Tuesday - to the Natchez Trade, April 29

Tuesday.  Today we are heading out of Vincennes.  After much debate and map-studying, Joe picked a roundabout route -- first to Nashville, then onto the Natchez Trace Parkway all the way to Natchez, Mississippi.  So, we began.

We got on the road about 10:30 a.m., after several, several trips up and down the stairs with final loading.  It was windy, then sunny, and eventually we caught up with the rain about 1:00 p.m.  As we traveled across northern Kentucky, it was evident that they have not been able to start farming yet -- in Vincennes, the farmers were hitting the fields hard, working early and late, trying to get some planting done before the next rain.  But the wheat is further along here, and looked pretty in the fields.

We changed time zones as soon as we left Knox County, so we lost an hour.  We managed to actually drive PAST a White Castle Hamburger joint in Owensboro, KY, and had a nice lunch at a Cracker Barrel.  It was a pretty drive down through Kentucky on Hwy. 431.  We did have to stop for road construction once, while the machine mulched part of a tree.

 We crossed the Tennessee State Line about 2:35 (local time), and hit Nashville at rush hour, of course.

 It took us a while to find the beginning the Natchez Trace, we had to circle back once, but we got on it just about 5:00.  Our traveling friends had told us about the Trace several years ago, and we had actually traveled a small piece of it in 2010, on our way to Graceland.  Almost immediately, we saw a couple of turkeys, then 2 deer crossed the road.  I didn't get any pictures of any wildlife, but we did see some.

The Trace runs 444 miles through 3 states and "10,000 years of history."  It was established as a unit of the National Park System in 1938.  Amazingly, there is not a single stop sign or traffic light on the entire 444 miles, and the speed limit is 50 mph.  We LOVED it.  Just our style! I didn't get a photo of the first mile marker, but I finally did.  These were intermittent the entire length of the Trace, sometimes every mile, sometimes a little less frequent.

There was very little traffic, and because we were going 50 or less, we could take in the natural beauty all around us.  Forests, blooming trees, meadows, rivers, creeks, and wildflowers filled our windshield.  Many roads entered and exited the Trace, but none of them required us to stop.  We crossed lots of highways on overpasses so we could see the highway below. 

There are also a lot of bicyclists on the Trace, and we share the road with them.  There are no businesses right on the Trace, so it's a little tricky finding fuel and lodging.  We lucked out Tuesday night and spotted a campground at an overpass just off the Trace about 5:45.  We also lucked out on the weather.  The night before, this campground had received 5-6 inches of rain and had some flooding, but the river or creek was back in its banks tonight.  The host gave us a recommendation for dinner in a nearby town, and we enjoyed a very good Mexican meal there.  The campground host even showed up there too and invited us to join his table, but we didn't move over there.  As we came into town, though, there were several cops with lights flashing right on the edge of town.  Again, our host, very informative, said they had busted a mobile meth lab there. 

The campground, Fall Hollow at Hohenwald, TN, was actually quite nice, grassy, plenty of room, and only 7 miles from town (food and fuel).

We maintained our wildlife count throughout the day -- only the 2 deer we saw right after we got on the Trace, but we saw 11 turkeys in all.

After we ate, we stopped by Walmart to pick up a few groceries, and by then we were just beat.  I was too tired to do the blog, or anything else -- we just went to bed. 

We drove 290 miles today.  We picked up a map of the trace that gives items of interest by milepost, and we made a few stops, but not too many.  Mostly, we just enjoyed the drive.

Fri-Mon. (4/25-4/28)

Friday.  We've been busy and I am behind on my blogging so I'll try to do a quick update, starting with Friday.  Today is my granddaughter's 13 birthday, sure miss seeing her and celebrating with her.

I had a meeting today with what is now the Reunion Committee for my class's 50th high school reunion next year.  Toni Holmes, Barbara Holscher, Nancee Truelove and Brenda Nowaski joined me at La Fiesta and we had a great time.  We laughed about high school days and made the beginnings of a plan for next year.  I look forward to working with these girls during the upcoming months. 

Saturday.  Today was our Terre Haute day.  We first stopped and visited our ex-babysitter, Audrey Williams, who is doing very well after having double knee replacement surgery during the past year.  We had a very nice visit, then her two grandsons showed up so we got to visit with Walker and Luke too.  We have seen Luke the last couple of years during our visits, but it's been a long, long time since we had seen Walker.

From there, we headed back across town to grab a few White Castle hamburgers for lunch.  Joe was thrilled to have his favorites again.

