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Kidder Country Living!!
Sunday Nov 5 - Just when we thought we couldn't get any deeper into the Missouri countryside, we headed to Kidder, MO. Population about 169!! Mark's sister Connie and her husband Chuck have a very peaceful 40 acres there including a pond with catfish and a dirt bike track. Chuck and his son Michael are car enthusiasts..especially old Mustangs! They love to strip and rebuild them and have a few ‘works in progress’ in the garage. They will be beautiful vehicles by the time they are finished!
The temperature was starting to get colder and was now at 50F and falling. Connie's home has all the elements of true country living...the roaring fire, lots of floor pillows, and thick quilts on the bed. Watching squirrels running around outside while enjoying the wonderful breakfast smells on a chilly morning made for a tranquil atmosphere of which we enjoyed every minute.
Ma Strider surprised us by arriving in the morning and my niece Aundria also called in. All the women decided to go to Jamesport, a local Amish village not far away...and of course I found my spot, Connie’s wonderful sofa… big and comfortable, perfect for stretching out and right in front of the fire!! While the women shopped, Chuck and I watched movies and remembered stories from our youth. My nephew Michael also came by that day. I have to say that Michael is the most handsome young man I have ever met….of course everyone says he is the spittin’ image of me at that age so I have to admit it shows!!!
We left Kidder in the early hours of Tuesday morning to continue our family pilgrimage to Salem!
Thanks so much to Connie, Chuck, Aundria and Mike..you made us feel more than welcome!! |
| | 50F when we arrived..and falling!! |
| | | We said it was deep in country!! | Mark has snagged his spot for the next 2 days |
| | | Connie teaching Helen how to cook Murkan | The cosy breakfast scene |
| | 40F when we left..and still falling! |
Back to My Elkhorn Roots
Sunday Nov 5 - We headed off for a nostalgia trip this morning before going to Kidder. This was where Mark's roots were and he wanted to show it to me. Missouri has some of the prettiest country I’ve ever seen. Rolling hills, beautiful woods and little farms that dot the countryside. The small towns we drove through all had their own little history...each settled at various times as pioneers moved from East to West in search of land to settle. We left Lawson and drove on highway 69 (also known as Jesse James Road - it seems he was ‘big’ in dem dar part of Missouri) to Excelsior Springs, a town that grew around some natural mineral springs. People use to flock there from all over the world for the mineral water treatments. Hot Springs Arkansas obviously had a better ‘board of tourism’ so Excelsior Springs lost in the bid for tourism and has continued to be just another small town.
Anyway, this is where Mark went to high school. We drove past it and then the Elms Hotel...a huge gothic thing..where he went to social functions such as school proms, etc. We left Excelsior Springs and headed down Missouri Highway 10 to Elkhorn, to see the two houses he had lived in as a child. Elkhorn wasn’t even a town...just a small combination gas station-general store. There were a few houses but they are technically outside of the ummm..’city limits’! He was full of great stories that day as the sights brought back memories of his childhood...growing up like Huckleberry Finn in the hills and woods that surrounded his home!! He was somewhat depressed when we found them boarded up and abandoned...left to fall into ruin as time passed. He explained how they had been beautiful old farm homes in his youth...and now were just rotting away from neglect...how sad. The old barn where he played…building forts in the loft from bales of hay. There was the fenced lot in front of the barn where his horse had stayed and the small pond over the hill where he had fished and swam after a hot day of working on his neighbor’s farm.
We left Elkhorn and the childhood memories behind and continued down Highway 10, passed through Richmond and picked up Highway 13 on our way to Lexington Missouri, where we crossed the Missouri River. There is a lot of Civil War history in that town and we wished that we could have stay longer to research it. We got a picture of the court house (complete with a cannon ball still lodged in one of the front columns...not sure if it’s a Reb or Yankee cannon ball!) |
| Mark stands proud before the tree that
he almost burned down as a boy of 7 |
| | | Mark's childhood home | Mark's childhood barn |
| | The family's next home in Elkhorn |
| | | Lexington War Memorial - Missouri River | Lexington City Hall |
Jamesport Amish Village
Monday Nov 6 - We women took a trip to a nearby Amish village called Jamesport. This quaint town was all decked out for Christmas and the stores were full of fabulous rustic gif"t ideas. It was like a step back in time to be there, watching them work and live without electricity or modern conveniences. We had a cosy hot lunch and I bought a fresh home-made coconut cream pie to take back to the house so that I could make a pig of myself all night long! I was amazed that these people continue to live as they have for over a hundred years…no automobiles, no machinery, no technology….amazing. It could almost be Adicora, where we live in Venezuela!! |
| | | Public Transportation | Notice no power lines to the house |
| | | Fake or real horse?? | Fake or real horse?? |
| | | Looks like our store in Adicora,Venezuela!! | Yes, it was cold and raining!! |
| | | Jamesport Taxi Rank | Aundria wants a fire truck bunk for hubby |
| | | Shouldn't they have some sort of safety lights?? | Oh look!! They do!! |
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A Patriotic Medley |
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