Day 5- Let's go do something!!

Waking up in OKC to the smell of coffee brewing!  I love it!  Murle cooked us some sausage gravy, biscuits, eggs and some bacon & sausage.  We went to a sporting goods store and the Sam Noble museum.  Pics will be posted soon.  We took a little tour of Moore, OK.  We came home and had Lasagna for dinner and went down town to catch an OKC Dodgers game.  SO much fun!  The kids got autographs and Wayne got a foul ball.  They didn't win, but we had a great time.

Walking up in OKC on Day 4

WE slept in, had a rock-star breakfast and a nice lazy day!  We relaxed and sat around looking at photo albums until we decided to go swimming later.  Another beautiful day spent with family.  Life is good.

What did we do on Day 3?

Day 3

What did we do on Day 3?  Let's see, we woke up in NC, had an awesome breakfast, kids played and I got to catch up with my friend.  Took us a while to get moving, but we finally said our goodbyes and left their house.  We made a quick stop at a dollar general for a few things and then we got moving on I-40 West.  We tired to visit another friend in Marion, NC, but we couldn't reach her... bummer!!!  Shortly after we headed out, we stopped to seat the Biltmore Estate.  The rain was hit and miss.  Seemed to be following us.  Took us a little while to locate the estate, but then realized it was closing within a few minutes.  we drove in as far as we could and vowed to come back to see the entire estate.  What we saw was so amazing,  We went into the ticket office and watched a short video.  After that we headed out for our next stop...somewhere in TN. We passed into a different time zone and it took us a while to figure it out!! I was hoping for Jackson, but we stopped about 30 minutes before Jackson.  It was a LONG day.  We knew by stopping sooner we would have to get up early for an 8 + hour drive into OKC on Saturday.  We stayed at a Days Inn in Holladay, TN.  Not the best room, but perfect for sleeping and a small breakfast before hitting the road again.  We encountered our first "issues" of not getting along in the car.  When we drove through Memphis, TN we got distracted by a new BassPro on the Mississippi near the Arkansas .  So we turned around and went to Bass Pro.  As I pulled into the parking lot, I drove over a screw.  OMG.  I felt it go in the tire.  I parked the car and called roadside assistance.  As I waited for them to arrive, a super helpful security guard / Memphis Police officer showed up and waited with me and waited while the tire repair man repaired my tire.  He didn't have to wait, but he did.  Father to 3 boys, we had some similarities to talk about!!  After the repair guy was on his way, we headed into the store.  We wanted to go to the viewing deck, but to ride up the elevator and check it out was $40, so we declined.  I didn't think that was nice of BassPro.  I can see charging a few dollars, but not $40.  They aren't getting my $$.
We left BassPro and headed west.  We continue to count state license plates and have great conversation and dance parties in the car.  We are really enjoying our time together.  We stopped once for gas and arrived in Oklahoma around 3:30 pm.  The kids were very excited to cross the state line into Oklahoma.  That last two hours was treacherous.  Are we there yet, how much more time mom??
We arrived at Tim's house for dinner a few minutes after 6pm.  What a good feeling.  We made it.  Tim & Kate had prepared a nice pasta dinner for us.  We enjoyed dinner and an awesome dessert of Strawberries Pavlova.  Talk about yummy!!  Tim and Loyd and Murle took a few of the kids shopping for fireworks.  Kate gave me a nice tour of their home and by the time the guys got back we were ready to watch fireworks and set off some of our own.  Good times.  It felt so good to be here with family enjoying a holiday.  After fireworks we headed back into OKC to Murle & Cherry's house and we all went to bed pretty quickly.  Long wonderful day.

Too Excited. Day 2.

