WE CELEBRATE!!!!

Abby celebrated her third birthday in Oklahoma last night. Kim decided to have it out here this year instead of in Arkansas. There are more kids out here that Kim and Abby know than in Arkansas. Also, it was easier for Michelle, Carter and Karlie to drive down for it. They arrived just in time for the party.

Kim booked the party at Gymboree in Oklahoma City. I think all the kids had fun. I know that for sure Abby did. The lady in charge at Gymboree did a really good job. I totally recommend Gymboree for a three year old's birthday party.

Everyone is singing Happy Birthday to Abby. She is a little gotten off with.


Abby is catching a bubble. Gymboree has the best bubbles. They don't pop.
Abby opening her gifts. She wasn't really much into her gifts. She had rather play with her friends.

Karlie enjoyed playing in the tubes most out of everything.

Isn't this baby adorable?
I think this was the most fun thing, the parachute.

Do you think Abby's Aunt Michelle might be a party supply rep?

ABBY TURNS THREE

Abby turned three yesterday, Friday the 13th, but she was not born on Friday the thirteenth. She celebrated her birthday with her dad's side of the family last night. Her and Kim will be coming to Oklahoma this week to celebrate again with our side of the family.

ABBY TAKES KARATE

Abby started taking karate lessons last week. Her dad is a black belt and her teacher. The uniform is the smallest they could order and is still a little big for her. I had to laugh when I saw Kim had put a bow in her hair. I hear she loved it. I remember when Abby was born and Kim and I talked about how cute she would look someday in her karate uniform. I can't believe that she will be three next week and already old enough to take karate. Time does fly.

OUR TRIP (DAY THREE)

This was the day of the game. So, hubby and Tracy were planning on leaving for the game around 3:30. We decided to sleep a little later, go down for breakfast and then do a little sight seeing. The first place we drove through was next to our hotel. It was a retirement community or as they call them out here, an active adult community. They didn't fib, they were all active, playing golf, walking and playing tennis.

This community was beautiful. As you entered, the medians were lined with palm trees. I think every house had at least one palm tree in their yard and cactus. The really tall cactus. There were more golf carts on the street than cars. This community had four golf courses, several lakes and waterfalls. The houses weren't huge, but I guess older people down size and also for some, it might be their vacation home. Some houses also had a view of the mountain. I think hubby and I could definitely live here after he retires, but it is just too far.
Some pictures we took inside the community.

We didn't have time to do a lot of sight seeing. Tracy and hubby went to Trader Joe's to pick up some things and they had never been in one. We don't have them in Oklahoma. They were wearing their OSU shirts and the sacker told them that he went to OSU for one semester. They gave him a bull riding scholarship. Who knew they even gave those, but he said that he didn't study and flunked out after one semester. I guess that is why he was sacking at Trader Joe's. I just thought it was kind of funny.
We then went to eat lunch at Five Guys. We don't have those in Oklahoma either. It was so good. I know that it is really bad for you, but we didn't really eat that bad the whole time, except for then. Some nights, we just went to the grocery store and picked up a salad and took it back to the hotel.

After that, it was time for them to head to the game. They were gone eight hours and I did get bored, staying in the hotel. I took a little nap, watched TV and also watched the game. They told me after they got home around 11:30 that they didn't either one have any cell phone service inside the dome. If I had needed them for any reason, I could not have gotten in touch with them. I sure am glad I didn't know it until afterwards.

Day four, we got up and started back home. I didn't take any pictures on the way back. We stopped in Flagstaff again and ate lunch. We all fell in love with Flagstaff. We made it back to Albuquerque around six, checked in the same hotel that we had stayed in on our way to Phoenix. We then went to eat dinner and came back to the hotel and watched a little TV. We all went to bed early that night.

Day five, we got up really early and headed back to Oklahoma. We passed a lot of OSU fans on the way back also. Like I said, I really enjoyed the trip, but it was so good to get back in Oklahoma.

OUR TRIP (DAY TWO)

We headed out early the next morning for Phoenix. When we left Albuquerque, the temperature was 15 degrees. When we arrived in Phoenix it was 81 degrees. We actually stayed in Surprise, Arizona, a suburb of Phoenix. Surprise is where the Texas Rangers and the Kansas City Royals do their spring training. Surprise is a beautiful city with lots of retirement communities.

But, as we got closer to Flagstaff, we saw lots of snow, especially on the mountain tops. We stopped to eat at a Cracker Barrel in Flagstaff since it was New Year's Day and we had to eat black eyed peas. Remember we are from the South originally. There were also several OSU fans eating there also.Flagstaff was pretty with its snow and there were a lot more trees. They were also a lot taller than what we had been seeing. We arrived in Surprise, Arizona around 4:30. We ended up going to bed really early that night also. (To be continued)
Mountains between Albuquerque and Phoenix.The trees were a lot bigger and taller as we got closer to Flagstaff.

This was Mount Elden or The San Francisco Peaks in Flagstaff. It seems like we could see this mountain at least one hundred miles before we ever got to it.
Getting closer. Seeing this mountain made our whole trip worth it.
As we were leaving Flagstaff going toward Phoenix. We saw kids sledding everywhere. A field of cactus as were entering Phoenix.

OUR TRIP (DAY ONE)

The purpose of our trip, as I have stated before, was for hubby and Tracy to attend the Fiesta Bowl and get to see Oklahoma State play Stanford. We traveled a little over 2200 miles round trip. I really enjoyed the trip, I think we all did. But, it was very tiring. I am glad to be back in Oklahoma.

We had intended to make it the first day to Albuquerque and spend the night, which we did. It took us about 8 1/2 hours. We left Saturday, New Years Eve. We arrived in Albuquerque around 4:30 in the afternoon. We gained an hour. We had taken food for our breakfast and lunch, so we only had to stop for bathroom breaks. We also stopped in Amarillo to eat our lunch in the car. We went through four states to get to Phoenix. Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico and Arizona. The only one that I never been to was Arizona.

After we entered New Mexico, the terrain really begin to change.

We stopped here for gas. The wind had really picked up. Tracy almost blew away trying to pump gas. I should have taken a picture of the place. It was located on Route 66 and had a sign on their door that said they could refuse service to anyone because of their looks. They had several signs that said you could not use their bathrooms unless you were a paying customer and their bathrooms were filthy. After this stop, we made it a point to only stop at McDonald's to use the bathroom or where we were stopping to eat.
Hubby took a picture of the gas pump, because it was so old. He didn't even think these kind of pumps were around anymore.

Some more pictures of the mountains.Different color mountains.

As we got closer to Albuquerque, we begin to see a little snow.When we got to our hotel, I was ready to crash for the night. I don't think I could have gone another mile. We were all pretty tired. But, since it was New Year's Eve, Tracy talked me into going out to eat. We went to Chili's at around 5:30 and then went to get a bottle of champagne to take back to the hotel. Tracy and hubby fully intended to see the New Year in. I went to bed at nine and Tracy decided at ten to go back to her room to watch TV. Hubby came to bed about ten. So, none of us saw the New Year in. There were a few OSU fans staying at the same hotel, we stayed at in Albuquerque. Hubby talked to a few of them. (to be continued)