4th of July

We spend July 4th weekend up in Oklahoma. We were just in time for the grand opening of the new water park in Shawnee.

It was just what we needed to get the kids out of my mother in law's house for a few hours and let them get their sillies out.

Tony and I got in too. I don't understand parents who don't get in the water. I am not just going to sit there and sweat for several hours. I'm getting in.

We had a low key holiday, hanging around the house. Jackson and Olivia got to meet their cousins from California for the first time. They just happened to be visiting at the same time as us. 

One evening, my mother-in-law volunteered to watch the kids so Tony and I could have a date night in the city. Believe it or not we passed up getting Chinese fast food from a convenience store.

We had heard good things about The Mule and it did not let us down. Their specialty cocktails are all variations on the Moscow Mule. I had the Okie Mule, made with hibiscus syrup, vodka, ginger beer, and lime. It was amazing. I wish I was drinking one (or three) now.

My handsome husband.

We started with the craziest stuffed mushrooms either of us had ever encountered. They were loaded with cashew cheeze, grilled jalapenos, barbecue sauce, and guac.  Hot and gooey and amazing.

I had the Herbivore sandwich with cashew cheeze, beets, mushrooms, tomato pesto, onions, jalapenos, and avocado. That is a lot of ingredients to pile onto a sandwich and I was impressed. The vegan side of the day was quinoa with butternut squash and pecans. It was sweet like something you would eat for breakfast, kind of an odd pairing but it worked.

My other handsome gentleman, always ready for a road trip.

Summer 2012 Road Trip, Part 1

This year, Tony and I decided to keep our vacation easy and affordable by taking a road trip to visit family and friends in Oklahoma and Missouri. We were gone for eleven days -- the longest trip we've ever taken! We weren't sure how Jackson and Olivia would handle being away from home for so long. They did have their wild moments, due to the absence of their usual routine and surroundings. But they really are awesome little travelers. Everything is an adventure for them.

We left on July 3rd after Tony got off work. We grabbed some Subway on our way out of town. I got the veggie patty. Have you heard that some east coast Subways are offering vegan sandwiches now? Go, Subway!

We arrived at my mother-in-law's home, near Oklahoma City, after midnight. The next morning, we slept in. Once we got out of bed, we immediately started cooking out. While Tony grilled steaks, I roasted some potatoes and made corn, salad, and fruit salad.

We had an easy, relaxing Independence Day, hanging out with family, eating and drinking.

The next day, we set out to visit our friends Rick and Carla and their family in St. Louis. It's a long drive from OKC, so we elected to drive halfway and spend the night in Springfield, MO. 

We heard that the number one attraction for kids in Springfield is the original Bass Pro Shops store. I was a little skeptical. What's so exciting about a store? But this particular store is the size of an amusement park.

There is a waterfall. Inside the store.

It's surreal.

The main floor is nothing but boats, 4-wheelers, snowmobiles, etc., as far as the eye can see.  And you can climb all over them. For a two-year-old and almost-four-year-old, this was heaven.

Boat Captain Olivia.

Jackson thinks I should trade in my car and take him to school in this monster.

Olivia will take this Arctic Cat over a Barbie doll any day of the week.

I decided this would be my boat. You know, if I was going to own a boat. Isn't she yar?

Moving along, we encountered some huge fish tanks. There was also a live crocodile, just hanging out in his enclosure right in the middle of the store. I meant to circle back and take a picture of him, but I forgot.

Downstairs, there was a camping area. I was amazed by all the pre-made meals you can buy. When my family went camping in western Maryland every summer when I was a kid, we lived on peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and smores. Now you can feast on lasagna while you're crouching around the campfire.

Some of the options weren't so appealing. Giant tin of beef stew, anyone?

Uh-oh! While I was pricing camping gear (I'm determined to take the kids camping this fall), Tony went and got himself mauled by a wolf! These taxidermied creatures lurked everywhere. I guess they add to the ambiance.

Strangely, the kids wanted to hug all the stuffed and mounted animals in the store, but they would have nothing to do with this overall-clad bear statue out front. Sorry, Mr. Bear.

Springfield doesn't have a ton of exciting dinner options. We ate at the Ruby Tuesday by our hotel. As far as family-type chains go, Ruby Tuesday is considerably more vegetarian-friendly than your TGI Friday's or your Chili's. I hit the salad bar first. Gotta get your veggies while you're traveling! 

Then I had the veggie sliders, made with shredded zucchini. They were a tad mushier than I would've preferred, but had a pleasant flavor.

Tomorrow -- on to St. Louis!

4th of July Recap

Hey all, how was your 4th of July this year? Tony had a four-day weekend, so we headed up to Oklahoma to stay with his mom for a few days.

On Saturday, I met up with an old friend in my college town. We went to the splash pad so we could visit while our kids played. Having endured a 6 1/2 hour car ride, Jackson and Olivia had tons of pent up energy and could have played under those sprinklers all day! But we left at lunchtime to go meet up with some other friends and their new baby girl. She is a super cutie! As a bonus, we ate at my favorite restaurant in Norman, Pepe Delgado's. This was the kids' first time eating there.  

They liked the food, but they were not in the mood to sit and let Mama and Daddy visit for very long. I wonder if Pepe's would consider installing a splash pad out back?

At Grandma's house, Jackson spent most of his time playing with her dog, Boone, who is 17 years old. Jackson loves him so much. Whenever we ask him if he is excited to visit Grandma, he says, "I go see Boone! I play with Boone! I throw the ball with Boone!" As you would expect with a 17-year-old canine, Boone isn't doing so well. Sadly, we know this is probably his last summer. So I made sure to take lots of pictures of Jackson and his buddy together.

On the last night of our visit, Tony's mom and cousin surprised us by offering to babysit so we could go run around without the kids. There's not much to do in the small town where my mother-in-law lives, so we found ourselves back down in Norman at a bar where I spent many, many evenings in college.

I celebrated my 21st birthday in that very booth! Ha. I'm a sucker for nostalgic experiences like this one, but it was also surreal. Nothing has changed. I mean, literally every fake potted plant in the bar was still in its exact same location. 

Afterwards, we walked around the OU campus and passed by my favorite house in town. I always called it the Italian villa. It looks like it belongs to a ministry group now. Maybe someday they'll sell it to me and I can have it transported brick by brick to Austin. Ha, maybe not. But it's sure pretty. 

On the hour-long drive home from Norman to Grandma's house, we saw fireworks the whole way. A lot of small towns were having their displays on July 3rd for some reason, and we unintentionally timed our drive so we got to see them. That was nice. 

On the actual holiday, we were making the long journey back to Texas. When we got home, we thought about taking the kids in search of fireworks, but Austin and many surrounding towns cancelled their displays due to the drought and wildfire hazard. I think a couple of small towns still had displays, but we were pretty tired and we thought the fireworks might scare Olivia since she's still so small. So we decided to go grocery shopping and then come home and relax.

Look what was buy one, get one free!

Such a lovely sight to behold. Had to stock up on fruit, too. Nectarines and pineapples were cheap this week. And of course I always need a supply of bananas on hand for my little monkeys.

Olivia is quite a fan of the pineapple. She's had a little cold for a couple days, so I'm glad to see her getting her vitamin C.

Today was the last day of Tony's mini-vacation. We thought about cooking out, but it was hot and we were lazy. Also, Tony has caught Olivia's cold, and he thought some spicy food would be good for his sinuses. Off we went to Polvo's. The Michoacan avocado salad was one of my first meals when we moved back to Austin because I missed it so much. It's what I always order.

So there you go -- no parades or barbecues, but a fun and relaxing July 4th, all the same. Hope yours was, as well.