Dear Gelato,

Our relationship has been getting much more serious lately.  I dare say I could hardly live happily without you.  The folks at your shop know me by name and smile when I come by.  Thank you for having so many wonderful flavors and textures.  You are a worthy expense no matter what the economy does.  Don't worry, I'll quit driving my car before I give you up.  This week when I noticed two new flavors in the freezer, my little heart sang with joy.  I also love to mix flavors. The best combinations so far are (in order of excellence):

1.  Coconut Almond and Bon Bon

2.  Coconut and Dark Chocolate 

3.  Coconut and Pineapple.

The best stand alone flavor is a new addition to your case:

1.  Yogurt with Blood Orange and Peach

Thank you for all of the summer evenings.  I promise I won't turn exclusively to hot chocolate as the weather turns cold.  See you tomorrow.

Much love,

Teacher Mama

$ Menu Opinions

If I choose to intoxicate my blood stream with sodium, fat, and preservatives, I don't like to spend a lot to do it.  I also end up with less of a stomach ache if I eat small portions of grease instead of large ones.  For anyone who cares, here is my take on fast food dollar menus.

Wendy's

-Best chicken sandwich.  

-Rip off!  They removed the small frosty.  You can get a child's size for $.50 though.  That is just about the right amount for me.

-Good nuggets.  Logan loves to dip them.

-Jr. Bacon Cheeseburger is a tasty option.  The lettuce always seems to be cold and crispy.

McDonalds (Does this one need an apostrophe?)

-The double cheeseburger is very tasty; however, it is dripping with grease.

-Spicy chicken is gross.  What exactly are the spices they use?  They are bright orange!  

-The fruit yogurt parfait is fabulous!  Give it a few minutes at room temperature before you eat it.  The strawberries need to defrost.

Burger King

-Definitely the king of burgers.  Whopper Jr. is the best $1 option.

-Yuck on the nuggets.  They are the shape of crowns (or chicken feet... I can never tell).

-Wraps are over-rated.  Again, why ruin the chicken with nasty bright orange spices?

-Best fries!  Lots of dip choices.

Arby's (How about here?)

-Please get on the bandwagon.  I do not want to buy 5 things to get a good deal.

-Best commercials.

-An interesting side note... when I was little I thought the Arby's hat was an upright fish.

There you have it.  Please add your likes and dislikes to the list.  Proofreading help would also be appreciated.

Exceptions

I dislike banana flavored things.  Except for Creamies.

I dislike cherry flavored things.  Except for Nibs.

I dislike grape flavored things.  No exceptions.

I dislike squash.  Except if it is buttered and grilled, or served in a curry (Indian style).

I dislike winter.  Except if I am at the cabin with a cup of hot chocolate.

Logan Down South

How Do Small Boys Learn These Things?

1.  Picking up your legs and hanging when adults are holding both of your hands.

2.  Putting rocks in the back of a toy dump truck, "driving" them to a new location, and dumping them.

3.  Swinging on the bar that separates check out stands (often encroaching on the space of the neighboring cashier).

4.  Turning on a power drill and "fixing things".

5.  Putting on his daddy's shirts and shoes and clopping around the house.

6.  Tackling.

7.  Growling.

8.  Taking things apart.

9.  Locking and unlocking the car door (from the outside... he can find the right key on my chain).

10.  Saying "Why?".

Smart Thinking

Maybe all of you have already figured this out. I just did.

My mascara has been running low, and I keep forgetting to get more. Every morning for the last few days I've found myself scraping the sides to get enough black on to look like a person. Then I had a brilliant idea. I ran the mascara tube under hot water. Horray! The remaining mascara in the tube became much more usable.

I'll probably be able to forget to shop for another week.

Cool Grandmas Catch Lizards

This one had a long blue tail.  He was a fast runner.

This one is a little horned toad.  He felt like sandpaper.

This one crawled on my tummy.

$5 Dates

These are great family activities or Friday night dates.

1. Dollar menu. I prefer Wendy's to McDonald's.
2. Dollar movies.
3. Gelato and a bike ride.
4. Walk to the nearest coffee shop for italian sodas.
5. See who can get the coolest present for the other person at Wal Mart for under $2.
6. Hike a nearby waterfall. (This could cost more than $5 in gasoline to get there.)
7. Redbox and banana splits.
8. Have an SUV? Drive to a remote location, put down the back seat, and watch a movie on a laptop.
9. $5 pizza and a game of H-O-R-S-E at a local elementary school.
10. Visit a museum at a local university. BYU has a cool life science museum and the University of Utah has a great natural history museum.
11. Bake brownies and play a favorite board game. We like Scatergories and Ticket to Ride.
12. Drive to a nearby lake for a picnic. Skip rocks.
13. Snow cones. I recommend coconut syrup.
14. Go on a run. Eat popsicles afterward.
15. Get a yummy treat at from a local chocolate shop and read your favorite children's books.

Please comment and add your favorites to the list.

Chatty Pumpers

We bought a natural gas car in December. It only has a 6 gallon tank, so we have to fill up frequently. It is worth the time. We only pay $.85 per gallon.

Interestingly, folks who drive these economical cars have their own little culture. When buying unleaded gasoline, how often do you visit with the person filling up across from you? Thrice in your life? Never? I have found that nearly 100% of the time, whoever is filling up their CNG vehicle next to me strikes up a conversation. No kidding. They all want to know how long we've been driving on natural gas, or which pump in the valley has the best pressure, or if the station on 90th south will be up and running soon. Sometimes I hear a history of how they converted their car. Sometimes they ask to see the tank in my trunk. Last weekend while filling up early Saturday morning, the man across from me said, "The early bird gets the pressure!"

I find myself becoming part of it. Sometimes when I'm filling up my car that runs on unleaded, I almost slip and start talking to a fellow pumper.

Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if the culture crossed over to all filler uppers.

Useless Periphery

I have issues with bulletin boards. While volunteering this week, I encountered a teacher who spends an enormous amount of time spacing, analyzing, pinning, re-pinning, and choosing borders for bulletin boards. I know that our classrooms need to be appealing and visually stimulating to students. I also recognize the value of displaying student work and academic aids that support curriculum. However, I do not think enormous amounts of time should be spent antagonizing over which color of butcher paper best matches your ladybug border. Time is limited. Energy is finite. I think there are activities much more worthy of attention.



This got me thinking about my own life. Are there activities I spend time doing that aren't really helping me accomplish my most important objectives?

I'm evaluating.