MORE CONE!

In the name of good summer fun, we have been eating a lot of snow cones around here. A LOT. In fact, there is a good chance that I am going to regain the weight I have lost if we don't stop ingesting pure sugar water at every turn. I guess I could order a sugar-free one. But really...that seems sad and like something a grown-up would do. Who orders a sugar-free snow cone?! But I digress. :-)

Colin is completely and totally obsessed with these things. We found our favorite place, a stand that is nearby and makes the really super soft snow balls that melt in your mouth. We are connoisseurs and these don't have any icy chunks...just pure soft goodness. They also have a zillion flavors and are located on a country road complete with old benches and gravel pavement. My kind of place!! We started going and Colin was in love at first bite. He now yells out, "MORE CONE!" whenever we get in the car. Jer and I find this to be exceedingly adorable, which is why we keep going back again and again. Well, that and our apparent love of high fructose corn syrup. Colin had been sharing our cones and I got the bright idea yesterday to order him his very own kiddie size. Where I went wrong was ordering watermelon, which was bright red. Colin was covered literally from head to toe in sticky red juice. It was a disaster, but he was beyond pleased. The pictures below are from the more sanitary evening before, when he shared my white coconut. Clear is the only way to go...lesson learned! :-)


Also, snow cones are...wait for it...a huge family tradition. I know, you are so shocked. ;-) I have decided to write a series of posts about our traditions since they are precious stories to me and I want Colin to have them written down to look back on. I am working on the first one, involving snow cones, and should have it ready to post soon. It may all bore you to tears, so I am sorry in advance!

Big Cat Weekend!

We had a wonderful and HOT weekend here in North Texas. It honestly felt like the middle of August, complete with the feeling of a hair dryer blowing in your face on high. It was brutal! Saturday was such a special day...Jer was off, I packed a picnic lunch, my sister Alieson came over and we all headed out for the "Big Cat Birthday Bash" at a local wild cat rescue. They save all kinds of wild animals from people who abuse them and try to keep them as pets. They had tigers, lions, cougars, lynx...everything! This was their yearly big fundraiser and there were bounce houses, face painting, snow cones and crafts set up. The cats were unbelievable and SO CLOSE! Look at these pictures Jer got!! I could have reached my hand out and touched them! (although I would not advise it. LOL!) It was a beautiful facility and it makes the heart feel good to know that these cats are being so well taken care of now. I can't wait to take Colin back when the weather gets a bit cooler. He thought it was amazing. His eyes were as wide as saucers! And he was not in the least bit scared...and these kitties were BIG! :-)





This one is my favorite...look at the hauntingly beautiful face! I just wanted to hug him!

On Saturday evening we went to the slide pool here in our community and we decided on a whim to let Colin try going down the water park style slide. The lifeguards let one of us go down with Colin in our lap and I gave it the first try. Of course, I lost my footing when we landed and we both went under for a second. I felt horrible, but Colin literally wiped his eyes and shouted, "MORE!". It was hilarious! He really is such a fish!! I had a major fear of water growing up and was always a chicken when it came to things like this. Obviously Colin did not inherit this problem. :-) He must have gone down another 30 times...luckily we figured out how to hold him up at the end so that he did not go under again. Yesterday, Jer's parents came over and we took them to the same pool to show off Colin's new skill. He was still just as in love and was screaming with laughter the whole way down. After the pool, we all had dinner here at the house and then made a late evening trip to the grocery store. Colin managed to keep his cool during the entire trip, which is an outstanding success at this stage of the game. Any trip to Wal-Mart that does not end with me crying and Colin throwing cans of mandarin oranges is a dream come true. :-) Afterwards, we made a late night snack (late as in 8pm...HA!) of jalepeno poppers and I popped Colin his very first bag of popcorn. He loved it and had a really good time making a huge mess before his bath. All in all, a great weekend!