2018 Dec 18, Christmas Trees, Cards, Cranes and Ducks Athens, Decatur, & Madison, Alabama

Today, Hubby and I visited the North Pole Christmas Tree Stroll at Big Spring Park, Athens.

North Pole Stroll Athens, Alabama 

Mallards, White Ducks, and goldfish greeted me as I approached the pond at Big Springs.

I enjoyed two(Grinch) buttermilk pancakes with a hint of green topped with sweet cream cheese icing and red candy hearts. Crowned with creamy green whipped topping & 2 link sausages at IHOP in Madison.
Hubby ordered fried Fish, shrimp, fries, toast, and a stack of 3 buttermilk pancakes.

Grinch Pancakes 

fish, shrimp, fries, toast 

Hubby drove us through the larger-than-life Christmas Card Lane that is showcased in front of some of the historic homes in Madison along Front and Chruch Streets.

Thank You for Visiting Christmas Card Lane

Magical Christmas Tree Trail Madison, Alabama Different sponsors of Madison decorate a tree, and the trees are located on both sides of the Main Street Cafe.

We rode to Wheeler Wildlife Refuge in Decatur via I-65 workers working on the bridge over the Tennessee River traffic backup. 

View of Decatur from the bridge where the traffic was backed up 

We walked down to the overlook to see the Cranes and ducks. Not as many sandhills and Whooping cranes as last year.  

We saw thousands of Sandhill Cranes but only one White Whooping Crane
The Whooping Crane, at 5 feet tall, is the tallest bird in North America and one of the most endangered. They are named for their whooping unison calls. 

Our last stop was Founders Park in front of Old Historic Bank to tour the Enchanted Forest Christmas Tree Stroll. 

Enchanted Forest Christmas Tree Stroll in Founders Park, Decatur 

By the time we finished, it was beginning to get dark, but the solar-powered lights had not come on. 
By the time we arrived home, it was dark. Hubby stopped at McDonald's for a hamburger, fries, apple pie, and Ice Cream. I ate a piece of the fish he had left over from lunch. 
Uploaded some of my pictures after I arrived home.

Sunset 

2018 May 23, An enjoyable day out Florence & Athens, Alabama

Hubby set off several bug bombs as we were leaving for the day. 

We stopped at the Credit Union for some cash. 

We ate lunch at Trowbridge’s, where we both ordered a BLT, chips, Coke in a glass bottle, and Strawberry Cheesecake Ice Cream. 

BLT

COKE 

STRAWBERRY CHEESECAKE ICE CREAM

TROWBRIDGE'S ICE CREAM MENU

A COUPLE OF SCHOOL KIDS GETTING ICE CREAM 

WAITING FOR MY BLT

We enjoyed listening to Joseph Baldwin in Wilson Park.

We rode to Elgin to get B12 shots. 

We rode to Athens, stopping at Save-A-Lots and Big Lots. 

Both hubby and I had eye appointments in Athens. 

We stopped at UG White Mercantile, where I bought some saltwater taffy and a pair of Kuhl shorts. 

KUHL was born in the Mountains. KUHL is a product-driven company with a passion for the outdoor experience. The Kuhl icon represents this mountain culture.

Salt  Water Taffy 

I asked if this was the only mercantile store, and the cashier said we have another store in Huntsville near Clinton St. 

There was a large selection of Lodge skillets displayed in the mercantile.  

I remarked that hubby and I had toured the Lodge Factory in South Pittsburg during their Cornbread Festival.

I said cornbread is not good unless it is cooked in an Iron Skillet. We stopped at Murphy's for gas, and Aldies was our last stop. 

Hubby and I ate leftover grilled hamburgers for supper.

After supper, hubby fell asleep on the sofa.

2016 Nov 26, Christmas Adventue

A fun day with my sister-in-law.

Our first stop was the Athens Christmas tree trail, but they had only decorated one Christmas tree, too early for all the trees to be decorated.

My throat was dry, so we stopped at Chick-fil-A, where I bought a large Ice tea. 

Our next stop was the Tinsel Trail at Big Spring Park, where we saw a variety of differently decorated trees.

I'm not sure how many trees, but I took over 300 pictures. 

Grover from Sesame Street

The sun was bright, but it was cold in the Shade. 

Several times, we would come out of the shade into the sun just to warm up. 

We walked through Tinsel Trail twice to make sure we did not miss any trees. 

We watched the ducks and fish swimming in the canal.

