2020 Jan 31-Feb 2, Woman's Retreat Joe Wheeler Lodge ( 3 days)

 Friday afternoon check-in lodge & received a package for the entire retreat. 

We ate a fried catfish meal with salad for dinner, and after dinner, we walked around the lodge. 

Eating Catfish at Joe Wheeler 

Catfish, baked potato, hush puppies, tarter Sauce, butter, sour cream 

We went back to our room until it was time for our pajama movie "Steel Magnolia."

There were snacks to eat while watching the movie, but I was too full to eat. 

Could not believe that I enjoyed watching an old movie with a bunch of strangers. 

After the movie, everyone retired to their rooms for the night.

Saturday morning, we ate a light breakfast followed by painting class from 8-9:30AM.

Hello Spring Painting 

Next, we created a bath balm from 9:45 to 11:15AM.

From 11:30-12PM, we danced.

Lunch was a Taco Salad from the food bar. 12-1PM

Self-defense form 2-3PM 

Pontoon Cruise 2-3PM

The women who had registered for the 2PM boat ride loaded onto the Pontoon boat for a one-hour ride on the Tennessee River, where our guide pointed out points of interest and waterfowl. 

Boats at Joe Wheeler 

Pontoon Boat ride

Self-Defense 4:15-5:15PM  

Went back to our room to rest until dinner.

Roll, Porkchop, Vegetables

Our guest speaker was Lee Marshall at 7:30PM. Kids to love. 

It was a beautiful Sunday morning the sun was coming up, and the waterfowl astir. 

Waterfowl at Joe Wheeler Lake 

Waterfowl at Joe Wheeler Lake 

I saw a herd of deer on the road as I was leaving. 

A herd of Deer at Joe Wheeler State Park 

2020 Jan 28, Day Trip to Guntersville, Alabama Parks, & Harbors

Hubby and I rode to Guntersville, stopping at the Guntersville Dam and looking for waterfowl, but we did not see any.

We stopped at Guntersville Harbor & Guntersville Municipal Park, where we saw hundreds of seagulls,& double-crested Cormorants.

We stopped at Dollar General for sweets.

It was getting near lunchtime, so we rode to Winzell’s Oyster House, where hubby and I  split a Sea Food Broil. $26.69 meal, which consisted of premium white fish, oysters, shrimp, stuffed crab, and scallops.

After a delicious meal, we rode to Guntersville State Park.

Double-breasted Cormorants 

Double-breasted Cormorants 

Seagulls 

Lunch at Winzell's  

Seafood Boil

 (12 shrimp, 4 oysters, 1 fish, 1 crab cake, & 5 scallops) 

A couple of deer come in for a closer look.

Lazy Billy goat

We rode to Lake Guntersville, which is located on the banks of the Tennessee River, where we saw hundreds of American Coots.

We saw a herd of deer grazing on both sides of the road near the campground area. 

We also saw an area with a small enclosed pond along with friendly petting animals such as donkeys, emus, and goats. 

We were hoping to see an eagle or two but saw none. 

The park at Guntersville was desolate, too cold for swimming, but a few were camping.

My sister-in-law had a transmission put in her car, so hubby and I rode to Decatur, and hubby drove the car home. 

I stopped at Jack's, on my way home, in Decatur for a couple of strawberry cheesecake pies. 

Had a pleasant day in Guntersville.

2020 May 25, Parks of Decatur, Alabama

Hubby and I decided to ride to Decatur to stroll through the beautiful parks of Decatur. We have not been on many of our daily travels because of the CROVIRUS.

At Delano Park, we saw Pink Roses, pink, blue, and white hydrangeas, shrubs, hostas, and orange daylilies. 

We saw several Beale’s Barbery evergreen shrub that is native to mainland China, they were full of grape berries. 

Sitting on a limb of the Beale Barbery Shrub was a Mocking Bird. 

I wonder if he eats Beale Barbery berries?

We saw several squirrels scurrying about in the park. 

At River Wild Delano Park Garden, we saw several blooming magnolia trees.

We also saw dotted along the path several informative plaques about the animals, trees, & plants. 

Some of the plaques we saw were Prothonotary Warbler, Eastern Hellbender, Biodiversity, limestone, turtles, fish, frogs, Eastern Red Cedar, Rabbits, great blue heron, etc. 

We also saw odd-shaped boulders. 

