Headed home.......

Yesterday we fulfilled our duties of our mini-vacation.....ate, slept, ate,slept. Well, not exactly. After a fine breakfast, we went shopping in downtown Nachitoches. Lots of little shops for women mostly. There was two shops Eric enjoyed. The first was the Mercantile store, reminded me a lot of the old Sheridan Hardware. They sold everything and anything you could need and even had an original 1917? cash register that they still checked our customers on. And the second store he liked was a cooking store. Yep, my husband! Well they had a lot of samples of the food they sold in the store and the "sales pitch" of samples worked. We contributed to the local economy. I also found a book in the local bookstore to buy and after shopping, we went back to our room and enjoyed a lunchtime nap.

When we woke, we had the munchies and the need to do something. We decided to walk back downtown and take a horse carriage tour of the town. We found some of the best pork cracklins to take on our tour. The tour guide was a young man, I would guess he was a teenager, but anyway, he loved history and was a great tour guide. He also pointed out some great places from Steele Magnolia's. After our tour, we found a street bench to sit and people watch until supper. We chose a local downtown restaurant, specializing in creole dishes. The restaurant was a little old and could use some fixing up, but the main course was really good. Eric had a gulf shrimp dish with a crap, lobster and shrimp sauce. I had grilled catfish on a bed of dirty rice and topped with a spicy crawfish sauce. We were successfully stuffed again. We walked back to our room, read and watched TV for the weather back home, then went and got ice cream at Sonic. Yeah, had to help the sweet tooth out.

This morning we had another wonderful breakfast. First course was a yogurt parfait with granola, banana's and strawberries. The second course was what our hostess called a pancake. I just called it cake. It was blueberry pancake that had pecans and Reese's morsel cooked in the bottom, topped with fresh whip cream, strawberries and bananas. Link sausage and grapes were on the side. It was very yummy. I love fancy breakfast.

We then packed up and headed out the door. Our tour guide from yesterday recommended that we visit Fort St. Jean Baptiste, where his dad worked. Sure enough, his dad was our tour guide today. The fort is a reconstruction based on historical records. I'm sure on busier days they do more re-enactments, but today was a slow day, which just meant more one-on-one time with our tour guide. By the way, dad told us today that he was a single dad. Nathan's mom had died about 9 years ago, and he had raised him on his own since then. He did a good job.

After touring the fort, Tommy recommended we go see some of the plantations. Eric was itching to head home, but once Tommy told us that one of the plantations was where part of "The Horse Soldiers" was filmed (starring JOHN WAYNE). It didn't take much to talk him into going then. Oakland Plantation was originally started around the late 1700's, was owned by the same family until 1989 and is now owned by National Park Service. What I enjoyed a lot about this home, was that the NPS has not restored everything back to the 1800's when the house was built, but kept much of the furniture the same because the family did live in the house until 1989. Of course the newest furniture is from the 50's and the ranger said the family were great pack rats, so it made it easier for the NPS.

Now we are headed home and should be home around 6 or 7. It has been a great weekend, but I can't wait to see my kids. See ya next vaca.

Natchitoches

I hope I spelled it right. Eric and I found good bar b q in Ruston yesterday. That was the beginning of our Louisianna food tour. What did we do before the Internet and GPS. Right before lunch, my cell phone's battery went dead, which has my GPS on it. We had my laptop looking for a place to eat, and had to use mapquest to get directions. A few years ago, we would have been stuck with McDonald's or Pizza hut on the main drag. We ate at Dowling's. It was a small bar b q joint and it was good, well, very good. Eric had the ribs and I had the brisket with bake beans and potato salad. Then it was on down the road to our final destination. We are staying at the Queen Ann Bed and Breakfast. We found this place on the Internet. I had heard about Nachitoches from the lady that "cuts" Eric's hair. This is the town where Steel Magnolia's was filmed. It's suppose to be the oldest town in Louisiana. The main street faces the Cane River (where they had the Easter egg hunt in Steel Magnolia's). It is paved in brick. Our B&B is nice. It was a little surprising that our room has large sliding doors right beside the parlor and front door. We were a little concerned at first about the privacy and when we opened the doors this morning to go to breakfast, we were greeted by the rest of the residents. Good Morning ! It hasn't been that bad though. We are the youngest here, and the rest of the residence are from Louisiana. One with a strong New Orleans accent. Our bed is very comfortable and I slept well last night. One problem around here is noise. OMG!! There is train you get use to, but the siren's from ambulance and police are terrible. This town is busier than I thought it would be and Front Street, where all the nice shops are, is very busy with local traffic. I haven't figured that one out yet. Also, last night when I laid down to sleep, I said out loud "I wonder what that door goes to." It's a locked door with a window pain above the door (I love it - very antique!). I found out this morning at 6:50 it leads to the kitchen. O well, I needed to get up anyway. Breakfast was served at 8:30. Bread pudding, breakfast casserole, sour cream grits and biscuit, and orange cranberry juice. It was very delicious and we had good company.
Oh yeah, and last night for supper we ate at a local place called Momma's Oyster Bar. We had oysters on the half shell, shrimp and crawfish. It was VERY good. We were able to walk there from our B&B and the local homes have really nice flower gardens. I could eat there again tonight, but maybe we will try something new. I am trying to get Eric to go to the Green Market right now, but naps are calling his name. May have to venture out on my own.

