Oklahoma or Bust!

We did it!  This summer I really wanted to get our girls out to see my grandpa in Oklahoma.  With the days Jeremy took to be with his dad, this summer was not the summer to take a weeklong vacation.  So, my mom (grandpa’s daughter) offered to go out with us.  I tried to plan well for this very long car ride.  I made an hourly activity suggestion the kids would get.  This was about as long as they could make it without pestering us about “opening another one.”  Every day, one of these slips of paper had a surprise gift (a personal fan, pipe cleaners, sticker book) they would get.  A few other things in the list included: watch a movie, listen to a book on CD (much more successful than I imagined!), play with ________, stop and get a treat at the gas station, and car scavenger hunts. It definitely took some prep work, but it was worth it.  I will imagine I will do this again in the future. 

We left at 4am on August 13 (Saturday).  We left earlier than we needed to, but it was nice and quiet for a few hours even though they didn’t’ really fall back asleep.  We made it to our destination – just west of St. Louis – by about 1:30pm.  We checked in, got settled, swam, went out to supper at Red Robin, and just chilled.  It was a great first day.

        

We left for Kansas City and my cousin’s house at 9ish on Sunday morning.  We were there a little before 2pm.  We settled in at Kristen and Matthew’s until Tuesday morning.  Matthew suggested hitting the local pool (short walk away) to enjoy the sunshine and burn off some energy.  The girls were so excited!!  Sunday night, my other Kansas cousins and their kids came in for supper.  It was so good to be with family again – laughing, sharing our lives and our stories.  It was short, but good. 

    

That night the girls were spoiled by a bubble bath!!!  They learned how to make bubble beards.

    

Monday, we went to see Kristen’s artwork at Brandon Jacobs Gallery in Kansas City.  It is so cool to see it hanging up in a gallery, and knowing I have a piece of her artwork in my own house!  The owner of the gallery came in to let us in, since typically it is closed on Mondays; very nice man. 

         

Then, we visited Homer’s Coffeehouse where my cousin’s (Mark) artwork is on display right now.  His work is so different than Kristen’s, but I love it, too. 

The best part, especially for the girls, was coming back to Kristen’s and getting to paint their very own artwork on canvas in a real art studio. 

            

We ended the night by getting ice cream and using our special tattoo pens to draw beautiful pictures on each other’s feet!

  

Tuesday we headed to my grandpa’s in Oklahoma.  We had about 5 hours in the car first.  We stopped and enjoyed Braum’s; the girls had enjoyed their first milkshake here.  (If you have never been to Braum’s and you are out west, I strongly suggest going.  I eat there as many times possible when I am near one.) 

On the way, we stopped at the Kansas State Line Gift Shop – bought special stuffed animals and posed with the Wizard of Oz cut-outs.  This stop lasted a good 40 minutes as they tried to decide exactly what to spend their money on.

    

We went to my cousin Sarah’s to catch up with her and her brother’s family while the kids took advantage of her pool.  It was good, short, and just what we needed.  Then, we went to see Grandpa at the assisted living/nursing home.  He has his own room, which is nice.  But he gets around in a wheelchair now because of muscle weakness and neuropathy in his feet.  He was happy to see us.  He had not seen the girls for almost 4 years!  That evening, we went out to supper with my uncle Randy, his wife, and my cousin (Sarah) was able to join us after an obligation at her son’s school.  We were all tired and ready for bed by the end of the night.  Our hotel room was massive – a handicap accessible suite.  So, the girls loved the extra dancing space!

  

Wednesday, we spent the morning with Grandpa – talking, playing, and just being.  We had lunch with him before heading out to do some more kid-friendly things.  We went Leonardo’s Children’s Museum, a great find in Enid.

                  

Then, we hunted down an Sno-Cone place.  That is what I remember doing with my cousins when I came to visit – swimming, eating sno-cones, and going to the farm. 

We stopped in once more to say hi to Grandpa before heading to the farm to enjoy supper with my aunt and uncle, Darlene and Gary.  The girls climbed on big tractors, in big tires, drove the golf cart, said hi to the dogs Roxy and Charlie, played Barbies (possibly the highlight since they had been Barbie-less for almost a week).  Mom and I caught up with Darlene and Gary.  It was a nice night.

                        

And then we headed home on Thursday.  Two very long days home.  The girls did well, but it was long even for me.  Our highlights?  Eating for the last time at Braum’s

Swimming at the pool

Having a pizza party in our beds at the hotel

Rest area picnic (very windy!) and dancing

    

And home!  I am so thankful we had fun, were safe, saw most of my family, and especially that our girls could at least have a few memories of their great-grandpa.