🎄🎄🎄🎄2013 ~ December 11-15 Spending time with family during the Christmas holidays

Day 1: Wednesday, December 11, 2013

My husband and I are traveling to Nashville Tennessee to pick up Lora at Nashville International Airport at 2:35 P.M. She is on flight 4013 she will be leaving MA, at 12:45 P.M.

 Nashville International Airport

We stopped in St Joseph Tn to buy lottery tickets.

In Nashville we stopped at Opry Mills Shopping Mall and The Bass Pro Shop we walked around checking out all their Christmas displays.  

Bass Pros Shop had a Santa Village, where children could sit on Santa’s lap and tell what they wanted for Christmas.

Bass Pros Shop

Bass Pros Shop

Bass Pros Shop

We rode to the Nashville Airport to pick up Lora then we rode to Opryland Hotel where we walked through all of their Gardens that were beautifully decorated for the Holidays. The Cascade Gardens, the Garden Conservatory, and the Delta Island are each decorated with millions of lights, poinsettias, & a 48-foot Christmas tree at Delta Atrium.

Outside were more lights, a manger scene, carriage rides, and on cold nights a hot roaring fire.

Opryland Hotel

Opryland Hotel

Opryland Hotel

Lora and I rode the Delta River Flatboat which holds up to twenty-five people for $10.00 a person. It is a guided indoor Scenic tour that takes about fifteen minutes. That takes you through the beautiful lush indoor gardens that feature an 85-foot fountain, three waterfalls, banana, and coconut trees, and much, much more.

Out on the Magnolia lawn was the Nativity Display. 

There were Joseph, Mary, and Jesus, sheep, cattle, the shepherds, and the three wise men. 

Then there was the reading of the birth of Jesus. 

 Cracker Barrel on Music Row

We were getting hungry so we stopped at Cracker Barrel on Music Row to eat supper. 

As we rode through Jelly Stone Park we saw Christmas lights dancing to Christmas songs.

The cost was $25.00 a carload. 

It was late when we arrived home. 

Day 2: Thursday, December 12, 2013

Thursday Lora and I went to town where she bought her kids Christmas presents. 

We ate lunch at Chick-fil-A.

I bought two dozen donuts at Krispy Cream Donuts for our Christmas Party on Friday.

My husband, Lora, Marcus, Jr., Madison, Sierra, Nevada, Montana, and I went to the Florence Christmas Parade on Court Street in downtown Florence. 

We were running late and a lot of the spots were filled so we walked up N. Court Street where the parade began. 

The kids got three sacks full of candy.

It was bitter cold and the store behind us was giving away hot chocolate so all of the kids went inside to get some hot chocolate.

My husband and I stayed outside watching the parade and I took lots of pictures.

Watching the Christmas Parade

Day 3: Friday, December 13, 2013

Friday, Lora and I went to the Florence Courthouse to meet with Lora’s and Marcus' lawyers and a meditator. 

They agreed that Lora could claim one of the kids on her taxes and that the court would decide the amount of child support she should pay. 

Marcus did not bring his W’2 as requested. 

Friday night we celebrated our family Christmas Party at Mike’s House.

Hannah could not stay late because she had to work at Texas Road House that night, so Lora and I went early so we could spend some time with Hannah.

Everyone else came later and we had a great meal of Turkey Dressing, Mac and cheese, Cream Potatoes, Green Beans, Cakes, Pies, and donuts. 

After the meal, everyone opened his or her presents and then we all played board games. 

Christmas Party at Mike’s House

Christmas Party at Mike’s House

Christmas Party at Mike’s House

Day 4: Saturday, December 14, 2013

Saturday my husband took a vacation day and we took Lora, Marcus, Jr. Madison, and Montana to Franklin Tennessee to see a Dickens of a Christmas. 

It was a bitter cold day and we were all bundled up in our warmest coats. 

