This many smiles combined with swimming polar bears, Sparky the seal, kiddie rides and mini-donuts can only be one place...Como Park. I loved going there as a kid. But I think it's even more fun as a mom seeing your own kids and nieces and nephews enjoying the sights and taking it all in.I think maybe that's what God had in mind when He created people. He loved the world and all He had created. But I think He gets pleasure out of seeing people love the world and all that's in it even moreso. Como Park doesn't begin to compare with the Grand Canyon or the Cayman Islands or the Swiss Alps...but I still enjoyed every minute of fun and laughter that the kids soaked up on a humid afternoon in Minnesota.
That was yesterday. Today was spent swimming at Grandma Karen's pool and making homemade icecream outside on the street for Neighborhood Night Out. My camera was left in the backseat of my sister's car. So I am missing pictures of those two events. But I plan on getting copies soon.
Simple times make some of the best memories of all. Wouldn't you agree?! If you recall a fond simple memory from childhood...share it with me in my comments here. I still have a few more days to make memories on this trip. Including a wedding this weekend for Chip's brother...and our own annivesary too! Yep...more good times ahead. Hopefully I'll get my camera back just in time!
23 comments:
This is a really silly memory, but a good one. My sisters and I were just talking about summer nights of our childhoods. Since we didn't have central air, the whole family (five of us) would pile into my parents' bedroom since they had a window unit. Whenever my mom would tell us to go get our pillows, we would be so giddy with excitement. Just thinking about it makes me smile . . .
Ahhhh, Como Park! I miss MN a lot, especially our friends and cute old house. If you're looking to make a specific memory, Cup 'N Cone in White Bear Lake is a great summer stop. Not sure where you are staying but if it's not too far, it's worth the drive and then a stroll by the lake, or of course, there's Sebastian Joe's in Stillwater where you can stroll, or Sebastian Joe's in Uptown and a drive around the tri-lakes. I think there's a theme here...ice cream and a lakeside stroll. Have fun, dear Jody and fam! Happy Anniversary, guys! Love Always! Ade xoxox
Oh, my...Jody! Minnesota mini-donuts! It truly doesn't get much better than that! I haven't had them in YEARS!
When is your anniversary? Ours is the 10th, 1996. Happy anniversary to you guys!
I think one of my favorite simple family memories is of picking sweet corn with my dad out of our own field at just the right time, then eating it alongside BLTs. In fact, I just told him yesterday that next summer when we're back in the States, I hope to plan a trip so we can do that again with our kids in tow!
Have a great rest of your trip!
Blessings,
Jodie R.
I fondly remember going to the drive in movies in my pajamas. I always fell asleep!
Happy Anniversary! and enjoy the rest of your trip.
mel
I found your blog in the funniest way ever yesterday - I googled "steve edelmann" as I was remembering the show "Good Company" from long ago. Hours of reading your blog later, I've bookmarked it under "favorites". With your writing, I would buy your book if you ever wrote one. We have motherhood, scrapbooking and a love of desserts in common!
But then today I see you were at Como Park! I grew up in St. Paul and before I married I owned a house in Como. I love that area and being in St. Paul always reminds me of the good times I had as a kid. My favorite memories always have the MN State Fair in them. My dad would save up his change in a jar every year and at the end of the summer I would get to take it to the bank and that was my "Fair Money", we would go bright and early in the morning for some mini donuts and walking through the barns and would stay late, bringing home a bag of mini donuts to enjoy the next day. I am now a WI transplant and have a new blog of my own at lovestrand.blogspot.com
Take care,
Lisa
Ah, Como Park! Went there as a kid, loved it. Lived near there when attending U of M. Loved it. Biked there all the time to just hang out and watch the polar bear and sea lions. Took the kids there when visiting inlaws in Hudson. Still Loved it! A free zoo. Awesome concept. We have photos with the Sparky, too...I remember seeing him as a kid. I can still smell the fish parts you can get to toss to the sea lions.
good times....good times...
I live in IN. visit your blog often and today it made me think of my Mom and Dad and going to Ghost Town on the River, I can remember it like it was yesterday the car ride there that seemed to take forever and the small boats right inside the gates. It was not until I was much older that I learned just where the park was, just a 20 min ride from our house, makes you stop and think about how when you really want something it seems to take forever.....must be God's way of making you think and be thankful that much more.....
Hey Jody! Looks as though you are all having lots of fun making lots of memories! Jody, you look great also look like you have lost weight, I have noticed this a for a few pitures. Also love your OWL necklace! Too Cute!
