Finishing Up Christmas Week at the “Overlook”

Christmas outings ended on Friday with a trip to the Overlook Restaurant in Leavenworth, Indiana…

Less than an hour away… a pleasant drive  with the sun shining…

Established in 1948 after the town had to be moved up on a bluff where it stands today… overlooking the Ohio River…

First it was a small grocery store/gas station… Later a Greyhound Bus Stop

… and then  the Restaurant…

Not, crowded… was able to walk right in and sit down… when we arrived…

I grabbed a few photos of the Ohio River… the Restaurant sits right by… up on an “Overlook” …

View of River from deck…

The River takes a bend right in front of the restaurant…

Picnic tables for warmer weather…

There is the restaurant, pub and outside sitting for warmer days…

Very pretty!…

Our food here was delicious…

Hot Brown for my cousin…

Meatloaf for my cousin’s husband…

Fish Sandwich for my husband…

Reuben Sandwich for my sister…

and I chose the Chicken Pot Pie…

Of course there were sides… but, the warm yeasty rolls were a hit!… 

Did we get dessert?…

We couldn’t resist…

Peanut Butter Pie , Coconut Cream Pie ( but, with 3″ high merengue) and Blackberry Cobbler A la mode …

YUMMY, YUMMY, YUMMY!…

This was where our little family of my Mom, Aunt, Brothers/Sisters and Spouses used to come every Christmas …

With the passing of Mom, my Aunt, my Brother, my Sister and Sister-in-law… we hadn’t been for a few years… Bitter-Sweet for our hearts! …

but, just lovely!

My Sunday Grateful: October 20, 2013

We had a lovely day!…

My husband and I enjoying an outing to Bethlehem, Indiana… for their Fall Festival… appropriately called “Autumn On the River”…

( Highway 62 … heading to New Washington turn off that leads to Bethlehem)

I just love the name… pictures automatically come to mind…

(Home grown gourds and pumpkins for sale)

fall leaves in color… the Ohio River running along side this quaint little town

(The Ohio River meanders by as we walked around the small town)

People traveling from other towns to enjoy a beautiful day of music, crafts, foods, and sights…

(The young man singing on stage sounded a lot like “Randy Travis” … and added to the atmosphere as we sat and ate… some sitting at tables and others on bales of hay)

(The pulled pork BBQ sandwich was wonderful… and a Funnel Cake later… that was my husband’s choice… I usually opt for the Persimmon Pudding)

(Abe Lincoln showed up… and rose from his rocking chair to shake my hand)

A room dedicated to some of the history of Bethlehem…

(A Pre-historic Mammoth’s tooth and tusk… found in Bethlehem)

(History is so important to these folks… ancestors photos and memorabilia filled a couple of rooms of the old school-house that has been refurbished)

A small town for sure… winding road leading to it… around curvy roads… deep valleys…

Cars were starting to line up as we neared our destination…

and fields that have turned brown…

The small white church

… and the people who have lived there all of their lives

… new owners who have come for the peace and quiet that only small towns seem to offer after they entered retirement years…

Homes above the road leading down to the River…

Mingling together on warm summer days… and now in the cooler days of Autumn…

There were around 100+ vendors set up with their items for sale…

I’m a simple shopper…

A homemade pink baby quilt and pillow…

( Jill had to check it out! )

a jar of homemade Pepper Jelly in a golden color for Autumn

A University of Louisville Bracelet and Ring set for my youngest Granddaughter…

 which Jill found interesting too!

… and a book that I thought I would enjoy reading sometime…

I was just grateful for the time I spent in this little town tucked into the hills and valley of Indiana!

