Birthday Fun

For Amy's birthday I got her lots and lots (well three pieces) of artwork. She will have to show you pictures. I'm sure you can look forward to that. She also wanted to go to one of the world' s largest outlet centers in San Marcos, TX. So yesterday we took time together (see 'We Make Time' post) and drove to the outlet mall with nearly 500 stores. As soon as we got out of the car this was Amy's expression:Here is what she saw that put a look of sheer joy on her face. Oh yes! That's a Pottery Barn / William Sonoma outlet.

While Amy was looking for practical things like this wonderful RED pitcher,

I was looking for absurd things to blog about. Here we have a automatic drink shaker - for those who are too lazy to shake the thing themselves.

And then there is this:

I'm having a contest. Let's see who can guess what this is. Please leave a comment with your guess. There is no prize (except of course a shout out), but I cannot wait to see the guesses. I'll post the answer soon.

After leaving Crate and Barrel, I found something that piqued my interest...

Amy trying to refocus my attention as there is a Restoration Hardware Outlet in the distance.

What could it be that has me jumping for joy??? Oh yes, it's a Starbucks!

My SIL, Shannon, enlightened me that Starbucks smells a little like a skunk on the inside. TIS TRUE!! The next time you drive by a skunk on the road, wait until the odor dies down a little then take in a big whiff. Think Starbucks, and you too will be a believer. Either the skunk won't smell as bad, or Starbucks will be a place you only visit by drive-thru in the future.

My father-in-law and I went into a Starbucks in Tulsa right around Christmas-time last year. The store was packed, so full that we could barely make it to the counter. Oddly there wasn't a noise in the building. It felt really, really awkward. These people seemed to be engaged in a visual dialogue. They were even laughing silently, slapping their knees at times. I finally couldn't help it. I just started staring at them all. And then I realized... They were signing to each other. Yes, it was a meeting of people who were unable to communicate verbally. The funny part about it was that it took the two of us nearly five minutes to figure this out.)

Now for those of you wondering what Amy enjoys at Starbucks (She HATES coffee.), here is a picture of a certain section of the menu. What could it be???

You guessed it! The Blended Creme Double Chocolaty Chip (no coffee of course).

And now some photos of ridiculous things we saw on our three-hour drive home:
A bathtub with a duck

A house with a large chicken in the front yard
The closed 'Rock-A-Bye' Motel looked frightening.
A functioning oil well pump with an airplane on top
The sign to the local airport and an advertisement for skydiving lessons
And finally a car that doubles as a cactus planter

Remember guesses are being accepted for what you think the green thing is. It is made of resin, costs $0.25 at the Crate and Barrel Outlet, and is odorless.