We saw many characters from A Christmas Carol walking in the streets of Franklin. 

We saw Ebenezer Scrooge, the three ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Future; we saw Bob Cratchit's family, Jacob Marley, and many Christmas Carolers. 

Dickens of a Christmas. 

Dickens of a Christmas. 

There was a petting zoo, sword dancers, fiddlers, and a carriage ride. 

We could smell the food cooking and see all the vendor's booths.

We had enough of the bitter cold so we rode over to Cool Springs Mall in Franklin. 

Lora took the kids Christmas shopping.

My husband and I bought a cup of pretzels, and a drink and set down to rest and watch the shoppers.

We stopped at Jack-n-the-Box for supper. 

We headed home the kids all played on their electronic devices or watched one of the three channels on the TV in our van. 

Day 5:  Sunday, December 15, 2013

Sunday we took Lora back to Nashville International Airport.

She was on flight 3862, which was scheduled to leave at 2:20 PM so she had to be there no later than 1:20 P.M. 

We dropped her off at the Nashville International Airport and we stopped in Cool Springs at Logan's for lunch and then we rode home.

2001~ November 21-December 1, Celebrating Thanksgiving with Family & Traveling to Gulf Shores, AL

We had stayed four days and five nights at Veteran Park so we could spend time with family for the Thanksgiving Holiday.

Day 1: Wednesday, November 21, 2001 

I spent the day with my children and grandchildren, we ate Thanksgiving dinner.

Hannah, Nevada, Madison 

Nevada and Marcus playing Video Games 

Nevada, Jake watching a movie 

Nevada and Marcus in Jakes Room 

Day 2: Thursday, November 22, 2001

Celebrated Thanksgiving with family.

Day 3: Friday, November 23, 2001 

I spent the day with my granddaughter Hannah at the Conference Center and Veterans Park

The Renaissance tower 

Hannah at the Conference Center 

Hannah at the Conference Center 

Hannah at Veterans Park 

Veterans Park 

Day 4: Saturday, November 24, 2001 

We celebrated Thanksgiving with hubby's' family.

Day 5: Sunday, November 25, 2001 

I spent the day with my grandmother.

My siblings and grandmother

Visiting my Grandmother

Day 6:  Monday, November 26, 2001

Hubby drove our Damon Escaper to Luxury RV Park Gulf Shores Alabama where we stayed a week, along with all the other snowbirds.

Luxury RV Park

November is off-season at Gulf shores and all you see are snowbirds. The pace slows down during the winter months. 

It is a good time for sightseeing and driving along the ocean. 

Luxury RV Park Gulf Shores

Luxury RV Park Gulf Shores

November 26, 2001

We toured Fort Morgan “Bowyers” Museum and walked among the ruins.

We walked along the windy beaches of Fort Bowyers, with the windy salt air blowing in our hair. We toured the museum where we saw Mobile Point Lighthouse, 4th order Fresnel lens 1873-1966. 

Fort Morgan “Bowyers” Museum 

Fort Morgan “Bowyers” Museum  

Fort Morgan “Bowyers” Museum  

Fort Morgan “Bowyers” Museum

Fort Morgan “Bowyers” Museum 

Day 7: Tuesday, November 27, 2001

We spent the day at the National Aviation Museum in Pensacola that was festively decorated, for the Christmas Holidays during WWII, with Christmas music playing in the background. 
On the upper level, we saw a grocery store, a barbershop, army camps, TV shows playing in that era, aircraft, jeeps, & jungle camps. 
We saw pin-up girls posted at camps, we saw Hagia & Hagia Booz for fifteen cents. We saw the home of the Luck Marine. We saw hat a home of a military family may have looked like. We saw Pawn & Loan, Sandy Ridge Grocery, a Colonial bread sign, Jo, Jo's, a Buck Rodgers, airplane, we saw maps, family pictures, and radios.
The museum was full of airplanes, and jets of every size shape and color. 
There was a replica of a ship we went inside where we saw the sickbay area, with medicines, we saw bunk beds and toilets. 

