Summery Fun

I love summer. I absolutely do. I never thought it was my favorite season before, but now I am beginning to re-think that.

The last few day have been close to the epitome of summer, the #1 reason being the Saunders County Fair. It's something I have gone to every year for the last decade. I used to be in 4-H-not hardcore-but I always entered a few projects. One thing I dominated (always with my cousin Emily) was the ice cream rolling contest. We always came up with really awesome flavors- Banana Split, Snickers, Blueberry Cheesecake, and more. It was so fun.

Taylor and Nathan made Chocolate Reese's peanut butter cup- delicious.

We went to the Children's Barnyard and there were some cute animals, including this baby chick. I miss my chickens!

Last year was the first time I had ever gone to the Figure 8 Race. I thought it would be something boring or completely uninteresting to me. But it wasn't. I even like getting hit by dirt clods. :)

I took Melo to the Lincoln Zoo for her birthday on Saturday. It's not a big zoo, but it is a lot of fun.

We saw some animals, like this camel, whose name was Cleo. Unfortunately it just reminded me of cigarettes.

And we saw my favorite animal ever- the river otter!

This time of year is when our Rose of Sharon tree blooms. I think they are so pretty, but you really can't pick a bouquet of the flowers because they stems are not long enough. Sometimes I just pick the blossom and let it float in water- that works, too.

I made Melo a birthday cake. It was a pineapple coconut cake. She actually liked it, which is a result often hard to acheive!

These last couple of days were most definitely summer because I took the time to notice all the little summery things that will soon be gone, as fall comes. Melo and I rode our bikes to the grocery store, instead of driving (we're going green! hahaha) and it was SO nice. The temperature was perfect, there was a slight breeze, and riding through the side streets of Ashland was just...summer. I could smell people grilling in their backyards, and there was also the scent of newly mown grass. Kids were walking back home in their towels and flip flops from spending a day at the pool, and people were out walking everywhere- whether it be with their dog, husband or wife, or baby in a stroller. It was just so summer. And I made myself drink it in because I know it will be ending soon- I will be going back to school, and although the season is technically still summer for almost another month and a half, it just isn't the same once school starts. There is a new smell in the air; maybe it is just the new crayons and pencils (which I still buy myself sometimes!) or maybe it is the leaves thinking about changing colors-I don't know-but whatever it may be, once school begins again, summer is not the same. I am so glad I am able to enjoy it until then!