Day 908 - The One Where Ethan Had No Shoes 2: The One Where Ethan Had Shoes!

 "If at first you don't succeed, try, try again."

I know that everyone recognizes that old saying but I would wager that very few actually know where the saying originates from. I'll give you a hint: it's not Ben Franklin. It's also not Thomas Edison. Believe it or not, it's not even Matthew McConaughey. It was first coined by an educator named Thomas Palmer in his book, 'Teacher's Manual'.

Interesting, huh? Actually, it's really not all that fascinating but it gave me a nice cold open for this blog. It's also applicable for the subject matter at hand which is about Ethan's and my second attempt at a trip to Crown Center this week. Let's flash back to Thursday.

After dropping Ellie off at preschool, just as we did on Tuesday, Ethan and I pointed the Traverse south towards Crown Center and drove towards downtown Kansas City. However, there was one distinct difference between Tuesday and Thursday: Ethan had shoes! **insert "Hallelujah" chorus here**

 

Now, there were several other things that I learned after our fruitless trip on Tuesday. This time, I knew for a fact that Crown Center Customer Service would not open until right at 11:00 am. Never fear though as the presence of Ethan's shoes meant that a trip to Union Station to see the model train display was in the cards. First though, there was one more unforeseen hurdle the two of us would have to overcome.

As we wandered through Crown Center, I was feeling pretty good about our chances for a good morning. Those happy feelings persisted as I watched Ethan happily gaze upon the waterfall located in the hotel that adjoins Crown Center. As we walked toward The Link which would connect us to Union Station, I knew nothing could stop us. Well, nothing except a big sign stating that The Link was closed as a result of COVID. What, seriously? Come on, now! 

With our preferred route closed, we instead had to wind back through the hotel until we could locate a set of stairs. From there, we had to head down that set of stairs, through the lobby, and out the big, spinning doors until we found ourselves outside. From there, Union Station was a mere two traffic lights/pedestrian crossings away. That doesn't seem all that bad but just know that it feels a little worse than it probably is when one has a twenty--three pound toddler in their arms with the temperatures in the high 70s.

After arriving at Union Station, we slowly made our way through the Great Hall until we entered the model train display. Though Ethan was a little cautious at first, it didn't take long before he was running from train to train, happily yelling in excitement. The best part though was when he happened to find a model train with an adjoining stockyards full of cattle. It was all I could do to pull him away from that display and we even had to make multiple trips back.

 

After we spent about an hour at Union Station, which included multiple trips to the model train display and a trip outside to the elevated bridge over the train yards, it was time for us to return to Crown Center. Therefore, we wandered back along our route until we were back outside Customer Service only to find that they were not yet open. You see, 11:00 means 11:00, not 10:45. Lucky for me, Ethan had his own ideas of how to kill 15 minutes. 

First, he wandered to Chip's Chocolate Factory where he peered through the windows, watching as a man (maybe Chip?) monotonously stirred chocolate in an enormous pot. It didn't take long for him to burn out on that. It was then, though, that Ethan noticed the escalator.

He happily ran to it before pausing when he noticed the stairs were moving. With that, Ethan reached up and grasped my hand, holding on tight as we stepped onto the escalator and rode from the second floor up to the third floor. Upon arriving on the third floor, he sprinted to the down escalator, grabbed my hand again and headed back down to the second floor. After we arrived on the second floor, it wasn't long until he was back at the escalator. All together, we probably rode the escalator about seven times each way.

Finally, mercifully, our trip on the escalator could end as I looked over and saw that Customer Service had finally opened. We wandered over the window and received the art supplies that we had been waiting for since Tuesday. Then, I grabbed Ethan up in my arms (so we could avoid the escalator) and headed out in the parking garage for our trip home.

Oh, one more thing that constitutes a win on this trip. I GOT MY PARKING VALIDATED. Dare I say, it made me feel so...validated. Sorry, that was absolute horrible. #DaddyWrite

Also, I would be remiss if I didn't mention Ethan's discovery of this enormous ice cream cone. Alas it was pretty depressing for me to have to break the news to him that it wasn't real.