Would you believe they sell a scented candle there.  I probably should have bought one so Joe can enjoy the smell of those onion-hamburgers, but I figured it would just increase his cravings so I didn't get him one.  Also, they were $15.00!!!  But they do look exactly like the boxes those little burgers are served in.

Next, we drove over to Brazil and visited with my ex-coworker, Diane Braden, for a while.  We always have a good time together.  I will have to say she has the only garage I've ever seen that has wallpaper border all around the walls.  Diane always was the decorator of our group.

Saturday evening we met Ed and Nancy Williams for dinner in Terre Haute.  They drove over from Indianapolis.  Our planned meet was at Texas Roadhouse, but it was Prom Night and there was an 1 1/2 hour wait there, so we moved on to Red Lobster.  There were also a few prom couples dining there, but we only had about a 30 minute wait there.  It was fun seeing the girls in all their prom finery, though.

We did see a little wildlife today -- one wild turkey, and 2 deer.  Oh, and a live possum (we usually only see roadkill of the possums).

Sunday.  Today we celebrated First Communion for Jaclyn's boy, Jayden, at St. John's Catholic Church.  That was the first one of those Joe and I had ever attended, and our first time inside this church.  The service was very nice and the kids did a great job.

Jayden barely survived all this, and the tie was just about more than he could endure -- not to mention smiling for any pictures.  He did willingly get his picture taken with Great Grandma, though, and he held up his little sister as well.

After the service, we all had barbeque at Quabache Trails Park, and Jayden got to open some pretty spiffy presents -- lots of $$, a scooter, and a fishing pole, just to name a few.  We finished the picnic just in time -- a thunderstorm rolled in and drenched the park.  Thanks to my friend Barbara, who was calling me with weather updates, we made it to the car about 5 minutes before the storm hit.

We got back out to the house, and Billie and Marcy stopped by for a brief visit.  Joe and I got drafted into making burritos for dinner, so we had that underway.  At supper time, we had a housefull -- the 4 of us, Mike and Rachelle with Clayton and Mallory,  Jaclyn and Adam with Jayden and Adalyn, and Fred and Judy -- 14 in all.  It was a marathon day by the time everyone left.

Monday.  Today was packing day.  We are leaving tomorrow, so Joe and I made a quick trip to town and I got my hair cut.  Dixie had started the laundry, and together we got that finished, while Joe filled up our water tank, then drove the RV up the road and got it fueled ($3.839) and the propane tank filled ($1.99/gallon).  He parked it out front in the old driveway, and we began loading.  It takes lots of trips, up and down the stairs.

We had dinner plans for one last get-together with friends.  We met Mike and Donna Carter, and Barbara and Maurice Holscher for one last pizza at Bobe's.  I believe we finally got our fill of pizzas this time.  Then it was back home to take another couple loads to the motorhome. 

We still have a few things to load in the morning, but we hope to be on the road by noon.  And we hope the storms are ALL GONE. 

Thursday (April 24)

Thursday.  My lilacs are blooming.  Life is good for me whenever I have lilacs in it.  I cut 2 off and brought them into the house so I can enjoy their beauty and fragrance for the next few days.

Rachelle stopped by in the afternoon with the kids (Lucille and I were napping).  Mallory found some wildlife that had stopped by for a visit.

A baby turtle had stopped by on the carport for a visit.  Joe put it on this fly swatter to get a good photo so you can see how little it is.  Although Mallory and Clayton wanted to take it home with them, Joe carried it out to a bush by the back yard and let it go free.

We all went to dinner (Mike, Rachelle, Mallory and Clayton went with us) to the Log Inn down by Haubstadt.  This family-style restaurant is officially recognized as the "Oldest Restaurant in Indiana," built in 1925 for Noon Day Stage Coach Stop & Trading Post.  The placemat says we can dine in the same original log room that Abraham Lincoln was in, in November 1844.  The food was delicious, and plentiful.  There are several rooms, so I don't know if we ate in the Abe Lincoln room or not, but it was definitely a rustic, old log cabin.  We plan to go back on our next visit.  Joe and I had been there once before, several years ago, but we didn't remember how good it was.

When we left there, Joe spotted a sign to a campground on down that same road, so we drove down there to check it out for the future.  It wasn't anything grand, but it looked like it had full hookups, and would be pretty convenient for our last night before going to Lucille's house.

It had interesting landscaping -- I guess it was representing the rural Indiana life.

