Birthday Bash, Part 3...

An interesting thing that I really like about my birthday is the fact that my sister's birthday is exactly one month later (11 Aug & 11 Sept).  Because of this fact, this year, my mother decided to plan a fun family outing jointly for our birthdays.  I'm not sure how she came to the decision, but we decided to go to a ballgame.  I remember going to see the Cardinals play as a family when I was young and I loved it, so I was excited to go back and especially to take Chas with us.

Friday evening, Mom, Dad, Chas, and I drove up to STL.  It started to rain about the time we got to the hotel.  This did not bode well for our outdoors evening activity.  We stayed at a hotel right by the stadium, so we could just walk over to the park.  It appeared that everyone going to the game decided to stay there as well.  It took us a bit to check in and then a little while longer to stand in the line for the elevators, but we had a great room and a few hours to kill before heading over to the stadium.  We rested and watched TWC to see if the rain would stop (it did) and then we had a little family photo shoot.  Go ahead and scroll past if you want, it won't hurt my feelings...

Of course, I also have a few gratuitous pics of the stadium...

I haven't followed baseball in quite a few years, but I had a blast and enjoyed getting to talk baseball with my dad and Chas.  I think even my mom had fun.  We had great seats and the Cards won!!  Though, admittedly, Fredbird was one of Chas' favorite things about the game, which earned him a Build-a-Bear Fredbird during the 7th Inning Stretch.

 Mom was taking the pic, so she didn't get in this one.  Resulting in the pic below of the quintessential  sporting event pose...

Birthday Bash, Parts 1 & 2...

You see, this is another reason I'm not a good blogger.  I don't space my blogs out enough.  However, I wanted to post a few things about my birthday this year and it's already been almost 2 weeks.  I'm not a huge fan of birthdays (my own, at least).  This year, I was a bit sad because I was going to be away from Nathan, for my bday.  The up side was that I was going to be able to celebrate with some friends and my family.

 Part 1

Blessedly, it started with two of my peeps taking me out for the afternoon on the Tuesday before my birthday.  We went to one of my all-time favorite restaurants, Cheddar's.  Then we went to do one of my favorite activities - Bowling.  I know that it doesn't sound exciting, but I find if fun.  Especially with a couple good friends.  However, Stacey and Tammy went a step above and we didn't just go bowling, we also played mini-golf and spent some time in the arcade.  After that, we grabbed some ice cream at one of my favorite ice cream places - Maggie Moo's.  As you can see, it was a GREAT time and I didn't even mention the presents!  I'm pretty sure there is some photographic evidence of this outing, but I don't currently have it (might be for the best).

Part 2

Since my birthday was on a Thursday, we didn't really plan much.  My dad barbequed, which is one of my most favorite things, ever, and my mom made me a cake.  

When my Dad barbeques, it goes something like this, you have a hamburger with a hot dog as your side and then a couple ribs for dessert.  Needless to say, it was AWESOME!

And of course, the ribs get a big thumbs up from me!  They were super good.  Though, I have to admit just about everything was good.

Mom made me my favorite cake, chocolate with white icing.  Chas helped decorate with my favorite color.  The cake was unbelievably good (even with the sugar-free icing).  I regret that I didn't get to have more of it while I was there.

After all of this wonderful food was when Tammy and I walked around town to take pics.  As you can tell, I really needed the exercise!  It was a great day and pretty low-key.

The 'Dell...

So, anyone who has read my facebook or knows me very well, knows I'm from a very small town.  I recently visited my family and while there, I thought about what the town looks like now compared to how it looked while I was growing up.  I had long wanted to take pictures and I realized I should probably do it soon.  Already I had missed the opportunity to take pictures of what my childhood home looked like, the old movie theatre, the Western Auto building, and so on.  Here is a bit of what I captured on my trip...

This is my high school - North Pemiscot

The Mighty Mustangs!!

Our campus was a bit spread out.  In this one, you can see the Principal's building, the band building, and where the old gym used to be.

This old boarded up building may not look like much, but at one time it was a booming business - The Mustang!  I don't really remember it ever being open and operational, but I do remember getting off the bus from the Elementary school and my sister having a candy bar or a Jolly Rancher stick ready for me that she had bought at the Mustang.

The New Mustang

The town's only gas station.  It has a convenience store and some pretty good pizza.

 

Every town has to have one.  Here's ours:  City Hall and the Fire Station.

 

Ah, Wardell's own plaza (or shopping center, whatever you want to call it).  It housed the Post Office (still operating), a movie theatre (now burned and demolished), and a happening little drug store called Mrs. South's.  I remember going to Mrs. South's and getting a soda from the proprietor herself!

Ah, the other business district.  This one housed Bill White's, another little store (which sold the best candy bars - super cheap!), the town tavern, and the auction. 

The Stoplight - the town's one and only

This is also home to the Stoplight Cafe, which has been a great many businesses even in the course of my lifetime.

And last, but not least, we have the old Cotton Gin, not to be confused with the new and still operating Cotton Gin.  :)

Oh, there are so many things that I didn't quite capture!  We do still have another operating grocery store, The Food Center.  There are also still several houses, though many are currently for sale.  There are also several churches that are still going strong.

Wardell may not be a town that I want to live in currently, but I do have many fond memories of it.  Riding my bike all over town, meeting friends at the Food Center for a soda, playing on the playgrounds, etc.  Small towns aren't for everyone, but I did enjoy growing up in one.