The Compassion Experience

Today we attended The Compassion Experience. It was a free interactive tour of life in the developing world.

The event was in a mobile station and they had two children's experiences set up. The one we went through was by a girl named Kiwi. She lives in Bacolod City, Philippines and we were able to go room by room and experience her life. Both stories are true and we were given headphones with an ipod to listen to her tell her story in her own voice and words.

The room she was born in.

The first room was a replica of the room she was born in. A shabby hospital room she was the 4th child, only girl and only living child. Her brother died from jaundice, something here we take for granted is so easily avoided. Her father was an alcoholic and was very saddened by the death of his three sons.

Part of the house she lives in.

Showing her house items.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The next room was a replica of her house or I should say hut.

Room 3 was a replica of the market in their area.

Room three was a replica of the market and what they had to sell there. It was in this room we heard of her fathers transformation. He came home one day sober and her mother was angry and wanted to know what could have caused this. He said he went to a place where someone was teaching of Jesus Christ and how God send His Son to die. He had already lost three sons so felt he knew His pain.

More of the goods they had to sell.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The school room.

The next room was a make up of the school she attended. She talked about Jeremiah 29:11 and how God had plans for her family. She talked about how they had a real dentist come to the schoolroom and they got their teeth cleaned and some kids got fillings. Again, things we take for granted.

Some more of the school room.

Her house in Manila, Philippines.

Her parents moved her to Manila. Here she talked about constant floods and how the floods would bring black water full of sewage and drowned rats.

Another part of her house in Manila.

Updated house in Bacolod City.

She moved back to her house in Bacolod City. Through sponsorship she was able to graduate high school and go to college. She became a physical therapist and got married. Because of The Compassion Experience sponsorship her family was also able to come to her wedding. Her and her husband now sponsor two kids from her area.

Another view of her updated house in Bacolod City.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kiwi and her family at her wedding.

All in all it was a good experience. Here is a link to their website if any one feels led to sponsor a child. http://changetour.compassion.com/tulsa/

Rogers State University Nature Reserve

Trying to decide which trail to take.

A few days ago a new member in our homeschool group mentioned that Rogers State University in Claremore has hiking trails. I was intrigued so I asked about a location and decided it would be fun to take the kids soon. This morning Mike and I woke up and were talking about it and decided it might be fun to go ahead out there this morning. Im so glad we did.

Here are two links with maps of its location and some photo's. http://www.travelok.com/listings/view.profile/id.6453. http://www.tulsaaudubon.org/guides/rogers-state-conservation-reserve.htm

The trail is paved which is nice as it allows you to clearly see the trail and where it goes. Its got signs all over. The trail are well maintained as well.

As we were walking it was very peaceful and quiet. You can hear the birds and insects. We started out and eventually came upon a bridge across a medium pond. The photo below (I got off a website because I forgot to take one) is of the bridge over this pond. Its beautiful. On the shore we saw turtles, frogs and a snake! It was so neat to see all these things in their natural habitats.

The bridge over the pond

As we were walking back over the bridge I stopped to see if I could see more frogs and I instead saw a large snake just hanging there in the mud. As Mike looked closer he realized it was a copperhead! It slithered off into the mud, the kids thought it was great!

We continued down the trail when I noticed a floating dock off in the distance. We wound around to it and took the opportunity to get real close to the shore and see animal tracks and lily pads.

Checking out the shore.

It was really neat to show the kids things like bag worms in the lower branches of the trees up close. At one point we walked into the brush a little to get to the shore and as I was standing there I looked down and right in front of my foot was a snake! Im not sure what kind but it was a little too close for me so I went back to the paved trail.

We got around to the floating dock, from it you could see frogs, turtles, fish and some crazy looking algae.

The floating dock in the distance.

Past the floating dock was an area that looked like they have classes or groups out to do stuff. There was a building called the aqua lab and opposite it was a little areas with benches and bird houses. The area out there is so beautiful and peaceful I know Mike and I are going to back for sure and have a picnic and explore more. The kids got hot and tired so we had to head back but it was worth the time we spent and I will definitely be taking the kids back.

The kids starting to get pooped.

A small area set up outside the Aqua Lab.

