Adventures as a Legislative Page

  He was the most nervous I'd seen him in a long time.  This morning Bubby was getting ready to go off to the Kansas capitol and work as a legislative page for the day and he was dragging his feet.  I knew he'd have fun and be totally enthralled with it all, but sometimes you just can't tell them, they have to experience it.  So, I shipped him out the door with Hubby for a day he wasn't so sure was an adventure.

But it was.  Truly, it was the best day to be a page.  He didn't get to meet the governor because it was such a busy day for politics, but the action of the day - it was the payoff.  He got to tour the capitol from bottom to top (literally, he got to go out on the cupola, which is good because after last time I told him I'd not be the one to take him up there again *shudder*).  Then he was in helping during the House session the rest of the time.  He got to bring copies of a bill to the chamber for those needing it and then watch as they debated the same bill and tried to amend it.  He was so thrilled with the entire process that when I arrived he asked if we could watch some more so he could see them vote on it again.  Now he's ready to go back again next year!
  It was a relatively easy process to get signed up.  You send your name and a short description of why you want to be a page to one of your local representatives.  We chose Rep. Ken Corbet.  Representative Corbet responded that same afternoon and gave us further instructions on what to do.  His assistant followed up when the official paperwork was sent out.  They had us arrive at a certain time on our chosen day and receive a briefing. Aside from bringing copies of the bill to those that needed them, he ran other paperwork and messages to representatives on the floor.  What a way to learn the political process!  I wish I'd had that opportunity when I was a kiddo!  Hubby was a page when he was Bubby's age and they shared stories this evening.  Bubby has already been talking up the experience to a reluctant Mookie.  Although, it sounds like she'll have someone willing to go and show her the ropes ;)

Field Trip: Oklahoma City

  The last couple of days have been filled with a little work, and a little play.  The play was especially fun!  Field trip days and places have to be flexible when your work takes you on the road!  This week: Oklahoma City. 
  The kids have loved visiting our state capitol so much, I thought it would be fun for us to take in another one and compare (can we say writing assingment?  Shhhhh!  They don't know it yet!).  We could have taken a guided tour, but it was going to be too structured for some little guy who needed a nap ;) We grabbed a self-guided tour book and it took us up to the 5th floor to work our way back down again.  We exited the elevator, started taking in the elegance of the dome and met this gal who volunteered to take our picture.  I don't get to have my pics taken with the kiddos much on our field trips, so it was a treat! 

Turns out it wasn't just another person who took our picture, it was State Senator Anastasia Pittman!  She took us to the Senate chambers, told us fun stories about the goings-on there and then took us back to her office and introduced us to a WWII vet, her lovely assistant and her intern. She gave us lots of handouts for the kids about the workings of the Oklahoma government, and this excellent book on African-American history in Oklahoma (um, that was right up my alley with my research on the US Colored Troops!).  Ms. Pittman was an excellent ambassador for Oklahoma!  Her love for her work and her state just poured from her :) When our tour was all said and done Mookie declared her favorite part of the capitol was meeting the Senator!
 

The whole thing was lovely.  Bubby wanted to look at every.single.piece.of.art.  And he may have gotten it done :)

No governor here, but we did get to see her in conference via a door that was open to the rotunda!  Super cool!  I don't know how many times I've been to the Kansas State capitol, but I've never seen the governor while we were there or chatted with a state representative. 
  On our way out we checked out the working oil well on the grounds. 

  That evening we got to revisit a OKC favorite, Hideaway Pizza. Yum!

  Today we started with Will Rogers Gardens.  One of Hubby's hobbys is researching the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) in Kansas.   The CCC was involved in establishing this park, so we had to take it in!

   Our next stop was the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum. It has been 3 years, almost exactly since we'd been and Mookie especially was excited to go back. 

The galleries were fantastic.  They are just stuffed full of western and cowboy heritage! They're set up a little funky, and so there's not a great flow from one end of the exhibits to the next.
  They have a great kids play area with lots of hands on activities...

Definitely worth the second trip.  If we get back to OKC, Bubby's requested stop is the Osteology Museum!  I definitely see that in our future :)

Bubby and Buffalo Bill

See you later Oklahoma!