April Showers Bring May Flowers

A road trip is on our agenda today and this weekend. Eric and I have left the kids with the wonderful grandparents this weekend for a "duck season is over and I love you for not killing me through 60 days+ of duck season" trip. He surprised me late February with reservations to a bed and breakfast in Natchitoches, LA. Natchitoches is suppose to be the oldest town in Louisiana. We are on an adventure to find seafood and crawdads. Our plans are to nap, read, and eat. Rain is trying to dampen our spirits, but who cares - we are just gonna spend a great weekend together and not let the weather get us down. I hope to also find a few antique flea markets. I am looking for a biscuit cutter - the kind with a wooden handle and metal bottom. My mom has one, and I need one. I don't make biscuits much, but when I do, I always have to look for something strange to cut the biscuits. Also I am hoping to see some pretty azaleas this weekend. It may be a little too late though, because they are starting to grow old around home. So anyway, 150 miles to go according to the GPS. I think I may have to talk Eric into lunch soon. Maybe in ElDorada. Ive always wanted to stop there.

If We Make It Through December, Everythings Gonna Be Allright I Know......

I don't post blogs during the most interesting times in my life. I guess it is because we are sooo busy during that time. I was off for a week in November and spent most of my time either shopping or hunting. i Think that was a pretty good vacation. The best part was that it was the first week of deer camp and during that week they always eat supper at the camp - SO - I didn't have to cook all week, except to make my contribution. (That part is easy!) It was a very good week.
The next week was Thanksgiving - also a good week. I only had to work 3 days and then I was off for 4. Not bad if I say so myself. I ventured in the kitchen this year to make a Thanksgiving meal for Eric's mom and brother's family. I baked a turkey, made crock pot dressing, homemade cranberry sauce, loaded mash potatoes, candied sweet potatoes, strawberry pretzel salad(which is a dessert), a sugar free pecan pie, sweet potato pie and homemade yeast rolls. I know - I was crazy, but I can say I have done it. Mom's meal at lunch was the best with fried fish, deer and turkey!! YUM. Can we do that again Mom?
All of Eric's family spent the night and then the married couples got up and went to Black Friday!! Yep - even Eric and Nathan. Well - sort of - they went to Fordyce to WalMart. Nathan is on the CASSA (a youth charity board I think) board in Fordyce and they were having a fundraiser at the Walmart to collect toys for underprivileged children. Eric went with him for fun. They took the early shift of the fund raiser because they could be back in time for hunting. Tab and I went to all the sales and came home with a trunk full!! It was fun, but we were very tired. We were at Walmart by 4:30. It was fun to "geek watch" too. People are crazy for a super sale and the masses were out!!
Saturday, I crashed. I was worthless. Sunday my energy picked up some. The girls and I went to Penny after church for a horse ride. The weather was perfect and the girls love going there. I do too!.
This week has been somewhat busy. Lots of work for Eric and I to do at our "real jobs". My house-keeper is at my house today, so maybe we can start putting up Christmas decorations soon.

MY HUSBAND BOUGHT ME A CRUISE FOR MY BIRTHDAY!!!!

So that's what Eric likes to tell everyone. We went on a Fall Foliage Tour on the Arkansas Queen yesterday. It is a paddle boat that is on the Arkansas River. This was a special tour they do in the fall. We went up the river toward Pinnacle Mountain and then back down. It took about 4 hours. We were able to go through the Murry Lock and Dam, which was interesting. The colors have actually past their peak, but it was still pretty. The weather was perfect! We sat on the top deck most of the afternoon. They also served a nice lunch on the boat and the staff was very nice. It is nice to get good service these days. They did play BINGO on the way back, but we just enjoyed the beautiful weather on the top deck. I will definitely go again, and recommend it to anybody.

