WW: Meramec Cavern {Linky}

Meramec Cavern was my favorite stop on our trip to Missouri. You can camp there, but we camped a ways away at a KOA. 

We stayed in a cabin because it has been so rainy.

We were excited to go cave exploring. It got to 50 degrees in the cave. This was the boy's 2nd cave that they've been in. I made sure I grabbed our headlamps. Travis was laughing at us because he refused to wear one.

Headlamps fit better on boy hair. We're all looking up because otherwise you just see light in the photo.

There is just so many neat formations inside this cave! The cave is 400 million years old. It's slowly formed from limestone. In the past Native Americans used the cavern system for shelter. 

These formations look like grapes. They call the room in the cave, "The Wine Room". The area is known for their grapes and wine. Sadly we were not served wine.

This spot actually looks twice the size. 1/2 of that is water - a reflection. 

Have you been cave exploring?

 

Nebraskaland

We went to a state park Eugene T. Mahoney State Park for our family reunion. It's an awesome state park. If you are ever in Nebraska I strongly suggest that you go there. To me it's one of the main attractions next to our world famous zoo. 

First off it's $5 to get into the park. That's an all day pass. Different things in the park will cost money as well. It's not super expensive though. 

Summer Events:

• Horse Back Riding (weather permitting)
• Mini Golf
• Paddle Boats 
• Water Slides, and Swimming Area

All Year Around Events:

• Walter Scott Observation Tower (Free)
• Crafts (Some are Free)
• Indoor Play Area (Gigantic!)
• Trails (Free)
• Camping (Book in Advance)
• Brunch in the Peter Kiewit Lodge 
• Movies

Winter Events:

• Toboggan Run 

Our Safari Zoo is right near there, as well as a few other fun places.

This time around we didn't do a whole lot. Mica was sick from eating too much the day before. It was hot, so we couldn't ride the horses.

I still took photos of our hike, and our hike up the tower.

A few random photos from our hike:

This is the view of the Platte River from the Walter Scott Observation Tower:

This is the view from the tower of my kids observing a bug on the ground:

Off the interstate we decided to stop off to see a shrine called Holy Family Shrine. I've seen it many times before, but never got to see it up close until this weekend. I love interesting buildings!

All around is native Nebraska grasses and flowers. 

I wanted to hike more, but that's about the time that Isaak lost it. He was thirsty, and tired all at once. We did a lot of walking that we did in that heat.

Noelle from Jumpin Beans thought I had corn all around me. I had to laugh because I really only see corn when I'm traveling a few times a year. I live in the city, so no corn. Some years we grow it in our backyard. There certainly isn't corn all around though. 

This is how close we get to corn and cows:

Isaak said, "Hey there's a bunch of horses!" They were cows. I had a chuckle over that one. Yes most of Nebraska is corn and cows. Omaha is a city. 

Here's my once, or twice a year view of corn (photo below). I would have taken a photo of the horses cows, except for the fact that there was a guy driving behind us on a gravel road. Omaha doesn't have very many gravel roads either. 

The majority of Nebraska is for sure a corn, cow and grass state. It has pretty flat land. Much of the time you can see for miles and miles in the country. We have 4 true seasons here. What is it like where you live?

The Best Pedicure With Own Harmony Electric Callus Remover

I got Own Harmony Electric Callus Remover - Easy Pedicure to review. It's really nice to have one of the best pedicures on the market in your own home!

I was born with my Dad's flat feet. I try and wear my arch supports everyday if possible. It is harder in the summer time. I want to wear skirts, and let's face it tennis shoes don't work with skirts. I've always had a problem with getting callus' on my big toes, since I was about 10 years old. I usually just let them be. Man they come right back! I thought maybe this Own Harmony Electric Callus Remover might do the trick with grinding them down!

Professional Results:

• I'm going to no longer scrubbing my toes with grater-like products.  

• I can say, "Goodbye" to the pumice stone, and hello to this pedicure device. 

• I still shouldn't be wearing my favorite sandals, but will anyhow. 

• I can pamper my feet with spa-like pedicure in the comfort of my home. I was always embarrassed to get pedicures at places. 

• Years of callused skin give way to baby-soft skin in just minutes! 

You do need to charge it 8 hours before use. You can tell it's charging because a red light appears on it. Once it's charged you do not need a cord.

✔ More Power:

This is a newer model. It has more power than other brands out there. Charge once and use multiple times, there is no need to keep it plugged in! This product is powerful. Do not apply pressure or use for more than 3-4 seconds on same area. Your best results will come with gentle use over several days. A big part of why I let my feet go was that they get just as bad right away. Now I don't have to worry about that.

✔ Wallet-Friendly and Eco-Friendly:

Love getting pedicures? I wouldn't know. I've always been too self conscious over my feet to get a pedicure by other people. My sister said, "That's exactly why you get one." I said, "I just don't feel comfortable with it." With this product you feel like you've gone to a professional minus the pedicure costs. It's rechargeable, so you don't need sets of batteries. Save your money, while protecting the environment. It works better than pumice stone, scrubs or grater-like foot files. Those are the things I was using. It's a win-win on all levels!

✔ Comfort and Built to Last:

Tired of scrubbing your feet for hours in the shower? This innovative design gives you better results in less time. You can even use it while watching TV! Ergonomic design, easy to hold and use. Improved safety lock button. The roller is made of quartz micro mineral crystals designed for long-term use. 11% more surface area in the roller than similar products, improving your results.

✔ Money-Back Guarantee:

With your order, you're protected by a 60 day, no-questions asked money back guarantee and world class customer service! The cost was $79.99, but it's on sale for $25.99! You can purchase this through Amazon Prime.

Do you have good feet, or are you like me and have bad feet?

 

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. 