We saw a huge carving of turtles you could sit up in Turtle Cove Story Circle.

We saw a rabbit nearly my height, a frog on top of a rock, a beaver, and a dragonfly sitting atop a pole. 

We saw flowers and shrubs as we strolled along the concrete sidewalk.

Delano Park 

Delano Park Hydragenas

Magnolia Bloom

Turtle in Children's Riverwild Park 

Pink rose Delano Park 

Red crossover Bridge Frazier Park

Hydrangea in Frazier Park 

In the Japanese Gardens at Frazier Park, we saw a Red Bridge and, beneath it, a bubbling brook. 

We saw Blue and white Hydrangeas and orange Daylilies. Frazier Park is located near the old downtown area and is not as big as Delano Park but just as pretty. 

Hubby and I stopped at Jack’s in Decatur for dinner I ordered a fried chicken, bacon cheese sandwich, fries, and a drink. (It was more than I could eat)

Hubby ordered a hamburger on Texas toast and a strawberry milkshake. 

(We were the only ones dining inside at Jack’s)

We both took a nap when we arrived home. 

Tomorrow will be the last day of physical therapy for my left knee.

2020 Jul 22, History of Cullman, Alabama & The "Katy-Did" Crash

Hubby and I spent several hours doing business in Cullman, when we finished, we rode through the Historic area in Cullman, where we saw several murals that represented Cullman in the 1880s.

Dinclkelberg's The Santa Clause Store

City Fire Station & Kullman's Hall

DT Kinney Horse & Mules 

Cullman County Historical Society

We took a different route home and came across a historic marker;

 "The "Katy~Did" Crash"

70 years after the 'Katy-Did' fell out of the north Alabama sky, the memorial honors 8 who died

The "Katy-Did" Crash 

Eight U.S. Army Air Corps officers and enlisted men were killed one-fourth mile east of here near the Roundtop Community on Sunday, April 9, 1944, at 2:20 p.m. when their B-26C Martin Marauder bomber, nicknamed the "Katy-Did," crashed nose-down, at full throttle, and exploded. The warplane was on an official flight from Hunter Army Airfield in Savannah, Georgia, to Memphis, Tennessee, when it encountered a severe thunderstorm. Witnesses reported that the plane reappeared from the heavy storm clouds upside down before crashing.

The victims were: 

Col. Lucius B. Manning, base commander, Hunter Army Airfield, Savannah, Georgia; 

Capt. Howard L. Hardy, pilot, La Harpe, Kansas; 

Capt. Arthur J. Gratis, co-pilot, Seattle, Washington; 

Sgt. John W. Haney, engineer, Buffalo, New York; 

Pvt. Matthew J. Geoghegan, mechanic, Bronx, New York; 

Pvt. John H. Bailey, radioman, Trenton, New Jersey; 

Sgt. James R. Smith, St. Maire, Idaho; 

1st Lt. Hugh Williams, Jr., Megehee, Arkansas.

We saw an Eagle perched on a power pole as we neared Wheeler Dam. 

Along the bank of the Tennessee River below Wheeler Dam, we saw these shorebirds.

2020 Jul 10, Sunflower Fields of Autaugaville, Pratt Park in Prattville and Peach Park Clanton, Alabama

There is nothing hotter than a day in the south in July.

We had been cooped up way too long; hot or not, we were in bad need of a new adventure. 

 I had posted on Facebook a field full of sunflowers and told hubby that I wanted to go. 

 

We rode several hours to a Sunflower Field, which was located at 3301 Hwy 14 West,  Autaugaville, Alabama. 

There were Sunflower haystacks on either side of the drive as we entered the driveway. 

There were already several cars parked and people walking among the sunflowers, and we were directed where to park. 

We got out of the car along with our bucket and pruned shears to cut the sunflowers. 

Sunflowers are $ 1 each or by the bucket.  They were also selling T-shirts and other items. 

We saw a patch of Zinnia and a tractor parked near the sunflower field. There were stacks of hay where you could sit for a picture. 

We began our journey into the field. There were paths that others had treaded, or you could make your own path. 

We did not walk too far because it was HOT, and there were a lot of beautiful sunflowers nearby. 

I chose two large sunflowers for seeds and three small ones for a bouquet. 

We stopped to take a few pictures at the haystack and a couple at the entrance.

