Party Animals at the Zoo

We had an amazing time this week-end!  Hubby, sister-in-law, nephews, and I went to the Columbus Zoo.  I love zoos, and the Columbus Zoo is truly outstanding.

Since we had two little guys with us we didn't try to do the whole zoo.  We just headed straight for the polar bears (the nephews favorite) and stopped for whatever struck our fancy on the way there. We all have zoo memberships, so we can go as often as we want and don’t feel pressure to see all the animals every time we go.

Our first stop was the petting zoo.  There were goats everywhere!  Both of the little guys enjoyed it, but the older one just had a blast. One of the goats had a very curly coat that was a bit like nephew’s poodle pup, so he really had a great time petting it. For a while it was looking like we might spend the whole day with the goats.

Goats at the petting zoo

Next up was the train.  The boys both enjoyed it and the grownups appreciated a chance to sit for a bit. I don’t know what it is with little boys and trains, but I've never met a boy who didn't love trains.

Next stop was the polar bears! The Columbus Zoo has a wonderful polar bear exhibit. You can view the bears from ground level, but you can also go down to the underwater viewing area. Part of the underwater area juts into the habitat, so the bears are actually above your head. It was so fun to look up at the bears while they played over our heads.  It was kind of like polar bear synchronized swimming.  It was a beautiful day and the bears were obviously enjoying themselves.

Up close and personal with a polar bear 

I always love going to the zoo, but it was even more fun getting to see it through the eyes of a child. We were able to make so many special memories and I will always treasure the day. 

If you are in the central Ohio area, I cannot recommend the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium highly enough. You can learn more at their website. 

Happy Earth Day

We humans are a diverse bunch. We come in all sorts of shapes and sizes. We all have our own unique beliefs, preferences, and values. There are so many things that we sometimes allow to separate us.  However, the one thing that we all share is that we live on this precious earth.  I think it is wonderful that we have a day that reminds us to celebrate and protect the earth. So, on this Earth Day, please remember to do your part. Recycle something, pick up some litter, or plant a tree. Every little thing helps. Remember, she is Mother Earth and if Momma ain't happy, nobody is happy!

Sunrise on the beach in Florida - taken during vacation a few years ago

Reduce - Reuse - Recycle - Replenish - Restore

Happy Texas Tummy

Hubby and I took a quick trip to Dallas this week-end.  We had such a good time!  We were on a secret mission (which I will tell you all about soon), and we got to spend time with some good friends.  But the thing I really want to talk about is how happy my taste buds were this week-end!

We started off Saturday morning with breakfast tacos from Taco Cabana.  I know that the breakfast taco has been a little more mainstream, but most of what is out there is pretty generic.  The ones at Taco Cabana are made with fresh tortillas (yummy!) and they have a selection that you don’t find most places.

Later than day (and again the next day) we went to Bahama Buck’s.  That is my happy place.  My own personal vision of heaven has a Bahama Buck’s on every cloud.  If you haven’t ever heard of them, they make the most incredibly delicious shaved ice.  You can also get smoothies, coffee, etc., but the watermelon shaved ice is always my go-to treat.

When dinner rolled around hubby surprised me with Schlotzsky’s.  I have loved Schlotzsky’s ever since I had my very first bite way back in my college days.  Believe me when I say that it has been a LOT of years!  This is not my hubby’s favorite, so I owe him a huge thank you!

For lunch on Sunday it was the good old Texas stand-by of Whataburger.  Whataburger is a Texas institution.  In my opinion they have the best fast food burger around.  It has been six long months and my tummy was so happy to finally have a burger from Whataburger again.

In case you recall my bluebonnets post from a couple of weeks ago, I did finally get to see some. It was raining so I didn’t get pictures, but it finally feels like spring since I got to see them.  Of course, we are back in Ohio now and the forecast for tomorrow says there is a chance of snow.  Oh well, at least I will have happy memories of all the wonderful food and great times with friends to keep me warm.

Note:  I am not affiliated with any of the companies mentioned in this post, nor did I receive compensation from them.  These are just some of my favorite food places in Texas and I wanted to share them with you.

It Is A Good Week To Be A Geek

I haven’t always been a geek, but I married a geek. When that happens you either resolve yourself to lots of time alone, or you embrace it and go with the flow.  I am now happily going to Comic Cons, watching sci-fi shows, and even reading the occasional comic book. 