We've had lots of family time lately. My Grandpa just turned 89! He has an older sister that's still alive. His mother, my Great Grandma, and the boy's Great Great Grandma died when she was 92. I was a freshman in high school when she passed away. It was my closest relative up to that point in my life to die. They must have long living genes in that side of the family.

My Grandpa has 4 kids, 9 grandchildren, and 16 great grandchildren (1 passed away). 

Here are a all the grandchildren and great grandchildren that were at my grandpa's party. I'm on the left with the blue shirt, 1st in the middle row. I'm the one with allergy eyes. My Aunt has a cat. My Grandpa is in the middle. My kids are in the first row on both sides.

Here are the Great Grandchildren that were there. I took a few photos due to the fact that some were not looking (Isaak being one of them).

Here's my Mom (first in the white shirt), my Aunts, and Grandpa.

Do you still have a grandparent that is alive?

This weekend we had a family reunion on that side. It was at a state park. People ate together, and went to do their own thing after that. 

My parents took Mica out the day before for his pre-birthday lunch and shopping event. The boy ate WAY TOO much! I didn't realize that he ate so much, and we had a fairly big dinner. The day of the reunion Mica was as full as a tick. I thought he was going to pop. He did. We were hiking before the reunion. All the sudden behind me Mica popped all over the sidewalk. We didn't feed him anything at the reunion. We refused to take the boys to the pool area. I was afraid he might pop in there, and they'd have to shut it down for everyone.

I knew Mica wasn't sick. He was acting fine all afternoon. Instead of swimming the kids played in an indoor play area that was gigantic, we climbed a tower, and visited a shrine that was in the area. I wanted to go horse back riding so bad, but they had that shut down due to the high heat. I don't know how that works. Something tells me back in the day that horses were rode no matter what the temperature was like. It was a pretty full day. We were all beat due to the heat, hiking, and tower climbing.

I Need a Force Field

One day we went to the splash park with one of Isaak's friends. Mica stood under this water and said prior to his water adventure, "Mom I'm check out my force field! Ok?" So I did.

Today I need a force field. YouTube shut one of my review videos down. I made a different video, and they shut that one down to. It was nothing nude, or profane. All it was, was me showing some paint brushes I got to review. I showed how to paint. I talked about the mediums I used. 

Now my account is red flagged. They had a message on it that if I refuse to abide by their terms I may not be able to use YouTube at all. I read the terms. Nothing was different than any other review I've done.

My fingers are crossed that this is their mistake - not mine. I appealed it. I feel like I'm in hot water. I most certainly need a force field.

If Your Parent or Child Committed a Major Crime, Would You Turn Them In?

Michael at A Life Examined has a question every month. You can blog about your own answer, and link up on his site.
  
The question this month is: If your parent or child committed a major crime, would you turn them in?

It all depends on what the crime is, and the context of that crime. More than likely the answer would have to be yes. I do believe that people can change from good to bad, and bad to good. If someone I love commits a major crime they can change from that. Of course they have earn trust back again.

Looking back on history there have been some pretty ridiculous things that were considered to be a major crimes, and other people didn't see things the same way as the government did. Take Jewish people being shipped off to concentration camps. If I lived in that time in Germany I'd be the one trying to dig a hole in my basement to give them somewhere to go to protect them. Sometimes it's not even the government that we have to fear. Albinos in Africa are being hunted right now for their body parts. Why? Because Witchdoctors believe their bodies have some kind of magical powers. Crazy!

Mica and Isaak have always gotten in trouble for troublesome behavior. When Mica was 5 he had his bedroom door taken off the hinges for slamming the door. He had been warned. This time Isaak's fingers were in it. He longed for privacy. He lost that privilege. His door was gone for 2 months.

Both boys have had to write letters to people in their class that they have done wrong by. Thankfully this has only happened 3 times: Mica fibbed once, he kissed someone in Kindergarten another time, Isaak stepped on someone's scissors, and wouldn't let his foot up. These were all pretty minor things. They get in trouble for small things. Big things should have major consequences.

If one of my kids killed, raped, or murdered someone they should be locked away. That's the only thing that could prevent that from happening again. If they killed someone because it was self defense that problem isn't going to go away, so they may as well face it up front. If they were accused of something they didn't do, again that problem isn't going away, so they should just turn themselves in. 

 

I'd turn anyone I love in if they were a threat to society. Would you?

Hydracentials Insulated Reusable Lunch Bag

I take my lunch every day, except for Saturday and Sunday to work. My bag was looking a little worn out. I've washed it, but through time things just start to look tired and old. I'm happy to have gotten Hydracentials Insulated Reusable Lunch Bag to review. It came just before school starts. It's a perfect back to school present for this teacher!
  I chose the black one:

It comes in purple and pink to:

About: 

• Size: 10.5 inches x L 9.5 inches H x 5 in D - Perfect to fit a lunch and an additional snack!

• Insulated with PEVA to keep your contents hot or cold.

• Material: 420D Polyester and PEVE Insulation

• Cost: $19.97

Here's what it looks like with a container that has Chicken Cordon bleu, veggies, and a reusable bag with 1/2 a peach. 

    

You can see that there is still plenty of room. I sometimes pack 2 lunches. My other lunch container wouldn't have room for 2 lunches. Now I can get buy with all that in there. There's certainly enough room for a lunch and a snack!

You can see the insulation in this photo. The white part is insulated. This makes it a great lunch box if you are traveling somewhere. Sometimes I set my lunch out in the morning, so I don't forget it. Well there is a time lapse. I don't need to worry about anything getting spoiled.

There are 2 zippers on it. It seems really sturdy.

 

An Eco Friendly Way to bring your lunch to school, work, or while you're on the go!

Do you take a lunch anywhere?

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.