So, A Bunch of Italians and a Polack Went To the Zoo...

It is no secret that I love being surrounded by my family, but it's especially wonderful when I get to see my favorite aunt and uncle for the first time in nearly 5-1/2 years!

Twenty or more years ago the key family groups of Ferraras all moved from Long Island, seemingly at the same time.  Life was never the same after my paternal grandfather died, followed four years later by my beloved grandmother.  The ties that held us close together were broken and everyone was ready to start fresh somewhere new.  My brother and his family took off for Florida, then soon after, my parents, Jill and I joined them in the Sunshine State.  Aunt Barbara and Uncle David took off for to Utah, where Uncle David re-established his business in chemical sales (cleaning stuff?  Not even sure) in Salt Lake.

The last time we saw them was at my cousin David's wedding in Utah in 2004.  Way too much time was allowed to pass!

So imagine my glee when they announced they were coming down for a visit!! So yep, a couple of weeks ago Aunt Barbara and Uncle David (yes, the annoying one from Facebook) flew down to visit and stayed with us for four wonderful nights.  It was so amazing how within 30 seconds of being with them it was like time had stood still.  We went right back to our old rapport.  Even the kids latched on to them as if they'd only seen them last week.

I think I've mentioned before that Uncle David is a bit mental, just like the rest of us Ferraras.  We all have "conditions", "syndromes", "maladies", "disorders", "quirks" "phobias", "afflictions", and/or "dementia".

Are we not the coolest?

Anyhoodle, Uncle David is a bit of a freak about anything that goes into his mouth, moreso after losing a kidney and a 17 pound encapsulated cancerous tumor last year.

While he was here I learned the benefits of:

• Everything organic.  Gotta stay away from those horrible pesticides.
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• Not only brushing the dirt off the mushrooms, but washing them thoroughly because they're grown in flats of pure poop.
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• Washing all fruits with soap and water, even the ones where the skin or peel is not eaten, as in an orange.  Come on... those pesticides and such are now on your hands from peeling it and then you're going to eat the juicy insides with that crap on your digits.
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• Nitrite and nitrate-free hot dogs.  Sure, that funky chemical isn't in your food, but you have to cook all the hot dogs, and either eat them or throw them away because they don't have enough preservatives to even keep them frozen.
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• Fructose and cane juice is your friend.

• Whole milk is much better to use in my coffee, rather than the fat-free 1/2 and 1/2 that I love.  Look at the label!  They add corn syrup to that crap!

I tell ya what, while they were here my colon was in overdrive from all the organic granola and nuts I was snacking on.

Jill came over the second day of their visit and we had a great time just hanging out doing nothing.  I made a fairly fabulous dinner of chicken marsala that everyone devoured.

Upon Jill's arrival, she was promptly dispatched to bring Uncle David to Starbucks for his required afternoon latte.  Did I mention that one of Uncle David's afflictions is that he is unable to make his own cup of coffee, even after being shown exactly how to use the Keurig machine?  Uh huh, it's true.  He's actually too dumb  frickin' lazy to make his own coffee, so I spent much of my time as an unpaid barista.

The next day they wanted to go to the zoo.  Since I'd never been to the Jacksonville zoo and the weather was very warm, but not hot, I was excited to go.  We let the girls take a day off from school, and off we went with lunch and drinks packed in a cooler.

The zoo was beautiful but I was a little disturbed by how small some of the habitats are.  But, I still got some great shots of the fuzzbutts.

Okay, so these guys aren't fuzzy, but they sure are cute!

The animals were all so active because of the mild weather!

 Awwww... Madison found a baby bunny hiding in the mulch!

Look at how gorgeous this pair is!

 Girlfriend needed a drink...

 Check out this look she gave me!

 The giraffes were so beautiful.

 And the girls got to feed them!

This bird was so cool.  She led us down a path to the otter exhibit and then stood right next to me.  Aunt Barbara, having a fear of birds ever since their parrot, Rusty, bit her, kept scuffling away from my friend.

 "Barbara, does this carousel display make me look fat?"

 Madison brushed a cute little goat.

 Uncle David, resting in the sun.

This little guy was picking his nose and eating it.  From the look on his face I'd say it didn't taste very good.

It wasn't all fun and games while they were here.  There was also relaxation time, or what I like to call, "Aunt Barbara ignoring all the annoying people."

 See?  She's doing it again!  Uncle David looks to be contemplating the air quality.

One of the funniest things happened while I was taking a nap.  How could I miss something this good?  Thank goodness Aunt Barbara had the intelligence to grab the camera as soon as she heard screaming from outside.


"Barbara!  Help!!!!  The chair broke!  I can't get up!!!"

"It's like this.  I sat down, went to Facebook to take over Justine's account, and the chair bent over!"

"Look, I don't care if I was wrong to leave snarky updates on my niece's account.  Get me up and stop taking pictures!"

"Okay okay, I guess you're right and I do deserve the position I'm in.  Can you help me up now?"

"Oh, what have I ever done to be so forsaken?"

 "Okay!  I give up!  It's funny!  Really funny!  Can you help me up now so I can delete all of those pictures you just took?"

Did I mention that Uncle David lives just a few blocks away from my good friend, Pooba?  Good luck to ya Kelly, now that he knows exactly where you live!  And guess what Poo?  The aunt and uncle invited my girls to spend a week with them in July and I may just send them over to your house to decompress after spending hours in close proximity to my uncle. 


So there ya have it.  Most of our visit with Aunt Barbara and Uncle David.  I can't wait until they come back again!



No, really.  I'm serious!



Pssst! If you love me, you might love my stupid sister more. Go visit her at Jill's Believe it or Not, and tell her I sent you!