The first time I saw the Trampoline Thing, was at a store opening. I had my kids with me, who were 7 and 10. They both wanted to try it out.  There must have been 40 other kids who wanted to do it also as it took well over an hour to get to the front of the line. I was amazed that everyone was doing such a great job of waiting for their turn.  It was fun to watch the kids in front of us having their turn; they were all having a blast. It...

In 1959 a man by the name of John Scurlock was watching some of his employees bounce on an inflatable tennis cover he recently designed. The employees were having so much fun that Scurlock was struck with the idea of an inflatable floor for recreational purposes. Soon Scurlock’s idea progressed and he started a company called “Space Walks.” These Space Walks started out as inflatable mattresses but soon progressed into bounce...

The first recorded snow cones were produced by Samuel Bert of Dallas, TX in 1919 at the State Fair of Texas. He created the first ice-crushing snow cone machine in 1920 and sold both snow cones and snow cone machines until his death in 1984. The first block-style ice shaving machine was patented in 1934 by Ernest Hansen of New Orleans, Louisiana. An immense hit, Hansen’s snow cones set themselves apart because of the difference in...

Most would assume that cotton candy came into existence in the late nineteenth century, but that’s not correct. Cotton candy was actually a popular trend in Italy that began in the 1400′s. The old fashioned way of making cotton candy – or spun sugar as it was called – was to melt sugar in a pan and then use a fork to make strings of sugar over an upside down bowl. The sugar would then dry in strings and be served as a...