The BEST Birthday Surprise

8th -  It's another up, up, and away day.  We are en route to Utah and some time with Cassie for Ophelia's birthday.  Mister booked an unusual afternoon flight so our morning was calm and relaxed as we prepared to leave.  Now, we are on our way and we both have a great laugh at the map in front of us.  Do you see it?  Sure, sure -- ya'll see Douglas Pass, but how about Dolores River?  Hahahaha -- that is Mister's Mom.

Once we land, get our rental car, and check into the very large house Mister rented (???), Cassie calls and wants to meet at a restaurant for an early dinner.  Sounds great and after discovering that we have a waterbed in our room (to much giggling), we are soon on our way to discover that Amanda (with Abe), and Jennifer are there too.  What a wonderful surprise!!!  Through the course of our meal, I find out that Rhiana and Matt are on the way as well.  My sweet Mister put together this weekend as a birthday gift for me.  Now the big house makes sense.

Sunday Zoo Again

We absolutely have done what we said we were going to do yesterday.  We are back at the zoo and waiting for the hippos.  It is a BEAUTIFUL day out - nice and cool -- especially compared to yesterday.

As we wait for the hippos to enter, the water tech is standing nearby and we are able to talk with him for quite awhile.  He explains about how the power was off yesterday and in just that short time, they lost the clear water and it would take a few days to get it back.  He also explained how difficult it is at the zoo when they lose power.  Crazy.  Fortunately, he also has the inside track on a lot of the goings on with the hippos and could share a great deal of info there too.  Score.

Finally, here they come.

Saturday Zoo Morning

We have a weekend all to ourselves and have opted to combine some walking with some animal watching.  It's a member morning weekend at the zoo, meaning we can get in early and have some special moments.  It's a plan and off we go.

Upon our arrival, there is an encounter in the warthog habitat and thus our direction is set.  As we pass the elephants, one stops to stare right back at us.  Seems fitting.

The warthog keeper is full of fantastic information and we stay for almost 45 minutes gleaning as many facts as we can.  We remember when one of these was just a baby and can't believe how much time has passed since then.

DMA - The Power of Gold

I am out grocery shopping and my nephew calls wondering if I would like to meet at the DMA and spend some time together.  Oh, absolutely.  Once this shopping is complete and things are put away, I am there.  I really need to get out of the house and have active conversation with someone.

Inside the door, I quickly walk up to the member's desk and get tickets for the recent exhibit:  The Power of Gold - Asante Royal Regalia from Ghana.  Bob is in the gift shop and after meeting up, into the exhibit we go.

The first part of the exhibit focuses on "goldweights."  According to the placard on the wall, "By the 17th century, Akan and Asante goldsmiths cast goldweights in the forms of humans, animals, plants, and various man-made objects.  Like some of the earlier geometric weights, representational goldweights were connected to proverbs and maxims.  For older figurative weights, many of their original associations have been forgotten.  Others have new meanings, as familiar proverbs differed among generations and geographic locations.  Adding to this complex visual communication, some proverbs carry multiple meanings.  In this display, figurative (representational) goldweights are grouped into several themes and time periods.  Broadly speaking, the human figure and animal subjects appear in goldweights starting in the 17th century.  Human figures range in age and activity.  Animals are equally diverse.  mammals, birds, fish, and insects are represented individually and in interactive groups."

Family Day in Dallas

Jen called a couple of days ago to say that their exchange student, Leon, wanted a day of shopping in Dallas before he returns home this month.  That means a day of family for us.  Woot woot!!  We don't get to see this crew near often enough anymore.  They all have such busy lives.  It's land of the giants and a LOT of testosterone on the front porch.  Hello boys.

Red Hat Birthday Celebration

May is the birthday season for me.  It's also the birthday for our local chapter of Red Hatters, The Big D Re-Gals.  The chapter is Sweet Sixteen.  How fun.  As I'm sitting her noodling this post, I have come up with my own version of Ringo Starr's song You're Sixteen:  Cue the music -

You came on like a dream

Red, purple and bling

Shining like bright stars

You're sixteen, you're beautiful and you're ours

You're all glitter and hats

Giggles and chat

Lunches lasting for hours

You're sixteen, you're beautiful and you're ours.

You're our baby, you're our pet

We fell in love on the day we met

Cynthia started it all, we joined along

And now we are over twenty Re-Gals strong

You walked into our lives, full of surprise

Now our hats boxes tower

You're sixteen you're beautiful and you're ours. 

College Graduation for Bob

I am leaving retreat super early this morning as my nephew is graduating from college in Dallas today.  That means I am beating the sun.  Yay!  Not.  We were up late last night enjoying the last night at Brazos until October.  It was a short night, for sure.

As I'm driving, the sun starts to rise.  I love these moments so very much.