Yet More Memories

I wouldn't have thought to put this one on had not Charissa reminded me of it. Thanks! This is me and Charissa (right) with Angel, another one of our 'Jenks House' roommates on a spontaneous trip to Steal Your Dollar City. I'm so glad we were silly enough to get this tin picture done! I'm laughing even now. And we were so mad at Angel for smiling! Everyone knows that NOone smiled back then! Maybe that's why my gun is aimed the way it is. Just kidding, Angel! There's far more in the memory pot where these girls come from. I'm mischieviously laughing all the while I'm typing here...oh, the things I could post about the Jenks House!

SDC Memories

This is my Mom. She came to visit us this last Chrismastime and we took her to Silver Dollar City because the lights are super-amazing. She knows this. She was really looking forward to the spectacle. What she didn't know about was the new roller-coaster built since she had been there last. She got off the "old" one (mild by today's standards) and said "That was great! I'm done now." Greg and I said "Oh no you're not!" I drug her down to the new one and convinced her it wasn't too bad -- really fun, actually! Just one or two loops, I'm pretty sure. She asked several times in line, "Just a couple loops, right?" I was certain. Well...after 5 loops and many terrified screams, she announced to me, "That was exciting. DON'T YOU EVER DO THAT TO ME AGAIN." The truth is, if I ever get the chance again, I'm afraid I will. I laughed so hard! She was more fun than the ride itself!

I love you Mom! You're a good sport!

Silver Dollar City

Like I mentioned before, my family explored outside of Disney when I was growing up and Silver Dollar City was one of those great places we discovered. If you've never been, consider it. It's clean, beautiful, SO fun, and a little less cheesy than the rest of Branson. We finally did a summer trip there on Saturday and learned something I've been getting real curious about lately. Yes, Joshua HAS grown sharply in the last few months. How do I know? Because he's officially tall enough for the scary rides now! He's so funny to watch. While grown men (i.e., Daddy) are at least a little terrorized by the insane dips and swings of that stuff, Joshua's affect remains flat, unimpressed, ho hum. You only know how he really feels about it after he's gotten off and is jumping up and down wanting to go again. I have a different SDC memory that I plan to blog about soon...Mom, hang on, you're about to be front and center!

There's Something Wrong With Me

I was talking to my friend Tempelle this morning and we (well, she) started discussing purses. She commented on how she was really liking this giraffe-patterened purse until she noticed that everyone else was suddenly carrying it. Really? She went on to mention the popular disc-shaped purse and the over-sized ones, etc. -- and that's when it occurred to me that something is genetically wrong with me. I don't notice purses. When I mentioned this to Tempelle she confirmed my problem by noting that I've been carrying the same bag for years, every day and for every season. Admitting this is humiliating, knowing the deep sense of style so many of my friends have. This will certainly test the sincerity of your fondness for me. But wait, I'm on a roll, I have more to get out of the closet. I have never, will never and have no desire to get a mani/pedicure done. There, I said it! My crowd here loves to do that, and when its mentioned as a possibility for something to do, I realize I have some paperwork for taxes to get done. This, too, I confessed to Tempelle and as a true friend she assured me that she has problems too. For example, when she notices that everyone's hair is looking like Katie Holmes or that 20 people at church are carrying the same purse, she likes to laugh at them. Point her finger, even. I realize she is only trying to keep me from despairing and going to see what else is in my closet but boy, I sure do appreciate her. Thanks, Tempelle! I'll keep your secret if you keep mine.

Father's Day

Josh and I discovered this place last week and decided to bring Daddy out here because this is just the kind of thing he loves. Greg is a nature guy. When he was just a little older than Josh's age he was spending hours alone adventuring through woods and ponds, just he and his gun. Though I can't fathom letting Josh do something like that, I'm thankful Greg keeps a good bit of 'Huck Fin' in him. These two were climbing to the top of the falls and sliding down to the swimmin' hole we were playing in. It was so fun! Of course anyone who knows Greg knows he DID have to find a couple of snakes. No, not just find them, but get down into the rock crevices they were hiding in. That's when I had to grab little Huck's hand and say, "If we see Daddy again its by the grace of God. Come with Mommy." Josh began to cry. Not because he feared the snakes but because he wanted to sniff them out with Daddy. Why don't I understand? Ahh, such shortcomings. As we drove away in air-conditioning I thought nostalgically, we used to have to drive a good 5 hours for a place like this. Now its just 30 minutes away...

Summer Science

This was great, I just couldn't believe this. First of all, Joshua actually caught a butterfly and two moths yesterday. But the fascinating part is that we actually watched one of the moths lay eggs! Josh insisted that was what was happening but I, thinking the poor moth was contorting himself out of captive agony, tried to soften sad news by telling Josh he was just sick. No, she wasn't. If you click on the picture you can see a tiny white dot on the little piece of grass in the front. That's one of the many deposits. Josh was so excited about this, he actually drew a picture of the event (another thing I couldn't believe - very unusual response). Note the big brown eyes and sticking-up hair at the bottom. That's him peeking up at his container of treasures! We said goodbye to our flying friends but we've kept the eggs!

Why It's Fun Being A Kid

Summer rain, splashy puddles, a big red umbrella....don't you want to be 7 and out of school again?