Tulsa ~ Sequoyah State Park ~ Camp Wannasew

We had a delightful morning in Tulsa with JD, Janel, and Blizzard before Janel and I left the boys to travel to Camp Wannasew. We visited the Tulsa Zoo, which is a great little zoo! Blizzard was enthralled with the animals. And we got the best front row view of Tigers that I've ever had in my life. They are just magnificent.

By the way... we also found Nemo there!

After the zoo, Janel and I departed for Wagner Oklahoma to antique shop before heading to the lake for the stitching retreat. Unfortunately, this is the sight that greeted us when we arrived:

One side of Main Street had burned down last year. It was sad to see such beautiful buildings in such a state of ruin. We went through the one small shop we could find and then headed to the lake.

The lake was huge. It's been 40 years since I've lived in the mid-west and I've gotten used to lakes that are really ponds or man-made. I made the comment to someone that I can guarantee you that two of my children have never seen a body of water like this except the ocean! It went on for miles and miles. It was quite windy while we were there so the water was usually choppy.

We arrived on Thursday afternoon, threw our bags into our room and started stitching. Most of the campers arrived on Thursday and by that evening the room was pretty lively!

On Friday we took a mid-morning break and drove to the nearby town of Tahlequah to antique shop and eat lunch. Tahlequah has been the capitol of the Cherokee Nation since 1839. It was a very pretty little town with a bustling downtown area. After one more stop at an Antique store in Hulburt we headed back to stitching.

JD, Dan, and Blizzard drove down Friday afternoon and stayed at one of the "cabins". They had a great deck facing the lake. I told Dan if I was staying there I would just spend my entire day on the deck looking at the water! 

As part of the retreat, Lindy "brings" The Silver Needle to us. There was a wide variety of patterns, kits, accessories, fabrics, and notions to "shop". 

 

Me and Janel - I can't tell you how thrilled I am that she invited me to join her at this retreat. We had a great time and I would definitely do it again!

Thank you, Janel!!

Our table

Me, Lindy (The Silver Needle owner), Janel

Donna, Virginia, Lynn

I was apprehensive about several elements of attending a stitching retreat. Could I really sit and stitch for three days? Community showers ~ are you kidding me? Just being in a new place with new people and a new experience?

It was wonderful. I can sit and stitch for long periods of time AND as an added bonus, I'm completely motivated to tackle my stitching with renewed energy. I enjoyed the flow of conversation at our table and around the room in general. It was such fun to walk the room and see what each lady was working on. It was fascinating to see what products they used, what lighting system worked for them, and to hear how many years they'd been attending the retreat.

The bunk beds and community shower? Um, not so much. But, I survived! hahaha

All in all it was an awesome experience. I'm looking forward to our next opportunity for a stitching retreat!