We saw the US Coast Guard, a miniature boat display with airplanes ready to defend our country. We saw two floors of airplanes, flags, from different countries and the skylab simulated flying. Hubby had always dreamed of being a pilot. 
We saw the cockpit of an airplane that we crawled inside and played 

We saw F70-3M 129655 Aircraft, Blue Angles US Navy 16483 Aircraft and flight of the Blue Angles over St. Louis hanging from the ceiling. 

Museum of Aviation in Pensacola

Museum of Aviation in Pensacola

Museum of Aviation in Pensacola

Museum of Aviation in Pensacola

We walked back upstairs where we saw Jake's Garage, a sign Pepis for five cents, and a Texaco sign. We saw melons scales that did not work,  and a theater with popcorn.
We saw a hall filled with plaques of honor and one was Alan Shepard, one of the first men to walk on the moon.

Our next stop was the Big Lagoon State Park Perdido Key Florida. We were the only ones there as we walked along the boardwalk which took us over a natural laked filled with wildlife. We saw an observation tower but did not climb it. We walked along the sandy beach stopping at the water's edge. 

We ate dinner at Lambert's Restaurant “Home of the trowed roll. “

They bring you all the food you can eat rolls. The original restaurant is located in Sikeston, Missouri and another one located in Branson, Missouri. 

Day 8: Wednesday, November 28, 2001

We toured the USS Alabama Battleship located 2703 Battleship Parkway Mobile, Al 36602.

We walked along the decks of the mighty USS Alabama. 

The ship received nine battle stars from WWII. We walked up and down many flights of stairs and saw many memorials honoring our veterans who died for our country. 

USS Alabama Battleship Mobile 

USS Alabama Battleship Mobile 

USS Alabama Battleship Mobile 

A-12 Blackbird Spy

We walked through the aircraft Pavilion and saw many exhibits including A-12 Blackbird Spy, Tuskegee Airman’s P-SID Mustang, Vietnam PBR River patrol boat, and many other military bombers and flying planes. 

We walked through the USS Alabama rose garden, we saw the Coastguard 1378 helicopter black and white, and we saw the F-15 fighting Falcon Viper Replica of USS Alabama. 

We saw the galley of photos in the Battleship memorial park. Christmas music was playing over the radio, the park was covered Christmas decorations.

Day 9-10:  November 29, 30, 2001
Friday we rode to Gulf Shores and we walked along the beach filling our shoes full of sand. it had stormed the day before so the gulf was still violent with pounding waves and red flags were out.
We saw the iconic PInk Poney Restaurant and we watched bird feeding on fish. It was an overcast day, very windy by a pleasant day. 
During the summer months this beach is covered with the sound of tourist but today it is silent. 

It is time for our vacation to come to a close so we are heading out. At 11:30AM we crossed Mobile Bay in our Damon Escaper and we can see the USS Alabama in the distance as we near the Mobile Bay tunnel. 
At 6:29 PM the sun is setting as we ride through Mississippi. We stop for the night at Sam’s Town Casino RV Park where we stay a couple of nights before we began our journey home. 

We spent some time gambling in Sam’s Town, Hollywood, and Harrods Casinos.

The casino's in Tunica MS

The casino's in Tunica MS

The casino's in Tunica MS

Day 11: Saturday, December 1, 2001 

We spent Thanksgiving with family, we rode to Gulf Shores for a short vacation, where we saw the Museum of Naval Aviation, The USS Alabama, spent two nights in Tunica and traveled home to Fenton, Mo

🚙1998 ~ August 2-8, Trip to Akron, Michigan

Day 1: Saturday, August 2, 1998 

My sibling, Dad, and I are taking turns driving my other sibling's jeep to Akron Michigan.

We left the house around ten PM, and we drove all night.