On our travels, we rode past Huntsville Hospital and the nearby shops. 

From Governor's Drive, we took I-565, exiting onto Old Madison Pike and stopping at Bridge Street Centre.

I parked near Book-a-million, and we used their restrooms. 

In the restroom, I met a woman from Madison, and we began a conversation.

I told her about touring the Tinsel Trail and all the beautiful Christmas Trees. 

We talked for another 15 minutes after we left the restroom. 

My sister-in-law had never visited Bridge Street Town Centre.

We walked to the large man-made pond to see the Christmas displays and carousels. 

We stopped at the Piper & Leaf Artisan Tea booth to taste the four different samples: Cherry Christmas, Caramel Apple Pie, Mistle Grove, and Pumpkin Moonshine Tea. 

 Piper & Leaf Artisan Tea booth

At the Piper & Leaf Artisan Tea booth, I laughed and said did the Pumpkin have real moonshine in it?

The young man said you can add your own, then we both laughed. 

My favorite sample was the Caramel Apple Pie.

We stopped to see the Large Christmas tree near Monaco Theater.

In front of the Christmas tree was a young girl singing Christmas Carols, and children were running along the water's edge. 

We listened to a couple of songs and walked back to the car. 

Large Christmas tree near Monaco Theater.

We rode to  Historic Madison to drive past the Christmas Card Trail. Large handmade Cards are displayed in front of historic homes in Madison. 

We were too tired to walk the trail.  I snapped pictures of the Cards as I slowly drove past. 

On our travel home, we stopped at Chick-fil-A in Athens. I ordered a kid's two-piece chicken meal to-go. My sister-in-law had to wait for her food because they were preparing large trays of orders to go. 

We were headed west, going home with the sun shining in our eyes. 

The thermometer in my car read 56 degrees. 

Had a great day with my sister-in-law, the traffic was light. 

This was the Saturday after Thanksgiving, so I  guess everyone went shopping on Black Friday. Glad we did not go on an adventure yesterday. 

Tinsel Trail at Big Spring Park is located near the YMCA in Huntsville. 

Across the street is the rest of Big Spring Park, which is under Construction.

We heard Christmas music playing through loudspeakers overhead as we walked through Tinsel Trail. 

It was a gorgeous day, and I needed the long walk in the park after all the Thanksgiving food. 

It was a bit on the nippy side, but as the day progressed, it warmed up. But I still needed a light jacket, especially in the shade. 

I was home by 3:30PM.  November 26, 2016

2017 July 4, Tuesday, Day Trip to Huntsville, Alabama

Hubby and I rode into Florence to eat breakfast at Cracker Barrel. I ordered one scrambled egg, two slices of bacon, and two slices of sourdough toast with strawberry jelly. I also ate hubby's fried apples.
Hubby ordered the big breakfast...
We traveled Highway 72 east to Rogersville, stopping at Foodland to pick up a couple of canned drinks.
We rode to Rogersville's Park, where they had just installed a splash pad for kids.

Splash Pad Rogersville 

Playground and restrooms Rogersville Park

In Huntsville, we rode through Providence Town Center, where we saw Darth Vader and R2D2 statues standing in front of Mellow Mushroom Restaurant. (Characters from the Star Wars Trilogy)

Darth Vader and R2D2 

I wanted to see the construction work where the Old Huntsville Mall was once located, so we rode there next.
The mall is gone, piping and wiring all and dug up, with only dirt remaining.

No longer a mall 

Next, we rode through the Twickenham District to Monte Sano Mountain.
We paid the admission price to enter the park, stopping at the restrooms at the campsite. We stopped at the overlook near the one-room CCC Museum, which was closed. 

Over Look near Birding site 29 (overcast day)

 CCC Museum (one-room museum) 

We stopped, and I took pictures of the Burritt Museum and Trough Springs Markers. 
We rode down the mountain onto Governors Drive, passing the Hospitals. 
Next, we rode to Brahan Spring Recreation Center on Ivy Avenue Southwest.
We stopped at the park, where we saw the  Merrimack Marker.
The marker told about the Merrimack Manufacturing Co., the Huntsville Manufacturing Co., and Springs Industries Inc., 1899 1991. It also told about the Merrimack School & the Joseph J. Bradley School 1900 and 1967.
Next, we stopped at Brahan Spring Park for a few pictures and to use the restrooms.

We started home, stopping in Athens at Zaxby's to eat dinner.
I ordered boneless wings and a side salad. Hubby ordered a boned chicken wings meal.

