OKC Memorial

If you haven't been you HAVE to go see the OKC Memorial. It is amazing. It is hard to believe that something like that happened so close to where we live. Jamie and I were talking about it as we drove down to OK Tuesday morning and it's so weird to think it was a normal morning just like that one, and all those people went to work and carried on with their normal lives until the minute the bomb went off. Then being there was weird too - knowing that happened on the very ground we were walking on. The memorial was eerily quiet and peaceful - right there in the middle of downtown OK City.

The other part that amazed me was the symbolism of everything they put in the memorial.

The ONLY family picture we got on our vacation!

This tree is called the survivor tree. It was there when the bomb went off and was not destroyed in the blast.


The field of empty chairs. Each chair signifies a life that was lost in the bombing - the smaller chairs represent the 19 children who were killed. The chairs are arranged in 9 rows - one row for each floor of the building and they are placed in the rows according to the floor the victim worked on. Each chair has a victim's name etched into it. They are also lit up at night. We walked back Friday night after the baseball game just to see it with all the lights on.

The Fence. For weeks and months after the bombing friends and family left tokens of their loved ones on the fence surrounding the Murrah Building. It is still up today and people still come and leave reminders of their loved ones.

The bomb went off at 9:02 am. Each end of the memorial is flanked by a large wall - one end has 9:01 etched into it, the other end has 9:03. The reflecting pool is in the middle of the 2 - signifying 9:02 -the minute the bomb went off.

Kids from around the nation sent in these handdrawn tiles after the bombing. They have created a children's wall with them and they even have sidewalk chalk out for kids to draw on the sidewalk with in this area.

The outside entrance of the memorial. Nto sure if you can read it but is says "We come here to remember those who were killed, those who survived and those changed forever. May all who leave here know the impact of violence. May this memorial offer comfort, strength, peace, hope and serenity."

The Journal Building which was across the street from the Murrah building. It was damaged in the blast and they left it as it was for everyone to see. The back wall of the Murrah building is actually still standing as well. It's called the Survivor Wall and they inscribed the names of the 600 survivors into granite slabs removed from the building and put those on the walls.

Inside the journal building is a museum which is worth the time and money to see. They actually have a sound recording of the blast from a court that was in session inside the building and it starts with listening to that then you go through and see news coverage of the wreckage and pictures and remains of the building. They also talk about the investigation and trial. It's 3 stories and takes a couple of hours to see it all. Unfortunately Hudson didn't last too long inside so we didn't get to see and read everything but what we did see was amazing.

Take me out to the ballgame!

We took Hudson to his first baseball game. I thought he would really like it and he loved it while they were warming up but by the time the game actually started he had lost interest in the game itself. But he loved pointing at the lights and the flags that were flying in the outfield. By the second inning I took him up to the top of the stands and luckily found 2 foulballs that had been hit up there so those entertained him for a little longer. But we left in the 3rd inning! Wasn't much of a game anyway - the Oklahoma City RedHawks were down 6-1 in the first inning.

Yes, I think he is licking the guardrail. Gross!

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...

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.

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

Washita River

Our cabin was by the Washita River and we walked down to the river one night after dinner. Hudson, of course, loved the water. Although he didn't get to play as much as he wanted since it was so dirty. That red dirt in Oklahoma makes the swimming holes pretty gross!

On the way back to the cabin Hudson and Jamie rode in the very back with the hatch open. Hudson got to ride out of his carseat several times when we were out on the property and he liked that. Of course he then threw a fit when we would make him get in his seat and buckle in!

Washita River

Hanging Out

He hates it when he gets the water in his face. It's hard to capture the reaction on camera, but this one is pretty good.

The one thing I forgot to pack was his high chair so Hudson got to eat sitting on the table which wasn't the easiest but we managed.

"Oooohhhh. I see a bird."

Bird watching.

My Montage 6/20/09

When we were driving to the river from the cabin we let Hudson "drive" the car and he liked that! Jamie took his toy airplane and tried to fly it a couple nights. Hudson really liked watching it but it just kept crashing!