Fun for the Fourth in Tulsa

This year was the second year in a row we attended the July 4th extravaganza at my parents' house in the Tulsa, OK area.  Because Independence Day fell in the middle of the week this year, we decided to head up on the Saturday before   Drew worked remotely on Monday and a half-day on Tuesday while I was able to spend a little extra time with siblings, parents, nieces and nephews (and Luke and Abbey with their cousins, aunts and uncles, and grandparents).  It was also so much fun to be able to play volleyball with my cousins, just like old times.  Drew and I ended up playing for three evenings in a row, after the kids went to bed.   Our bodies realized after the first night of playing that it had been way too long since playing last. 

We had an awesome time in Oklahoma playing sports & games, visiting with family and friends, eating delicious food, checking out new parks, visiting my old "stomping grounds" and even checking out where I attended undergraduate school.  At this year's Independence Day Party, over 40 people attended for food, fireworks and fun.  It was awesome to visit with so many family members and friends.  We were so busy having fun on the 4th at the party, we forgot to capture pictures!  We headed back home last Saturday morning.

Here are some pictures from our visit last week in Oklahoma. 

While we were in Oklahoma, the kids had a blast playing together. My brothers and Drew did a great job of creating fun "games" and races for them. Here is a video of one of the races: 

One of all of the kids' favorite parts of the week was the visit to the Bartlesville Kiddie Park. It still amazes me that these fun, toddler-oriented rides only cost $.25 each to ride! And, we didn't even have to pay as adults when we accompanied the kiddos. Not only that, but the train rides were free all night. To my surprise, of all of the fun rides there, Luke's favorite was the carousel.  I must agree that it was pretty fun--it was faster than any other carousel I have ever ridden.  At one point during a carousel ride, I told Luke to wave to daddy (I was riding with him.)  Luke removed his hands from the pole as he waved and then quickly returned his hands to the pole saying, "Mommy, I think I am going to hold on."  He and I both had to hold on to avoid falling.  Now, Luke had been talking all day about how he was wanting to ride on the roller coaster. So, Drew decided to take a video of Luke's reaction for part of the ride. It is pretty funny, but at the same time so sad. I just wanted to give our little guy a hug as I watched from the side with Abbey--he was pretty scared. But, I am still glad we captured the video. I am sure he will appreciate it some day.