I could smell coffee and breakfast as soon as I woke up.  I was the first one up, showered and ready to go!  I couldn't wait for my kiddos to get up.  I finally HAD to wake them up at 8 because breakfast was ending at 9:30.  We enjoyed a BIG breakfast together, great conversation and excellent service.  Followed by more swimming, packing and left the hotel at checkout time.  We headed into Cincy to the Children's Hospital to visit our favorite Strubles!  What fun!  We got unique ID badges and headed up to hang out for a bit.  We bought a couple of small gifts at the gift store and enjoyed a nearly a couple hours of Struble time before heading out for lunch and gas.  Following Mr Struble's directions, eventually found a Walmart.  Grabbed what we needed and headed on our way.  Traffic was a bit of a nightmare and the kids had a few moments of craziness, but overall the ride was ok.  Traffic was slow so we were late arriving in NC, but just late for dinner since we are not really on a schedule :)  That might be my favorite part.  Kids took a bunch of pictures while we traveled.   We arrived in Mocksville, NC full of energy just before 10pm.  All 8 kids are getting along well and made friends quickly.  Man we've got a lot of kids between the 2 of us!  The kids ran around the yard and eventually everyone gravitated towards TVs and Xbox games until bedtime.  We had hotdogs cooked in BBQ sauce  YUM!  I had never had them that way & now I am a FAN!  Enjoying a quiet morning, most kids are sleeping.  Viv is watching some Disney on Netflix and I'm updating the blogs...good times.  Coffee. Soon.

Day 1

Today we left our house at 4am.  Drove to pick up John-ethen and headed south.  We stopped for gas, breakfast and again for lunch just north of Cincinnati.  We arrived at our hotel a little after 1pm and checked into our hotel early, I was so thankful for that because the hotel and parking lot filled up very quickly.  I took the kids down to the pool and we had a nice relaxing afternoon.  The kids could not wait for the managers reception at 5:30 and they were asking the time all afternoon.  I tried to get some rest but it wasn't happening.  We enjoyed the snacks and drinks at 5:30 and then Branden, Wayne, Vivien and I went back to the pool for a bit.  I had a lot of fun swimming and sitting in the hot tub with the kids.  Later in the evening, I ordered pizzas online from Papa Johns for delivery to our room.  We enjoyed a relaxing evening watching tv and eating pizza and a family sized cookie.   Johnethen & Branden wanted to go lift weights, but the rules stated they had to be 18, so they didn't go.  A little later, I did a load of laundry.  Longest load of laundry in my life, felt like I literally watched it!  LOL  The hotel was full of kids running around so I didn't want to leave my stuff alone, I panicked a little when Viv and I took a walk and the laundry room was in sight, but now close.  After laundry was done, so was I!  It was a long wonderful day with my kiddos.  Viv and I agreed that it felt like 2 days. Johnethen & Wayne slept on the pull out couch in the living room, Viv and I shared a bed and Branden had a bed to himself.  We all went to sleep dreaming of the made to order breakfast in the morning.  Much love.  I am in heaven.

To pack it or not to pack it!

The first part of our road trip I need to accomplish is packing. I've instructed the kids that we're packing light. So that's the plan.

1 bag of clothes and 1 small bag of activities.  That's it. Wayne is packed, Vivien is packed and I trusted Branden to pack for himself. Who's left? Moi. I have started the process, but it's hard! You know how prepared I like to be!

And I hope Johnethen was able to pack all he needs, I won't know until I pick him up!!

I've made lists and then I've modified my lists. I'm going to get this right. Not my first road trip. But forgetting stuff can be costly!! I'm a penny pincher, I like to maximize my dollar!!

Towels, shoes, toiletries oh my!!

The plan is to pack the car tonight when we get home from my sister's house. Stick to the plan!!

I don't know why I haven't started this before today. My kids and I love to travel together. I've traveled with them all since they were very young and continue to do some travel every year. Now that they are all older and used to travel, we are planning more trips together. So far we have been to Oklahoma, Arizona, North Carolina, Virginia, Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Florida and many fun locations in New York State. Next Summer we are planning a road trip to California. This year, we are driving to Oklahoma City, Oklahoma and making some stops along the way. First stop Cincinnati, OH. Stay tuned for updates from me and the kids as well as some photos!!