performance and savor the smooth sounds of jazz music at the American Jazz Museum, which preserves the history of Kansas City jazz and supports present-day musicians.

 

After a long, fun day, we would end the night at the Power & Light District, a newer hot-spot in the heart of downtown. This area is home to restaurants, bars, shops, and entertainment galore—and a great open-air venue for live music. P&L showcases weekly summer concerts and special events throughout the year, almost all of which are free. There, we could enjoy the downtown vibe and toast to the final stop on our Kansas City tour!

Thanks Melissa for showing us more about Kansas City and Overland Park! That bbq looks amazing and any sports game we can catch while I'm visiting you is totally ok by me!