The trip there was 14 1/2 hours including lots of stops. Less than a third of the way into it, we stopped at a rest stop and Chickie exclaimed, "We at Uncle Ray's house!!!" I had to explain to her that we had a LOT more driving to do. By the time we got there at about midnight we were a tired bunch.
The trip home was about an hour shorter thanks to being able to avoid some construction traffic we'd encountered on the way there.
The highlight of the car trip was that we got to go to Braum's three times. Braum's is a regional fast food and ice cream chain. I don't know where all of their locations are, but it seems every town in Oklahoma, and north Texas has a Braum's. Unfortunately they aren't in Austin. Boy, is Braum's AWESOME. The burgers easily beat Sonic in taste, and prices are fantastic. The ice cream is excellent and a huge scoop on a waffle cone is only $1.25. The Engineer fell in love with their chocolate malts. We may have to drive to Kansas again just for all the Braum's stops on the way there!
The reunion was at my Aunt Dironda and Uncle Ray's house. And "house" is a stretch; there should be a different word for a 12,000 square foot home. ("Mansion" sounds too uppity, and it's really a homey, livable place. Maybe "country estate"?) There was so much for everyone to do, from taking rides in the cart being pulled by drafthorses, to swimming in the indoor pool, to playing pool and ping pong. Ray's fireworks show rivaled those put on by many cities, and the food was awesome. Of course, I ended up spending as much time as possible playing pinochle since the only time I get to play is when I'm with my immediate family and my mom's side of the family. (Local readers, anyone interested in putting together a monthly pinochle game? It's great fun and I'll teach you how to play!)
As promised, here are pictures:
Greystone (the house) reflected in one of the ponds:
Chickie & Grammy in the pool:
Chickie (on the right) kissing Cutie Cousin (my sister's daughter):
Me with my parent's three grandkids--Cutie Cousin, Zoodle, & Chickie--on the 4th of July. Getting these three "Little Firecrackers" to sit for a picture was a feat in and of itself.
Chickie wiped out, napping:
And Zoodle snoozin' with Papa (my mom's dad):
7 comments:
Ana and Molly look ALOT alike! Wow! Love those pics. What a gorgeous house!
That's one of the first things I noticed too!! They are practically identical. You and your sister must look alike as well!
The house is gorgeous and huge!
I love the last picture of Eli and Papa! I bet he is proud of that little guy! So, did you realize Garrett and Eli are only around a week apart in age! :) How much is Eli weighing, he looks much bigger than my tiny guy! Of course Garrett is REALLY LONG in my opinion.
BTW, Glad to have you back!!!
LOL, Mommy Vern, my sister and I are identical twins. So we do look alike! :) I noticed in that picture that Ana and Molly are starting to look alike too. Interesting since their baby pictures really don't look alike.
Molly is a year younger than Ana but is almost as tall as her and outweighs her. So they almost look the same age.
I'm not sure how big Eli is but he is a big boy! He was about 13 1/2 pounds a few weeks ago so I wouldn't be surprised if he's pushing 15 pounds by now!!
Thanks, it's good to be back!
Great pics! I remember the last time you went there and shared pictures of their "house"! It's so beautiful there! I'm so glad you all had a nice time, drive and all!
Kristi
*Oh, good grief! Blogger won't recognize me again! I know I'm using the correct username and password, too! Grrr!! Why are they asking for it now anyway when I just commented on 2 of your other posts without it? Ok, I'll IM you about this instead of continuing my rant on your blog! LOL!
It took me a minute to figure out which was Molly and which was Ana! They DO look a lot alike.
I remember the pictures of that house from last time, as well. WOW. I'd hate to have to clean that ginormous house, though. :-)
Oh, yes we love our Braum's!
I totally grew up on it, and Mr. Sasha insists on getting our milk from Braum's- he says it "tastes better". I wouldn't know since I hate milk, but I agree about the burgers, ice cream, and chocolate malts!
That definitely explains why they look so much alike!!
Garrett weighs somewhere between 13-14lbs. At least I think. We go to his 4 month checkup on Aug 6, so I'm interested to see if he hits 15lbs by then. Our little man is just now starting to beef up.
Please keep us updated on how much Ana and Molly continue or discontinue looking alike! And updates on Eli...I'm enjoying following another little one that's so close in age to Garrett!
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