Georgia Grown Trail 41/341

In April, our Georgia Grown Trail 41 Association had its unveiling of the official trail signs. This project has been in the works for many years now and with the help of a wide array of folks, it came to fruition. I am really proud of working with this group. Agritourism is very special to me and to see it positively affect companies and families I personally know right in my own county is so neat!

“The Georgia Grown Trail: 41 Association is a group of agri-tourism related sites promoting tourism on the Highway 41 Trail from the intersection of U S Hwy 341 and U S Hwy 41 just south of Barnesville traveling to the intersection of both of these highways in Perry, GA and all of U S Hwy 41 from the Barnesville intersection to the Georgia Florida line just below Valdosta, GA. Farm to table restaurants, wineries, you pick farms, and other agri-tourism attractions will be featured on this trail.”

The road signs are huge (some of the largest in the State) and very cool to see traveling down the road. Since I live right off of Highway 41, I get to see at least one or two every single day!

  

Although we had the ribbon cutting for the trail and the sign unveiling, the signs didn’t actually get placed until I was on maternity leave. I was so proud to see my first trail sign “in the wild!”

Stone Mountain

 

A few weeks ago, the entire Mastrario/Mathis/Cook clan (minus Daddy) went up to Stone Mountain. I have been dying to see the laser show for years now. It’s been since I was probably 12 or 14 that I’ve seen it. We got family day passes (get the Adventure Pass Meal Deal- it’s worth it to have free drink refills all day long!) and rode the train, took the sky tram to the top of the mountain (despite David’s deathly fear of heights, he did pretty okay!), and rode the Ducks!

The amphibious boat/car ride was the highlight of the boys’ day. We all got quackers and were encouraged to quack as much as we wanted.

 

Wyatt and Liam even got to captain the boat in the middle of the lake for a bit. It was really neat that the captain let each and every single kid take a turn.

  

By the time we got to the top of Stone Mountain, it was quickly approaching 2:00 and Wyatt was just about spent for the day. He barely wanted to smile in any picture. We were all hot so we headed to check into our hotel rooms and rest up.

Justin only got to watch part of the Georgia game since there was a rain/lightning delay. We headed back to the park to get dinner and watch the laser show. It was great! It didn’t seem to be as long as it used to be, but then what ever seems to be as good as it was when you were a kid? I am so glad we went and we all had a great time!

New Orleans, Part 3: Abandoned Six Flags

And now for my favorite part of the whole entire trip: visiting the abandoned Six Flags in New Orleans.


I wanted so badly, so DESPERATELY to go inside but Justin said he wouldn’t go in without a gun and even simple trespass with a weapon=felony. We didn’t want Wyatt to be a jailhouse orphan, so we had to be satisifed with picutres from outside the gate. Six Flags is just another casualty of Hurricane Katrina. I am so intrigued by these places meant for family fun that are just left to ruins. You can read more here and see pictures from others that have actually crossed the barriers to document the decay of what was once such a family-oriented place.

New Orleans, Part 2: Mardi Gras World

I had the most fun checking out Mardi Gras World in New Orleans. If you have someone who has recommended it, listen to them! Except it they tell you it’s still on Algier Island, which it’s not; it moved in the past few years I guess. It’s actually right next to where all of the big cruise ships dock.

Mardi Gras World makes almost all of the floats for the 53 (and counting!!!) Mardi Gras parades in New Orleans as well as those in Universal Studios, Disney, Euro Disney, and (BONUS FACT) The Chick-Fil-A billboard cows! The tour is $20 but it is so worth the money! You get to try on Mardi Gras costumes, check out the artists as they’re actually working, and walk all around their warehouse.
 

 








You even get a slice of King Cake (unless you’re rushed to meet the shuttle and your husband is making you hurry of course).

5th Wedding Anniversary Trip: New Orleans

Justin and I celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary by taking a quick trip to New Orleans. I’ve been there twice with my mama and sisters on road trips but never spent any significant time there. We were there two months before Katrina hit and then again two years later. This time was wonderful. Our hotel was in the heart of the French Quarter and two blocks from Bourbon Street. The Hotel St. Pierre just underwent a renovation and our room was wonderful. It had gorgeous brick walls and had a door that opened into an interior courtyard.
   
The continental breakfast was iffy at best and included box cereal and bagels. But in a town that has 24 hour beignets, who wants that stuff anyway?
  
Our first night we ate on Bourbon Street and experienced the night life. All of the bars had live music blaring and it was fun to check out all the different genres. My favorite was a Motown inspired place called Funky 544. I also liked watching the karaoke at Cat’s Meow. We saw quite a few characters there but it wasn’t too terribly bad.
 
One of the best things about New Orleans is the food! We had lots of traditional cajun and creole food but suprisingly it wasn’t as spicy as I would have liked. They cater to the masses and encourage you to add a healthy dose of Tabasco sauce to everything to spice it up. Justin got a healthy dose of horseradish with his oysters!

We had jambalaya, muffalettas, shrimp, oysters, dirty rice, gumbo, po’ boys, and (Justin’s favorite) boudin. Our favorite restaurant of all we visited was Mulate’s. They had a great live band, dancing, and the food couldn’t have been any better. It’s closer to the Harrah’s casino than the French Quarter but it is absolutely worth it. Justin got a mixed drink and he recommends skipping that until Bourbon Street. It was expensive and weak.
   
We visited Jackson Square both during the day and at night. It was so beautiful lit up with the carriages lined up. We didn’t take a carriage ride, but we did take a Cajun Encounters 2-hour tour (that ended up lasting almost three, a pleasant surprise) that covered the entire city, including the Katrina-ravaged Eighth and Ninth Wards, the Musician’s Village, and one of the older cemeteries in the town. It was well worth the money for the experience and background on the town.
 
  
More about our trip later when I talk about my two favorite stops, Mardi Gras World and the abandoned Six Flags park!