The Regional Dilemma

The Oklahoma flag.

I was born, and have lived pretty much my entire life in Oklahoma.  

Sure, I've 'stayed' in other places, but I have never been somewhere without the knowledge that as soon as that period of time was over that I'd be once again home in Oklahoma.

With that being said, it is interesting to me that I've lived in this state for 25 years, but have difficulty determining in which region my home state lies.

The Oklahoma State Capitol.

Some say Midwestern.  Others say Southern.  Some even say Southwestern, which seems to me to be the furthest fetched story of all.

I never really put it together how much of a controversy this topic was until I started trying to describe my state here on this blog over the past couple years, and I could never figure out if my state was technically "southern" or "midwestern."  I don't identify myself at all as "southwestern" so the thought never went through my mind.

With all these U.S. regional maps found on a quick google search, one might easily see why we 'Okies' might be confused.  

Why are there so many differing maps?!  And who's great idea was it to list Oklahoma and Arkansas as part of the "Gulf Coast?"  Do we look like coastal states to you?!?  Um, even our lakes had to be manmade.

So, am I a southern girl?  Or am I a Midwestern girl?  I'm certainly not a Southwestern girl, although it certainly seems a variety of maps seem to think I am.

Everyone appears to have their own opinion about this, and not many people can really agree.  Other southerners are very against the idea that Oklahoma could be considered "southern."  We don't host the capital of country and bluegrass music, we were one of the later states to join the United States, and we just aren't Georgia, Tennessee, Mississippi, or Louisiana.  In some ways, the easiest conclusion is to say that we're a Midwestern state since we host so much farmland, however, few of us could truly identity  ourselves as a "midwesterner."  If I had to guess for how most people in this state identify themselves, I would say we identify most southerners.

Oklahoma's state rock, the Barite Rose Rock

It is almost as if we are in a crossroads, though.  Perhaps those in the North-Eastern part of the state identify more as midwesterners, and those in the West as southwesterners.  My family is mostly from the Southeast, and I feel we identify as southerners.  
In some of my research, I found THIS ARTICLE one day that really explains well how I feel, plus someone else's personal study about our regional crossroads.  It is an interesting read if you have the time!

Do you strongly identify with a particular region where you're from?



P.S.  Many of my personal photos posted in this blog post are photos I took for the Oklahoma Women Blogger's March instagram scavenger hunt!  Search the hashtag #okwbscavengergram to see more fun pictures from Oklahoma!

Wedding Cake, Cupcakes, & Cake Cutting

Today's post is about our wedding cake, cupcakes, and cutting the cake!

We used Christina's Cookies and Cakes out of Sulphur, Oklahoma.  

Christina came to set everything up, and I must say I was amazed by how great it looked and tasted!

Enjoy, and don't lick your computer screen.  It'll give you the wrong impression.

We had a small wedding cake with lots of cupcakes!
We had Lemon, Red Velvet, Cherry Cheesecake and Chocolate with a Strawberry on Top cupcakes!

Chocolate Covered Strawberries on Chocolate Cupcakes!  Yum!

Thank you Christina's Cookies and Cakes for the delicious cake, cupcakes, and for setting up!  It was all wonderful!

We love the texture Christina put on the cake!  It went great with the succulents and cake toppers!

These little cake toppers have a wonderful little story.  They belonged to my great grandparents, Leona and Kermit.  My grandma told me they were used at Kermit and Leona's wedding. They were married on June 19, 1938.  That means these two figurines were at least 75 years old at the time that they were used again during my wedding.  

A photo of my Great Grandparents before they married.

I made the decorative piece below our cake using wedding pictures or young pictures of our grandparents and parents.  From the outer edges are our grandparents, leading to us in the middle.  We would not be together today if it were not for our families and heritage!

Thanks to mom for making the awesome wooden cake stand as well!

 The Cake Cutting

Cutting the cake!