I feel blessed because i remember my whole childhood as a happy memory. My parents always did fun activities with us, even if it was throwing a couple of sandwiches in a bag and taking us to a park and making a big deal out ouf what a fun picnic we were having. I hope my little loves will have the same kinds of memories.
YUMM...I remember homemade ice cream too! *big smiles*
When I was little, my mom and dad and I would go with close friends on their houseboat on the Mississippi River for a few days each summer. The highlight was all of us having our turn making homemade peppermint ice cream and sharing it with everyone who ended up staying on the same sandbar that evening.
Thanks to you Jody, our garbage collectors got fresh cookies this morning. Your kind heart is contagious. God Bless you as you have bless all of us!
Anne
It looks like you are having a fantastic time. I love all of the smiles, especially Wyndham's!!!
Great pictures, great memories!
Totally fun pics, Jody! And I LOVE your owl necklace. Our school mascot is the owl, so I have a thing for them.
Bridget in Meraux, LA
I LOVE Como Zoo! I went there a lot when I was young and now I take my little girl there. When I was little, the zoo didn't have as many safety guards as it does now, and I stuck my fingers through the ostrich fence...needless to say, the ostrich bit me, and it hurt! So, that is my funny memory of Como as a kid. Also, my aunt had a friend who worked at Como and she would sometimes care for baby animals in her home. So, one day my brother and I went with my aunt to this lady's house and we got to hold and pet a baby gorilla and tiger! CRAZY!!! I can't believe that they let little kids around wild animals, but it was great. We have a fun picture to remember it by. Others have mentioned the MN State Fair, and that is also one of my favorite spots ever! Every year I have to get a cream puff, mini donuts, those chocolate chip cookies...can't remember the name, and of course a fajita from Juanita's Fajitas where I worked for two summers. Also, I go and visit the animal barns every year, and I especially have to see the goats as they are my favorite. Making homeade ice cream with my dad and playing frisbee in our yard...and going for bike rides around the lakes with my dad...and making dill pickles and pickled beets with my mom...and going to Michigan where my dad had to work at Wurtsmith Air Force Base every summer for 2 weeks and we'd enjoy our family vacation staying on Lake Huron...these are all great summer family memories for me! Sorry I got long winded. I just had lots of fun things come to mind! Hope you continue to enjoy your summer.
I have just spent the last bit "catching up" on your blog....love all the photos....love the owl thing you have going on....you are an amazing, strong, beautiful, inspiring woman!!!
YOU ROCK!!
Como Zoo!! Love it!! My four year old loves Sparky the Sea Lion, but I think her favorite part is the water balloon sling - she would stand in there with her dad and shoot water balloons all day if we would let her!
From the look of your pictures, it would appear there are many memories and fun times going on!
Another set of great pictures of beautiful, smiling happy children! What fun and that's a GREAT picture if you!!!
It looks like you are having so much fun Jody! Great pics...those will be fun to scrap when you get home!
I have so many childhood memories that I love! I grew up in Tucson, Arizona and I loved hiking Sabino Canyon trail up to the huge waterfalls and natural pools of water that were right behind where we lived. We also went to the zoo in Tucson a lot, and I could sit and watch the polar bears for hours. Polar bears in Tucson...who knew? And when I had to visit my dad in Montana...I LOVED picking fresh rasberries with my grandma. We would pick them, wash them, and then she would put some in a pretty dish and cover them with cream for me and my cousins to eat. YUM!
Talk to you later!
Hey, we love Como Zoo, too. And Adrienne . . . we live near WBL and just discovered Cup 'N Cone . . . love it! I agree, it's a great summer stop.
One of my favorite memories is vacations to TN growing up. We'd stay in a chalet in the mountains with nothing to entertain us but nature, games, books, and an occasional trip to town. It was the best!
Have fun with the rest of your time with your family!
I grew up in Newfoundland, so most of my favourite memories are of boating. We would take a week each summer and go on a canoe trip on a central lake. It was so peaceful! We would tent in the sand and listen to the loons. Have campfires and sing, and of course, go swimming!
My other favourite, which I continue with my own child, is boating on the ocean, often seeing the whales or icebergs. Then we would catch some fish or shellfish and cook up on the islands on the beach. Yummy!
I'm a little late on the posting, but my favorite summer memory is playing in our cul-de-sac until the street lights came on and waiting for the snowball truck. Then sitting in the front yard of the "Granma" on our street and getting sticky with the goodness of marshmellow topping....
Saint Paul!? We live in St. Paul. I hope that you are having a wonderful time with your family. It's completely possible that we were at the Zoo at the same time. Small world, ours is.
Thank you for the wonderful blog.
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