A Fun Filled Summer Day

We had a busy but fun day today. We started by meeting Mamaw, Aunt Nikki, Beth, & Sebby at a chocolate factory for a tour this morning. The tour was actually very interesting - more so than the ice cream factory tour we took last month. We weren't allowed to take pictures in the working part of the factory, but it was very interesting because we could actually see them making the chocolates. (We did not see any Oompa Loompas, though.) The tour started with an explanation of how we get chocolate from the cacao tree and the process the cocoa bean goes through to become the chocolate we eat, and ended with free chocolate buckeyes for everyone.

Of course, Mamaw insisted on buying more candy for everyone afterward. She didn't have enough change with her to buy this 235 lb buckeye for $3500, though.

It really was a good experience.

After the factory tour we went to a park for a picnic and to let the kids ride bikes for awhile. It was hot and the kids got bored, though, so we went to the spray park instead.

The kids had a lot of fun playing in the water. It was a fun afternoon and I expect everyone will sleep very well tonight, including me.

Danielle doesn't have to worry so much about Wormy & Willa for now. She's having her first non-family birthday party this year and has decided she wants a butterfly party. Because of the party and because she has asked for this many times, we bought one of those butterfly kits from the internet. When we got home this afternoon, the box containing the caterpillars was sitting on our front porch, roasting in the sun. So far no one has suffered heat stroke, but the container did get a little condensation on it from being in the heat and then in the air conditioning. The instructions said to avoid condensation because it could kill the caterpillars, so we'll see what happens. If all goes as planned, the caterpillars will emerge as butterflies a couple days before her party and we will release them that day. If you click on the picture, you can see a couple of the tiny caterpillars near the top of the container.