No More Trash Man.....

Yesterday I took my kids out to the Tulsa Zoo with a good friend. We were very excited to be going as they have just re-opened the four main buildings that have been closed for several months.

The first stop was the Life in the Cold building. First of all let me give a little background on this building. There used to be a polar bear that lived there but he passed away awhile ago and they've been redoing the area to cover a brown bear instead. The area looks very nice and although I didn't see the bear I'm sure hes happy. 
When you enter the building there a large area to the right that's empty. Before the renovations there was a dinosaur exhibit, a "man" made of trash and an really cool earthquake simulation station (my favorite part of that building). That is all gone! Instead off to the side is a tube like thing you can stand in to feel an arctic blast and all I kept thinking was "I could step outside and feel an arctic blast". As you walk through the building you pass the large window with the bear and then past the arctic fox which was out and very cute. Just past this exhibit is the snowy owl and what used to a cave man exhibit which is also gone now as is the Inuit video I enjoyed watching.

The next building is Life in the Desert. I have always liked this building, mainly because its warm and they have (had) and great photo of the Grand Canyon. When you walk in the first area is full of desert birds and snakes and such. Not too many changes here the major changes are through the doors (what used to be chains or plastic). As you walk in you notice that they no longer have the individual goggles you could look in to to see things like the scorpion and tarantula. Instead you see a maze exhibit housing the naked mole rat. They're just as ugly as you're imagining. As you continue through the building you see 7 different tanks holding different desert wildlife including the tarantula, centipede and scorpions. I like what they did here, however, I do not like that they took down the large photo of the Grand Canyon. The peccary's were out and just as cute as always. In between this building and the next we also passed the turkey and the deer. I always like to stop and see the deer, they're kind of majestic. We actually got to see the buck this time too.

The Life in the Forest building was next and again they made changes I'm not sure I like. When you walk in they totally redid the front. Used to you'd see and hear the waterfall where you could throw a penny or two in and make a wish (its was off and I didn't find out if it will be on later, I hope so though). Passing the waterfall you curve around to a dark, cave like area. Again, changes. To the left is a section that looks like the inside of a cave. You could push the buttons and it would identify the different shapes you could find inside a cave, stalactites, stalagmites and things like this. Its gone and there was not light to even see this, I took a picture with my flash to see what I liked, the bacon shaped flowstone that hangs from the ceiling. Exiting the "cave" you pass by the porcupine,

raccoons and skunk. Yes it smelled in there. There is also tanks holding snakes and squirrels and some very pretty birds. Around from the corner is where the bald eagles are. Before there was a fish tank with beautiful fish in it. Now its open AND they took out the bald eagle on the wall where you could measure your wing span against that of a bald eagle. I liked that and I was disappointed not to see it.

The final building is Life in the Water. On our way there we saw the black bears hiding in their tube. They were so cute. Only one came out and that was only long enough to show us how long he could pee and then he went back into the tube to sleep, I guess.

We proceeded to the building and because it was so cold the alligators weren't out so we went in. Not too much different in here. No changes that made me think, "oh I miss that". The newest exhibit to me was the albino crocodiles. Going through the doors leads to where the alligators used to be but now houses the pelicans. Before the renovations when you exited the area with the pelicans it was empty (before it was empty there was a shark exhibit) but now its got several fish tanks and frogs and such to look at. I like the sea horses myself.

So that's the four buildings after the renovations. I know that change in inevitable but there are so many great and cool things they took out it made me kind of sad. You build memories when you see certain things and then you want your children to experience it and when its gone its like a piece of the puzzle is missing. I have heard that the earthquake experience may make a return and I'm really hoping it does. All in all the building looked nice and were clean. I'm hoping that the buildings aren't completely finished and that they were just trying to get open for Spring Break. Ive been on the zoo website and looked at their "master plan" for the next 20 years and although it looks awesome change for me is always hard. I am however looking forward to the new chimpanzee exhibit called the African Forest which will also house gorillas! The changes they are coming up with look amazing! You can check them out here: http://www.tulsazoo.org/support/master-plan/.