Image via

This has been the best week to embrace my new found passions.  We went to see Captain America: The Winter Soldier Sunday night.  It was so good!  Hubby has been a huge Captain America fan since he was old enough to read the comics, and even he approved.  I highly recommend it, whether you usually like superhero movies or not.

Since we were at the movies Sunday night we DVR’d Game of Thrones and watched it on Monday night. I really like where they are taking some of the characters.  I know that GoT sometimes gets a bad rap because of the way that women are depicted, but it is not true across the board.  It also has some incredibly fierce female characters (hello, Brienne).  I really enjoy female characters that are tough and don’t need anybody to take care of them. Daenerys Targaryen is not only a queen, she is the best ruler on the show (not to mention being the Mother of Dragons).  Little Arya Stark has been growing into a force to be reckoned with for awhile, and this episode was really a turning point for her.

This brings us up to Tuesday and a new episode of Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.   From everything that has been teased about this episode it should be incredible. They will be dealing with the events that happened in the Captain America movie and I am really intrigued with how they are trying the whole Marvel universe together.

So, that is how my geek week is shaping up so far.  Anybody have any fun plans for the week?

Homesick for Bluebonnets

It snowed again on Saturday. Is this winter never going to end?  I’m a Texas girl, and this time of year I should be going for long drives in the country to enjoy the wildflowers.  Ohio is very nice in fall, but this winter is killing me.  Mother Nature, do you hear me?  I. Am. Over. It. 

To cheer myself up, or maybe just to torture myself, I've been dreaming of bluebonnets.  This is what spring is supposed to look like.

Gorgeous photo of bluebonnets is from TravelTex.com

You hear me Ohio?  I need spring, and I need it now. Please.

Beaten Up by a Pup

So, I got beat up. By my dog. No, not the big one. The little 15 pound terrier. 

She didn't mean to do it, she was just in a hurry to get outside. I had her leash in my hand and as soon as I opened the patio door she took off running as fast as she could. The result was my hand being smashed into the door frame. It immediately started swelling and bruising. Luckily, I was in the kitchen when it happened, so I had an ice pack on it in less than a minute. It wasn't until I saw the blood on the ice pack that I realized that the door frame had sliced me open.

Fortunately, hubby was home and he bundled me into the car and off we went to the emergency room.  I got some really funny looks from the staff when I tried to explain that my dog broke me. By the time we left I had x-rays, a tetanus shot, my wounds cleaned, two different kinds of antibiotics and a prescription for Vicodin.

Does this look like a pup that would beat up her Mommy?

My pup has been so sweet ever since. She sits in my lap constantly and keeps giving me these “I’m so sorry” looks.  The really ironic thing about the whole situation? She had obedience class the day that it happened. I had to call her trainer from the emergency room and explain why we would be missing class that day. To her credit, the trainer did her best not to laugh.

Chaos and the Home Office

One of the best things about working in an office is that when your personal life seems chaotic you can escape to work, and when work is chaotic you can escape to home. Unfortunately, when you work from home there is no escape.  Cue the scary, horror movie music.

One of my better plans when I started working from home was to try and keep things separate.  I keep everything work related on my work computer and everything home/personal on my home computer.  Heck, I even have two separate desks.  Unfortunately, since my office space is limited the desks sit next to each other.  Today is one of those overwhelming days where both desks are stacked high with stuff that needs doing.  I’m trying to focus on work, but out of the corner of my eye I see the stack of bills that need paying. If I take a break to work on home stuff, I can’t help but see the emails rolling in on the work computer.  Now, I know that conventional wisdom would say to turn off the email notification, but since I support a crucial software system I have to at least scan emails when they come in.

Not me. Not my desk. But a very good representation of what it feels like.

When I started working from home I naively thought there would be few distractions.  Boy, was I wrong!  The distractions are different from what you get in an office, but they are still there. My older dog thinks it is her sworn duty to bark at everything that passes by her window. My younger dog doesn’t understand why I won’t take her for walks whenever she wants, so she gets whiny.    Telemarketers call all day long, but I at least got smart and turned off the ringer on the home phone.  We live near a busy road, so there are traffic noises and sirens all day long.  I feel like that old commercial, “Calgon, take me away”!

So, there is my confession. Working from home is not all sunshine and roses. It can be filled with distractions and on a bad day there is no escape from chaos.  Oh well, time to stop distracting myself with the blog and dive back in!