Birmingham

This is the apartment complex where our daughter lives. So pretty!

Mindy acted as our tour guide and drove us all over Birmingham.
A man named John Perryman operated this old mill from 1867 until 1887. It ground the corn grown by local farmers.
The present structure, while not a working mill, was built in 1927. The Old Mill, under the management of Miss Frances Bomer, served breakfast, afternoon tea and dinner. Meals ranged from 50¢ to $1.75. Local residents found it to be a delightful rest stop while on horseback rides.

Perryman’s old original millstone was unearthed and used in the current building’s stone fireplace. It is now a private dwelling. Wouldn't it be fun to live there?!

So, Min drove us to this area called Five Points. She couldn't find a parking place so pulled into the parking lot of a certain wonderful chicken restaurant (my daughter-in-law's favorite one). It said that cars would be towed away if they weren't restaurant customers. We were just a few feet away from this fountain and Al and Mindy weren't at all concerned that we were not parking where we should be, but I was! I just was sure that a tow truck would appear! Of course if Staci had been with us, there would be no question that we would have had to stop for a quick bite of chicken!
Next stop - The Vulcan. The Vulcan statue is the largest cast iron statue in the world, and is the city symbol of Birmingham, Alabama, reflecting its roots in the iron and steel industry.

It began to rain and was just a bit blustery.
View from the top. Lortab is a bit blurry. Maybe he was shaking from fear of heights.
Taken from the top railing. Al is in front of the door to the steps. They were locked. We had to take an elevator up. (I didn't mind that! Climbing 6 flights doesn't sound like fun.)



( You can hardly see Lortab sitting on the stone.)

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Alabama foliage -




More to come....

Drive to Birmingham

Before leaving Fayetteville, we had coffee at Mama Carmen's. You have to read her story!
This coffee shop is located across the street from the church office (located in a warehouse) where Josh works. The church owns the coffee shop. They purchase the coffee from Mama Carmen's farm and 10% of the profits go to Mama Carmen and the children of her orphanage in Guatemala City. The remainder of the profits go to similar community development projects around the world. They also sell fun products from other countries to help the people there. Reminds me a little of 10,000 Villages in our town. I purchased a nice Christmas present for a certain someone!

After our good-byes to our son, we took off for Birmingham. Josh gave us the idea to take a scenic route called Pig Trail.

Pig Trail Scenic Byway runs through the Ozark National Forest for a length of 19 miles. You have to allow 1-2 hours to fully enjoy this byway.

"Why is this spectacular scenic route called the Pig Trail Scenic Byway? Well, for one thing, the meandering nature of the route reminds visitors of a trail carved in the woods from wild pigs. Another factor that influenced the name was that this route has been a major travel way for students, sports fans and other University of Arkansas supporters going to and from Fayetteville, Arkansas, home of the Arkansas Razorbacks."

As we were driving along, I saw a cemetary and had Al pull in to it.
I have never seen a cemetary so decorated! Very unusual.
What a beautiful time of year we chose to drive through Arkansas and on to Alabama!



This is supposed to be a waterfall. We had seen pictures of it with the water running over the top. Unfortunately, they have had somewhat of the drought we have experienced in Kansas too.
When we were travelling on Interstate 40 to Dauphin Island this September, we drove by a sign that read "Toad Suck Park". We were so curious as to what that was! So we took the time to drive out off the interstate to find out.
Lortab was curious how Toad Suck got its name.
One theory is that the name came from the tavern that sat on the south bank of the river. Possibly the ferry operated out of the Toad Suck Saloon, giving rise to the name of Toad Suck Ferry. But how did the Toad Suck Saloon (or Tavern or Inn) get its name?

The story you'll hear from the locals and read in the Arkansas Historical Quarterly is that this place was a popular spot for the bargemen to pull over and drink rum and moonshine. They are said to have "sucked on bottles until they swelled up like toads." There you go. Toad Suck.

The lock and dam.

This was a pretty site as we continued our journey.

Of course if you know us, we cannot journey anywhere without a stop at our favorite beverage coffee shop! On to Birmingham, refreshed with our java!

Photo shoot

The kids had arranged to have a photo shoot by their good friend, Phil. The location was an old confederate cemetary. You could not read most of the names on the stones they were that old. Some of these men had died in the civil war; others died later.



The leaves on the trees were breath-taking! I love autumn!


Staci's parents
and us.
After taking photos we went to Noodles. Staci's folks were going to a fund-raiser so were not able to join us.
This is a child's portion??! I had to tell Emeri the story of Goldilocks and the 3 bears and the great big bowl that Papa Bear had.
Josh entertained Eli with car drawings while waiting for his food to arrive.
Can't wait to see if perhaps we will get a picture for Christmas??

Arkansas birthdays 2011

We love to see the grandchildren in Arkansas. They had to show us their wheels.
We were not able to be with them on their real birthday, so we celebrated with them late.
This year they got an extra cake. I don't think they'll be able to get by with sharing girly cakes again next year. I think he will catch on.


What fun to spend time with them, reading, playing and just loving on them!





My folks sent them money so they could shop for their own gifts. Wow! They loved that!!


Emeri's other grandma was telling her one day that God is good. All the time! Emeri said, "If God is good, why don't Nana and Papa live next to us?" Isn't that so sweet?! They are lucky they at least have the other grandparents living by them. And their great-grandpa too! I grew up not really knowing my grandparents as they lived an ocean away. In the olden days there were no cell phones or skype to keep in touch. Just old fashioned mail and that just isn't the same. So happy to have grandkids to cherish and love! Even if they are 5 1/2 hours away!