My 'oops,' 'crap,' 'oh no,' and 'oh well' face all rolled into one when I realize that I forgot to tell Tyler that we're supposed to save the top layer for our anniversary.  We just made up for it by eating all the leftover cupcakes on the honeymoon.  :D  Love you anxiously hungry for wedding cake hubby! :)  

Yep, you know what I'm thinking.

Do you see this??
He is literally chasing my hand with his face because he thinks I would shove it in his face if he didn't catch it first.
He was right, but he made it too difficult, so I ended up being nice.
That wasn't my plan, just FYI.

Of course he is nice.  He's always nice.

See, nice.  I was nice.  I. Was. Nice.

Yum.  I hope we can go get some cupcakes from her bakery on our anniversary!

Cake is good.  Really good.

Marriage is okay too.  ;)

A big thanks to Birds and Coffee Design for capturing all the photos from our wedding day!

Honeymoon: Destination Home

The last day of our Honeymoon was...well, driving home.  It was short, sweet, adventurous and fun!  We packed our bags, cleaned up the casita, and headed to town to purchase some last minute souvenirs.  It was sad to leave so quickly, but with such a long drive ahead of us and Tyler started his new job the next day we knew we had to get back to Oklahoma.

Our last picture at the Casita!  Bye bye!

Texas was actually somewhat interesting with clouds.  All I can say about Texas from our trip to Santa Fe was that the tumble weeds and dust devils were humorous, but otherwise it was dry.  Nevermind the pun.

Handsome driving...

What should you do if you're going to be stuck in a car for 9 hours?  Write Thank You notes!

Just try imagining this without clouds, and then think about being forced to imagine it for like 5 hours.

There was a storm blowing through, and this was the dust as a result.  That was actually kind of cool.

Dust in the wind...
Maybe Kansas visited Texas when they wrote that song.

Car picture!

Tyler singing!

We dropped by El Reno on our way in to Oklahoma to eat at Tyler's favorite burger place, Robert's Grill.

There was an amazing sunset when we got back.  

Oklahoma's "Welcome Home"

 We loved our honeymoon, but are excited to be back in Oklahoma!

If you missed my other honeymoon posts, you can read them here, here, and here.

Unique Venue Searching Tips for Oklahoma Brides

This is a shout out for all those Oklahoma Brides who are either looking for a unique or inexpensive wedding venue.  Since we looked for the perfect venue for over 3 months, and since I've been doing this wedding planning thing for 5 months now (dang!), I feel obligated to share a little post with some of my local findings!

Barns & Corn Mazes

Barns

• One, very reasonable, option Tyler and I almost decided upon was the Round Barn in Arcadia.  The inside of the barn is lovely, has character, and a great dance floor.  I had my heart set on this option for about two months, when we decided to go back one more time before making the final decision.  I'm glad we did, as it did not seem quite as magical the second time there.  The main issues are no kitchen, no air conditioning, low lighting, and no comfortable rooms or bathrooms for the wedding party to get ready.  The barn only costs $500 to rent for a 12 hour period.  It has a maximum occupancy of 150 people, which was another issue for us.

Oklahoma Corn Maze List

• Firey Trails in Sand Springs seemed very willing to work with us, but advised they were planning to make some updates to their property to be able to host better events.  We found another option before getting into much with them, however I would suggest this option to anyone looking for a rustic location in north-eastern Oklahoma.  Just shoot them an email and ask. The main cons from my emails with this group were that the event time frame seemed rather short (4 hours) but I never inquired about time extensions.
• PBar Farms looked like a promising location, but was a little too far from our part of Oklahoma for consideration.

Bed & Breakfasts, Cabins and Lodges

Master Oklahoma List of Bed & Breakfasts

• From my contact with most of the Bed and Breakfast owners, weddings were mostly out of the question (unless they cater to this).  Fire regulations and limited space often prevent weddings with guests, but are a good option for elopements.

Cabins

• We inquired about many cabins.  Many did not feel comfortable with the amount of people that would be at a wedding, and so most turned us down.  Others had room to accommodate  but did not want the noise factor at their retreat area.

