I woke up remembering a dream this morning. It was very interesting – all about consignment! My old customers were there and they were bringing stuff for me to sell, but I didn’t have a shop! My parents were there and I asked them if I could sell the stuff out of their house, but my dad said “no,” so then I said I was going to ask Cindy (who owns the salon that now resides where my shop was) if I could have everyone bring the stuff to her shop and I’d split the take with her!
I was trying to analyze the dream. Maybe I’m thinking about my business and not feeling prepared for everything that’s happening so fast. I am a little overwhelmed about the two shows next weekend, because I have so much to do yet, and I only have one week! I know I’m lucky to be accepted at two different shows, but there’s a lot of work to be done, not only crafting, but also preparing my tablecloth, and fancy price tags (with descriptions of each item). This week is going to be crazy, but it will all be over by next Sunday night, so I have to try to enjoy the process and not get too stressed out!
We left the house at about 9:30am, stopped at Citibank to get some cash (I was still hoping to find my sunglasses) and got on the road. Unfortunately, we got a little lost, but Ilene and Kyle were running a little late, too, so we all got there at about the same time. It was really hot today – and of course I forgot to put on sun screen. Thank goodness Ilene is ever-prepared, with sunscreen, drinks, and snacks. I had a string cheese while we waited on line for the JOURNEY INTO AFRICA tour! She thinks of everything!
Ilene saved the parking spot right next to them, so we were together right from the parking lot. Their son, Tyler, wasn’t there (and we missed him), but Evan and Elise were very excited. We walked to the main gate, got our tickets, and went inside. Ilene had won the tickets (she wins EVERYTHING!), so it was fantastic for them, because a family of four would be over $100! Add in lunch and souvenirs and it would really have been a very expensive day. I don’t know how families afford this kind of thing.
Evan had the map, and we were ready to go!
The JOURNEY INTO AFRICA tour (which I kept calling "Out of Africa") is way on the other side of the park, so we got to see a lot on our way there. Kyle and I were the photographers for the day. He has a really fabulous camera, but I did pretty good with my new Canon PowerShot SD750 Digital Elph! I’m really enjoying the zoom, because the zoom on my Olympus was minimal. This one is MUCH better!
We saw birds, beautiful birds, including pink flamingoes, cranes, geese, swans, and lots of ducks.
Tyler checked out a giant-sized bird's nest!
Ilene checked out some new ears!
Sweet geese -- posing in profile -- just for me!
The view from a high balcony!
Our beautiful cousins -- Ilene, Kyle, Evan and Elise!
We waited on line for about 20 minutes to board the tour vehicle – the African Express, inspired by the legendary safari trains of Africa (actually it just looked like a connected train of golf carts, but the seats faced each other, so you could interact with your friends and family as you experienced seeing the giraffes, Cape buffalo, massive rhinos, graceful gazelles, goliath herons, ostriches, and horned antelope. The driver, who is also the tour guide, told us all about the habitat they created here, the breeding and other programs they have in place to help conservation efforts in Africa.
Two females slept on the top of the car, while their babies slept inside. The father was sleeping on the ground with three more babies. We were so lucky to get to see them all!
Elise and her three new best friends!
After the tour, we walked around a bit more, and then stopped for something to eat. I had a cheese quesadilla with beans and rice and a large iced tea. The kids got their chicken nuggets in a cute souvenir bucket with raisins, chips, and animal cookies!
After lunch we went to a little playground where the kids rode safari vehicles and Evan and I got foot massages from the rejuvenating foot massager!
Then, refreshed and renewed, we headed out again. We saw gorillas, and a beautiful orchid display (I thought of our friends, Geri and Larry, who would really have enjoyed that!). Next, we hit the carousel! It was really pretty and so much fun to ride with the kids. They really enjoyed it. Elise was so proud that she got to ride it three times!
By the time we were finished at the carousel, it was about 3:00pm and I had just about had it. We really walked a LOT and my foot was starting to really hurt. Also, it was incredibly hot there – much hotter than it was by us or in LA, I’m sure. It was 89 degrees there in the hot sun. No wonder all the animals were sleeping in the shade!
I think everyone had a great time, especially Evan and Elise. They really enjoyed all the animals, the playground, and the carousel. It was a wonderful day!
This guy was my favorite today. He seemed to be just sitting there posing for everybody. Precious!
Such a regal profile this Meerkat has!
Evan and his new friend. These animals were so sweet and calm.
Elise on a majestic giraffe!
There's evan (in the middle) on an eagle!
We walked back to the cars and said our goodbyes. We were home by 4:00pm and we relaxed a little. I had a slice of pizza from last night, and Eric had the other two slices and the leftover Caesar salad. I’m not surprised he ate so much – it was the first thing he ate all day! He didn’t eat breakfast, and then only had a bottle of water with lunch. Not hungry? Dieting? Only he knows for sure!
Then, Eric put the feet on my Victorian File Box and it is now complete! Check out my CRAFT BLOG if you’d like to see the latest pictures!
At about 6:00pm we took a nap and I woke up at 7:30pm, downloaded all the pictures and started organizing them. I had about 70 pictures of our day at the WILD ANIMAL PARK!
Eric got up at 8:30pm and we had a snack of edamame and each had a NUTRISYSTEM entrée. I feel guilty because I have eaten MUCH too much two days in a row, and the scale is showing it. Today I weighted 126.8. That’s almost 2 pounds more than last weekend. Boo hoo! I better get my act together! It’s SO much easier to put it on than it is to take it off! Of course my rationale today was that I walked for hours, but that didn’t seem to make a difference!
I spent the rest of the evening working on the pictures, blogging, and watching TV.
Tomorrow I will prepare for the craft shows and head to KEILS for food shopping in the afternoon. Ilene gave me two beautiful re-usable canvas totes with a flat bottom especially for your groceries. I can’t wait to use them! She’s so sweet and generous and is always thinking of others. I just adore that girl!