Boneless Wings 

Side Salad

We were home for about an hour when hubby got a call out to work.
Another trip to Huntsville. 
The job did not take long, and we were home by 7PM. 

My son, Andy, called and said Mom, we are going to shoot fireworks at 8:30PM, so at 8:15PM, we rode to my son's house.
We sprayed ourselves with bug spray, grabbed our fold-out chairs, and off we rode to my son's house.
We had a great time with family, watching them shoot off fireworks.
These three bulldogs hated the sound of the fireworks, and we had a hard time keeping them away from chasing the fireworks.

We were home by 10PM, and both of us dropped into bed from exhaustion.

2016 April 30, Saturday, Athens State University Stroll

Ducks in the pond in the park behind the visitor center

All the strollers gathered in front of the Limestone Athens Visitor Center for a picture. 
Each person signed the list of what area they wanted to visit. 
Athens State University was added to the list. I had not been on the campus so I decided to take the Stroll of the University.

Sloss, Pettus, Cook, Stockton Home on Beaty St

We walked North on Beaty Street crossing E Hobbs St, stopping to view the Sloss, Pettus, Cook, Stockton Home. 
We walked toward E Bryan St to 100 N Beaty St stopping to view the President's Home across the street from the University. 
Bullington House built in 1910 this house is an example of the Free Classic architecture.

Founders Hall Athens University 

President Home on the corner of Beaty and Bryan streets

Our first stop was Founders Hall built-in 1842 by the Tennessee Conference of the Methodist Church. 

Founders Hall is the house of President, Financial Affairs, faculty and staff offices for the College of Arts and Science. Founders Hall also houses the New Testament Chapel containing life-size carvings depicting Christ and other New Testament figures.

Parlor

Founders Hall, houses the majestic Altar of the New Testament woodcarving. The life-size carving took 12 years to complete and depict Christ and the New Testament figures and verses carved in tulipwood. 

McCandless Hall built 1912 

Next, we visited the McCandless Hall which houses the auditorium and serves as a facility for concerts, plays, and lectures for the community. The auditorium features a tracker-action pipe organ dating back to 1892.

A couple of Christian tunes was played for us. 

Tracker-action pipe organ dating back to 1892

Founders Hall and McCandless Hall were the only two buildings that we went inside.

Wooden Carved Fiddler

Library opened in 1996  

Outside we saw a wooden Carved Fiddler, the Black Bear Mascot, Clock Tower, and the Alumni Fountain. 

Alumni Fountain 

Black Bear Mascot 

Clock Bell Tower chimed while we were there

Our Group 

Our group included a Professor, two students (the lady dressed in red was our tour guide), a member of Limestone Athens Visitor Center, the white-haired lady played the tracker-action pipe organ for us, the boy wearing a red shirt and black shorts joined us (his grandparents live in the Sloss, Pettus, Cook, Stockton Home above) and the woman sitting behind our guide was my friend Janet. 

We were given a little history of the Carter Physical Education Center

Built-in 1965 served as the athletic program which was discontinued in 2004. Now housed classrooms.

Classroom Building
houses a student lounge and interactive classrooms

Our time was getting short and it looked like rain so we went on the front side of the University where we saw McCain Hall and Waters Hall. 

Our group 

McCain Hall built 1962 serves as offices for the facility and st

Waters Hall houses classrooms

We began our journey back to the Visitor Center. I stopped to take a picture of the College Inn Newby Gulf Station Museum 

Built-in the late 1920s it was where everybody caught up on the latest news. 

College Inn was a place where soldiers home on leave visited.

College Inn Newby Gulf Station Museum 

Once the tour was over my friend Janet and I went to Wildwood Grill to eat lunch. 

I ordered a salad and she ordered a homemade grilled cheese with a salad.

Wildwood is listed as one of 11 extremely tiny restaurants in Alabama that is amazing. 

Wildwood Grill 

Wildwood may be a small restaurant but that doesn't take away from the deliciousness of the food or the wonderful dining experience. Wildwood Deli is definitely a must stop!

When we finished eating we walked around the square looking and taking pictures of the cars, trucks, and motorcycles that were on display all around the square. 

Classic Cars on the Square

Classic Cars on the Square

Classic Cars on the Square

I had a great time on the walking tour and the touring of the cars, trucks, and motorcycles on the square. I had a great lunch and was tired and hot from all the walking and I still had to drive almost an hour home.