A rough start.....

It was hot when we arrived in Wichita two weeks ago. Really hot. My car said it was 102 degrees. Nick's truck said 104. Regardless of whose was right, it was miserable.

Picture of The Keeper of the Plains in Wichita, Kansas 

We'd been driving for two days. Harper was becoming increasingly depressed and anxious with each passing mile. Ellie had spent the first day of the trip sick. The dog was neurotic as ever. The cat, seemingly the most resilient of our little clan, didn't seem fazed at all.

We got lost in St. Louis, Nick's air conditioner stopped working when the temperature topped 90 degrees, and the dog peed not only on the hotel room bed, but on Nick's clothes as well. 

The trip had not gone well. 

We stopped for gas and snacks about 100 miles northeast of Wichita. I stood in the parking lot of the convenience store in the blazing heat, facing a steady, hot wind blowing from the Southwest. I looked to the horizon and saw nothing. Absolutely nothing. It was just empty miles of grass and sky.

Kansas Prairie 

We've made a terrible mistake. At least that's what I thought at that moment. 

Fortunately, things started to look up. As had been the case during our previous two trips to Wichita, things began to go much more smoothly.

Closing on our house went off without a hitch, the girls loved the new house and the moving truck arrived exactly when it was scheduled. Neighbors came bearing baked goods, and our realtor gave us a membership to the Sedgewick County Zoo. Strangers were extremely kind and helpful. Harper started kindergarten (again) at a brand new school just around the corner from our house. And I've gotten lost only a few times trying navigate the city's expansive grid.

So perhaps this grand adventure is going to be OK. Maybe it will even be Wichitawesome. I'll let you know as we get settled here in our little house on the prairie. (Sorry - I made it through the entire post without a bad pun, and I just couldn't resist).