The post where I may give you TMI....(too much information)

At the first of the year I posted several resolutions for this year.  Some I have been diligent with, others, not so much.  

But I'm trying to do better, really I am.  Which leads me to this post, where I make remarks about those resolutions, some points of interest I have learned and my love/hate relationship within them. Specifically the resolution to lose weight, eat healthier and become more fit overall. Hold on, here we go.

I have scoured the back of my Triscuit boxes, various nutritional guidelines online, a few posters set up in the fast food joints, etc.etc.

Do you know what I've found out?  Brace yourselves, it may be somewhat of a new revelation for you.....or not.

• McDonald's french fries and Krispy Kreme doughnuts are not located in any of the major food groups on the Food Pyramid.

SHOCKING, I know.  So, therefore, I've had to rein in my love affair with these two evil demons. 

To couple pain with the misery of no more HOT! NOW! glazed goodness, I also joined a gym.

You know, a gym.  Or you may recognize it by it's other name, THE TORTURE CHAMBER.

I also have a good friend who's a personal trainer....she looks HOT....and she was nice enough to compile me a proper workout plan.  Or at least I thought she was being nice, but alas, when I saw the plan, and then further upon implementing the plan, I've decided she might not be so nice afterall.  Clearly it would be hard to be nice when you work in THE TORTURE CHAMBER.

I had a leg workout earlier this week that literally left me near tears the following day.  It involved squats and leg presses, and abductor lifts, and lunges, and more lunges, and yet even more lunges WITH WEIGHTS!! I can't really talk about it much more or else I may burst into tears again just from the nightmares alone.  However, and here's where the TMI may come in to play, I feel you need to hear it in order to understand the beat down I took for this workout regimen.  I texted her the following day with this message:

• "Today's Update:  I'm learning to pee standing up because it hurts too bad to squat on the toilet. In other words, thanks."

So, if in recent days or possibly in the future, you see me enter the restroom doorway titled "MEN"....now you will know why.  Think nothing of it, and don't tell people I've finally lost my mind....that was gone a long time ago, now I'm just trying to lose these leftover doughnut hips and if using a urinal is what it takes, so be it. :)

Too bad Easter only comes once a year....shopping for a new dress is always fun!! :)

Baby Girl enjoys taking pics all dressed up....those boys can hardly wait to change into their play clothes....so no photo op for them. That'll teach 'em....yeah right!

I adore the fact that she can't help but start twirling whenever she has a dress with the slightest "twirlability"!!  These are the carefree days we all dream of.....savor them Baby Girl, savor them.  I know I certainly am.

I also enjoy watching her multitask with the best of them....hunting for eggs while eating a bit of your easter candy, all the while looking adorable yet focused. :)

We had yet another great Easter Sunday....worshipping our Risen Saviour, eating too much of that homemade potato salad, fried brim, and peach cobbler but still going back for seconds, hunting brightly colored eggs, playing backyard football, and my favorite....sitting on my grandmother's porch making lasting memories with family.

Hiding HIS words in your Heart---April's Verse

I think it's so wonderful that this month's H3 verse falls on Easter weekend.....really emphasizing why we chose to announce the new scriptures on the 3rd of the month..........HE AROSE!! 

They could beat him, spit on him, mock him, scream at him, despise him, test him, tempt him, be jealous of him, hate him, spear him, laugh at him, just about anything horrid you can think of....they did it to him.....and finally in the end, he died. 

And if the story stopped there, we would call it a tragedy.  We would say it was very sad.  We would probably not tell any of our friends to read it, because what's the point....the good guy dies in the end.

Thankfully, for me, for you, for everyone ever to live in this world, the story doesn't end there.  In fact, that's just where it starts getting good....because we all know what comes next!!  HE AROSE!!  And if you know someone who doesn't know the rest of the story, please tell them now.  Don't think of it like a ruining the best part of the book or movie.....spill the beans, spoil the spoiler.....TELL THE WORLD HE AROSE, HE LIVES, FOREVER! 

And don't forget to add in that we can also live forever, because of that ultimate sacrifice HE gave. 

• The sacrifice that cannot be stored in a pastel egg this season. 
• The sacrifice that is far sweeter than a dark chocolate bunny.
• The sacrifice that cannot be outdone by finding the golden prize egg--HE is the golden prize.
• The sacrifice that cannot be held in an adorable, woven, painted, monogrammed basket.
• The sacrifice that will never hide inside a bunch of plastic grass.