Take your kids out and enjoy all the new animals and exhibits. Better yet buy a yearly pass and support their efforts! We did and its great on a day when we have little or no money but want to get out. You cant take your own food and drinks in too! Oh one more thing, there's a new restaurant too. The pavilion when you come out of the last building is now selling brats, BBQ and more!

#2 Rayola Park

Today's park is Rayola Park in Owasso. The park has a nice splash pad, swings, a slide and a jungle gym. There is also a nice walking trail along with a gazebo and several picnic areas. Check out the photos in the Rayola Park album to see more. Its a little bit of a drive for some but worth it. The splash pad alone looked like lots of fun.

#1 Chandler Park

 I know its been awhile since I posted. Lots of stuff has been going on lately but we've started our month of June parks. We started with Chandler Park.

Chandler Park is beautiful. Here's a sampling of what you can find there:

Chandler Park
Where: 6500 W. 21st Street
When: Gate opens at 7am, Upper level closes at 11pm, Lower level closes at 6pm; Community center hours are Monday and Wednesday, 9am-8pm; Tuesday and Thursday, 9am-9pm; Friday and Saturday, 10am-5pm
Call: (918) 591-6053
Web: sites.google.com/site/chandlerparktulsa/

My husband had the day off so we loaded up two of the kids and off we went. I had suggested Chandler because we hadn't been up there in awhile and I thought it might be nice to get out.

 The whole park is gorgeous. There are two play areas, one near the front and one close to the community center. That's the one we hit. There is also a pool, basketball court, tennis courts and frisbee golf. The play area we went to is newer and offers one area for kids 6-12 and a smaller area for kids 2-5.

The newer playground is also next to what used to be "the mound". Years ago the Tulsa Easter Pageant was held at Chandler Park. On the mound used to stand a building and a cave used for the pageant. It was a beautiful production, I myself participated one year.

My husband was upset that they tore down the building and didnt even put a plaque in its place to commemorate "the mound". We let the kids play for about an hour and then we were off again.

The nice thing about Chandler is the peacefulness (well if you get there early enough that is.) There are park benches and cookout spots as well. You can even go into the woods and climb rocks and walk trails.

This is a wonderful park and worth the drive if you do not live near the Westside. Be sure to take plenty to drink and maybe a picnic lunch too. Enjoy the beauty.

Breakfast in the Park

This week I took the kids to Braden Park. Braden Park is in the White City neighborhood off of Yale and 11th streets. Its a beautiful park complete with play areas, picnic benches and a pond with a fountain, ducks and geese.

I stumbles upon the park years ago while taking a detour to avoid construction one evening. Off and on over the years I have taken the kids there. When we arrived this week I noticed they had completely redone the play area. They added new equipment and a nice covered area to sit under.

When we arrived it was about 9 in the morning. We sat down to have our breakfast and then I let the kids play. The play areas are separated into two areas. One for the smaller kids and one for the larger kids. Off in the field is a swing area. Theres also plenty of benches and picnic tables as well as grills to cook on.

I think this is a great, quiet, clean place to take the kids. The park has lots of shade trees as well. We will most definitely be going back to this park. I posted other pictures in the Braden Park folder, be sure to check them out!

Discovering the Dinosaurs

Todays field trip was to Discover the Dinosaurs at the Tulsa Convention Center. I only heard about a few days ago but it sounded like the perfect place for a field trip. It started at noon and we were there about an hour. They had full scale replicas of almost every dinosaur you can think of. Even the mighty T-Rex. At the beginning of the exhibit they handed out scavenger hunt pages that you could turn in at the end of your journey and receive a small prize.

It was dark inside with lots of different dinosaur areas set up. I thought the exhibits were very well done and each area had an information plaque about the dinosaur. Some of the exhibits included buttons you could press to make the dinosaur move. Emma wasnt too sure about that but she seemed to enjoy looking around.

They also had a Dinostore, a place with bouncy inflatables, face-painting, a photo opportunity with T-Rex's head and a Dino-dig for the little ones. Jordan seemed to really like doing the scavenger hunt and even wanted to come home and learn more about dinosaurs. I myself find dinosaurs fascinating so it was also fun for me. Conor was amazed at them too.

Today was fun and I am so glad we took the time to get out and see something different. Thanks to my mom for her help!