Sunday, March 24, 2013

It's a BIG One!

My dear friend, Nila App, turned 60 yesterday. It can be psychologically difficult arriving at a new decade, so one has to do whatever necessary to make the transition easier. I don't remember 60. It was too long ago.

At dinner this week, Nila and I made plans for a Friday night dinner at Antonio's Italian Restaurant to celebrate with a few friends. Of course, birthdays are really about the cake...

 
 
(Don't you just love Adam's Bakery???)
 
It's also about the Birthday Girl!
 
 
Here are Nila and her sister, Rita.
Rita says that she loves her sister most but I think that I love her more! Then, of course, there was Diane that arrived that thinks she is really Nila's sister....well...it's all very confusing!
The point is that Nila is a blessing to a lot of people.
 
 
Here are Rita and her hubby Kim. If anyone gets my vote for 'nice', it goes to these people (right after Nila and Larry).
 
Also at dinner were some very special people:
 
 
Tina (with hubby Pat) and Nila are working buddies.
 
 
Heather's life changed when she went to Nila's Bible Study.
(There was also something about CPA stuff in the story.)
 
 
Kellie (with sweet Orlando) was mentored by Nila at Trinity UMC
during her youth.
(I even had Kellie's sister in my 1st grade class many years ago!)
 
 
I heard CPA talk when Diane and Roger were introduced and something about a lifetime gym membership as a gift to Nila until they sold the gym??? What's that all about?
 
 
I couldn't resist adding Heather, Scott and Chris a second time.
 What a cute family!
 
Time for cake!!!
 
 
"You want how big a piece???"
 
 
"How sweet!"
 
 
 
Thank goodness I got Larry Boy in a picture!!!
 
It was such a good time. Now, if I had just gotten the birthday girl in the
group picture:
 
 
Happy Birthday my dear friend, Nila!
So glad we could help celebrate with you!!!
 

Saturday, March 23, 2013

A Song about Dandridge???

Georgia....Georgia..... I love that song!!! But  Dandridge...Dandridge....doesn't work! If it were Christmas time, I could have Amy Grant sing Tennessee Christmas but thank goodness, it isn't!

Moving on...

On our way to Savannah, we stopped for lunch with Chuck and Karen Youngman, who used to live across the street from Jerry and Penny. Chuck and Jerry are brothers. Chuck and Karen built a home in Dandridge TN a couple of years ago and Penny and Jerry moved to a new condo in Louisville KY. This is only good in that it gives us wonderful people to visit in wonderful places.  During lunch, C and K suggested that, upon our return trip from Savannah, we should stop in Dandridge and spend the night with them. They are probably sorry they did (not really) because we took them up on it.

"Did anyone tell them we were coming???"

After our arrival Thursday afternoon, we hopped into their fancy new van and Chuck drove us around to show us the sites. They live near Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg. Close by was the home of Bush's Baked Beans!!! Now, next to Randall's Beans (in good ol' Tekonsha, Michigan), Bush's Beans are one of my favorites!
On our way to Pigeon Forge, we drove along the river.
It was just beautiful!


 
 
Dinner was in Gatlinburg and it was an adventure!!!


"Adventure" is really putting it mildly!



 
It was quite an adventure!!!
 
Friday morning, I was up earlier than the others (no great surprise) and enjoyed the view of the mountains from most any window.
 

 
It was a beautiful, peaceful scene.
 
And then..........
 

 
BREAKFAST!!!!!
Chuck and Karen cooked!
And we ate...
and ate...
and ate!
And it was delicious!!!
 
 
I'm still full!
 
It was then time to say goodbye to our friends.
 
 
 
 It was so pretty at Chuck and Karen's home and we were loving the weather.
 
 We headed to Louisville to spend our last night with Penny and Jerry. Tom and I love being with them. We like so many of the same things and I never feel guilty about unpacking my electronics in front of Penny because she rivals me in this area.
 
 
 Before leaving on Saturday morning, Penny and Jerry took us to the Wild Egg for breakfast. I had melt-in-your-mouth blueberry pancakes! I don't ever remember eating such incredible pancakes. (Can you tell that I grazed my way through this vacation???)
 

 
I would have taken a picture of the pancakes but I was too busy inhaling them!!!
 
Then it was time to say goodbye to Penny and Jerry.
We had so much fun being with them.
Can't wait to return this summer!!!

 
 
 Thanks soooo much for a wonderful time!!!
 
 
 



Friday, March 15, 2013

Georgia....Georgia....(Sing it baby!!!)

During this week, waitresses have called me "baby" several times. It must be a southern charm kind of thing. We have run into some very kind people down here and I'm loving it!!!

Last week, Tom decided that we needed to go to Savannah for a little vacation. I told him that it had to be between Sundays since I have convinced myself that I am a useful tool on Sundays and need to be at Trinity.

We left after church and headed to Penny and Jerry Youngman's in Louisville, KY. We spent the night and told them to pack and we four headed to Savannah. There was a lunch stop in Tennessee where Jerry's brother Chuck and wife Karen (ex-neighbors of ours on River Drive,  just as Penny and Jerry were) met us at Ruby Tuesdays.


It was a looooong day on the road but fun to be together.

Tuesday and Wednesday were spent checking out sights and sounds, food, trolleys, food, flowers, food, etc in historical Savannah. Here is a taste of what we saw:

We had heard about the ice cream at Leopold's! Delicious!
Know this guy?
Our tour guide said that this man did something to kids that they will always hate him for...(I couldn't imagine!).
He created "Sunday School"!

We wandered down River Street...
 
..saw touches of spring
...wandered down River Street


...crossed bridges

...watched the mist leave the area and temps rise.

Here is my sweet husband! Yes, you see jackets but the day got warmer and warmer as the hours went by. It was nearly 70 by this time but the jackets were easier to wear than to carry.


Freedom!


A bridge to somewhere?


Another golden dome....NOT Notre Dame!


Notice the cobblestone streets and the tracks
 along River Street.
Here is a globe that Tom doesn't own!!!
The globe honors WWII vets.

 
A 'kind' lady offered to take a picture of the 4 of us.
I love it when people do things for others.
Then she asked for money because she was hungry.

Jerry and Tom study some historical information.


Penny takes a shot of a beautiful bud.


So did I.
Check out the green water! Savannah was getting ready for St. Patrick's Day. We saw lots of green!
Same scene...different people

On Wednesday, we headed back into Savannah because we were anxious to visit the St. John the Baptist Catholic Church. The front is under renovation but the inside was intact. My little point and shoot camera didn't begin to do the church justice.

Wednesday's weather was perfection for our walk to the church.
Beauty along our walk...



...and we arrive at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church.





 







 
We then walked a couple of blocks to a cemetery. Many of the tombstones were so old, it wasn't possible to read them.
 
 





Time to go catch the trolley to go back to River Street. "It will be just a few short blocks," said Tom. It was a gorgeous walk.

 
 
 
 
We caught the Ferry for a 5 minute ride over to the Westin Hotel.
 
 
 
 
 
 
Of all the beauty that we saw, this was the best!!!:
 
 
 
 
 
Our day was wonderful. Time now for dinner.
 
It was a "delicious" day!!!
 
To be continued...