This month's verse comes from one of the gospels, Luke.  And as I searched, I noticed that Luke is the only gospel that gives this particular information in his account of Jesus' death.  The other gospels say that Jesus cried out, loudly, and then they also mention that afterwards he gave his last breath.  But what they leave out, and what ultimately Luke left in, spoke right to my heart.  And so, I am praying it will also speak directly to yours:

"Jesus called out with a loud voice, "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit."  When he had said this, he breathed his last."  ~~Luke 23:46

Luke gives us these humble words from Jesus.....and I can't wait to get to heaven and tell Luke, thanks.  Thanks for these words which I think we should all live by.  It should be something that we speak out, something that we cry out in a loud voice to the Lord, every single day he gives us breath...."Father, into your hands I commit my spirit"!!

Every single day, wake up and offer your life to the Lord. 

• Offer your talents to be used for the Lord. 
• Offer your desire to be in His will. 
• Offer your eyes to be opened to what He is showing you. 
• Offer your service to obey His commands.
• Offer your ears to hear what He is speaking to you.
• Offer your heart to hide his words in.....because you just never know when you, or someone around you, will need to hear them.

Y'all, I know I say it probably every month, but I just love this verse.  I don't know that I've ever really comtemplated it as much as I should.  

Father, in our quest to be more like Christ, let us all give our spirit to you, to mold, shape, and keep safe in your hands.

Happy Easter!
He Arose!

WE HAVE A WINNER!!!

Remember a couple of days ago we posted about a GIVEAWAY, for a wonderful devotional book.  It was very exciting....so exciting I can't wait to do another giveaway....maybe we'll make it a monthly post on House of Bowling as well....who knows?!?

Today it was time to pick a winner....and while I personally knew almost every one of the 16 folks who left comments, and I'd love to give them as well as the ones I don't know, one of these books, that just wasn't possible.  I could't choose between friends/readers so the easiest way was to randomly draw. 

We pulled out our fancy random drawing mechanism.....making 16 slips of paper,

folding them up all nice and tight and placing them in fancy holder.....

And I called in a RANDOM helper to do the RANDOM drawing....well, RANDOMLY. 

See, she's holding the winning number in her hand.....

(I thought it would make it easier for you not to be mad about not winning if you saw the RANDOM helpers cute face with the disappointing news).....

That's right, #1 in the comments, the first commenter,  jtwelch , YOU ARE THE WINNER!!!  Can you even believe it???  I couldn't.  I kept thinking to myself....of all these giveaways I've seen in blog world, even with those high tech random interger computer tech thingies....#1 never shows up.....but this time it did!!

And for all of you who entered, sorry you didn't win, but remember there's always next time---you just never know when next time may pop up!! :)

Man's best friend and a leap of faith....

I was in shock Monday afternoon about 4:30.  Our beloved yellow lab was hit by a car.

"WHAT!?!?  I was hit by a car! Oh my!"

Yes, that's right.  I took the call from my Dad....."I think Sadie's just been hit by a car.  I can't see her, but I can hear her crying and I think she's trying to get home to you".  And that's exactly what she was doing.  I ran out to meet her, saw she was only walking on 3 legs, was panting like she was almost seizing, was bleeding, and was just in a lot of pain and trauma.  So I called our friends who are Vets, scooped her up and rushed her over to be checked out.

I had to leave her overnight.  They hooked her up an IV line, cleaned her leg, cuts and scrapes, gave her some pain meds and in the morning they took x-rays. 

"Yep, I'm tough. I'm kind of like a bionic dog....almost."

So, the good news, Sadie's leg wasn't broken.  Her x-rays came back fine.  She was going to be released to come home and I needed to go pick her up. 

The bad news,they told me when I arrived, is that the leg that was hit by the car was the same leg we had that big, expensive surgery on back in 2008.  She can't have anymore surgeries on that leg. They think she has probably torn her ACL or MCL or whatever that is called in the knee area again.....but, no more surgeries for that leg.  So, she may walk around holding it up beside her for a while, hopefully not for forever, although there's plenty of 3 legged dogs running around.  I just didn't want mine to be one of them.  For now, she's relishing in the fact that everyone is doting over her even more than before, she's getting special priviledges of sleeping inside at night again, and we are rubbing cream on her wounds (that are healing really nicely) and she's getting drugs....lots of drugs....wrapped in cheese.  What's better than a good old pain killer/sharp cheddar cocktail? :)

So, that would almost be the end of the story, except I've left out one small part.  When I rushed out headed to the Vet Clinic with Sadie laying on a towel in my front seat, I was in a complete panic mode....crying, heart palpitating, Sadie's blood on my arms,etc...obviously my mind was elsewhere and I didn't pay attention to this:

That silly cat was on top of my car. Where he tends to stay much of the day. Well....until the other day.  I was about 1/3 mile from our house when suddenly I saw a white blur come flying down in front of my windshield and leap (literally for his life) into the nearby woods.

