Vacation recap: July 4th

July 4th is one of our favorite times of year in Plymouth. The community celebrates with a fabulous parade and community event at the local park. So we were bummed about being away.

Our Oklahoma City celebration didn't disappoint. I dragged most of the family to Bethany for a parade at 10 a.m. My sister once marched in this parade when she played in the band years ago, so we weren't new to the event. We were surprised, however, that the skies cleared and temperatures quickly rose after milder days earlier in the week. So Brendan, who is clearly a Michigan kid, complained midway through the parade that he was too hot. Hmmm ... we'll have to toughen him up. (Note that he can handle the very cold winter temperatures here, which I cannot.)

Both boys loved the float with Lightning McQueen and Chick Hicks from the movie Cars. We got a laugh from the Ford police car that stalled just as he was revving the engine to take off. Several floats played off the flood conditions to add some humor. The best part? The free hot dogs that they were serving on the corner.

The parade had some only-in-Oklahoma moments, such as the train of tractors.

We swam the afternoon away before going to a RedHawks game in Bricktown. This is the Rangers' minor-league team. Again, fond memories for me. Growing up, we attended countless 89ers games during the summers and ate ice cream out of the little plastic baseball hats. Well, now the team has changed to the RedHawks, they have a new stadium, and the only ice cream available is Dippin' Dots. But that was the only disappointment. Brendan loved watching the game. When the boys were restless, I took them to a small play structure in the outfield that was crawling with kids. It was difficult to keep tabs on the boys, but they enjoyed the 10 minutes of running wild.

Kelsey, Ryan, my mom and I left during the 7th inning to get the littlest ones to bed at a reasonable time. Brendan had dutifully taken a nap earlier in the day, so he was rewarded. We let him stay for the entire game and watch fireworks afterward. (Generally, he doesn't do well the next day after staying up so late, so we knew we were rolling the dice.) He loved the fireworks -- another first for him -- and was particularly impressed with the big booms. Now, he says he wants to be a baseball player, firefighter, and police officer when he grows up.


A side note: All three children slept in until 8 a.m. the next morning, another first. Ahhh ...


Another side note: You forget how un-family friendly so many venues are until you are nursing a newborn. Kelsey was hungry during the RedHawks game. I didn't search too far before choosing a bench off the beaten path where I could nurse her with a wrap over us. Later, I discovered the "cool zone," which would have offered more privacy and air conditioning. (It was hot that night!) I had searched the RedHawks website for family information, but it didn't offer much. Don't they realize how invaluable this information is for parents? Even tips on whether to bring a stroller would have been useful.


Next up: The zoo