Tuesday-Wednesday (April 22/23)

Tuesday.  We woke up to a nice, sunny day -- a little windy but that was ok.  My lilacs are about one day away from full bloom so I am keeping a close eye on that bush. Joe and Cathy went to town, then drove up to Verne to see about getting our Explorer looked at (Joe hears a noise in one of the wheels), but they didn't have any luck so he came home and pulled the left front wheel.  Fortunately, he didn't find any problem so maybe we lucked out on a repair bill.

It was time for a Bobe's pizza again, and Fred and Judy met us there, then came out for a card game. 

Wednesday.  Cathy left today, with her arm still wrapped up for her dislocated thumb.  By the time she got everything loaded, including the dog and recycle bottles, it was getting close to noon.  I decided to make my run to Oaktown to my sister's grave, then made my annual trip down memory lane through the backroads of Decker Chapel.  I tracked down my schoolbus buddy, Mike Carter, in the field and had a nice chat with him.  He was busy farming, getting the field ready for corn planting.

 
As I drove on down into the bottomland, I could see where the river had just gotten back into its banks.  Some I of the fields were still wet, but I came upon a tractor at Newton Farms that knew to deal with that.

 

































I finally worked my way back home and came into the kitchen to smells of ham and beans for dinner.  Fred always gets invited out for beans, so he and Judy joined us, and then, of course, we played cards for the rest of the evening. 

Monday (4/21/2014)

Monday.  Well, the party is over, time to do the clean-up.  I think Lucille ended up with about 60 birthday cards, and 2 more arrived today.  We weren't very successful at getting our party attendees to sign the guest book, so we don't have a count for yesterday, but suffice it to say, a good time was had by all.  It was a beautiful Easter Sunday, and the privilege of getting to spend it with family celebrating our matriarch's 98th birthday really made it a memorable day.

Jim headed back to Ft. Wayne this morning, and we started putting away the party stuff.  Of course, one thing always leads to another, and to put something in a drawer, Dixie always thinks we have to clean out the drawer first.  So she gets sidetracked frequently.

































 Joe and Cathy took off for town, for the soda run and whatever other roads Joe sees his name on.  Upon their return, we did learn that the Cannonball Bridge was closed, due to construction-not high water.  The next thing on the agenda was my annual trip to Princeton to put some flowers on my families' graves.  So we loaded up Lucille, the dog, and the 5 of us, and off we went, checking out the farming, the river, the road to the mine where Mike F. works, and anything else of interest.  After the cemetery, we had lunch at Taco Tierra (don't have to go back there), made a stop at the Donut Bank of all things, for tomorrow's breakfast, then browsed through Finder's Keepers, an antique/swap meet in Princeton.  Finally, we headed home with just one side trip and started preparations for dinner.  Judy was bringing out some country ribs she had been cooking in the crockpot all day, so we added some baked potatoes and baked beans and had another fine meal.  After clean-up, we played one game of 6-handed euchre that lasted about 3 hours, so we had a good end to our day.

We did have a brief shower about 5:00 p.m., but then the sun popped out briefly and I captured a picture of an Indiana sunset.

Pre-party workday and the Party (4/19/14-4/20/14)

Saturday.  Today was "get ready to party" day, which means cleaning out and starting to prepare the party treats.  Cathy gave Lucille her shower this morning (as the day evolved, Cathy was sorry she didn't jump in and get her shower when Lucille got out), then Cathy, Joe, Jim and I all went to town for breakfast, while Dixie stayed home and fixed Lucille her breakfast.  But when we got back, Dixie was underway with laundry and making punch, I started up the vacuum, then Dixie moved on to dusting, and Cathy resumed her window-washing chores (yesterday, she did the front door and the living room, but she still had the back porch to do).  Unfortunately, she fell off the step ladder and dislocated her thumb.  She spent most of the afternoon at the emergency room, getting x-rays, getting it put back in position, then picking up prescriptions.  What someone won't do to get out of washing windows!  Fortunately, she had them all done except one.   Joe took his mother to her beauty shop appointment and picked up the cake.  Never a dull moment.

Speaking of the walking wounded,  Dixie took a tumble out in the yard on Thursday (those mole hills get her every time), then she fell right beside me and Lucille on Friday morning in the kitchen.  Fortunately, she only suffered a scrape on the cheek that time, and nothing apparent from the day before, so we think she is ok.  But there seems to be a theme in that strain of the bloodline.

I'm still keeping an eye on the lilac bush.  It's greening up nicely, so if a storm doesn't come along and blow all the blooms off when it does bloom, I might get to see some lilacs in the next week or so.