Now, I'm not one to say one human life is of more value than another, however, let's just say if it was my sister and her husband, and I could only save one.....well, all I can say is I love you Kevin and it's been a blast having you in the family, but I'm gonna pick my sister.

And the same with animals, while maybe one is not of more value than the other, when I realized Mr. Jingles had been hanging on to the luggage rack for dear life, and then leapt from the car and had his front and back legs stretched out as far as he could (if he would have had a cape on his back he would have looked just like that cartoon character UnderDog flying through the air).....all I could think was, "Oh my, I do hope you clear the wheels because if I run over you, I don't have time to stop and bring you along, my Sadie Lady is hurting too bad and I can't lose her......but it's been nice knowing you my feline friend."

The good news is when I returned, Mr. Jingles was snuggled up in Sadie Lady's bed waiting for me.  And when I pulled in, he promptly looked at me and my two ton vehicle with much disgust.

I'm just sayin'....in the grand scheme of things, Sadie would be like my sister and that crazy cat like my brother-in-law. I'm gonna pick my dog every time.  She's been so loyal to us, and has never once stuck her nose up in the air like she's better than us....never once....but that cat, ugh.   Maybe it's because we've only had the cat for a little over a year....he hasn't grown on me as much yet.  But I will tell you he better start buttering up to me soon because he just used up one of those 9 lives with that death defying leap of faith. 

OOPS....my bad.

So the GIVEAWAY was to end today at noon and we'd pick a winner.  I don't know how I thought that would happen.  No one is around right now .... and I had fully expected this high tech random picking (aka the drawing out of the hat scenario) to be done by one of the kids.

Therefore, we'll need to wait until tonight for the BIG DRAW.   I'm sorry....but just know that there will be a winner chosen!  :)

GIVEAWAY DAY!!!

During our road trip travel posts, on Sunday when we visited one of the smallest churches in America (this one was in Minnesota), I mentioned we worshipped together as a family....just our family, with everyone participating.  This was the kids' devotional book I talked about reading from that I brought along for the trip. 

I've had several people inquire about it, and I have always wanted to do a giveaway on the blog, so what better way than to give away this devotional....the entries are short, memorable, exciting, and FUN!

This devotional book is really neat....and all 3 of my children LOVE it!! It keeps their interest, is very engaging, makes for wonderful discussions, and is super easy to correlate a scripture, God's word, into our daily lives.  I think it has a suggested age of 8-12....but I'd dare to say it's great for any age....0-99....it has fun, interesting facts and stories for everyone which are followed by a scripture verse to tie everyday life together with what the Bible says!  My husband and I both enjoy it as well.  We'll send the kids to brush their teeth or put away clothes or get pajamas on, and they'll each yell back...."don't start reading without me"  or  "wait for me before you do the devotion"!! 

Now, here's the rub....apparently we've had this book longer than I first thought.  It is now out of print. I couldn't find it at any of the book stores, or the Lifeway stores I ventured to in our area.  So, I was planning on giving a chance to win this devotional to one of you....but instead, you'll have to settle for the 2nd edition, which I'm certain will prove to be just as engaging for the entire family!!

To enter, all you need to do is leave a comment on this post, just your name is fine, a favorite book you've loved, what you ate for supper last night, your favorite color, anything at all....and a winner will be chosen, randomly, on Thursday , April 1, around noon.  I'm not too keen on the tech world aspects, nor do I expect many will enter, so we'll be doing things the old fashioned way here at House of Bowling....drawing a number from the hat! :) 

Even if you don't have children, go ahead and enter.....you can give it to your nieces or nephews, or grandchildren,  or surprise your friend that has kids (what mom wouldn't love a good devotional book) or maybe you need a birthday gift, or baby gift......the possibities are endless, I'm sure everyone has someone in mind who could use it, even if you can't!! :)

Yet another good reason to eat more bacon.....

LOOK!!  A non road-trip related post! YIPPEE!!

You may or may not remember this POST from last summer....and now I'll explain how it ties into today's little tidbit of information courtesy of Baby Girl.

Yes, it's more make-up advice from a 3rd grader....but it's golden, I tell you, golden.

