Celebrating the big 5 OH

Last week I helped my husband celebrate the big 5 0.

I was attempting to plan a get-away trip for him but due to some other circumstances we had to stay close to home.

Since he is a HUGE fan of passenger airliners and we live in the Dallas/Fort Worth TX area, my plan was to treat him to a large amount of “airplane” watching time.

However, the long drought we had been in decided to expire the first day of our “stay-cation”. It started raining cats and dogs the day before, and the day 1 of the vacation.

We did the only thing any Metroplex Texan can do when they can’t or don’t want to stay in the city.

We headed north to Oklahoma. The radars showed that the rain had already cleared North of the Red River, so off we went on one of “Kim’s Adventures.”

Truthfully, at this point of the ‘vacation” I was completely and totally winging it. Since the rain out for all the airplane watching and airplane museums was “washed out” I was grasping for ideas as the wheels were rolling

We made a few stops along the way once the rain clouds parted in Oklahoma. And then I saw it.

A billboard.

A quick Google on my phone of the hotel name and I knew I had found our destination for one night.

The Artesian Hotel in Sulpher, OK

Once we arrived (at dark) we loved the atmosphere of the little town and the old time atmosphere of the hotel.
The folks there were nice, friendly and super helpful in getting us checked in with a premiere room at the top with a spectacular view. Well, as spectacular as it can get in a little town. We quickly figured out that we were on the East side and were going to be welcomed with a stunning sunrise, which didn’t disappoint us in the least!

We explored the hotel and then visited the restaurant where we dined on a sumptuous and delicious feast at the restaurant where I had the most decadent chicken pot pie.

Yes, you read right. I described an old fashioned pot pie as decadent.

With bellies full, we went outside to walk around the block and explore. Remember, small Oklahoma town. The sidewalks had already rolled up, but we still enjoyed the walk together. The skies were clear, we could see the stars and we were enjoying a very special day together.

And we kept smelling a beautiful fragrance. We kept asking some of the hotel folks about it but no one really had an answer about what it was. But it smelled GOOD.

The next morning, I was again winging it on what our plans would be. We weren’t adjusted to the Daylight Savings Time and woke up before the birds. We enjoyed some in room coffee and lounged around. While skimming through a little magazine about the county, I found a place I thought looked really nice to visit. And it would be a complete surprise to the birthday boy.

AND, it was only 30 minutes away.

So we loaded up the luggage, checked out of the hotel and went off to explore. Before leaving, Hubs did manage to find out the name of the scent we loved. Unfortunately, it was some type of industrial air freshener not available in stores. Driving the back roads of Oklahoma is an experience. You can drive for several minutes and not pass another car. Much different that driving around bumper to bumper in a city in Texas.

I didn’t tell him where we were going, I just let the GPS in the car do the directing for us.

And then it happened. We were supposed to turn on a road, and we did. But then the road ran out.

What was before us was a dirt road .

No big deal, right? For ME it’s a big deal. For some reason, unknown as to why to any family member I have a “thing” about dirt roads.

I do NOT like them.

In fact, I can get on the edge of a panic attack under the right conditions. Don’t ask my why, it’s just one of my little quirks.

BUT, I was proud of myself. I didn’t have a panic. I think I was more curious about whether or not I had put in the wrong address because I couldn’t imagine that we were heading in the right direction to where I wanted us to go.

Did I tell you yet where we were heading?

I had found an article about a neat little “old west town” where there was an old west mercantile store, a saloon that served lunch, and buildings you could explore. It was also a movie set.

Uhm, well.

We rounded the bend in the road and then saw the “old west town”.

It was old alright.

And appeared to be deserted and locked up tighter than a drum! The joke was on ME I guess. Hubby had a good laugh. We took some pictures and then headed out to drive and do some more exploring.

At least we were able to drive and view the beginning of the changing of the leaves. We opted to get back home before the evening traffic would pile up for hours.

It was a very relaxing and enjoyable quick trip.

The next morning, Hubs did some exploring on Google and found where he could buy some of the air freshener we liked.

The one drawback, we had to buy a case of it.

Happy Birthday to HIM, he now is the proud of owner of Air Lift tropical, and if you are a lucky person you get one in your stocking for Christmas! =)

Hugs and feathers from the nest~~()~~

Kim Steadman is the COOP (Chief Online Operating Person) for The Re-Feathered Nest. A place of encouragement for moms entering the Empty Nest Zone who are ready to RePurpose and ReDesign according to God’s purpose for their lives now that the kids have flown the coop. Kim can be found on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/TheRefeatheredNest and on Google+ at +Kim.