“I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream!”  I loved this song growing up but now as a parent I think it comes out more of a whine than a song.

And, it definitely has a begging sound to it. I know every mom can now hear their child’s voice whining this! Hudson isn’t even here with me and I can hear it loud and clear.

Hudson always asks for ice cream. It doesn’t matter if we are in the grocery store or driving by the golden arches or other drive throughs, I always get the begging question. Thankfully he has now learned to ask for it from Marble Slab so Steve and I are more willing to say yes, we will go for real ice cream.

I love that it is made fresh at the store and uses a lot of ingredients that the owner buys right here in town.

When I first moved to Maple Valley I remember seeing the sign off the highway and thinking it was a store for kitchen remodels.

Wow, was I mistaken. We actually went in to talk to Theresa for the first time when we opened up Bounce it Up.

We wanted to work with her to have options from local businesses for our birthday party packages.

I had no idea at that time we would develop such a great working relationship and friendship that would help us both.

I have always been intrigued why businesses open where they do and what draws them to specific locations and communities.

For Theresa she said that Maple Valley always made sense.  She liked the community and at the time she opened there were not any sit down dessert locations.

She liked the vision of the city and most importantly enjoyed spending her time here.

That has ended up being a really good thing since she works every day and almost always open to close. She knows the only thing that keeps her going is her customers.

“They are the best of the best and we are so lucky to have them,” Theresa said.

Many times Theresa has looked at her overhead, her loans, her rising product costs and questioned if it makes sense to stay open. Even though she has never taken a paycheck she knows that closing isn’t an option. Even discussing this brings tears to her eyes.

She wants to stay here and continue to give back.

Working with our schools and helping kids like Rachael raise money to fight through their illnesses is what keeps her going.

Theresa truly is optimistic that things will begin to turn around. She wants to be able to give our high school kids their first jobs again, help to sponsor more community events and work on building up her catering business again.

If you have not been in to Marble Slab recently to try the freshly made ice cream and sorbet you are definitely missing out. There are tons of flavors to choose from, wonderful mix in options, or have a shake. And while you are there, take a pint or two to have at home or place an order for your next special event cake.

If you are concerned about allergies all you have to do is give Theresa a call and she can take special steps to prevent allergen interaction.  This is something she is passionate about offering because she doesn’t want kids, or kids at heart, to miss out on a special treat just because of an allergy.

The month of July is a great time to visit. On Mondays you can get $1 scoops and Tuesday-Friday you can receive happy hour specials between the hours of 12-2 p.m.

Theresa, thank you again for taking the time to talk to me. I appreciate your love for our community and the commitment to staying here through the hard times.  Not to mention giving us a place for real ice cream when Hudson starts screaming that song!

If you go

Marble Slab Creamery

23745 225th Way SE, #102

Phone: 425-413-6701

Hours-11am-9pm

More information is available on the Marble Slab Facebook page or at www.relylocal.com.