Bricktown

The Bricktown area in OKC was really nice. It was like our Old Town but 10 times bigger and nicer. You can walk everywhere you need to go - which is what we did the whole time we were there. There is a trolley system but we never rode that. There is a canal that runs through the whole area and there are even boats you can ride on! There were lots or restaurants and hotels in the area, plus shopping and a baseball stadium. We spent Friday afternoon walking around the area checking it out. And it was hot! So we stopped and played in the fountains!

The only picture we got of the canal area...

Skirvin Hotel

On Friday we spent the day in Bricktown in Oklahoma City adn spent the night at the Skirvin Hotel. It was a really nice hotel that was originally built in 1911. It has been renovated but still has the old look to it. Here's a few pics of the room/hotel:

The blanket on the bed actually has the whole story of the history of the hotel written on it. It was interesting to read but I bet those blankets were expensive!

crib

We had them bring a portable crib up for Hudson and when we walked into the room and he saw it, all he wanted to do was play in it. I'm not sure why this one was so cool....
Of course, it might have something to do with the wheels on it....and how fun Daddy is! They played with it for quite a while.

Look what I can do Mom!

One of the new things Hudson has learned lately!

bathtime

One drawback to the cabin was the fact that there wasn't a bathtub to give Hudson his baths in. On the last night I decided to go the easy route and give him a bath on the back porch with teh hose. He, of course, loved it.

First Steps

Finally! For the past week or two he has gotten to where he only needs to hold on to one finger while he's walking but he just won't let go. As soon as you do he flops down to the ground. But I figured if he was distracted enough and holding something in his hands he might start figuring it out - and basketball is a great distraction. He LOVES playing it. He also has started letting go of things and standing on his own and clapping for himself when he does it. So I know he is finally figuring out there's more to life than crawling on all fours!

watermelon

This one's for Aunt Wilma - the biggest watermelon lover I know - probably in the world!

Grandys

I used to LOVE Grandys when I was younger but we don't have them in Kansas anymore. So I heard that there were still some in Oklahoma so I mapquested the closest one to our cabin and it was only about 25 miles away so I told Jamie we had to go there to eat. So Thursday night we drove to Ardmore, Oklahoma and ate at Grandys. And I'm sad to say it was not what I remembered (It never is is it?) It was pretty gross actually - the restaurant was dirty and run down and I felt sick after eating there. So that was a huge dissapointment - I had been looking forward to it all week.

The rolls that I remembered being so delicious but they were mushy and undercooked.

Fried chicken and Grandys baked beans - should have never gone back so I could still have good thoughts about their food!

Scenic Turner Falls

Here are some scenic pics of the Turner Falls area - hard to believe something that beautiful is in Oklahoma!!! (Sorry Stephanie!)

Turner Falls

Hudson loved playing in the water. We would fill his bucket up with rocks and he would have sat there for hours throwing them in the water and then picking them up and putting them back in the bucket. We got there about 8 am and the water was a little too cold then to do much swimming so we did some hiking instead. It's hard to hike carrying a 1 year old! But Jamie did it! :)
We went back in the afternoon and since it was much warmer out the water felt much better. So we did some actual swimming in the pool area where the falls are and then went back to the wading area. That was the part Hudson liked the best. Jamie brought a ball back with us and they would throw the ball upstream then watch it swim back to him.

My Montage 6/26/09

I scream, You scream - Hudson screams for Ice Cream!

Hudson had his first ice cream while we were on vacation. As you can see, he thought it was pretty good.

My Montage 6/21/09

Arbuckle Wilderness

One of the things we went and saw was the Arbuckle Wilderness Safari. It's one of those places that you drive thru in your car and look at the animals. They come right up to your car and you can feed them if you want. It was overpriced for what it actually was but Hudson had a great time. Here are a few of the animals we saw:

Disgusting, isn't it?!?! These guys are so used to everyone feeding them and the cars they aren't scared at all. They just come right up to the window, stick their head in and open wide!

These guys were scary! I was sure they were going to try to peck our eyes out or something so we rolled the windows up when they got close. But you have to be careful cause they sneak up on you when you are feeding other animals!

And the cutest animal they had:

I finally figured out the only way I was going to get pics of his face was to take them in the mirror. But he loved the animals and enjoyed throwing food out to them. Of course, he kept trying to eat the food too.

My Montage 6/21/09