Joe and I attended the Decker Chapel Alumni in the evening (for the first time).  This was the first time Joe and I had been inside the Decker Chapel Community Center, and I was very pleased with how nice it was.   I had some pictures I wanted to donate, and I got to see some people I had not seen since grade school.  The highlight of the evening for me (and my bestie Barbara Seitzinger Holscher) was visiting with Mike Horrall, who had left us and moved away at the end of our Freshman year (he was the heart throb of most of the girls in our class [4 out of 6, I think], including both of us).  Barbara and I had not seen him since 1962, although we have had many, many conversations about him over the years, and we were both thrilled that he showed up.  We had lots of laughs, but I'm not sure he will ever be the same.

Sunday was Easter, and the day of the birthday party.  Lucille was awake early and yelling up the stairs for us to get out of bed.  We all made it to church (not to Sunrise Service, but we did have a good family turnout for the 10:00 service), then the granddaughters (Jaclyn, Cathy, and Rachelle) put on a delicious Easter lunch.  We got set up for the party, and spent the rest of the day in birthday celebration mode (more chocolates and more flowers).  We didn't have as good a turnout for the party as we had planned for, and I'm sure that the Easter holiday had a big impact on that.  But still, several people stopped by, most of the family were in attendance, and she had a lovely day.

The kids had an Easter egg hunt, played a little baseball, and got creative with the sidewalk chalk.

The weather couldn't have been nicer, and it was a great day to just enjoy being together.

We missed our immediate family a lot, though, but we did get new pictures of our Florida baby.  Sure hate that we have missed so much of his first year.  We got new pictures, though, and I never know if I'm successful with posting them, but here goes.  I can't seem to make it any smaller, so I'll just go with it.

Here's another one.  It looks like Florida had a pretty nice day too.

Friday (April 18)

Friday.  Today was the nicest day we have had here in Indiana.  It got up into the 70s and the wind was probably about 10 mph.  Dixie and I went to town shopping for, hopefully, the last of the birthday party essentials.  It took several hours and 3 stops, but we finally got done.  When we got home, the rest of the crew were all sitting outside enjoying the sunshine.  They had even put the swing back up on the back patio. 

This beautiful, blooming tree in the front yard is one that David planted several years ago.  We see a lot of these trees around the countryside right now, and have been wondering what they were, not realizing it was the same as we have right here. 

 

A neighbor, Norm Snider, stopped by to wish Lucille a happy birthday.  It had been lots of years since anyone had talked to him, so that was a surprise.  Joe did maintenance on the back screen door again.  All that wore Lucille out, so she got a nap in. 

(This is what being  98 does to you)

Then Rachelle stopped by in her new wheels, on her way to a Pampered Chef party.  Quite a nice ride!

  I had cooked a roast yesterday so we had Philly Cheese Steaks for dinner.  Fred and Judy joined us, then Judy, Dixie and Jim went to Good Friday services at church.  We were still sitting outside when they returned.  Eventually it cooled off enough to send us inside.  Judy, Cathy and Dixie played Mexican Train with Mallory and Clayton until Lucille decided it was time for everyone to go home so she could go to bed.

Thursday (April 17)

Thursday.  Dixie and the boys went to town this morning, so it was my turn to do some chores and stay home with Mom. Dixie needed some adjustment on her glasses, and it was grocery-shopping time again, to get ready for the party on Sunday.  Of course, with Joe driving, they had to make a side-trip back across the river to look at those watermelon plants again, and then there was another road with Joe's name on it, so it was mid-afternoon before they got back home.

Don Wagoner stopped by with his mowing equipment to get the lawn ready for the Sunday party, and he came in and visited when he finished his work.  He knows a lot of history about the area and the people, so Lucille really enjoyed talking and listening to him.

Cathy arrived about 5:00, with her dog, Bird.
 
 She brought Grandma an Easter Bunny.  Grandma thought Bird might like the bunny well enough to eat it, so she introduced them in the hope that the Bunny will stay safe.
 

 

After our dinner of Dixie's beef vegetable soup, we played 6-handed euchre for a while.  We finally wore Lucille out, and she gave up her seat at the table to Judy, who stopped by after church.   

We had to switch sleeping arrangements around upstairs, but we all had a place to lay our heads for the night.

 

Tuesday-Wednesday (4/15-4/160

Tuesday.  I guess spring has come and gone.  We all survived a very cold night.  I don't think we had any frost, but the wind sure kept the house cold.  I finally turned my "warmer" all the way up to try to find a warm spot in bed.  I think it was 34 this morning, but a very cold wind.  When I came downstairs, Lucille was already up and dressed.  Joe, Jim and I went into Denny's for breakfast, and Dixie stayed home and did chores. 