Belterra Casino… Short Road Trip…

The day looked so good as I looked out my front door…

Pretty blue sky… white whispy clouds…  No rain in the forecast and around 80 degrees expected…

A day for a short road trip…

We decided to drive up to Belterra Casino in Indiana … It’s about an hour drive from Louisville… just long enough…

The scenery was pretty, but I prefer side roads to interstate…

There’s green grass now… pretty Redbud Trees blooming…

Fields are getting plowed…

We headed to Highway 71 N. that goes toward Carrollton, Kentucky and Cincinnati, Ohio…

We would go this way to Butler State Park when I was young…

Sometimes we stop there for a small break… but, nothing like the park I remember…

We pass so many big trucks… I imagine over 100 easily… Some day I’ll count just to see…

We pass LOVE”S…   It’s just a truck stop, with a BBQ place , Subway and McDonald’s … besides anything a truck driver needs… at the turn off going towards Belterra…

We usually stop for a burger or sub to eat on the way home when we are leaving…

The Kentucky Speedway is passed going this direction too…

We cross over the Ohio River near Markland Dam…

and then we are in Indiana…

We arrive at the Casino…

It was nice to get out for the day… and the weather was beautiful…

No, we didn’t win playing our penny slots… but, it was fun!

Weekly Photo Challenge: BEYOND

Beyond the iron railings of the bridge… smokestacks… cities… Ohio River… Indiana…???

Beyond the Viking Youth Football team… their rivals… teammates on the field… energetic parents… coaches???

Beyond the tree… rubber rafts… vacationers… Gatlinburg TN… Pigeon River???

Beyond the Santa covered windows of this house passed on our way home from Indiana… happiness… sadness… “Christmas Spirit”…???

Beyond this street we were driving on, in New Albany, Indiana… the bridge over the Ohio River that carries us back home to Louisville…???

Beyond the entrance to the bridge crossing over into Indiana… a visit with a blogging friend who lives in Warsaw, Indiana…???

Beyond the tents… flags… booths… people… more booths… food… crafts at the Bell Buckle Craft Fair in Tennessee…???

Beyond the origami blue bird mobile… a window… and more craft shops at the Loveless Cafe‘ in Tennessee…???

Beyond my Great-niece and her little boy… Blow-up play bouncers… craft booths… at the Bardstown, Ky Craft Fair…???

Beyond the Tire Parrot… Good summertime fun…???

Beyond Taylor posing for High School Senior pictures… College… possibly a train???

Beyond the window shade that Jill is peeking under… a bird… a squirrel…???

Beyond the Pretty Hibiscus in my little vase… a window that views our backyard and deck…???

Beyond the gate… a bridge built to go across the water… a path…???

Beyond… a look into the future and the unknown…

Do we take baby steps??? or giant leaps??? Your choice!

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Some… Even Knew Me!

Memory…

I will be meeting with my fellow High School friends (classmates) for our 45th reunion… tomorrow… at a favorite hang out of ours when we were growing up…

It’s called Mike Linnig’s… a seafood restaurant along the Ohio River in the Southern part of Louisville… A more formal affair was tonight… but, I had a family get together and I really prefer the casualness of this restaurant… that follows the next day…

Typical serving of their fish… wonderful slaw…

By now most of us have retired… have Grandchildren… and have changed quite a bit…

But, as they say, “We’re all in the same boat!”

I’m going to wait until tomorrow to post this… because I hope to have a few photos of my closest friends… to share…

The weather has turned off a lot cooler… actually I got cold later this evening… so blue jeans and a sweater may be the attire… since it’s supposed to be even cooler…

So until tomorrow…

You’ll never guess!… I forgot my camera and also left my cell phone which I could have taken pictures with… on the charger at home…

I was so disgusted with myself… but, I wasn’t going to let this spoil my visit with old friends…

I ask myself, “How did we get so old?” … I don’t feel old… well, at least most of the time… But, looking around we have grayed… put on a few pounds… some of the guys balding… and wrinkles have crept in…

Pleasure Ridge Park High School

One girl says, “I wish I could turn the clock back”… I say, “NO!… only f I could change a few things”…

Our colors were red/black… and the year I graduated we had a great season in football…

Many of us of course recognize each other… hugging… and joking… and saying how glad we are to see each other… It was just so nice… that as many of us that could meet and reminisce…

Our 1967 Year Book… with my name engraved on it… since it would be my last…

Since I’ve no recent photos due to my forgetfulness… I have chosen a few of my memories to share… Just bear with me…

Our mascot… the “Panther”

I was totally surprised to be voted to be “Miss Panther” my Senior Year…

An awesome happening for the shy girl that I was!…

This was Mr. Panther and I on a photo shoot…

We had no clue it was for the honor of being Mr. and Miss Panther …

I had pages of autographs… and some of them were even of people I still remember… ha, ha!

