Get That Thing Out of Here

EK pulled a tooth tonight.  Well, he almost pulled it.  He had a real snaggletoothed look and we knew he could not go to bed before getting that thing pulled.  He has been working on this particular tooth for a while.  This one was a little persitant in not coming out, so jmm had to help with one final tug--just a small tug really. 

EK did all of the hard work.

Waiting for Wicked

As we wait I will share with you a few pictures taken before we came into the performance hall. I don't know the order in which they will load, but look for the UT skyline,the Bass Performance Center lobby, the Burleson Bells, and a headless Figure on a Trunk.

Why Austin?

This weekend mr. and mrs. mil10 are keeping Austin weird while watching Wicked on the UT campus. We are outside on the balcony of the sixth floor while wailting for the doors to the auditorium to open.  We just enjoyed a small peperoni and Italian sausage pizza (minus the black olives) and a side of homemade chips in the concert hall's cafe. As edie would say, they were de-lish.

Now, on with the show!

Czech Stopping

Can you go down 35 without stopping at the Czech Stop Bakery? We think not! Stop by for a fresh treat any time of day.

I included a small picture of the display case. This is only one small secrtion.  Also included is a sign of the amount of ingredients they use any given week.

Mmm. Mmm. Mmm.

First Day of School

This was EK on the first day of school at the beginning of the week. Does that face say ready for school or what?

Yes, the date is wrong. I guess we need to reset the date on the camera!

T'was the Weekend Before School Started

What a busy weekend!

Friday night was a meal at our favorite BBQ restaurant, Circle H in Emory. The trip there and back is not too long, but we do get to visit for a while due to the car time. It is a good way to wind down after a long week. Modie mentioned my birthday, so I received peach cobbler and a song from all of the waitresses.

Saturday was Brian and Malia's wedding reception. The slide show turned out great. Following the little shindig we headed to Rockwall. Did you know that El Chico opened in 1940? It is not somewhere we go often, so it was really good to be there again. You know they say absence makes the heart grow fonder. While shopping (we had to take advantage of Texas' sales tax holiday) we saw someone wearing a Buc-ee's t-shirt! I wonder if he stopped at the same Madisonville location we visited a few weeks ago.

Tomorrow is the first day of a brand new school year for the mil10s!

Today mr. and mrs. mil10 have been busy making final preparations while also taking time to rest up for the big day. Edie has already packed lunches. EK spent the afternoon cleaning his room and organizing his desk. Later in the evening he spent time outside playing with Savy. Apparently Savy likes playing with bubbles. I took the first picture from the kitchen window.

Summer was fun, but we always know it must come to an end. Have no fear! We are only 180 days (not counting weekends and a few holidays!) away from the next summer vacation. Is it too early to start making plans?

Probably not.

Pensacola Pics: The Forts, Part 2

The last fort we visited in Pensacola was Fort Pickens. The fort was named in honor of Revolutionary War hero, General Andrew Pickens.* Fort Pickens is the largest of four forts built to defend Pensacola Bay, Florida, and its navy yard. The fort was begun in 1829, completed in 1834, and used until the 1940s.*

We attempted to visit Fort Pickens in 2008, but the road to the fort was not open due to damage sustained from Hurricane Ivan in 2004. For a brief moment we thought we would walk the seven mile (yes, seven mile) roadway. Thankfully sanity prevailed. Visiting the fort would have to wait until 2009.

The famous Apache chief Geronimo was held captive in Fort Pickens from 1886 to 1887.

The view along the road to the fort is beautiful. There were beaches scattered along the way that you could stop and enjoy. But, to think we even momentarily considered walking seven miles through this. What were we thinking? We would have died! That is the Gulf of Mexico in the distance.

Those little houses in the background used to house Coast Guard Station Pensacola before the unit was relocated across the bay to the Naval Air Station in 1987. The Coast Guard has been serving Pensacola for more than 100 years.*

Over 21.5 million bricks were used in the construction of Fort Pickens.*

Above is a portion of the fort called Bastion D. On June 20, 1899, a fire in Fort Picken's Bastion D reached the bastion's magazine, which contained 8,000 pounds of powder. The resulting explosion killed one soldier and obliterated Bastion D. The force of the explosion was so great that bricks from bricks Bastion D's walls landed across the bay at Fort Barrancas, more than one and one-half miles away.

This should be the last of the Pensacola Pics series, unless I dig up a photo or two that I just want to pass along!

The Scissors are Coming

It is time to trim those locks! We can't start school with hair that long.

Fun at Joe's

At Joe's a ballon artist missionary was going table to table making things at customers' requests.  This is what she made for us.

Eat at Joe's

After the wedding we had an afternoon of swimming (and some sleeping) at the pool.

A drive into town was needed for the evening meal. We decided on Joe's Crab Shack. Seafood was needed sometime this weekend since we were on the beach.

EK caught a crab earlier this weekend. When he saw snow crab legs on the kid's menu that is what he wanted to order. With some help from everyone at the table, EK's first meal of crabs was a hit.

Buc-ee's #1

We left today to travel from one G-town to another. Let me tell you about our only stop along the way. 88 miles before we saw the storefront above, we saw the billboards. 

"Texas' most famous restrooms."
"World famous beef jerkey."
"Jerky. Eat it. Don't drive that way."

We were not familiar with Buck-ee's, but we knew we would be making a stop. If the bathrooms were that famous, why had we not heard of them? We did not know, but did not care. We just knew if they were billed as 'Texas most famous' they could not be too bad, right?

They were nice. Before going into the restrooms we were greeted by a robot of a criminal behind bars. I don't really know why. I tried not to look directly at him. All in all the restrooms were large and CLEAN. I was surprised to see a hand sanitizer beside each urinal. Do you use the Germ-X before or after you use the bathroom? Is it just for those that may not want to wash their hands at the sink? I could have asked the attendant on duty, but again I tried not to look directly at him.

Read more about our other Buc-ee's experiences below.

Buc-ee's #2

Buc-ee's was an emporium of wonderment. The above table was the first thing we saw upon entering Buc-ee's. Further exploration revealed a neverending list of Buc-ee's merchandise. Sippy cups. Coffee mugs. Home decor. Even dog apparel. Yes, for a few dollars you can have your little pooch dressed in the latest Buc-ee fashions.

There was food, too. Pecan logs. Brittle. Texas-shaped fudge. There were even fifteen rows of fried pies. Fifteen rows of Mrs. Baird's fried pies, but no coconut.

We decided to have Icees with our popcorn. Coke and green apple. Yum.

Buc-ee's #3

EK poses with Buc-ee. Buc-ee's beaver head creepily oscillates left and right, left and right.

I saw a bag of beaver nuggets for sale, but was not sure what they were. Instead we bought camo popcorn. Think Fiddle Faddle or Cracker Jacks with green and brown pieces mixed in as well. jmm was the only one who liked it.

Pensacola Pics: Minature Golf

It does not matter whether you call it miniature golf, mini-golf, or putt-putt -- we call it a good time. One evening in Pensacola was spent playing on the local putting green at Tiki Island Golf and Games. We jokingly told EK that the person with the highest score would have to buy ice cream for everyone else following the game. He didn't particularly care for that idea.

Now for the pictures!

Everyone prepares for the big game. See how serious we are!

I think someone used a few too many 2,000 Flushes disks!

EK looked on while jmm made a hole-in-one.

The occasional hibiscus brightened the landscape.

As we look at upcoming blog topics, we will revisit Pensacola once more with part two of the forts we visited. Also, see how the recession has hit the circus when we talk about the day the circus came to town.

Just Because

Do you really have to have a reason to post a silly picture like this one?