Stone Mountain, GA

Off to Stone Mountain, GA to go camping with the grandsons!  It's been sometime since they camped with us and they didn't camp together....one on one night and one on the next.  Stone Mountain is about 10 minutes from their house, so if someone has to go home, it's nearby.

We get to the campground and it is HOT!  The campgrounds aren't as full as I would have thought.  We get a space on M Loop and it has a view of the lake if you stand on our top step and crane your head just so.  It costs extra to camp on the lake, but we're not doing lake activities this time so no need for a space there.

The boys are thrilled when they get here.  We have a new camper they haven't seen yet.  It has two slides and lots of room.  No decision reached yet on where anyone is going to sleep.  There are too many places to choose from.  The boys head back home for the night.  David has a job in Commerce, GA for the next two days, so we head to bed early.

Stephanie and the boys pick me up the next morning. Chrissy is very excited to see them.  We spend a little time with her and then head out.  Nowhere in particular to go, but some errands to run and places to see. Oh, did I mention the boys are on swim teams?  I get to go see them swim for the first time.

We arrive at the swim meet and there are tons of excited kids and parents there.  Have I mentioned it was HOT?  I so wanted to jump in the pool with them just to cool off!  HOT! HOT! HOT!

The coaches get the team ready by cheering them on.  The coaches stand on one end of the pool with the swimmers at the other end.  They shout cheers back and forth!

Patrick is in the 4-6 year old group.  What they lack in skill, they more than make up for in enthusiasm.  Patrick is on the block and is in perfect form.

That's Patrick on the #5 block.  Note he's in form and looking forward and he's ready to go as soon as the command to swim is given.  AND he's off!

Complete with holding his nose!  LOL 

He's in the water and taking a breath.  Yes, he was breathing, but he was also checking where the other swimmers were.

He touches the wall first!  He did a terrific job!  He finished first in his heat and 2nd in the event.

I asked him how he kept track of where the others were when he wasn't taking a breath.  He told me that he just looked between his feet while he was swimming!

One little boy in his heat took almost 5 minutes to swim his one lap.  He had held onto the rope several times and was officially disqualified, but he kept swimming.  He was tired and mad, but he was so determined to finish that lap.  He was asked if he wanted someone to help him finish.  He yelled NO!  He wanted to finish.  By the time he touched the side, everyone was down there and on their feet yelling for him!  Even the other team was cheering him on.  He did a great job!

Trey is 10 years old and enjoys swimming, too.  He was ready on the block, but I missed the shot of it.  I did get this one.

It looks like they were all trying to run on the water!  Trey is the one at the top of the shot near block 1 or 2.  I think they'll be working on diving in!  I didn't get to see all his events, but he did quite well, too! 

They had an interesting item at the concession stand.  They had "Tacos in a Bag."  You open an individual size bag of chips, pour in cooked taco seasoned meat, lettuce, cheese, and shake it up.  Bags were hot, but it seemed pretty popular!  Might try it next time.

One sight caused me uncontrollable giggles.  The Eagles are one of my favorite groups.  One man caused one of their songs to be stuck in my head.  The line I got stuck on was "I saw a Dead Head sticker on a Cadillac."  Didn't see it on a Caddy, but did see it tattooed on a leg!  Really?

Soon it's time to head to the campground for a night with Mimi and Chrissy!  Don (son-in-law) drove me and Patrick back to the campground.  He's spent the night with me while David was gone. Chrissy sleeps with me and David and she wasn't too sure she wanted anyone else in the bed with me.  She finally gave in and let Patrick in the bed!  We read for awhile and both of us slept!

Steph and Trey came to get us next morning.  More running around and having a great time.  We stopped for lunch and it kind of went downhill from there!  In a fun way.

Patrick is losing teeth and decided to give me his new smile.

He actually lost another one the next day and has more getting loose!

Then there was this choice photo.

I asked him what he was doing.  In classic Patrick thinking, he replied "Mining for gemstones."  Oh, to be 6 again!  LOL

Both boys decide to spend the night and David has rejoined us, so we spent an entertaining evening with them.

Trey playing video games and Patrick being the Rubber Band Man!

I think if I tried that I would break something or get stuck forever in that position.

