back to the grind

Last week Wednesday through Sunday our family visited my sister and brother-in-law in Dallas. Though the city doesn't have many cultural attractions to speak of--it boasts cement strip malls and chain restaurants--, we had a relaxing time walking around the Ft. Worth Zoo, enjoying dinner at Zorba's Greek Cafe, talking theology by the pool, and catching up in the living room. We slept late (all 3 of us) and loitered in our pajamas well past breakfast.

Then we flew home.

The alarm bleeped us back to reality on Monday morning, and in case we felt like snoozing, our built-in alarm woke up an hour earlier than he had all vacation. Yep, vacation is over, and it's back to the grind.

Here are a few pictures of our trip:

We decided the lion roaring at the zoo alone was worth our admission fee. This fellow had quite the superiority complex: he felt the need to exert his authority after he caught a playful paw in the jaw from his female counterpart. I suppose--keeping up appearances for the passers-by. Poor boy bolted the opposite direction from his watchful tante (and the commotion) when the king of the zoo bellowed his warning.


My son enjoyed the exotic bird exhibit where he mostly tried to touch the lime-yellow and sea-blue feathered strays which were seemingly in his reach...to no avail. He didn't seem too phased and found a bit of water on the ground to pat his palms in and swish around.

In true sports fan fashion, the hubby toured the new Texas Stadium with his brother-in-law. The television screen in the picture is actually one of the smaller side versions of the 40-million dollar one next to it. Apparently, it's the largest high-definition television in the world, and it cost more than the entire old Dallas Cowboy stadium.