Summertime in St. Louis
Ahhhhh...humidity...cicadas...Ted Drewes...home... :)
I got back to El Paso this afternoon around 4 after spending the past week in my hometown, the first time I had been there in the summer for a couple years. I gave up my seat on my original flight and took a later one in exchange for a Southwest voucher...woo hoo!
I knew it was going to be humid--whatever, I grew up with it, I'm used to it. But I didn't realize it was the Year of the Cicadas until the way home from the airport! Cicadas are these weird insects that come up out of the ground and invade the Midwest every 13 and 17 years. The last time this happened was 1998, when the 13 and 17-year varieties coincided, and I happened to be Girl Scout camping! Just the 13-year ones are out in 2011 and they're slightly more manageable now that I am not 11 yrs. old, but they're still EVERYWHERE, they enjoy dive-bombing into you, and they're loud! Outside during the hottest part of the day, I'd have to yell so someone a few feet away could hear what I was saying! The phenomenon is pretty indescribable, but here are some pictures for those of you who have never had to experience the wonders of cicadas. I'm adding them to my list of things to ask God about when I get to heaven!
The holes they emerge from.
What one looks like up close...creepy red eyes!
After sweeping the porch off in the evening, it looked like this by morning!
Exoskeletons piled up at the base of the sweet gum tree in our front yard!
More exoskeletons.
This one hung out on our front window for awhile...
YES we waited in that line for frozen custard, and YES it's worth it!
Cousins eating custard in the back of my brother's new pick-up! He recently started Mackenzie Landscaping, so his old Buick, Betty, wasn't going to cut it.
Until next time, blessings!
I got back to El Paso this afternoon around 4 after spending the past week in my hometown, the first time I had been there in the summer for a couple years. I gave up my seat on my original flight and took a later one in exchange for a Southwest voucher...woo hoo!
I knew it was going to be humid--whatever, I grew up with it, I'm used to it. But I didn't realize it was the Year of the Cicadas until the way home from the airport! Cicadas are these weird insects that come up out of the ground and invade the Midwest every 13 and 17 years. The last time this happened was 1998, when the 13 and 17-year varieties coincided, and I happened to be Girl Scout camping! Just the 13-year ones are out in 2011 and they're slightly more manageable now that I am not 11 yrs. old, but they're still EVERYWHERE, they enjoy dive-bombing into you, and they're loud! Outside during the hottest part of the day, I'd have to yell so someone a few feet away could hear what I was saying! The phenomenon is pretty indescribable, but here are some pictures for those of you who have never had to experience the wonders of cicadas. I'm adding them to my list of things to ask God about when I get to heaven!
The holes they emerge from.
What one looks like up close...creepy red eyes!
After sweeping the porch off in the evening, it looked like this by morning!
Exoskeletons piled up at the base of the sweet gum tree in our front yard!
More exoskeletons.
This one hung out on our front window for awhile...I was in town for my cousin's wedding (more on that later), more specifically because my other cousin from CT that I haven't seen in 12 years was also in town, and my parents were generous and bought me a ticket! When I wasn't dodging an invasion of kamikaze insects, I enjoyed some laid-back days with family and friends:
--riding my bike to the library I worked at, realizing I hardly know anyone there anymore, and randomly watching a historic steam engine come through downtown Kirkwood on the way home
--visiting my godmother, who is in a nursing home
--watching lots of Cardinals baseball!
--catching up with my grandpa
--baking a cheesecake to celebrate my parents' anniversary
--shopping with my mom and sister
--burgers, brats, and washers with all the Mackenzies not involved in the rehearsal dinner
--"our usual" Steak n' Shake and board games 'til midnight with part of my high school crowd
And Ted Drewes frozen custard, a St. Louis tradition! My CT cousin had never been!
--riding my bike to the library I worked at, realizing I hardly know anyone there anymore, and randomly watching a historic steam engine come through downtown Kirkwood on the way home
--visiting my godmother, who is in a nursing home
--watching lots of Cardinals baseball!
--catching up with my grandpa
--baking a cheesecake to celebrate my parents' anniversary
--shopping with my mom and sister
--burgers, brats, and washers with all the Mackenzies not involved in the rehearsal dinner
--"our usual" Steak n' Shake and board games 'til midnight with part of my high school crowd
And Ted Drewes frozen custard, a St. Louis tradition! My CT cousin had never been!
YES we waited in that line for frozen custard, and YES it's worth it!
Cousins eating custard in the back of my brother's new pick-up! He recently started Mackenzie Landscaping, so his old Buick, Betty, wasn't going to cut it.
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