The Beauty of Nature

This weeks field trip was to the Mary Kay Oxley Center. Its located in Mohawk Park about one mile past the Tulsa Zoo. This is not my first trip out there but as I pulled into the parking lot I started to wonder "just who is Mary K. Oxley?" When we got back home I did some research and heres what I found. John Thurman Oxley worked in the petroleum industry and in 1935 married Mary K.Yetter.  He loved to be outdoors and played professional Polo even winning Englands Gold Cup and was inducted into the Polo Hall of Fame. In the 1970's he and his wife established the nature center. The nature center is 804 acres of beautiful outdoors and marks the area where the couple would ride their horses in the 1930's during their courtship. (http://www.oxleynaturecenter.org)

We started by visiting the interpretive building which features hands on exhibits, a small library and a wildlife viewing area. There is staff available to talk to about the current conditions of the trails and they can answer any questions you have. We went inside and its really nice. They have remodeled it a bit and it was really neat to see. One really nice feature was the water fountain. It had a feature to fill up your water bottle without having to tilt it sideways and it was cold.

We were then ready to set out on the trail. We chose to take the Red Fox Trail. The Red Fox Trail is only 0.3 mile so I figured we could make that in no time. It was beautiful. We saw lots of old fallen trees, a lizard looking thing (I didn't get a real good look at it as it scurried away) and butterflies. They were so pretty. It was little muddy in places but it was very peaceful and quiet. We got done and although I would have liked to have done more my back was killing me from wearing Emma in the back-pack. After we walked the trail we came back to the observation deck and had a small snack. Just then I asked the kids if they wanted to go to the playground we had passed on the way. Of course they said yes so off we went.

All in all it was a good trip. It wasn't incredibly hot (although I don't shy away from heat) and the kids seems to enjoy it. I want to go back and wander over to the lake and the other observation tower. I think this would be a great teaching tool for anyone whose interested in nature. If nothing else its a great place to just take in the beauty of Oklahoma. And if your anything like my husband its a great place to get some exercise. I highly recommend that everyone visit at least once.

Visiting Oklahoma's Favorite Son

This week we took a trip to Claremore, Oklahoma. Originally I was going to take the kids to Oxley Nature Center for the Spring Equinox Celebration but it was cancelled due to all the wet weather we've had this week. A girlfriend of mine lives in Claremore and she called to invite us out. I thought " what a great opportunity I can get out with the kids, get in the field trip and see an old friend". So we loaded up and headed to Claremore.

Emma on the saddle.

A little history of Claremore. Claremore is about 30 minutes outside of Tulsa.  Around 1800 a band of Indians of the Osage tribe settled in the area. Of course Claremore is most famously known for Will Rogers. They were one of the first families to settle there in 1856. The railways were a driving factor in the growth of Claremore. The Cherokee Nation incorporated Claremore into the Nation in 1883. 

The drive out there is quite nice. I took the highway going through Catoosa and Verdigris. Both towns are nice to look at. We even passed by the Big Blue Whale. You can check out the website here at http://www.claremore.com. They have lots of different attractions that I plan on visiting at a later date.

Conor with "Will Rogers".

I loaded up the kids and headed out to my girlfriends house. After we hung out and ate lunch we decided to take the kids out to the Will Rogers Memorial Museum. I had never been there so I thought it would be fun and they have a great play place for the kids in the lower part of the museum. The cost was only $5 for adults and 17 and under are free! The museum is on beautiful grounds. It opened in 1938 with an east wing added in 1982 and renovations made from 1990-1995. Its set on 20 acres with an on site sunken garden with a family tomb.  I didn't know much about Will Rogers prior to going to the museum so seeing all the movies and posters and artifacts was really interesting. The museum has a theater inside that shows Will Rogers movies daily. They show continuously from 8-5 and you can view the schedule on their website at http://www.willrogers.com. 

Inside the museum are loads of art, artifacts and a room with several dioramas depicting the life of Will Rogers. They have several of his saddles and some artifacts from the plane at the time of his crash. In the lower part of the museum is the Children's Museum. The Children's Museum has a stage where the kids can dress up and put on a show, a puppet theater where the kids can do a puppet show. A little play area with some trains toys and a room with a table and books to read. There's even a view of an old school room. The kids had loads of fun trying on costumes and playing with the puppets. Conor of course played with the trains.

I highly recommend visiting this museum. Its not very far and the cost is low. They have a beautiful gift shop and I thought the prices were reasonable. This is definitely a place we will be visiting again!

Funtastic Island

This weeks field trip was taken on Wednesday instead of Friday due to the weather. I wasn't sure what it would be like on Friday. The weather called for rain and 60's. It was cloudy and windy but still nice enough to have fun.


I decided to take the kids out to a park in Owasso, Oklahoma. Its a suburb of Tulsa about 20 minutes away. The City of Owasso is one of the oldest existing communities in Tulsa County. Owasso is a Cherokee word meaning "trail 's end" or "end of the trail". In the past 5-10 years or so Owasso has started to boom. The city has everything you can want and more. Here's a link for those who are interested in visiting, http://cityofowasso.com/. 

The park that I chose is called Funtastic Island. Its three acres of fun! The park is completely ramped so that all children can enjoy the many slides, climbing apparatuses and monkey bars. It even has a merry-go-round! There are also three bronze statues that depict kids playing. The playground is surrounded by a fence so there's only one way in and one way out.







When we arrived there was no one there. It was about 12 noon. We were there about an hour and that's when it started to pick up. Lots of kids started to show up. Its a very popular place. It also has bathroom and a covered picnic area should you decide to take a picnic lunch. All in all I give it a 5 star rating. 

Field Trip Fridays

I have been thinking for awhile about starting what I like to call Field Trip Fridays here at Morrison Homeschool. We finally got a good car so Im ready to get out and about. The weather lately has been nice and that makes it even more enticing to get out. I have been looking around at all the different things we could be doing and I cant wait to get started. I hope that you will join us on our journey into Oklahoma. I will try to take the kids somewhere every week even if its just to a local park. Tulsa has tons and do surrounding areas. I will also be adventuring into more elaborate field trips that involve traveling a long distance. I will post pictures and links to the various places we visit so come on lets explore Oklahoma!