We started the weekend off on Friday morning with Starbucks on the way out of town and made the trip to Oklahoma City to have our first date weekend (since kids). Ruby passed the time reading Sebastian's comic books, I enjoyed the eye candy from Bazaar Style, and worked on hand piecing flowers for a new hexagon project. All of this in between handing out snacks, passing out toys, and calling the police on intoxicated drivers. Yes, that happened.
We dropped the kids off at my parents house, freshened up, and headed to Midtown.
The weather was looking scary so our friends headed home and we hit up Starbucks for a late night drink before heading to my parents. It was such a relaxing night. I couldn't wait to start it all over again the next morning!
Saturday my parents headed to my grandparent's house with the kids and Brett and I struck out on our own to see the sights! Now, we spent about five and a half year in Shawnee, OK during college and made frequent trips into OKC with Brett working at Starbucks and Tinker but we NEVER knew about some of the fantastic things OKC had to offer back then.
The Paseo District was pretty great and we knew about some great venues for live music but there is SO much more that's opened up since then. I asked about what we should do on Twitter and a few OKC locals told me about some of their favorite parts of the city.
The Paseo District was pretty great and we knew about some great venues for live music but there is SO much more that's opened up since then. I asked about what we should do on Twitter and a few OKC locals told me about some of their favorite parts of the city.
Let's start with Cuppies and Joe. We graduated with the Diefs, the beautiful and talented ladies that are part of the family that opened the lovely cupcake and coffee shop, and got to visit a bit with Elizabeth. We kind of skipped lunch and went straight for the cupcakes and coffee and it was pure bliss. Then we found Guestroom Records and spent about an hour and most of Brett's birthday money on some used records.
Next up was the Plaza District (thanks, Dana and Julie!) to browse Collected Thread and RetrOKC. We met a lovely gal (whose name escapes me now) who welcomed us and told us about the shop and how fantastic that last few First Friday events have been in that area. It was full of fun product from Etsy vendors and locals and we picked up a few pretties.
RetrOKC was a well-curated little shop full of your favorite MCM finds. I asked the owner, Mike, if he had any Catherineholm and he pointed me to his personal collection behind the counter. I was sad. It was fabulous. And not for sale. There were some pretty enamel ware, paint-by-numbers, kitschy Polaroid glasses, and some great chairs, though. A must see if you're in the area! We didn't have time to visit a few others on the list but that just means it'll be even more exciting next time we're around!
We left the Plaza District to see Brad and Alicja's new cafe, Sips, in Shawnee. It's on main street in downtown Shawnee and serves delicious sandwiches, sweets, and Elemental coffee. Brad, being a treasure hunter himself, took us to a few of his favorite places - one of them being way off the beaten path. I found these pretty enamel flower pins as well as some Pyrex and a fun vintage watering can for the front porch flowers. Thanks for the thrifting, Brad!
That night we landed in Ada to stay with my grandparents and go to church with my family the next morning on Easter Sunday. There was an Easter basket opening, church, lunch, and an unorthodox indoor Easter egg hunt that my mom took care of while we packed quickly to get back on the road. We had to make it home that night with enough time for Brett to work on his plan to lead PT for the ROTC the next morning at 5:30 a.m.
Long story short, we stopped at a Starbucks in Tulsa for a potty break and refreshments only to realize our car wasn't going to turn back on when we were ready to leave. That middle picture is about how that felt. We got a tow, found a hotel, and e-mailed people to delegate Brett's responsibilities. Popcorn and Cheez-its from the vending machine and two hours of Disney channel and the kids were happy. We took it in stride and decided to chill out about things.
The next afternoon our car was fixed and we were free!!! Since we were in Tulsa without needing to rush home we visited Ashley and Breese in the hospital. I hadn't seen Ashley in about eight years and wasn't able to get in touch with her before we walked through the hospital room door but really enjoyed getting to see them! It kind of redeemed the whole breaking down part and we promised to meet up at a flea market rather than a hospital the next time.
We finally made it home after a stop at my favorite flea market outside of Joplin that was miraculously still open at 6:00 p.m. It was the happy ending to our happy weekend! We truly enjoyed some time as a couple to celebrate Brett's birthday and are so thankful that my parents and grandparents were so generous with their time and attention regarding our kids. It was kind of great to know Ruby could be away from me for so long without freaking out and makes me excited for the next time we can do this!
Thanks to Instagram we now have some fun reminders of everything we did on our weekend date! I'd love to hear from anyone else that lives in or has visited OKC and what kind of places you love to visit. I'm planning on finding a new place every time we go and I know other people would love to hear about them, too!
xoxo,
Rachel
xoxo,
Rachel
29 comments:
Sounds like a great weekend! Glad you had so much fun! That first photo of the two you is really awesome!
