Fabulous Army Life

Cousins at Cameron Park Zoo This orangutan had a button in her habitat that would spray onlookers with water.  We were begging her to push it and she refused.  It was funny to watch the kids bargain with her, though. Trey swings and rings the gong. The similarities to an orangutan don't disturb me.  At all.  Really. Joshua tests his reach. The Orangutan playscape was huge fun. Sweet Skylee in the Aquarium Room. We loved this room ... it was air conditioned AND had water to splash in ... oh, and the fish were neat, too. Cute kiddos in a cave! We spent quite a bit of time sliding through the clear tube slide that goes through the otter exhibit. The otter slide is so much fun! Gram with Grandkids After a yummy picnic lunch, the kids played in these amazing natural sculptures at Cameron Park.

We spent a lot of time in a neighbor's pool, beating the Texas heat.  A bonus on the last day? Watermelon!

Sic 'Em, Bears! The boys were excited to see the new Egyptian exhibit at the Mayborn Center. Trey:  "Do you think Daddy's ever ridden a camel?" Joshua:  "Probably not an Egyptian camel." "What is the difference between an Egyptian camel and an Iraqi camel?" Putting together Egyptian pottery. Building an Egyptian Pyramid. One of our all-time favorites at the Mayborn Center ... the water table! Trey can't wait to be taller than Aunt Carole Ann!

Every summer for the past several years, all of the Cook cousins gather for a few days of summer fun together.  This year, we met in Waco and spent a few days enjoying each other's company.  It was a great time, but we were sad to miss our oldest cousin, Abby, who was at Volleyball Camp in Dallas.  The seven younger cousins plus our two foster cousins had a fun time together! Bubbles! 

If you're like me, you're already thinking about how to fill those long summer days with fun stuff for kids.  In this post, I want to share one of my all-time favorite things for my kids ... ever.  We call it Cousin Camp! For the past several summers, all of the cousins on my husband's side of the family have gotten together for a fun-filled "Cousin Camp."  Eight kids ranging in age from four to ten, all in one house for one week of super-crazy, mega-messy fun!  Hubby's sister teaches private swimming lessons so once we have all the kiddos signed up in their lesson slots, we start planning the fun! The last time we were all together we planned "Messy Week" ... five days of the craziest, messiest fun we could think of.  Here are some highlights: Color Me Happy At a cousin's baseball game, we let those in the audience draw on themselves -- and others -- with colored ink pens.  They had a blast drawing pictures, writing notes, and copying tatto...