Yesterday we had a bit of a long day, eventful and nice it was. I was exhausted by the end of it and had to have a hot shower to get over it, but nice it was.
We began without Joey. I had let his parents know that I would need the afternoon off and even offered to find a replacement for myself, but they decided just to give me the whole day and Joey’s daddy stayed home with him. With this freedom, along with setting Owen in front of the computer to watch Winnie the Pooh, I tackled the primer in Owen’s bedroom. My goal was to quit painting by 10:00 and when the clock struck I was so close to finished I couldn’t stop so at 5 after 10:00 I cleaned up my mess, took a bath and got ready to go. Owen was already dressed for our trip so I left him alone and made a few sandwiches, loaded the car and changed Owen one last time before putting him in the car.
First we went to Publix, where we picked up some sliced cheddar, chili cheese Fritos, a half-gallon of lemonade and some cut up ready to eat fruit. We then headed to the zoo where we met Kris and waited about 40 minutes or so for Don, Brooke and Ellia. Don and Brooke Kelso are relatives of Kris’ family and have been good friends as well. They are building a home south of Franklin, TN and whenever they come up from Florida will get in touch with us if they have the time. Don is a first cousin to Kris’ dad making him Kris’ cousin once removed. They are of course a bit older than we are and have children our age and as it worked out a grand-daughter just a couple months older than Owen. Ellia, whose parents live in Indiana was staying with her grand-parents and she and Owen were very cute together. They are third cousins and having just met yesterday afternoon seemed to warm up to each other well. They seem to be saying the same words and doing a lot of the same things. We tackled a picnic lunch out doors but the flies and bees were horrendous. We packed up and asked if we could eat in the restaurant which was basically empty other than two other small parties and they truly didn’t care. The air-conditioning was a blessing as well and we enjoyed our sandwiches and fruit very much. As we were getting ready to leave the sky became very dark and we decided we might be better off to stay where we were until the storm passed. We finally did leave but the rest of the day was dark and wet and the mosquitos were a bother. Fortunately, this didn’t hinder our enjoyment of the animals. An empty zoo is a great time. I love having the pathways and exhibits to ourselves. The animals like it better too…they actually talked to us. 🙂
When we could no longer walk another step we got in our cars and headed south to the Cool Springs area to eat dinner. We decided to go to Famous Dave’s and eat some barbecue which was of course delicious and Don bought it so it was even more delicious. Before they left, Brooke had Kris follow her to their truck to get a couple of gifts for the boy and the boy to come as well as a loaf of Persimmon Bread that she had made. This morning I ate some and decided that Persimmon Bread is Good.
Seriously, where are the pictures of the boys’ room?
Not much to see yet. I’ve only taken a couple and I didn’t use the flash so it’s a little hard to see. I will take some this afternoon once Owen’s nap is in progress and I’m ready to re-enter the messy room.
Despite the flies and the bees, your picnic sounded AWESOME. I am watering at the mouth at the thought. Perhaps I shall take Gabe on a picnic sometime.
Have you ever seen the Adventure Science Center? I was thinking of taking Gabe. Was wondering what you thought of it if you have been.
I have been to the Science Center but it was many years ago. I haven’t been recently and have thought about taking Owen but wasn’t sure if I should wait until he’s a little older and could appreciate it more.
Is Persimmon a spice? I have never heard of it before.
It’s a fruit and I couldn’t tell you much about it. If I remember right she said that it was growing on their land where they are building. I looked it up online and there is not a lot of information on it…at least not much that looked like interesting reading. There are several varieties and one is even called a chocolate persimmon. This bread had almost a chocolate taste to it and it is very dark.
As always, I’m the one who says “Mmmmmmm” in regard to food. I nearly posted that the first time, since I love persimmons but thought that would just be too predictable. However, after seeing comments about this lovely fruit, I HAD to comment. They look like an orange/red/coral colored tomato and have a thick edible skin and dense flesh. Not extremely juicy, but get extra mushy and sweet when ripe. When less ripe, the firm texture reminds me of a firm cantaloupe. I’ve never had persimmon bread. Paid about 2.00 for one persimmon a month/two ago- used to get them free from neighbors with plentiful gardens in California. Certainly miss the fresh CA produce.
I almost told LaDonna she should ask you Tisra…I just knew somehow that you would have some experience with persimmons. It’s good to have a fruit and veggie expert among us.
Look at me being so lazy and not googling it. I google everything else! Thanks for the information and Mmmmm it does sound good!
We used to have a persimmon tree out back. But it came down in a storm last summer. I never was brave enough to try them, I let the wildlife have them. If you eat them before they are fully ripe they are reported to be very sour.