Sunflower Field 

Sunflower Haystack

Choo-Choo-Cuts 

Beauty shop in Prattville 

Pratt Vegetable Park Prattville, Alabama 

Hubby and I stopped at Pratt Park in Prattville, where we strolled in the community Vegetable Garden that was raised to help people in need. 

It has a variety of vegetables such as strawberries, tomatoes, okra, watermelons, and peppers, as well as sunflowers planted in raised beds surrounded by laid bricks.

There were wired arched ways for climbing vegetables and ten-foot-tall wired walls also for climbing plants, like squash.

There was a concrete walkway through the vegetable garden.

It is a garden's paradise.  

Hubby and I always stop in Clanton at Peach Park,

 known to have the best peaches in South Alabama. 

Peach Park is more than a park, it is a Farmer's Market with fresh produce and canned goods, 

RV Park to stay overnight.

 There is an ice cream shop, sweets, bakery, gift shop, and lunch counter all rolled into one. 

There is plenty of seating outside and inside. 

Playground for the kids and walking trails for everyone. 

Lunch consisted of 

 Hot Peach Cobbler covered in Peach Ice Cream, 

Fried Green Tomatoes, 

Pulled Pork and fried Onion rings 

The giant Peach statue, a wooden bridge 

at Peach Park Clanton 

This was our first long-distance day trip since my knee surgery in March 2020.

2020 Aug 14, Twister in Arkansas

Last night, I was watching Twister with Helen Hunt when I recalled visiting a museum that simulated a tornado but could not remember where. So, hubby and I searched the internet for museums that simulated tornados. 

I take pictures everywhere we go, and when we finally remember where the museum was located, I go into my photo file and find these photos. 

Hubby and I love to travel and visit museums. It is so sad right now because most of the museums are closed because of the COVID-19 virus.

Museum of Discovery's Tornado Alley Theater provides a riveting 7-minute experience for museum visitors as they relive the tornado that devasted the Governor's Mansion district area in downtown Little Rock, Arkansas, in January 1999.

Here, we heard stories of people who survived the storm while watching television footage of the event that was broadcast that fateful day on channel THV 11.

We could feel the rumble and roar as the simulated tornado passed in Tornado Alley theater, sponsored by All Clean USA Restoration Services. 

You can stand inside this simulation. 

Tornado Information for Little Rock, Arkansas

Little Rock, AR, is a Very High-Risk area for tornados. According to records, the largest tornado in the Little Rock area was an F4 in 2014 that caused 193 injuries and 16 deaths. *Tornado risk is calculated from the destruction path that has occurred within 30 miles of the location.

2020 Jan 27, Enjoying a warm winter's day

It was so nice to finally see 👀the sun today, with a nip of cold air still about. I have not been out much because of the cold winter rain. 

I rode to the Rock Pile at TVA Dam, hoping to see an eagle and maybe some waterfowl.

I saw a few waterfowl but no eagles. 

I met  Steve Lovell, a great photographer who has a website on Facebook where he posts some of his photographs.

TVA Dam & Waterfowl 

I stopped at the TVAM to view the art on display that was donated by Wanda and Bill Isom. 

Every room was filled with art that they had collected over the years. One room was filled with Japanese block art. 

The hall was filled with the art of birds. 

The Main gallery was full of large lithography of birds. 

In the back room was a variety of art, including a Norman Rockwell piece and a Van Gogh piece. 

Loved the displays.

White Muted Swan

Canadian Geese 

Domestic geese

My next stop was Spring Park ( Growing up, I spent many hours playing at this park).

Spring Park has a man-made waterfall that is fed by a spring that flows into the pond below. 

Permanent residents are two Muted White Swans.

Other waterfowl that can be found here are Black Muscovy Ducks, White  Muscovy Ducks, Domestic Ducks, Mallard Ducks, Canadian Geese, and others. 

It's a great place to get pictures of waterfowl. 

We had a lot of rain this year, and Spring Park was flooded. A couple of rides were completely covered in water and are no longer in use.  

My granddaughter-in-law owns a beauty school in Sheffield, so I stopped in to visit with her and my great-grandson. Hayne is just a doll, so cute, lovable, and sweet. 

Big Box of Chicken and fixin' from Bojangles

Hubby would be home from work soon, so I stopped at Bojangles to pick up a box of chicken and the fixings for supper. 🍗

It was a beautiful day, not too hot or not too cold. 

Hope we have more days like today.