Some things you never outgrow.

Lately, Ive been having dreams about being a kid again. Dreams where I'm gliding across the ground, running over to my friends house. Gliding barefoot, in the summertime, when I was about 14 and only weighed about 115 lbs, and the wind is blowing in my hair and I'm so happy. I'm skipping and so happy and going over to my friends house (FRANCIE).

I can see the willowy pampass grass of my retired neighbors The Fergusons, blowing in the wind and the grass is cool and soft (they had the best st. Augustine beautiful lawn and I never used the sidewalk, always skipped on the grass) and Im wearing some summer time shorts and top and my hair smells like "Gee your hair smells terrific" shampoo and im excited about seeing her and what we will do that day.
Sometimes we would walk down to ALLSUPS in the shade of the big trees, barefoot and buy penny candy and Mad Magazine. (Giggling like goofy young girls do and laughing so hard my stomach would ache!)


We'd also buy Cherry SLURPEES and Sour Apple Jolly Ranchers and Milk Duds. The sky is blue and has little white puffy clouds. I don't have a care in the world. And each day is a wonder, a long day of playing, laughing, games, hide and go seek, swimming, talking, laughing, listening to our little transistor radio.(Listening to 1976 Elton John, Capt and Tenille, all those great 70s songs.) Then I start to remember the summertime foods my mom would make.
Fried chicken, mashed potatoes. Banana pudding! watermelon, homemade ice cream, and oh yea.... JELLO!
Jello. the ultimate summer time treat! Cold, and flavorful. is there anything better when you are hot and your mouth is parched, than a big mouthful of chilled, jiggily sweet jello?

The first time I made Jello for my son he was about 6, he had come home from school and I had made 5 different flavors and layered them in Parfait glasses. I had filled the top shelf with them and when he pulled open the fridge he almost had a heart attack! WHOA! MOMMY! Whats that?! He loved it.
Yesterday was a perfect spring day. Sunny and mild. Beautiful and i thought about my son coming home. (He doesn't work on Mondays and gets home early for once on Mondays.)
and so I made it again.
Some people say they know its almost summer, when they see the Robins building nests, or the mesquite trees finally leaf out. But in our house, we know its almost summer because the fridge is filled with a rainbow full of red, yellow, green, blue and orange WIGGILY JIGGILY JELLO!

So when I take a bite of this magical sweet delight, Im a kid again, skipping through the neighborhood over to my friends house and life is simple and good and happy and carefree again. The grass is green, the trees are Huge and beautiful, the sky is blue and life is good! (We lived in a beautiful neighborhood with some gorgeous older well maintained homes. Hillcrest in Plainview, TX)

Why don't you make some this weekend? And buy some pretty dessert glasses at Bed Bath and Beyond and surprise your kids or family? Or come on over and have some with me! Im going to visit Francie in a couple of weeks. (In Canyon TX) (I haven't been to her house in about 18 years!) And We will have to make some Jello for sure. (Oh and if threes an Allsups near her home, we should walk there and buy a Mad Magazine too.)