Sparkly Puffalo Pits

I promise that by the end of this post my title will make some sense, though you may have to stretch your imagination a little.

I want to say a big hello to my grandmother, Mamaw, who is now a faithful blog follower! We're so happy to have you reading along with our little lives.

The farmers market peaches are delicious this time of year!

On a lazy Saturday we went to visit the Sam Noble Museum for the first time. The museum is about a block from our Castle, so it is silly that we haven't been there before. This guy greeted us at the entrance.

Ava was ready to turn around and head back home. Lately she is such a scaredycat about everything - loud noises, things with teeth, being too far away from Josh or me. I'm thinking it's probably just a phase, but you'll see her throughout this post with her hands over her ears or a scared frown on her face. Poor girl. We comfort her, assure her that she's safe, and encourage her to keep going.

Is it too early to teach her crust, mantle, and core?

Not a fan of the dinosaurs,

but she loved the baby dinosaur section.

This brought back some great memories for me. My cousin, Cory, was OBSESSED with dinosaurs when he was little. We'd scour my grandparents' land for dinosaur eggs. Every oval-shaped rock we found was an egg to be gathered. Once, my grandpa told him that dinosaurs weren't around anymore because they were extinct, to which Cory replied, "Oh, you mean they died because they smelled so bad?" Ha! That sweet kiddo just graduated from college, love you Cory.

We took a little peek inside a dinosaur egg.

Brave enough to stand in front of the fish-ish dinosaurs

Guiness Book of World Records largest dinosaur skull ever uncovered.

View from the elevator

Josh staged this shot and said we were Natural Wonders - awww.

As we rounded the corner Ava squealed, "Puffalo!"

I can't remember if I've mentioned before that she calls buffalo 'puffalo'. I think it's adorable. I think a puffalo would actually be shaped like a buffalo, but with pink glittery fur that tasted like cotton candy, don't you? Anyway, here is Ava with her puffalo.

Peering through the forest to see the birds

The fake bear started growling as I snapped this shot. Is this normal? Should I have her hearing checked? Maybe she's developing a superpower, like Spiderman. Except her super hearing power would probably be the result of a mutant mosquito bite.

The last exhibit we walked through was not scary at all.
It was all about the history of chocolate!

Sitting on candy-shaped cushions, yum.

This bronze mammoth statue wears a Santa hat in December.

Looking at the underground view of an anthill. Holding her ears because the fake rattlesnake was shaking his rattler around the corner.

Since the 4th of July weekend was soggy with rain we played with our sparklers last night. Thanks to Geoff for taking these magical pictures.

*not pictured, the fraidycat who remained on the screened-in porch

Expecto Patronum!

She really is a happy girl.

So you've seen the sparkly sparklers, the Puffalo, and now for the pits part of the blog title.

My friend Robyn recently posted about this amazing deodorant (click here for details). I have spent my entire deodorant-wearing life in some varying degree of pain. I've tried every deodorant, from crystal to sensitive, and every one causes painful, searing rashes or is completely ineffective. I tried Alvera expecting it to be the same, but it's not. It prevents odor and does not irritate my skin at all! I'm telling everyone I can about this miraculous discovery. It sounds trite, but this deodorant has changed my life. I never realized how much pain I was experiencing until suddenly it was gone. Thank you thank you thank you for sharing Robyn!

So there you have it - Sparkly Puffalo Pits