The couch they are on was also their bed.  They went to sleep with no arguments or disasters.  So did we!

We took them back to Mom and Dad the next day.  Very sorry to see them go, but they had places to go and things to do with their friends.

David and I took off to visit the DeKalb Farmer's Market.  If you've never been, make some time to visit this place.  It's like a huge international market.  Spices, beverages, meats, veggies, fish, etc.  Because food now has to be labeled with country of origin, it's interesting to see where the food comes from and sometimes what it is.  There were so many things there I couldn't identify!  We'll go back when we have all day to see it.  It's air conditioned so you're not out in the heat.

Sunday morning and our last day to camp.  We enjoy going to the campground church service when we're here.  There was a Boy Scout troop there who led the Pledge of Allegiance before the service started. The pulpit is a huge log with the top cut at a slant to serve as a platform for a Bible or notes.  Someone also carved a cross into the front of the log.  Volunteer chaplains lead the service each week.  Free books are available and breakfast is served after the service.

The service doesn't last long, but is always good.  What gets me is that the people camped nearby, wait until the service is almost over and come and eat breakfast.  Some of them still in their pajamas.  Don't get it.

Time to pack up and head back home.  We still have day trips and one big trip planned.

Catch us down the road!

Jenny :)

Everybody was Kung Fu Fighting........

Off to Nashville!

When we left Louisville, we noticed it had gotten a little noisy.  It was the beginning of cicada season.  They are NOISY CRITTERS! Check with www.cicadamania.com.  

We arrived in Tennessee right along with the cicadas.  On to Nashville!

We're staying at Two Rivers Campground just down the road from the Opryland Hotel.  The shopping center that was flooded when Nashville was underwater has not yet reopened. Off to WalMart because you have to go to WalMart.

We pulled up and the noise was horrible!  Sounded like a motorcycle gang cranking up in the parking lot.  There were people all over the parking lot acting like ninjas or Kung Fu fighters!  They were swinging there arms around their heads and jumping up and down.  Some were screaming!  Oh wait!  That was me....

CICADAS were in my hair!!!  They were flying everywhere! There were making noise you couldn't believe!  Driving was crazy!  There were flying into the windshield like a hailstorm!  YUCK!

There were no big plans for dinner, so we turned in early.  Tomorrow is the big day for Nashville!

Back in the '80's I worked as a reporter at WSGN Radio (The Big 610).  It was an AM station I had grown up listening to for many years.  Now it's an NPR station, but that's another story.  While I worked there, I met and work with many great D.J.'s, one of which was Tom Peace.  He was from Birmingham and we also had a great time working together.  Over the last few weeks, we decided to try to get together when we got to Nashville.  We both have a fondness for the Loveless Motel and Cafe so we decided to meet there for breakfast.

Check out their website:  www.lovelesscafe.com

Carol Fay Ellison (The Biscuit Lady) had made the biscuits here for well over 25 years.  Sadly, she passed away in April.  Saw her on Martha Stewart once and she refused to give Martha the recipe for the famous biscuits!

 This is the courtyard in front of the cafe.  It was a former motor court with little individual cabins around it.  Now it contains shops and souvenirs. One of the workers was cutting the grass here with cicadas covering him!  SHUDDER!

This is the cafe part of the old motel.  This used to be the office.  Now it's just a wonderful place to eat!

We looked around a bit waiting for Tom to arrive.  Then he was there reminding us that it had been 25 years since we'd seen each other!  We've decided not to wait another 25 years to get together.  Tom's wife was unable to join us as she under the weather.

The food arrived and we got quiet for a little bit. Then it was back to more of talking about where our former co-workers were these days.  Some are in Nashville working for a record company, many are still in radio in other cities, but most of us have moved on to other careers.

The cafe is known for it's biscuits.  In fact, the lady who made them was on Martha Stewart one time and refused to give Martha the recipe!  Sadly, the lady passed away in April of this year.

Tom and I share a love of photography so we spent some time comparing cameras, lenses, and how to frame a shot.  So we left David and started taking shots of the neon sign in front of the cafe.  Above you see the one I ended up with.

Me and David in front of the cafe. Of course I'm wearing a Tinker Bell shirt!

He's me and Tom.  The only reason I'm not holding a camera is that David is using it!