My Senior picture…How wonderful! … those teenage years…

Our English Teacher was there today… I told her, “You were one of my favorite teachers!… She smiles… and says, “You don’t have to say that… I’m not going to give you a grade”…We all laughed… and thought how neat it was that we were so close that one of our teacher’s had come to join us…

So 45 years has passed… We left saying we hope we will be able to make it to our 50th…

How special that will be!

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45+ Years of Friendship…

We were friends during High School… and have remained friends through long distance phone calls… Facebook… word of mouth…e mail…

Of course we’ve all changed… We graduated 45 years ago!… 1967 to be exact… and our 45th Class Reunion is coming up in October…

We’ve all married… and we all are still married to the same guys… We figured that was one for the record books!… We all have children… Peggy has a son… Leslie has two daughters and a son… Dorothy has two sons… Georgia has a son and I have two sons…We seem to dominate with boy offspring … That’s another common trait we share.

We have a mixture of grandchildren… pretty close in age with a few younger… and we all are so proud!

We met yesterday at Mike Linnig’s…

  

A seafood restaurant that’s down by the Ohio River in the southern part of Louisville… It was there when we were youngsters and Georgia thought it a good place for us to meet… and it was!… They have outside concrete tables under big ol’ trees …                                           Small wood screen houses if you prefer…                                                                                                                        … a larger meeting building for bigger groups… and of course the restaurant…

This is where we opted to sit… more like a sun room with air conditioning… We hit about 104 degrees yesterday in Louisville … So you see why we didn’t sit outside as we would usually do.

All that are able, will meet here again after our Reunion Dinner at a Hotel… on the following day… Dressy to casual … Take your pick…one or both…I liked that!… Options are good!

Peggy couldn’t make our little get together… due to her husband being ill … We missed her!… Georgia came, but her husband had to work … Life goes on even if we do want all to attend… maybe another day… Leslie and her husband live in Winchester, KY… and drove down to be with us… They have children that still live here in Louisville…so they would get to see them later… Dorothy… our planner… and her husband came of course… We live in the south end  as we call it…and yes my husband and I came…

There were hugs and kisses …lots of talk and memories shared… of the past and present… No one recognized Leslie until she talked… She would get the “Most Changed” Award … Dorothy , we think has stayed true to herself in looks and mannerisms…We love that!… She would get the “Remain the Same” Award … Peggy wasn’t there… has changed a lot also… and, is still the same sweet person we remember her as… She would have to get the “Sweetest/Caring” Award … Georgia is still her little independent self and is our philosopher... I just love listening to her stories and watching her expressions… She would have to get the “Most Expressive” Award …and then there comes me… I know how I’ve changed… I used to be the quietest/shyest and would have received that award way back then… but, now “I Love Me” as our aerobic instructor tells us to say to ourselves… so I’m quite the “Chatterbox” and this will be my award to myself … I can always come up with an opinion and an answer… Just ask me!

Our husbands enjoyed themselves it seems by all the chatter coming from their end of the table… and of course us girls could go on forever…

It’s so nice to be able to reconnect after 20 years for some of us… and just pick up like it was yesterday… I call that true friendship …

Peggy, Dorothy, Leslie, Georgia, Marilyn…

We plan on making this an annual little reunion… and Mike Lennig’s can remain the spot… It was “just right” …

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“Do You Hear ?”… I Believe It’s “Thunder!”