I love that you guys had so much in OKC, we have a lot to offer. And I see you got the most cupcake ever created at Cuppies, Boom Boom Pow. I could eat my weight in those, i die for salted caramel.
This post just cheered up my dreary Tuesday afternoon! Really awesome pics! We just recently left our son for a solo weekend trip for the first time in his 3 years and while I was slightly stressed about him freaking out, everything worked out and we had fun! so glad you could document your trip and that the car troubles worked out in the end.
That sounds like an AMAZING weekend, love the photos!
I've been the the "over-the-road McDonald's" on OK a few times! And I am jealous of all your flea market shopping!
loved getting to see that i've been to several of the places yall went to! sara sara cupcakes is a fav! oh, and which flea market did you hit near joplin? i'm from the area!
sounds fantastic.... even the care breakdown turned out well for you guys. I am a huge fan of instagram too.... I posted some of mine just the other day (http://jennnash.typepad.com/blog/2011/04/i-heart-instagram.html).
You guys had an amazing time! cute images!
You just keep getting prettier!
looks like such fun! you two are such cuties :) and i love that you made TWO starbucks trips in one day!
You went to school at OBU?!?! What?!? I've been a huge fan of your blog for a while now and never knew this little bit of info. I graduated from OBU in 2005. What a small world!
Even smaller world, my dad was born and raised in Ada. My aunt recently sold my Grandparent's house that was there. She now lives in Stillwater. It's just not a very big place. :)
I love that you used the instagrams to tell your story! Sounds like it was a wonderful weekend despite the car trouble (oh have I been there). Happy Birthday Brett!
xo,
melissa
First off, you're one hot mama! Secondly, I loved this post. Thank you so much for all the details. I want to visit OK now :)
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Ashley,
It's on exit 29 and it's the Cimmaron Antique Mall and Flea Market. The old man that works there is such a charmer.
Keyonna,
What? I graduated in 2004 and Brett did in Dec. 2005. Which means we were on campus at the same time! What's your name? What was your major?
Wallflower,
Thanks, lady! That was so nice of you.
AnnasBananas918,
My dad is from there and knows a lot of people in the community still. When did your dad graduate from Ada High?
Happy birthday Brett!!
That's nuts! I'm Keyonna Hornbuckle. I was an exercise and sports science major. I ran track at OBU.
aw, thanks for the shout out, rachel. :) i visit okc often since my brother lives out there. i'll make sure i'll pass along new spots and locations, too!
So fun! Jeremy and I can't wait to explore OKC, when we visit his parents. Thanks for all of the suggestions. Happy Birthday Brett!
Rachel,
I discovered your blog recently and love that you spent time in OKC, the little city I've lived in for the past 5 years. Here are some of my favorite places:
Irma's - fanstastic burgers. I usually devour the theta burger without ever putting it down.
McNellie's - Pub, to-die-for sweet potato fries, $3 burger nights on Wed
The Wedge - Pizza place with unique toppings. My favorite is the truffle shuffle.
Big Truck Tacos - Just down the road from Cuppies, a taco place with every sort of taco you never imagined would be wonderful. Crispycado is my favorite.
Victoria's - in Norman, but everything is made fresh and daily. Their pesto makes me weep it's so wonderful.
Sushi Neko - The Vegas roll. When I couldn't decide how I felt about sushi, this baby decided for me.
The Rink - Antique mall in Bethany. I've found letters from an old printer press, lovely hats, beautiful tea cups, and all the other treasures you'd expect to find in someone's attic.
Iron Star - Yum yum bbq and great mac and cheese side.
Full Circle Bookstore - My favorite little indie bookstore that often features local authors and is oh so cozy.
There are a million more, but that seems like a good start.
Whitney
WOW! You guys sure know how to have fun! May as well live it up! We could sure take a few pointers from you!
I had no idea you were from here!!
AND managed to sum up the majority of my blog in one post. <3 I'm so proud to be part of this community. Great post. :)
You guys are absolutely a wonderful couple! I just moved to OKC and learning about how there is a lot more to offer out here than expected. Thank you for writing that. It was a joy to read. I'm a writer and appreciate fellow bloggers. Hope all is well with the fam and keep writing! BTW What is this flower project you're working on?
Your family is beyond adorable. Even more enjoyable that it didn't go as planned yet stayed together and made the best of it. Wonderful story. I'm a writer and appreciate this well written weekend. Brought a smile to my face. I just moved to OKC from Denver and am looking for fun things to do as well. There is a lot more than I thought there would be. OCK isn't too bad coming from a CO girl. Hope all is well....
Lisa,
Thank you! I'm working on a paper pieced project with hexagons. It's a traditional pattern in a lot of old beautiful quilts! It'll be a long work in progress, though. ;)
This is wonderful. My husband and I have definitely learned the importance of US time. I'm glad you were afforded a weekend of it :)
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