All too soon it's time for us to hit the road and Tom to head to work.  We left making plans to not wait 25 years again!

We're headed to Stone Mountain, GA to go camping with our grandsons.  Back on the road.

Just down the road from our campsite, we passed this McDonald's.  It's designed to look like an old-fashioned radio station!

There is a small tower on the side that resembles a radio station tower.  You can get food and souvenirs inside the restaurant.

 Yes, it's a dinosaur.  It was alongside the road.

 Roadside fire that had just started.

Georgia!

We passed by Ringgold, Georgia.  They were hit by a tornado in April as was many parts of Alabama.  It was sad to see the damage here.  We passed by Kennesaw, Georgia where my parents used to live.  We passed by lots of traffic in Atlanta, too.  It wasn't long before we reached Stone Mountain!  YEA!

David has a job in Commerce, Georgia tomorrow.  Stephanie is going to bring the boys over tomorrow and we're going camping!

Catch us down the road!

Jenny :)

Exploring with Lewis and Clark

It's Monday and our last full day in Louisville so we decide to see some of the local sites.  For the past several years, we've traveled several roads that Lewis and Clark covered, also.  We heard there was a Falls of the Ohio Park nearby with a Lewis and Clark statue. 

So we finally meet Lewis and Clark!

The river was at flooding stage and the floodgates were open.  I was amazed at all the water coming through there.  The volunteer told us that the water was also covering all the area you could normally walk out and look at the fossils.  Even the blue herons were on a flood wall.

We had a moment to talk to one of the volunteers - Kathy.  She had a scope that allowed us to see the blue herons.  She was also gracious enough to answer our questions.

We hiked down the stairs and over a lot of flood debris and got to see many fossils close up.

From here you could really see the movement of the water!

The flowers here were also beautiful.  They have gardens planted here I wish I had at home!

And of course, we found a horse!

Headed back to the grocery store and packed up for our move tomorrow to Nashville!

Catch us down the road!

Jenny :)

Morning in Louisville!

Headed back to Louisville for breakfast with the group.   We've seen a lot of these two signs so far this weekend.  We're staying in Indiana and the group and activities are in Louisville.

It's been cloudy up until now.  Today we were rewarded with a great view of Louisville.

Some of the group have been to this place before and loved it.  First time for me and David!  We meet up at Diane's house and take two cars as parking can be a problem as this place is really popular.

In fitting style with our blog (Eclectic Summer), this place is truly eclectic!  I'll let the photos speak for themselves.

 Giant coffee pot and cups filled with flowers outside the restaurant.

 Not Pattie's birthday, but the hat looked great on her.

 Paulette spent some of the time waiting for our great breakfast playing with an I-Spy toy on the table.

 This giant tree was behind our table.  It's filled with all kinds of strange things.

 Another painted horse....it's actually a toaster!  Check out the plug!

And a silver moose!

 Suzanne is an excellent cow rider!

 Suzanne and I took pictures of each other taking pictures of each other!

 I actually talked Carol and Pattie into having this picture taken!

 David and Charles even had a lively engineering discussion!

After breakfast we headed to Cave Hill National Cemetery.  It was Memorial Day weekend and the graves of the Union dead and Confederate dead were decorated with flags.  It was so sad to see so many rolling hills covered with flags.  

The cemetery marked the end of our reunion (pun intended).  Some of the ladies had to head back home.  Charles and Diane offered to show us more of this cemetery, so we took them up on it!  Not all of the cemetery is a National Cemetery.  There are many large memorials here that are stunning.  I missed taking the pictures of several of them.  They were tombs built into the side of a hill.  They reminded me of what the tomb of Jesus might have looked like.

One of the notable buried here is Col. Harlan Sanders of Kentucky Fried Chicken fame!

Great works of art such as statues and stained glass windows in some of the masoleums were spectacular.

Diane and Charles decided to come and visit us and Chrissy at the campsite, so back to Indiana.  We were a little hesitant about how Chrissy might behave (you know how she can be!).  Turned out not to be a problem at all.

She was a perfect lady!

We were sad to see Charles and Diane leave, but they had things to do!  Can't wait until the next reunion! We'll be on our own tomorrow!

Catch us down the road!

Jenny :)