It is a twelve-hour drive and we only stopped to use the restroom.

We did stop the next morning for breakfast at Cracker Barrel.

August 3-4 Sunday-Tuesday, 1998

We will be spending the next three days with Lesley and Illa.

All of Leslie and Illa’s children are grown and married.
So while we are visiting family we will be sleeping in their children's old bedrooms.

Their son Terry and his family are driving down from Toronto Canada.

Illa is in remission from cancer, and Sherry, Illa’s daughter-in-law will do most of the cooking. 

We had a great reunion swapping information about the family.

We looked through the Family Bible that had been passed down from generation to generation.

Day 2: Monday, August 3, 1998

Monday night we rode over to visit Laurence (the former home of Mary and Art)

He showed us some old picture albums.
I asked if I could take the albums home with me to make copies and I would mail them back when finished.  

 Leroy, Leslie, and Victor at Lesley's Home

Gail, Laurence, Dad and me

Vicki, Gail, Laurence, and Dad

Day 3: Tuesday, August 4, 1998

Dad wanted to go fishing in the Great Lakes with Laurence so we dropped him off at Laurence’s.

My sister and I rode to the cemeteries of East Dayton Cemetery and Demorest where I took pictures of family tombstones. 

We rode into East Dayton where we visited some of the shops, I bought a book about East Dayton.

We drove back to Laurence’s they were back from fishing, and we all rode into Akron to buy a bushel bag of white beans.

Day 4: Wednesday, August 5, 1998

We rode to Roseville Michigan to stay with Donald and Isabelle.

We spent Wednesday sitting around talking and eating.

Day 5: Thursday, August 6, 1998

We all rode to the Henry Ford Museum, where we saw a large, iconic, neon, arch, of McDonald's, the sign said: fifteen cents McDonald's speed service system Hamburgers over 160 million sold.
During the 1950s and 1960s, McDonalds was the hangout for American Teenager.
We saw the 1953 Sunliner Convertible Indy 500 Pace Car.
We saw a 332 CID 6-cylinder engine FVRH Motor Texaco Gas Truck sitting next to the Texaco Service station.
The gas station had a big yellow Shell sign on top, and in front of the building was a red and silver gasoline pump.
The pumps read Fire-Chief Gasoline, on the front of the pump was a circle inside the circle was a big red star with Texaco written across it and a picture of a red fire hat.
Next door was the Douglas Auto Theater in Neon, Now showing Car Culture, and behind the theater was the Holiday Inn in Neon.

The Spirit of Saint Louis Staring Jimmy Stewart is about the life of Charles Lindberg and his struggles to finance and design the first solo transatlantic airplane flight.

US Mail Stage Line, and the 1601 Allegheny train engine.
Lamy's Diner opened in 1946 in Marlborough, Massachusetts, as a roadside cafe with red vinyl furniture and a stainless steel back bar that sold coffee, soft drinks, and more.
JF Kennedy Limousine, the 1961 4-door convertible Lincoln Continental Presidential Limousine that President Kennedy rode in that fatal November 22, 1963.
After a full day at the Ford Museum, we rode back to Donald's for supper. 

Taking a rest break at the Ford Museum are Isabell, Donald, and Victor 

At the Ford Museum Vicki, Isabell, Donald, and Victor 

Dad with his foot on the trolly

Donald and dad looking at the train

Mcdonald Hamburgers

Day 6: Friday, August 7, 1998

On Friday we rode over to Madison Heights, Michigan to visit Irwin and Deloris.

Irwin had also been sick for a long time.

Day 7: Saturday, August 8, 1998 

Early on Saturday morning, we loaded the jeep with our luggage and started the twelve-hour drive home from Donald’s house in Roseville, Michigan.

Irwin died on January 9, 2000, and Illa died on October 20, 1999, both died just a few months after our visit. 

Illa died of cancer, not sure what Irwin died of but he was sick for some time.