• We were getting ready for Sunday School yesterday morning, I was in the process of tying a ribbon in her freshly brushed hair.  She asked could she please have one more piece of bacon....I said sure, but hurry, you still need to brush your teeth before we leave. She hopped right back in just a few minutes, admiring herself in the mirror, and stated matter of factly:

~~~~"Look Mama, you can eat a piece of bacon and then the grease from it can make your lips look like you've just put on fresh lipgloss."

Yes, indeed....she has a career in the cosmetic industry for sure....wouldn't you buy one of her little piggy bacon flavored lipgloss tubes if you could? 

Just wanted to share that with y'all....I'd hate for you to be rushing out for the day and have forgotten your lipstick, when all you needed to do was eat another piece of bacon for the road and you're all set! :)  To say thanks for y'all wading through the whole road trip posts, and sticking it out with me, I just wanted to let you know I'll be having a GIVEAWAY here at House of Bowling tommorrow.  Nothing big, just a little something from me to you.....assuming someone enters the giveaway. :) 

Hope you had a great weekend.....and have a super week as well.....you know April hits this week? Can you believe it? And Easter is coming up....the year is flying by again!!

In the words of Porky Pig...ttttthat's All Folks!!

The sun was setting on Day 6 as we were heading home to Alabama.  

House of Bowling Spring Break Road Trip 2010....was in the books.

No reservations. No schedules. No agenda. Just the open road waiting for us.

---We saw some pretty fabulous parts of our America. Big tourist spots, small town local flair, farmland galore.

---We ate some pretty fabulous food....only local places, sometimes hard to find, but worth the drive.

---We made some memories, together as a family, that won't soon be forgotten.  In fact, I dare say, and it is my fervent prayer, that these road moments will "stick with us" forever.

We all had the best time together, and that is just what we set out to accomplish. 

I appreciate you sticking it out through these past few days of POSTS GALORE!!!  Certainly, I wanted to share with you all to see and enjoy, or learn something you didn't know, or get a smile from the American stops our family made.....however, as with all things on the blog, it was primarily for our family to scrapbook, to document this travel, to put another road trip down in the record book, so to speak. 

Just some fast facts:

• We were on the road for 6 days.
• We traveled over 3,100 miles.
• We made stops in the following states: Arkansas, Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, Minnesota, Iowa and Illinois.
• Once these states were added to the list, our kids have been in a grand total of half the states in America.  That's right, Baby Girl and Middle Boy have both been to exactly 25 states, and Elder Son has been to 27 (he has a couple extra from a 2008 hunting trip to Texas). 

Do I think they'll get the other half? Will they make stops in the future to the 25 remaining states?

Sure....but they may have to start handling the driving, and the researching, and the packing, and the funding of these trips..... :)

One last stop on our Road Trip, one more state to check off the list..... (day 6)

One of, if not THE first bridge to be built over the Mississippi River.....The Eads Bridge.

and guess what....it's still in use today.  So, we left the Gateway Arch, drove right over Eads Bridge....and found ourselves in another state...

....we entered The Land of Lincoln...Illinois!!

Mark another state off the list.... 

Gateway Arch....a claim to fame in St. Louis!--(day 6)

Now, don't get me wrong, the Gateway Arch was definitely a stop I wanted us to make.  But I kept thinking to myself, it's just an arch.  And even after we arrived in the city, driving past it illuminated at night and seeing it the following morning from atop Busch stadium, I thought in my head, it doesn't look like much....in fact it doesn't even look like it's really all that massive......it left me saying in my mind, come on, show me something,  to the "Show Me State".....

.......then we weren't looking at it from afar anymore, we walked right up to it..... my kids stood beside a panel....and they instantly looked like a scene from "Honey, I Shrunk the Kids".....

The Gateway Arch is MASSIVE!!

And breathtakingly beautiful.....

The most unfortunate news was that upon our arrival into the lower area of the arch, where the history and tours are located.  And the first sign we see...."Tours to the Top are SOLD OUT".....awwww....SOLD OUT.  No.  But yes, it was true.  They run a North and South side tram, with about an hour tour that takes you to the top....however, only one side was working that day, and thus the tickets sold out early. 

We looked around at all the history located in their museum....not just items relative to the Gateway Arch, but many aspects of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, Early settlers, Indian artifacts, etc....  we even took a picture of Baby Girl standing beside what appeared to be her PawPaw's first car!!!   We haven't shown him the photo yet to confirm our thoughts, but soon.

