Kite flying.

After a very odd day (I started the day off being sick, and then later I went to a friend's house to chase a bat - it had flown away on its own), we bought Mateo a kite (Buzz Lightyear!) on a whim and then stopped by to fly it. It started off rocky, as we had installed the cross bars the wrong way, but soon enough it was up and flying high.

Mateo held it on his own for a long time. He did a really good job and says he's excited to do it again.

Fun in the sun.

There's nothing better than a picnic after a long morning of swimming. Drinks are wetter, chips are crunchier, and apples taste sweeter.

Fingers get prunier, too. See?

Austin Ice Cream Festival.

Last Saturday we checked out the Austin Ice Cream Festival. It was hot. Therefore I needed, NEEDED this green apple Italian ice. I figured if I pronounced it "Eye-TAL-yun" it counted as being a Texas food item. Mateo wouldn't eat one bite of ice cream or Eye-TAL-yun ice. He's weird.

They had popsicle sticks to play with.

Our friend Connor met us there.

Mat enjoyed fanning the ground.

He worked up an appetite.

Nature box.

Today we went on a nature walk in the backyard. Mateo selected some beautiful leaves and rocks. I chose some stinky herbs. The irony of nature things in a plastic box is not lost on me.

I like the bark of this tree. Doesn't it make you want to pick at it? Oh yeah, and I really REALLY would like a macro lens. Thanks.

Summer May Commence.

Summer doesn't start for me without two things - the first sunburn of the year (check!) and a new pair of flip flops. Thanks, Mom!

P.S. That sunburn was accidental, and I do wear sunscreen.

Hammocks

When is the last time you enjoyed the respite of a hammock? If it's been a while, then you must run, RUN, I tell you, to your nearest sporting goods store to get one. Rafi and I have had a beautiful handmade hammock we bought in Panama stashed in a closet for the past 6 years. For his birthday this April my mom bought him a hammock stand. And now? That hammock is up in our backyard promising a comfortable reading headquarters and lazy afternoon naps. A little boy we know enjoys making it rock. It's even better when you've got your laptop and pillow out there with you. Technology meets nature = AWESOME.
So next time you feel the whim to get yourself a hammock, do it. Kick up your feet. Enjoy the breeze. Now where's my cocktail?

Endless summer...

No, really, I mean this is beginning to look like an endless summer - I have been that bored. Now I bet some of you might be thinking "gee, give ME a summer of practically no work and see if I complain!" Well, maybe, but I'm also bringing in minimum income, and while I may have free time, all of my friends are working! Blah! I have yet to convince Tina to quit her job so she can hang out at the pool with me. ;-) I've been working on my "tan." hehe...

Since my last book update I've finished Skinny Dipping, a book about a woman whose husband attempts to murder her by throwing her overboard a cruise ship, and I'm now working on Stones from the River. It's about a young dwarf girl who grows up in Germany during the 1920's. I'm not very far into it yet, so I have no opinion so far. Oh, I've also been playing "Brain Age" and "Big Brain Academy" on Nintendo DS. (That's the "carry-around" thing from Nintendo that's like a GameBoy.) It's pretty addictive and has launched some competitiveness between a few of us.

Wow. My summer is SO packed that that's about all I have to write about. Well, I *do* have something to write about, but I've been sworn to secrecy by Deanna and Tina. So you'll just have to use your imagination about last week. Cheese!!

Speaking of, today is Tina's birthday - Happy Birthday, Tina!! I'll try to return from dinner with some birthday photos.

I'm out.