We will be having Thunder tonight… but, not because of a thunderstorm… No rain is in the forecast… Cloudy and much colder though… The Thunder will be coming from our 2nd Street Bridge that crosses between Louisville, KY and Indiana… Zambelli Internationale has been working for days to set up this awesome fireworks display…

It is the 23rd “Thunder Over Louisville“… one of the opening ceremonies that starts the Kentucky Derby Festival activities… We’ve been several times… Sitting in the hot sun… rain… cold temperatures… but, we always walk away saying, “It’s was worth it!”…”It was awesome!… You just have to see and hear it in person to understand!”… You feel the ground shaking and your heart beating wildly in your chest…

There’s an Air Show with about 100 planes… sky divers and acrobatics… Two helicopters fly in around 8:45pm with two gigantic American Flags waving in the night air… spotlighted for all to see… There are “Warthogs”… “F4 Phantoms”… “F22 Raptors”…

One of the biggest crowds was in 2007… it was called “Magic of Thunder“… 850,000 in attendance… In 2006… 800.000 attended “Thunder Country”… and this year… 2012 … it is called “A Star-Spangled Blast”…

There is music blaring… concessions of all kinds… Bring your lawn chairs… a blanket… a cooler with drinks and eats of your own… and be ready for a most enjoyable time!… “The Great Lawn” is where you want to be… down by the Ohio River…

Sponsors that provide this terrific show are “Horseshoe Southern Indiana Casino”… “Louisville Gas & Electric Company”… “Meijer”… “United Parcel Service“… and “McDonald’s“ also donates a % of their large drink sales…

The admission to most of the festivities is the one-time purchase of a $5.00 “Pegasus Pin”… Thunder included… T-shirts and sweatshirts abound with the Thunder Theme… Some display the Kentucky Derby Festival’s Poster illustrated by Andre’ Freman… depicting our Kentucky Derby beautifully!…

Sorry to say… it is just too chilly for us tonight to attend…but, will be watching it on TV and feeling so proud of our city’s accomplishments in putting on a wonderful… entertaining… “thunderous” show!

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My Version of the “Derby Fascinator”!

The Kentucky Derby will be on May 5, 2012 this year… It’s always the first Saturday in May… Living in Kentucky at this time is quite special!… There’s The Hot Air Balloon Race … The Steamboat Race on the Ohio River… a new boat “American Queen”  will be competing with our “Belle of Louisville” and the “Belle of Cincinnati”… The Pegasus Parade  … The Chow Wagon… The Run for the Rose’… Bedlam… Thunder Over Louisville  …and that’s just to name a very few of the activities and events…

Today the YMCA that I belong to… had a Derby Luncheon… The cost is minimal… There were probably around 30 of us that attended… The lunch consisted of baked chicken, BBQ Pork , Green Beans, Mashed potatoes, 7-Layer Salad, Macaroni Salad and Hot Rolls… Delicious!… Tea, Coffee and Water to drink… Pecan  and Apple Pie + Chocolate Chip Brownies for dessert… Delicious!

There were guessing games about  facts of the Kentucky Derby … It’s funny how you go “blank” until you hear the answers and we all say, “Oh , Yeah!… I knew that!”… Each time someone got a right answer they were to take a Silk Red Rose  from vases on the tables… The one with the most Roses won… No, I didn’t win… but, I did get 1 Rose… We had Horse Racing… with Paper Horses colored by the YMCA Daycare… So cute!… I won this race … only to find out the winner was the one who came in last… BUMMER!… but, cute idea… They received a Derby Cup with the names of the Last Place Finishers of each Derby…

Later… I did have to compete with the runner-up of the race I had thought I won… and this time I did win and a Garland of Red Silk Roses was placed around my neck… Just like the winning Derby horse receives  … Although they get REAL Red Roses… a blanket to be exact… crafted by ladies… stitching on one rose at a time the night before the race…

Some of us participated by wearing Derby Hats fashioned any way we wanted… I made my sister-in-law’s and mine… similar to the “Fashionista” Hats  worn at Prince William and Kate Middleton’s wedding  in England … They were actually called “Fascinators”… Basically a headband with feathers, a flower, ribbons and Derby symbols… They turned out quite cute… but, we didn’t win… another “Bummer”… because I felt we were deserving… Oh, well… I’ll just have to wear my little hat on Derby Day and hope it brings me luck in picking the winner  …

“The Winning Hat!”

