Taste of Henry



Last year, my husband and I attended The Taste of Henry.  We had a great time.  Proceeds from The Taste of Henry benefit A Friend's House, Henry County's emergency shelter for abused and neglected children.

Shelly was feeling shy so she grabbed
another patron for support and gave us
all a laugh - bubbly, happy personality
shows through in her products

We got to sample food from a lot of the smaller, local eateries including two of my favorites The French Market and Bliss Cupcakes.

Bliss is a great cupcake shop.  I bought cupcakes for a friend's birthday not too long ago and they had really unusual flavors, like key-lime and margarita.  They were beautiful, too; and yummmmyyy! 

The owner, Shelly, recently introduced soft-serve Gelato.  The chocolate was heavenly.  Be sure to check them out on the square in McDonough, 20 Macon Street, McDonough, GA 30253 (678) 272-6222.

Lauren serving the patrons, check out
the quaint decor.  If you think this
is pretty, you should see the restaurant.

I think the French Market had the longest line - I felt sorry for Lauren Noah-Fenster, the owner. We were there for a couple of hours and she didn't stop once.  She served everyone with a smile as she was dishing up po-boys, gumbo, cupcakes, bread pudding - it was all luscious.  Even her booth was pretty.

The French Market is coveniently located in a wonderful old building in Locust Grove, just minutes to the Tanger Outlet.  3840 Georgia 42 Locust Grove, GA 30248 (770) 914-9312 .

I've eaten their several times and it was excellent each time!

Support this great community event! Put it on your calendar for next Spring.

What 9 year old boy wouldn't want a party like this?

Last weekend, my grandson had a tree climbing party.  Yep, he, his friends and cousins all learned how to climb a tree.  A representative of the Tree Climber's International, came to Blackburn Park in Atlanta and rigged a 40+ year old Willow Oak with ropes so they could all climb.

Each child was fitted with a saddle, gloves and a helmet, and after watching the instructor, each climbed up the ropes, up into the tree canopy.  What a wonderful day for this, low 70's slightly overcast and breezy. 

They had a blast - the youngest was 5 and the oldest was 12.  No one cried and they all got up to the top of their ropes without incident. 

I know they all slept well!

For more information go to: http://www.treeclimbing.com/. 

A day at Cubihatcha

The Cubihatcha Outdoor Education Center is a nature preserve located almost directly across from the Noah's Ark animal park.


Working with the children



Every fall, area third graders visit the Center. Their visits are organized through the Henry County Outdoor Education Partnership in collaboration with the Henry County Water and Sewer Authority, the Henry County Board of Education and many other local and regional sponsors.



Trip to Dillard, GA

View from our "Fireside" suite at the Dillard House

What a nice trip we had for New Year's 2012.  I've never been to Dillard, GA.  This year,my step-daughter asked us to join her, and her husband and our grandkids at the Dillard House.

It's only about 130 miles from our house in Henry County.  We stopped at Tallulah Gorge to view the deepest gorge east of the Missippi.  Karl Wallanda walked over it in 1970. Although the water doesn't flow through the gorge, it is still a great view. (The water has been diverted for hydro-electric purposes. However, water is released in the spring and fall from Tallulah dam.  You can check with www.gastateparks.org/info/tallulah to see when water will be released

We had a great suite.  It included a living room with a fireplace, a microwave, refrigerator and sink, a bedroom and nice bath.  The grounds and views were beautiful.  The Dillard complex includes about 30 cottages about 2 miles away.  Each cottage is tucked into a wooded location and includes balconies and decks and a kitchen, living area and one or more bedrooms and baths.

The little towns leading to Dillard are chock full of antique shops an eateries.  The kids had a great time "panning" for precious stones and feeding the goats at a place called "Goats on the Roof". They were also eager to jump in and out of the hot tub in their cabin, naked as jay birds. Lots of fun.

We hope to come back in the fall.

Things you see when you don’t take the train.

My husband and I took a short trip earlier this month to visit with my sister and her husband while they were in Myrtle Beach. We flew. It was a great, short trip. We can do that because our daughter, Jennifer, flies for Delta and we have flight benefits (Thank you, Jen).

We always take the people mover train at Hartsfield-Jackson Airport. Especially when going to our gate – gotta get to the gate early and all that. And besides, it’s a quarter of a mile between terminals not to mention the long concourses!

So, when we came home, we landed and debarked at terminal “D”. I was getting down on myself because I hadn’t walked at all on our short trip (I'm in weight watchers). So, when we got down into the lower level to take the train back to baggage claim, I saw a lady, about my age in a wheel chair. I thought to myself, God gave you two good legs, use ‘em. So, I told my husband I’d meet him at baggage claim shortly and took off.

The Rock Ranch, 30 mins south of McDonough, GA

The Rock Ranch near Barnesville, GA

We have six grandchildren and two daughters. This is a treat for me - the daughters are step-daughters and, since I never had kids, the grandkids are always a treat.

