How many times have I had to use the title "what a week"??? It seems there is no such thing as a dull moment around our home anymore! But that can be good too...
We ended our week last week with a trip to Oklahoma to my family reunion. The Stinebaugh decendents gathered at Sequoia State Park at the Western Hills Guest Ranch for a weekend of reminiscing and introductions (hey, we only do this every two years - people change a LOT in two years!). We had a great time and were so pleased to get to take the boys with us and show off our little ones to our extended family!
We started off on Friday morning around 10:30. The trip was supposed to take about 4 - 4 1/2 hours, but we knew to expect a little longer as we would be stopping for lunch, etc. We did pretty well in the car - how smart was it for us to plan our drive around nap time! :) Gabriel enjoyed watching movies on the DVD player (we can't thank Bubble Fernie and Cool Aunt Megan enough for that DVD player!). We stopped for lunch around 2:00 because no one told us that once we made it into OK along 75 there would be, like NO PLACE to stop along the way. So needless to say we were FAMISHED when we finally stopped. The boys were a bit cranky, but Old McDonalds was enough to renew their spirits. :)
We got back on the road (after a quick detour to Walmart - I kind of forgot my phone charger...oops!) and were at the hotel by 4:30. Not too bad considering our stops along the way. We checked in, relaxed in the room for a bit and waited for my mom and grandparents to get there. Then we went swimming!! Dinner at the restaurant at the hotel and then a quick visit to the OK Corral (that's the meeting hall we reserve every year to play games and spend time with the fam!). Then it was time to hit the sack.
The next morning, we met the family for breakfast and then our oldest went for a horseback ride (a 1 hour trail ride) that my brother Shelby coordinates every time. He LOVES the horses and they know him by name at the stables - he was emailing and calling them two weeks in advance! Thanks Bubble Shelby for getting it all set up. There were about 15 or so that went on the trail ride. Our oldest rode with my sister Cara - since he's three it is really hard for him to ride a full size horse by himself - though I know he would want to if we let him. He takes after his Bubble Shelby in love of horses! Cara managed to some how "sweet talk" her way in to being right behind the trail leader's horse - his name is Jo and he just happens to be 16 (Cara's 12 going on 22!). So our oldest ended up getting the special treatment while Jo flirted (AHEM!!) with my 12 year old sister. :) When they were done, our oldest was so happy he couldn't even hardly speak. He really had a great time! I was a bit worried because he hasn't been on a full sized horse before that so I wasn't sure if he would be scared, but he wasn't even a tiny bit! Again, when we adopt these boys, I will post some pics.
The rest of the day was spent swimming and napping (more for Mommy and Daddy than for the boys!) and some more eating of course. Then we joined the whole family at the OK Corral for some good ole fashioned worshipping. We have several preachers and talented musicians in our family, so every reunion we have a church service and some praise time. It was really neat to see how the talent continues to develop in our family. One of my distant cousins (kind of I think) got up with his daughter to lead the music. David played the guitar and his daughter Joy played the violin. They both sang as well. WOW! Joy is so amazingly talented! I am so impressed at her ability to not only play the violin like a pro ( and she is young too!) but at the incredible voice she has. Amazing!
By Sunday morning we were a bit worn out from all our fun and dreading the drive home. Though we made much better time getting home than we did getting there. When we finally made it home we were sad to have had to say goodbye for another two years (to some - others we will see *hopefully* before then), but glad to be home.
Those who read the blog a few days ago read about my uncle passing away about a week and a half ago. His funeral was This last Wednesday in - guess where - Oklahoma! I made my way up to Tulsa after work on Tuesday and spent the night with my cousin (again, kind of) in her gorgeous house. It was cool because Cara stayed with me and my Dad's best friend from high school (who happens to be his "boss" in the real estate business my Dad is in.) was there too. So it was like another reunion - just not for the same happy reasons. We got up Wednesday morning and went to the service. My Dad was the one who delivered the message and Eulogy. Public speaking is not his most favorite thing to do, but when he is passionate about something, he is so good! Despite how hard I know it was for him to get up there and speak, I was so impressed with his message and I hope that the rest of the family was too. We said goodbye to my Uncle David graveside while his daughter placed a sinlge red rose on his grave. You know, as many of these as I have had to attend in the last several years, it never gets easier. And because the boys' lawyer was coming to our house that night for a check in, I left from the funeral home to come home. Another 5 hours (that turned into 6 thanks to the traffic in Fort Worth!) in the car on the way home from OK. But it was worth it to be there....
So I am hoping for a few weeks with no more driving! :) But otherwise we have survived the week and I even managed to get my curtains started in my kitchen! :)
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