First Day of School 2010

"First day of school." The four most hated, dreaded words a kid could hear. Alas, it's that time of year again.

It's time to set our alarm clocks again. It's time to tuck our shirts in. It's time to wear shoes again (most of us will have forgotten how to tie shoelaces by now). It's time to. . . well, need I go on?

Have a great school year. No, seriously. Have a wonderful year.

Zoo With Cousin Sarah

All summer, my cousin Sarah and I have been planning a zoo trip, to celebrate her 14th birthday. The scheme was heavily doubted by higher-ups, but happily (and a bit surprisingly), it worked out.

Sarah and Aunt Terrie arrived in Fort Wayne on Thursday, and after lunch (which seemed to take forever), we headed to the zoo.

As if our wait hadn't been long enough, my mom had to renew our zoo membership before we could enter. Finally, after several long, agonizing minutes, we walked through the entrance.

Sadly, and to my great disappointment, the awesome frog fountains at the zoo have been replaced by a giant, ugly, blow-up lion, which just sits there and isn't any fun at all. I mean, it's been a while since I actually played in the frog fountains, but I have many fun memories there.

Anyway, our first real excitement came from the monkeys. Two of them were playing together; chasing each other, rolling around, and hiding - much to the delight of the onlookers.

We next meandered over to the African Journey, my new favorite section of the zoo. We came unnervingly close to some storks, which made loud, throaty noises if someone reached their hand over the enclosure fence. Also, the hyenas were prowling near the glass, not to mention the lion, which was literally laying against the glass, in all it's splendor, glory, and hugeness.

We were able to feed the giraffes, which is always a neat thing to do. I love the way their long, black tongues curl around the piece of lettuce. It's awesome - in a weird, gross sort of way.

After this, Sarah and I loitered behind the group - careful not to attract attention - slowly making our way to the Sky Safari ride. We had planned this sneaky maneuver with my mom. She had handed us a few dollars, and said that, if we could manage it, we could ride the Sky Safari, which is basically a ski lift that carries you above the African Journey.

I had never been on the Sky Safari before, and it was really cool. Sarah and I really enjoyed it, and after viewing the African Journey from on high, we headed to the Indonesian Rainforest, to meet up with the group.

After this, we watched the sea lion feeding, which I haven't seen in quite a while. It's really fun to watch.

After a quick stop at the aquarium, we headed to the farm, where we brushed and fed the goats. (Sarah, at one point, was literally cornered by goats, who jumped on her, begging for food. In the end, she dumped the food in their midst. Only then could she escape. It was really quite funny.)

Aunt Terrie bought a few souvenirs at the gift shop, and we all hopped in the van. So ended our zoo adventure.

Sarah and Aunt Terrie visited for a few more hours. We swam down at Matt's, we enjoyed homemade snow cones, and we watched Fantastic Mr. Fox.

Finally, after an extremely fun, memorable day, Cousin Sarah and Aunt Terrie headed back to Valpo.

Sydney's Birthday At The Lake

As always, Sydney celebrated her birthday (which happened to be her 12th) at the lake.

She and I arrived a day early, along with her grandpa. Unfortunately, the forecast predicted rainy skies all weekend. Indeed, the weather was gloomy and wet on Friday, and Saturday brought little change.

After our breakfast of Tom's Donuts, Sydney and I decided to swim, even though it was drizzling at the time. We must've looked pretty odd, going for a leisurely swim in the rain. Well, we are pretty odd.

Luckily, it stopped raining, the sky cleared up, and we were able to go tubing. It was so much fun, and we both wiped out several times.

Soon, Sydney's family arrived, along with Luke. After some ping-pong (Sydney's dad whooped me thoroughly), Sydney opened presents on the porch. She received some books, Silly Bands, money, and she still hasn't gotten my present yet (it's taken a while to find it)!

We had brownies (which Sydney and I had baked earlier) with ice cream, a truly delicious combination.

After this, we started packing up. It was a great time, and I thank the Nash family once again!

New Bike Trail

Sydney and I went on a very enjoyable bike ride the other day. We took the newest addition to the River Greenway, which winds around Concordia and IPFW, and leads right back home. It lasted about an hour, with a quick stop in a garden for a drink of water.

I'm really looking forward to using this trail again. It's wide, smooth, and runs under bridges, over bridges, along the river, and through a quiet, beautiful garden.

Lake George Visit

Yesterday, David, Sydney, Dever, and myself drove up to the lake with Sydney's Aunt Jenny. We ate lunch in the van, which proved to be the more efficient, easy way to go.

We arrived at Lake George in the early afternoon, and immediately began to swim. We played a fun game called "Survival at Sea", in which we pretend to be castaways, floating in the middle of the ocean on a piece of wood.

We went on several boat rides, both speed boat and pontoon, but unfortunately, we never had the chance to go tubing.

After we watched the movie, "The Incredible Mr. Limpet", we all competed in a ping-pong tournament. (For the record, I beat Sydney 10-9 in a very close, intense game.)

After dinner, we packed our wet towels and swim suits, and headed back to Fort Wayne. It was a great day. Thanks, Nash family!

Not Again. . .

Okay, I lied. Two posts ago, I said Brett Favre is retiring. Brett Favre is (sigh. . .) coming back. I was really convinced he was retiring. I got my hopes up and everything. . .

How much longer can this possibly go on? It's ridiculous.

Just another chapter in the Brett Favre Circus. . .

Roxie