Not to be dismayed by the whole downer associated with the no tour to the top....I found solace in the gift shop in the form of a sweet goodness.......caramel meets nougat.  And all was right with my world again.

And we ventured back outside the Gateway Arch, and surrounding park, to soak up the gorgeous day in St. Louis.....with these 3 great kiddos!

One last look of the skyline, exiting the city....

Thank you, Missouri, for a superb afternoon!

A stop the guys will enjoy--Busch Stadium--(day 6)

Sometimes a girls gotta do.....what the guys want to do.  So, Baby Girl and I got ready for a day at the old ballpark.....the St. Louis Cardinals ballpark, that is....Busch Stadium.  

Home of "Stan, The Man, Musial".....a hero to St. Louis Cardinal fans....and baseball lovers everywhere.

Here was our hero of the day...our tour guide, "Coach".  A retired high school and collegiate baseball coach, who has lived and breathed St. Louis and it's famous ball team for DECADES!  He and his wife even go down every March to Florida to watch Spring Workouts for the MLB teams.  He was a great guide....so fun, so full of life, and so very informative who also shared some really great stories!!

The lush field.....major league baseball really knows how to make the grass look greener....for sure!!!

A fun side story on our tour.....in the "Cardinal Room", I believe.  I don't really know for sure, we saw several insider rooms throughout the stadium, including the "on air live" press room and the owner's suite.   But this room houses this funky wallpaper.  Yes, that's wallpaper.  And it was made from replicas of old baseball cards of St. Louis Cardinal players.   

Well, almost all of the players featured were a Cardinal once....except for this guy.  Satchell Paige.  He never suited up in a uniform for the St. Louis Cardinals, but he did play for the St. Louis Browns which later became the ballclub we know today as the Baltimore Orioles.  But, you ask, why is he so prominently displayed on the wallpaper?  Good question, and here's the story behind the answer:

Bill DeWitt, Jr. is chairman and CEO of the Cardinals.  He and a few of his friends bought out the franchise several years ago.  When this new Busch Stadium was completed in 2006 he had this wallpaper idea.....but wanted to also include Satchell Paige.  You see, this franchise owner had come full circle in his lifetime.....when he was only a young boy, he was a bat boy for the St. Louis Browns, and thus, a bat boy for Satchell Paige, so he wanted to make certain he was on the wall of fame....even though Paige never played for the Cardinals.  

Here's another little side story from our tour, about a previous owner, you might recognize his name...this bust sits outside a stadium entrance in honor of him....August Anheuser Busch, Jr.   He owned the Cardinal franchise from 1953 until his death in 1989.

And the story goes that when he purchased them, he wanted to change the name of the field to Budweiser Stadium....a clever marketing scheme to sell more of his beer....however, the baseball commissioner said no way.  So, he said well, how about we name it "Busch Stadium"....and everyone agreed, assuming he merely wanted to honor the family name, or himself.  

Still the businessman....he was procuring yet another clever marketing tactic.....because within a year of the stadium being renamed BUSCH.....the company Anheuser-Busch developed a new beer....known only as "Busch beer".  And after being in 3rd place in beer sales at the time, behind Miller and Schlitz....they overtook both of those companies and became the number one brewery with the best selling beer (Budweiser) in the US.  And as Paul Harvey always says....now you know the rest of the story.  

See the Gateway Arch in the background?  What a view from your stadium seat!

After touring the inside of the stadium, Champions Club, Cardinal Room, etc., we ventured out to the real seats....

And to our pleasant surprise, were even allowed to go right down on the field....the boys were so thrilled!!

Elder Son "takes a call from the bullpen"......

Seriously?  The St. Louis Cardinals dugout? You've got to be kidding....sitting where many of the Cardinal baseball greats, like Albert Pujols, sit....so fun!

It was an amazing day....even for us girls! :)  We all enjoyed the tour....Middle Boy thought it was the highlight of the trip....really cool for my boys.

Yet again, we had ice cream for supper, this time in NEBRASKA---(day 2--a little late)

Sorry, this post was lost in the road trip shuffle, and after the Ted Drewes post from yesterday, I remembered there was another time on the road trip when we accepted Ice Cream as the only choice for our supper fare.  And this evening brought us to check off the great state of Nebraska. Omaha, in fact.

Yes, call me a bad mother.  I careth not. 