After the cruise, we did a little Santa shopping. It feels good to have a head start! Today I am back at work and my dad is cooking supper for me tonight. Life is still good.

Beutiful Weather

I think I have slowed down, but I am still on the go. My house keeper came Wednesday and it was nice to come home to a clean house. I had to work late and then go to church that night, so it much more enjoyed on Thursday.

Friday, after I took Elizabeth to school, Leah, Dad and I enjoyed breakfast at the restaurant in Poyen. Another delicious breakfast. It is a small diner, where everyone seems to know everyone. And they have a GREAT breakfast and good coffee. After breakfast, we headed to Stuttgart to drop off a gun barrel for Eric's shotgun at Mack's. Mack's is this MASSIVE hunting store, that got their start from selling duck hunting supplies. I even enjoy shopping in there, and I bought my first Christmas present there. Leah likes to go to because there are a lot of mounted animals that she can look at. After that, we went back into Pine Bluff to buy the meat for the church bar-b-q. It was then time to go get Elizabeth from school. When we did finally get to come home, we enjoyed the afternoon enjoying beautiful weather on the deck. After supper, Eric put new breaks on my car and the girls and I went to wash chickens at Granny's. We ended up having help from Pat and Harley and then Keith and Teresa Williams stopped in after we were done. They stayed and visited and we had a good night with friends.

Saturday we slept in and I only did what I wanted to do. I picked up the house a little and did laundry. We watched the wonderful football game on TV - GO HOGS! I then cooked some backed beans and cole slaw to take to the bar-b-q. Eric took a long nap and then we went to eat. We had about 70 people come and had 4 large pans of meat left on the cooker. We then enjoyed singing in the church. Elizabeth went home with Granny and Leah came home with us. She is becoming a momma's girl. UGH!

We went to Sunday school this morning and left before church. (That is Eric and I). We left the girls with Granny and we are on our way to take a Fall Foliage Tour on the Arkansas Queen, which is on the Arkansas River. Sounds like fun to me.

The end of October

Where do I start. Last week, I was a little under the weather, mostly on Leah's birthday. I had taken the day off, so that I cold spend it with her doing whatever she wanted. Eric was off also, so he spent most of the day making her happy. They spent the morning finger painting, then we went to take me to the doctor. THEN, we went to Walmart to spend Leah's birthday money - she bought a Ariel Mermaid doll that she can play with in the tub. Yeah - she really needed that. We then had lunch at Chick-fil-a, her favorite restaurant. It was then time to pick up Elizabeth, then off to the pharmacy to get my medicine. They went to Trunk or Treat at church while I rested at home. Leah dressed as one of Noah's daughter-in-law - wearing rubber boots, carrying an umbrella and a basket of hay to feed the animals. Elizabeth dressed as Pharaoh's daughter who found Moses in the river. She had an Egyptian costume from last year and she carried around a baby doll as moses. They brought home tuns of candy.

I took off Thursday to rest, but it was spent in the office trying to get my computer fixed, but it didn't get fixed until Monday morning. It also come a flood in Sheridan that afternoon. It rained over 7 inches in 30 minutes, covering many roads and closing Sheridan schools the next day. I haven't seen rain ever like that in my life.

Friday, Leah and I spent the day at the School with Elizabeth. The morning time was class time for Elizabeth, so Leah and I went to the local restaurant for breakfast with my friend Kerri. The afternoon was spent at the costume contest and Halloween party. Our teacher needs some gumption. Poor lady needs to retire.

Saturday was spent picking up the house and lounging around the house until it was time to trick or treat. Elizabeth was Paula Dean and Leah was a policewoman. VERY CUTE if I say so myself. We went to see Aunt Valeeta and Uncle Frank Lee (our tradition every year) - they had apples with gummy worms. Then we went to Mary Ellens, The Cotton's, then to the Harrington's. The Harrington's had candy for the kids and food for the adults. Then it was off to Grandma Barnes and Granny and PawPaw's for more special treats.

Sunday we went to church and then Grandma's fried chicken and Mom's home made rolls!! Oh my!! I was stuffed all afternoon. Eric and I then took a drive to Hot Springs to check on a front end loader. We ended up just buying drinks at Sonic. The leaves are really nice this year, and that is probably the only drive we will get to take this year, we have just been so busy.

Monday we all went back to work. And Tuesday the same. This weekend will be filled with activity also. Friday I have to go to Stuttgart to get a gun part fixed for Eric. Saturday is the "annual" barBQ at church.