Last year we went to Southern Belle Farm here in Henry County.  It was a great, warm, October day.  That  year they had a corn maze made in a likeness of Bobby Cox, the now retired manager of the Atlanta Braves.  The kids went through that and played on everything that was available - a cool slide that goes under ground, a big "jumpy" pillow, they shot the corn canon and Bella (6 years old at the time) got a prize for hitting a target. We went on a hay ride, petted the cows, watched a pig race, fed the goats - great time for all concerned. They all came back to the house.  Monty took the boys and got all of them in the shower and I took the girls - they were dusty and dirty and then we all ate pizza.

Kansas with Kennesaw Symphony Orchestra

My husband is quite the Rock 'n Roll fan.  Thanks to him, we've seen a ton of great performances in Atlanta and the southeast. Yes, the southeast! One time James Tayor was touring and I knew he was going to be in Atlanta.  But we didn't see him in Atlanta, we went to Nashville to see him. Why? Because Nashville has White Castles and Atlanta doesn't.  We've also been to West Palm Beach to see 38 Special and REO.

Last night we went to the Cobb Energy Center to see Kansas.  What a beautiful building - I had never been there before.  I was struck by the elegance of the building.  There is dark woodwork, colorful carpeting and huge glass chandeliers that look like they are made of ribbon, but as you look closely you see that it is delicate twisted glass that shimmers in the light.  There is a 5 or 6 story wall of glass so as you walk up the stairs to the top floor, you can see Atlanta off in the distance.  And the stair way is gorgeous too - instead of pickets, you are protected by glass panels so the view is relatively unobstructed. There is also a 5 story wall of Onyx - gorgeous natural stone illuminated from the back.

It remind me of the first time I went to "The Fabulous Fox Theater" in downtown Atlanta.  That day we saw The Guess Who and Joe Cocker. It was a great evening.  I was struck by the beauty of the Fox and the magical ceiling.

We've been to a lot of places in search of great Rock 'n Roll - we've been to

• The Verizon Amphitheater in Alpharetta - The Steve Miller Band and Boston
• The Gwinnett Center - Transiberian Orchestra, Styx, Reo, Manheim Steamroller, Don Henley and Stevie Nix, James Taylor and Carole King
• Mable House in Mableton - Art Garfunkel
• The Lakewood - a couple of times
• The Fred - Kansas
• Phillips Arena - Simon and Garfunkel, The Rolling Stones, Bob Seger, Neil Diamond, Rod Stewart, The Eagles, Manheim Steamroller, Transiberian Orchestra
• Chastain Park - Heart, Joan Jett, Fleetwood Mac, James Taylor, Jackson Brown
• The Tabernacle - Jackson Brown

Plus, we've seen a variety of princesses, muppets, witches and blue men, etc. with the grandkids and daughters at The Fox, Phillips Arena and the Gwinnett Center.

And, you can see major league football, basketball and baseball as well as college football and basketball and AAA baseball.

There isn't a weekend where there isn't something fun, cultural, sports or otherwise to do in and around Atlanta.

Not only would we love to help you find your perfect home, but we are always available for inquiries regarding things to do in Atlanta.  If you need a tip, give us a call.

Did you know that Roswell might have been Barrington?

I took a rare day off yesterday with my good friend, Leslie Jeffrey. 



Barrington Hall Side View



I had purchased tickets to a Southern Trilogy Tour of Homes through Groupon back in early summer and we vowed that we would tour these homes once the weather cooled off and yesterday was nice and cool.  The tickets allowed us to tour Smith Plantation, Barrington Hall and Bulloch Hall.  Leslie lived in Roswell for some time and had never been to see any of the homes.  Although I have been to the Swan House and the Atlanta Historical Society, I know nothing about the northern suburbs and so it was quite an adventure for me.

I was a little off in our planning and we got to Barrington Hall "after the hour".  Tours begin "on the hour".  So we explored the gardens first and then had a private tour - just the two of us with the docent.  It was great.  I had been to Stone Mountain, but all the structures there had been moved to the site.  This was the original house, owned by Roswell Barrington! Who knew? I had no idea such a beautiful, original home existed so close to Atlanta! 



Smith Plantation



After that tour, we went to lunch at a lovely cafe - Oak Street Cafe - nice atmosphere and tasty lunch.  And then, we proceeded to go to the Smith Plantantation.  We had a great guide by the name of Jane.  She made it very interesting and she spoke about Mamie Cotton, the domestic who stayed on beyond the death of Mrs. Smith, because of the life estate that had been left to her.

Unfortunately, we were unable to see Bulloch Hall which was closed in preparation for a quilt display.  We'll go back soon to see Bulloch Hall and follow that with shopping at the quaint local antique shops.  It's fun to explore!  There are actually a lot of great venues to explore in and around our area.  Stay tuned for additional places of interest.