I do, however, enjoy a good ice cream.  Especially in a shop as quaint as this one located in the old, historic, downtown market place of Omaha.

They have some of the neatest flavors of ice cream....all homemade right in the shop, daily, in these big wooden ice cream churns. Their ice cream makers work the old fashioned way too, with rock salt and ice!!  Different flavors, different times. Aside from the standard regulars, vanilla, chocolate, strawberry....on any given day they may be serving up-- French Toast, Guinness (yes the beer), cinnamon graham cracker, Green Tea, Margarita, Molasses, Rum raisin, Pineapple, ....just to name a few.....

Middle boy stated so cleverly at the table, that he, Baby Girl and I were representing different coutries with our ice cream choices....DUTCH chocolate, IRISH coffee and my choice of margarita....which he promptly said was of MEXICAN descent. :) 

I'm sad to say that the margarita ice cream was not my favorite, but I loved the coffee and the chocolate.  I used to always order this sorbet type stuff at Baskin Robbins called "daiquiri ice"...it was a light, pale aqua color and tasted so refreshing. Anyone heard of it???   I haven't been able to find it at a Baskin Robbin in YEARS...maybe even a DECADE!  Sad, but true.  Anyway, I was hoping the margarita would be similar, but it didn't make my tasted buds jump for joy.  Oh how I miss the daquiri ice of my youth. :)

Elder Son ventured out to be the big dog that he is, looking past the piddly cup of coffee cream Baby Girl ordered, and the chocolate filled waffle cone of Middle Boy.

Instead he bellied up to the table with a full on MAN SIZE, completely loaded, banana split.

His motto: Go big (real big, as in huge) or go home.

He worked the hardest, lingered the longest over his supper, and to our sheer but delighted surprise.....

He finished the entire concoction.  Yes, mam, or sir if you're reading, he ate the whole thing.  Including those cheeries that he'd saved til the end.

I'm sad to report that this, unfortunately, only filled up that apparent hole in his big toe for a short while.  Teenage boys....you can't fill them up no matter how hard you try.

What better to cap off a great evening of ice cream in Omaha, than a piggy back ride down the cobblestone streets?  So sweet.

Ice Cream for Supper....(day 5)

Yes, I said we had ICE CREAM for supper.  And I am not ashamed.  In fact this was the 2nd time for this phenomenon on our road trip.  And yes, I forgot to post the other time, but never fear that post should arrive in the morning....lest I forget this time in our lives, when ICE CREAM was supper. :)

This stop is pretty famous....a staple feature on Route 66 for over 70 years....and it has been featured on Food Network!!  So, of course, we HAD to try it out! 

The kids were a bit skeptical when we were riding in the elevator of the hotel, ready to go out for supper and I announced we were going to eat CONCRETE.  

Because you see, CONCRETE is the specialty at Ted Drewes place.

There were 6 lines of people, about 6-8 people deep, clamoring about to order some CONCRETE, a milkshake, or even several folks who were there with their dogs, ordering the canine a little frozen custard treat!! 

I couldn't believe all the folks, on a March night, still a bit of a chill in the air.  I cannot imagine this place on a hot, summer night in July!!!  

So, back to what we came for....the moment we could all say we ate some CONCRETE. 

As noted when you find Ted Drewes on the web:

The shop may be best known for a specialty called a "concrete". A concrete is custard blended with any combination of dozens of ingredients, served in a large yellow cup with a spoon and straw. A concrete is blended so thick that it and its spoon do not fall out when the cup is turned upside-down. Servers often demonstrate this before handing an order to the customer. Seasonal ingredients, such as apple and pumpkin pie, appear for a short period every year.

Upon inspection of the menu, I knew immediately what I would order....a concrete entitled "ALL SHOOK UP". 

No, I don't really have a huge fascination with all things Elvis related.

Yes, this is the second time in the same matter of days, that I've ordered Elvis inspired food.

I do have a love for banana flavors, and in fact, I do love a good Elvis song every now and then (Love Me Tender, anyone?).  But this ALL SHOOK UP concrete at Ted Drewes....well....it was better than anything Elvis I've ever experienced.

That Elvis.

He really knew a good flavor combination....bananas and peanut butter. 

Or as in the ALL SHOOK UP concrete---bananas and reese's peanut butter cups!!! YUM-O!

Of course we couldn't stand around outside this famous attraction and not try out the CONCRETE test for ourselves.....

Elder Son, a bit skeptical, only went half-way over with his cookie dough concrete.....

However, Baby Girl showed no fear, she turned her CONCRETE right upside down and let it hang out a while, much to her Daddy's dismay. 

I'm happy to report, the CONCRETE name help up and not a drop of frozen custard goodness was lost!