tulsa and the long trek home

Our last stop on our 5th Annual Heinrich Summer Road Trip 2014 was in Tulsa, OK. We always stop to see my grandma and my aunt. My grandma is still getting around really well, and we always enjoy visiting and playing games with her. 

We arrived in Tulsa a little later than I had planned. I ended up having to stop by my sister's house the morning that we left KC, because we didn't get a chance to say goodbye the day before. We were supposed to get together for dinner, but there was a terrible thunderstorm that evening. We all decided it would be better to stay inside for the night. My unscheduled stop got me thinking about how I didn't get a chance to have any Lamar's donuts on my trip, so I swung by one in Olathe ... and the kids and I had some tasty donuts on our way out of town. These unscheduled stops had me in Tulsa just before 1 p.m. ... I wanted to be there by noon. 

But the kids did really well, and they waited until we arrived to have lunch with their great-grandma. We picked her up, and we went to lunch at Abuelo's. I love that Mexican restaurant! Thanks to my grandma, we had a delicious lunch together! 

That evening, the kids played outside with their cousin, Henry. They raced, pet the horses, played with the dogs, and enjoyed being outside a little bit. I won't lie, though ... it was hot ... well, it was mostly very humid! 

After the kids went to bed, Grandma, Aunt Patty, the boys, and I played a new game: Quiddler. She always teaches me how to play new games when I visit ... and she ALWAYS beats me! Quiddler is a very fun word making game, and I enjoyed learning how to play. We finished the night playing cribbage. I needed a refresher on the rules, so I could go back and teach Billy how to play. For the first time in the history of me playing cribbage with my grandma (which is a lot), I WON one game! It felt great. I have to hold on to that, because who knows if I'll ever do it again! 

We had to leave the next morning after breakfast. It's difficult to be on the road for too long with three kids by myself, but we did enjoy the time we spent with my grandma. I'm so glad that we stopped in to visit ... even if only for a short period of time. Grandma sent us off with homemade jams and fresh peaches. She is good to us! 

Thank you, Grandma and Aunt Patty for a fun time! We'll see you next summer!

The kids with Grandma and Henry.

The kids with their great-grandma.

Cole and Allie with Aunt Patty ... Koki was napping. 

I always enjoy my visits with Grandma.

Khloe loves those dogs!

Colton was looking at the horses.

Gotta love a midwest sky!

Racing in the yard!

Sweet love.

We were enjoying being outside ... and out of the car.

A gorgeous sunset.

We left on Friday morning after a delicious breakfast. We had a long day of driving ... that first day is longer than the second day. My plan was to make it to Little Rock, AR for lunch. We did not get that far! We had to stop just before ... about an hour or so earlier than I wanted to. We still got to our dinner spot when I planned to get there, so we kept my timing as best we could. I can't say it's easy for three littles to be in the car all day long! 

Me and my road-trip buddies! 

Okay ... a small side-story about this semi. This picture shows us in stopped traffic. We were at a dead-stop. That semi is NOT in a lane. He is in the emergency lane on the right-hand side of the road. Originally, he was driving behind me. When the traffic slowed and we had to stop ... he was driving SO FAST that he had to swing beside me and that is where his truck finally came to a stop--almost completely ahead of the truck in front of me! Luckily, I saw him coming ... so, as best as I could, I swung into the left lane that was blocked off with cones just in case he wasn't planning on swinging over onto the side of the road. I'm glad he did ... and we all lived to tell the story. Angels were watching!

We stopped for dinner where we always do ... at Panera just south of Memphis in Olive Branch, Mississippi. Just over three hours left to our destination ... Birmingham, AL. 

This girl makes me smile!

We had been in the car all day ... we were feeling nutty!

We ended up in Birmingham just after 8:30 p.m. The kids were sleepy, and I was, too! We all got a good, long night's sleep. We ate breakfast at the hotel the next morning, and we headed off to Tampa. We stopped for lunch just south of Atlanta, and we arrived home at 7:30 p.m. The kids were so happy to see their Daddy! I was so glad to be home ... and out of the car. We had a very fun summer trip this year, and by next summer, I'll be recovered enough to try it again!

6th Annual Heinrich Summer Road Trip 2015 ... coming soon ...