“Another Creation!”

“More Pretty Ladies!”

“My Fascinator Derby Creation”…

 Myself with Sister-in-law…

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Right Around “Horseshoe Bend”

I loved our “Christmas Breakfast”  together!… My brother, Eddie actually began this tradition… He would call all of us … that being three sisters/husbands, another brother/wife and Mom… Dad had passed years before this tradition started…or he would have loved it!… Eddie would have a place picked out for all of us to meet… date and time set… His favorite and first place we met was “The Overlook Restaurant” in Leavenworth, Indiana  … This was not a fancy place… but, good home cooking… sitting on a bluff overlooking the Ohio River… it was quaint and unique… Found by one of his many drives to view pretty scenery in small rural towns… This breakfast trip was always better when a few snowflakes were skittering around as we drove over the Ohio River to reach our destination from Louisville… The reservation had been made and our table would be ready… able to sit together at one long table… the smell of hot coffee wafting in the air… mingled with smells of pancakes, eggs, bacon , ham and homemade biscuits… The waitress was very attentive… keeping the pots of coffee full that sat on the table for refills … and there were many!… We would peek out the window at the beautiful Ohio River meandering around Horseshoe Bend  right below us… We would laugh, talk, tell tales, take pictures and of course eat like it was the best breakfast we had ever encountered!… My brother would then disappear for a few minutes to arrive back at our table playing as “Santa Claus” … Eddie would have all of us a small hand-picked gift of special cookies, candy or picture he had made copies of… This was his time to shine!… He loved giving… and we loved this time of togetherness… We left waving… hugging… having that special love in our hearts of being family… How wonderful is that!

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“Salt River Towns”…

As we went down to Shepherdsville  to have Easter dinner with my son and his family…we saw how the Salt River  has risen…It was way out of it’s banks…and up to the backdoor of one house we saw…The Salt River is 140 miles long…Starting at Danville, Ky  and ending at West Point, KY  …There is annual flooding of the Salt River…Normal quiet waters turn into flooding torrential rapids…We have definitely had a lot of rain lately and expecting more…so we weren’t surprised to see the river so high…but, it was new for us to see …I’ve learned that the Salt River is part of a Nature Conservancy  because it has several rare plants and creatures…such as Eggleston’s violet , Silky aster, Crawe’s sedge , Slipper orchid   and Prairie dropseed…The Taylorsville Dam that was built in the 1970’s changed the nature of the Salt River downstream…There are wetland habitats with some not too common animals such as the Indiana bat , Gray bat , Fanshell  and Crawfish…The Salt River and the Ohio River were very important to early settlers…They accessed these rivers to other parts of the area where they made many settlements…Old Indian artifacts are still found by farmers and construction people in the areas along the Salt River…The Salt River is considered to have Class- I Rapids …considered “Easy”… for about 11.5 miles …Kayaking , rafting and paddling are done in these rapids during the summertime by visitors… Taylorsville, Mt.Washington and Shepherdsville all used to draw water from the Salt River until water lines from Louisville were extended…My son and his  family love this little town which is growing in leaps and bounds…What about the flooding of the river I ask?… They say, “It’s only once a year…and even if we move we will stay in this area for the rest of our lives” …What a great way to feel about your town!

“My Kids!”…

I worked with a teacher named Mrs. Winkler my first years  in the school system…During the summer she had a friend, my two boys and I come down for lunch …She took us for a walking tour  of her town, Taylorsville … which is on the Salt River…She showed us old schools , different kinds of buildings in their original built state , different kinds of native plants , introduced us to the Taylorsville people…people who had made this their home many years ago …I loved listening to her stories  about this event that happened, special people she had known and her life as she grew up in that little town…I saw the respect and love she had for where she came from…We drove over to her Momma’s house …where they had lived all their married life…and where she had grown up…I love the way a person shows off their hometown…Some from birth and some transplanted…but, when it feels right you will want to live there forever!