Saturday/Sunday

We bought an ant habitat for Trevor last week and found ants nearby to put into it. Many died within the first few hours. The rest were unimpressive for several days.

Meanwhile, Trevor and I found a big anthill while out walking. The ants were slightly larger, and we went back with Robert a few days later. We were prepared to attack, and I'll say that the ants weren't too thrilled with our plans. After gathering 2-1/2 dozen in the larger container (and me guarding against escapes), they all escaped when we tried to put them in the habitat. The second gathering and attempt was successful. While we've had no accidents, I wish the lid on the habitat was much more secure.

The ants have been very different than the first ones. To begin with, most are still living. They've been very active, and they have started their own tunnel 24 hours after moving in. It looks like mission accomplished!

Trevor and I decided to go to our town's Territory Days today. Territory Days celebrates Old Colorado City (now a small section of Colorado Springs) as the first capital of the Colorado Territory in 1871. (I always thought Golden was the first capital.) Mostly, of course, it's an excuse to walk around and either share or stare at odd tattoos and body piercings, and eat through your choice of mega fried foods or turkey legs.

I'm not good at this stuff. I can't parallel park and I refuse to consider porta-potties under any circumstances. But we found a good parking spot, not too far away, and at the end of the corner. It's different going to something like this with an 8 year old boy. They don't want to look at the various booths or shops, unless there's a stray Spiderman toy to catch an eye.


Although Trevor initially resisted, I encouraged him to try the FREE gold panning. This might be his last chance to give something like this a shot. It doesn't take a genius to realize that boy + water + rocks = good time.


Lucky for us, we were panning next to an amateur geologist. She quickly pointed out various items of interest in Trevor's pan: turquoise, amethyst, iron pyrite, gold flakes, shark teeth. WHAT? Yep, shark teeth. It was a huge favorite of the kids (ya think?!), and Trevor found several by panning.

(Disclaimer: I don't know if they put things in the water/dirt, or dig it all up and bring it along. I'm just there, and I didn't ask!)

The next stop was to find food. There were loads of great bbq places, but Trevor decided he didn't want to stand in line. We settled for nachos, a steak taco and gatorade, and we found a shady place in the grass to eat and watch people walk by.

"Mom, will you please wait til I'm finished eating??"

We headed back to the gold panning, where Trevor searched out more shark teeth. He bought a wooden gun at a stand where he'd bought a similar gun last year. And we were done. I'll have to make it a point to do more things like this. I don't know why I dread it so, because when I actually GO, I enjoy it.

As we walked back to the car, I persuaded him to check out the Army surplus store. I don't know why he didn't want to go in, but once he got there, he certainly didn't want to leave!

I really enjoyed spending time alone with Trevor. Holly had planned to join us, but changed her mind last minute. She ended up going out to lunch with Robert and running errands.

I made Kathleen's Orange Muffins tonight. They were wonderful, and we'll definitely be making them again. This recipe made a nice big batch too. Dear Kathleen. All I will say here is Happy Birthday. Muhahahaha!

The Air Force Academy graduation is Wednesday. It's a tradition of ours to find a great viewing spot nearby to watch the Thunderbirds fly. They began practicing tonight. They fly very close to our house. Do you remember the feelings of the jets flying overhead at night immediately after 9/11? It's an amazing sound, an amazing feeling. They'll be practicing more extensively tomorrow, and I'm looking forward to it.