The birthday cards keep coming in, today's mail brought 9.  She did get another "letter" from the Indiana House of Representatives acknowledging her 98th birthday.  Billie stopped by in the afternoon and brought her a box of candy from Charlies, but otherwise it was a pretty quiet day.

An amazing sight after dinner tonight, Joe got up and started washing dishes.  This is something that just doesn't happen!  Jim dried, but he does that all the time.  Joe must have thought he needed to take on more duties in the care-taking role, but it's good for me.  ( I think we had leftovers, so it was a "light" dish night, but still.)

Tonight I was included in the group, mostly from church, going over to Mt. Carmel to the play put on by the Church Basement Ladies, "A Mighty Fortress Is Our Basement."  I rode over with Barbara, after a drive through the cemetery where my family is buried at Princeton.  The play was quite funny, and very enjoyable.  Even more entertaining was getting Judy back to Vincennes.  She had driven down from Lawrenceville (getting lost 3 times trying to find the college where the play was performed).  Barbara offered to have her follow us back to Vincennes on the way home, so we dropped her off at her car.  But somehow while we were turning around in the parking lot behind her car, she thought we got in front of her, so she hurriedly took off, following a car in front of her, while we were behind her supposed to be leading.  It was confusion for a while, and we almost ended up in Albion, Illinois, but she finally answered the cell phone, we got her stopped and turned around, and we finally all got headed in the right direction.  Something else Barbara and I will laugh about for years to come.
  

Wednesday.  The Birth Day brought our much-needed sunshine, and even though it remains cold, the sunshine does help.  Joe and I went to a funeral this morning, the sister of  from high school friend, Ed Williams.  Following the funeral, and lunch in town, we drove across the river to see some watermelon plants that had been set out under plastic.  We were told that they will survive down to 29 degrees, and it looked like they had survived.

Another "happening" event in Vincennes is the destruction of the old Executive Inn, located just as you come into town from the north.  "During the 1980's and 1990's this hotel was amazing. The restaurant had some of the best food in town. Lots of entertainers would come to town to do shows in the convention center."  I remember this as a very popular place back in the day, but it has been an eyesore for some time so it's good that it's coming down.

More birthday cards arrived in today's mail, and Lucille received a pretty bouquet of flowers from Judy Kay.

We went into town for the birthday dinner at a new restaurant, Gilbert's.  Fred and Judy met us there, and we had a very nice meal (although they did not provide a cake for the birthday girl).  But Fred gave her a 2-lb. box of turtles from Charlies, so we were not without a sweet.

Just after we got home, Mike and Rachelle and the kids stopped by to share their birthday wishes, and she got several phone calls throughout the day and evening from family, so the event was well celebrated.

Monday (April 14)

Monday.  Another rainy day, although the sun was shining when we got out of bed. Today was not a good day for Lucille.  Her back ache returned, and she was out of sorts all day long.  She had a doctor's appointment about noon, and they took an x-ray, so we should find out in the next day or two whether there is anything "structurally" wrong.  But in the meantime, the doctor gave her for a muscle relaxer, and we are hoping tonight and tomorrow are more comfortable for her.  We had lunch at "Dot's" in town, and Joe found the largest tenderloin yet.  It was very good, probably the best he's had so far, but the coating was a little hard.  But he thoroughly enjoyed it.
I copied this picture from my Facebook posting since I took it with my phone, so it may not show up.

I had a few errands this morning, but I got back in time to switch cars so they had the transport chair (wheelchair) with them. I stopped by Barbara Holscher's, then Fred & Judy's.   It poured down rain just as they got Lucille out of the car at the doctor's office.  Jim and I stayed home from the doctor's appointment, but we met them at Dot's for lunch.  Then Dixie and I did a little shopping for Sunday's birthday party, and got the cake ordered.

Lucille got 6 more birthday cards in the mail today, along with an Easter card from her newest great grandson, Andrew Thomas, in Florida.  He even sent a couple of colored "eggs" for her.


It was a pretty quiet evening.  I gave Dixie a lesson in "hand & foot" card game, but the boys chose not to join us, so that didn't last too long.  Finally, we all sought out our chilly beds. Jim always goes up first and turns on each of our bed lights (in hopes that we won't turn on the hall light when we come to bed).  So tonight, he also turned on our bed warmers, even though his bed doesn't even have one.