Lodges

• We finally found Deer Creek Lodges near Turner Falls and have since chosen one of their locations.  They have been nice to work with so far, requiring a $200 refundable deposit, and $425 a night, with a 2 night minimum.  No extra fees for weddings.  Since we would need two nights for rehearsal dinner and the wedding, this allows us to utilize a full 48 hours of the venue in the neighborhood of $1,000 after tax is added in.  We like that we will have time to decorate, celebrate, and that our families will not have to rush to clean up the night of the festivities.  The building is a bit small, but the outdoor area is lovely, so we are confident that our guests will not want to be stuck inside...just as long as it doesn't rain, or tornado.  It is Oklahoma.
  POST EDIT:  You may now read my post wedding review of our wedding experience HERE at Deer Creek Lodge #1!

Christmas Tree Farms, Nurseries and Wineries

Christmas Tree Association - Tree Farm Locations

• While Christmas Tree Farms seemed like a great idea to me, it was very difficult to find places that would either respond to my emails and phone calls, or who were willing to allow for such a big event to take place on their properties.  Mostly, no one responded.  Some advised that their property was overgrown, and not well suited for a wedding.  However, as will be the case with many places with low responses (probably who are owned by older people who do not email) I worked nights, and usually contacted via email, not telephone.  If one were to try asking in person or via phone, my feelings are that they would have better luck.

Oklahoma Nursery List

• I was advised to visit the Rosebrook Nursery, and that they had a barn for rent.  I remember that the pricing was more than I wanted to pay for this one, but a good option for others.

• I read on theknot.com that there was a place called Chapel Creek Winery in El Reno that was free to whomever bought $400 worth of wine from the venue.  Sounds too good to be true, right?  Yep, you're right.  A venue that is free, and you get your whine too?  Ok, but seriously.  I decided to contact them regarding this information.  After I finally got from the people trying to sell me some sort of photography package I didn't want and to the person who actually managed the venue, I found out that this information is very outdated.  The winery was once used used by a local community member under whom the $400 of wine rule stood.  Now the winery is owned by El Reno's Redlands Community College.  It is not free to those who purchase alcohol.  However, the new price was included a $150 deposit, and $1000 venue rental.  

Local Universities, Colleges and Government Buildings

• From what I heard, UCO had very reasonable venue prices.  Tyler and I couldn't see ourselves with this venue, as it is a bit disloyal to our grand (and expensive) University of Oklahoma, but is a possible choice for those with no Alma Mater.  UCO had options from renting sections 3,065 square foot areas of a ballroom for $600 per section, to renting Constitution hall at $1,040 for the full day.  They also offer catering, which gives a discount on your room rental.  You can email them to request their contracts and pricing plans.

• The Oklahoma State Capitol rents the premises for free.  One makes a deposit for their wedding day, and has access to whichever room they choose from the form.  Common complaints with this venue that I found through my research are that no dancing is allowed (besides customary first dance and father/bride dances).  The state capitol also does not limit tourists' access to your wedding, and often make themselves feel welcome to "tour" your wedding and reception.  There is no air conditioning, so this would make for a miserable summer wedding.  Other than this, this venue is very affordable, needs minimal decorating, and gives you beautiful pictures.

One thing I did that brought me a lot of useful information was order free travel brochures from travelok.com.  This helped us to think outside the box of what we knew, and even if you don't end up using some of the ideas for the wedding, they can make great side trips for you and your husband-to-be.

This is all the information I have compiled so far regarding unique wedding venues in Oklahoma.  While I contacted many venues, I mostly posted about ones I felt there were misconceptions about, or that offered some sort of productive information.  I also tried to warn about types of locations that may be fruitless effort in one's search for wedding venues.  Nothing I say is intended to harm any business or location, but just giving my two cents about the realistic possibility for a wedding.  Also, this information is only supposed to be helpful from the research I did while we were venue searching, and is subject to being out of date or incorrect!

With love and a pot of brewing coffee,

Saxon