Black Bayou Lake National Wildlife Refuge

It was a ruff night for me.  It started with a aching tummy and then came the dreaded deed of having to sit on the pot over and over!  The way my tummy feels I think I also have a bladder infection.  The past few days with traveling and things I haven’t been emptying my bladder out like I’m suppose to and YESSS .. I know better.  With the rain and cold my back is also screaming!  I turned on the TV but there is nothing but junk on it.  Hubby hasn’t setup our satellite .. wishing he had.

I had to be up and ready to go by 10 AM as we had some plans to do some site seeing.  We were ready when Tommy and Diane came to pick us up.  First we did some site seeing of where they were raised as children, where they raised their children, where their children went to school.  It seems to be a very nice little town to raise a family.  Next on the list was Black Bayou Lake National Wildlife Refuge.

Black Bayou Lake National Wildlife Refuge is one of five refuges managed in the North Louisiana Refuge complex of over 550 refuges in the National Wildlife Refuge System.  It was established in 1997 through a unique partnership with the city of Monroe, Louisiana. 

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has a free 99-year lease to manage the city-owned lake.   The 1,600 acre scenic lake, a central feature of the refuge, is studded with picturesque bald cypress and tupelo trees and surrounded by swamps that graduate into bottomland hardwoods and then into upland mixed pine/hardwoods.

The 4,500-acre refuge supports an excellent fisheries resource and provides valuable habitat for migratory waterfowl, neotropical migratory songbirds, and many resident wildlife species. Just north of Monroe off Hwy 165 on Richland Place, this semi-urban refuge is ideally located to provide a great place for wildlife and a great place for people to connect with the natural world.

This is what the house looked like when it was moved there.  Members of Friends of Black Bayou were instrumental in the restoration of this historic building, contributing countless house of labor and over $250,000.

This beautiful visitor center was built as a residence circa 1885 by Lemuel Dawson McLain and his wife Ann “Mattie” Crosley McLain.  In 1998, the house was moved from it’s original location approximately one –quarter miles east, under the big trees near the refuge shop.  When constructed, it was a simple country house.  It was “dressed up” in the early 1900’s with heavy turned balusters on the porch, staircase, cypress mantels and raised panel doors, and attic portholes.  The house was white as far back as people can remember, but its present green color was found closest to the wood. 

The property, known as Richland Plantation, was part of a large estate owned by J.P. and Martha Crosley that included Cottonport Plantation in West Monroe.  L.D. McLain managed the farming on these plantations.  He and Mattie lived in Monroe but often stated in this house.  When they came to Richland Plantation, Mattie referred to it as going “out to the country.”  At one time the community, which included the plantation with its many farm workers’ residences, the St. Timothy Church/school, and nearby store, was called Croseley. Louisiana. 

Cotton was farmed here until 2001.  The fields have been planted with a variety of trees, including many species that grew in the virgin bottomland hardwood forests of this area.   Today, the restored planter’s house, a historic barn, and two cemeteries are reminders of the 100 + years of cotton farming and the lives of people who lived on what is now known as Black Bayou Lake National Wildlife Refuge.

We had dressed in layers as it’s a nippy day but at least the sun was shining.  We walked the board walk although the only wildlife that was out was the ducks.

here is some of the wildlife that are here.  I took pictures of the signs since we didn’t see much today.

Inside of the museum we saw all of these creatures

beaver

cute little coon

the reptile display

this big fellow .. of course none of these are real

my favorite another turtle

Next was the bird display

they have some beautiful birds, but it was just too cold for them and I do not blame them

another display

 

next was over to the other museum where they had real creatures

Diane trying to get her hand eaten off!

they had baby alligators!

turtles!!

dead mice?

hmm snake skin? Guess that is why the mice were in the aquarium?

Yep there is the yucky creature!!

Lots of fish

We had a great time touring the refuge and it’s definitely worth seeing and the great thing about it … It’s free!!

Diane and I snuggling with the turtle for warmth

This wasn’t all we did today but I will save the rest for another day since I’ve loaded you down with lots of pictures today

Catfish Charlie’s

We woke up to the sound of rain and chilly temps.  We are surrounded by water and we are parked in a lake!  Good thing we have a wooden porch to walk on.  I played lazy and we were slow getting moving and then Diane called and brunch was ready.  She had made steak, ham, eggs, toast and fruit for brunch.  It was great!  Thanks Diane. 

Since it was still raining we canceled our site seeing plans for the day and Diane called their son and his wife (Benji and Annie) and the came over to play spades.  While we were waiting for them, Tommy took us on a tour.  We drove through lots of mud and didn’ t get stuck once. We got to see the cabins he helped build and the surrounding area.  He even took us to see their race track.  sorry no pictures as I didn’t have my phone or camera with me .. in fact none of us had our phones with us and it was good thing we didn’t get stuck!

We had fun playing and unfortunately the guys won 3 out of 4 games.  We went home later and let them rest a bit before going to a wake for a friend of theirs.  Then they came back and picked us up and we headed out to dinner at Catfish Charlie’s. 

it was busy .. looks to be a good place

it’s like a fast food place, where you order, pay and find a seat

hubby had the thin and crispy fried catfish and I had the fried fish and shrimp combo .. it was a huge amount of food!

That is what I had left over!  Hubby enjoyed it as a bedtime snack .. we came back and played a couple games of Rook but it just wasn’t the women’s night .. the guys won both games and we called it a night around 9.30 pm.  I came home and showered and relaxing before calling it a night .. we didn’t let the rain spoil our time with great friends.

Mooch docking

Sterlington, La

Hubby was up early and had everything ready to go.  After getting me up we were on the road at 7.30 AM

Man O Man, it’s cold outside!  Hubby had the truck all warmed up for me but look what the outside temp is .. 28 degrees!

We have bittersweet feelings about leaving.  Were looking forward to seeing and visiting with our friends Tommy and Diane but we are sad to be leaving Twin Lakes.  We have both really enjoyed it here and the dogs absolutely love it!

It wasn’t long we were on I-49

We saw this hurricane route sign .. hmm looks like they evacuate here as well from hurricanes.

see the frost on the ground?  It was a frosty morning until the sun came out

We got off of I-49 and onto 165 heading to Sterlington, La

We arrived in Sterlington and approaching the bridge.  Our destination is right past the bridge

a nice looking river

Tommy was waiting for us at the end of the road and we turned to follow him into their place. 

I love the welcome sign ..

Quachita River RV Park & Campground

the road leading into their place

We arrived a little after 10 am and got parked .. here we are all nestled in Mooch docking!

Tommy and Diane have a beautiful home .. we are in love with the place and we haven’t even really scratched the surface

they have a porch on the front and back of their home and what a gorgeous view .. I can imagine in the summertime it’s breath taking

We are parked beside their home where they have 3 RV hookups.  This is an old plantation and RV park, there are cabins and homes built here and several RV’s are parked all over for summer cabins.  Tommy’s brother’s and sister’s live here.  It’s nicknamed Hobsonville.

behind their home is the river .. we took their golf cart and looked around a bit after they left to go to their grandson’s birthday party.

This is the back side of the sign when you leave the property .. pretty kewl huh?

We had a relaxing afternoon while they were gone and got all nestled in .. later in the evening we went to their place and played rook .. it was fun and of course Diane and I bet the guys all 3 games.  It was after 10.30 pm and it was time to head home and get rested up for tomorrow.  We are meeting them for brunch and going to do some site seeing.

Hooked up, Ready to Roll

Oh my Houston .. Ole man winter has found me again!  We were up early this morning on this cold winter morning.  We got ready to take our truck in to have it fixed.  We arrived before 9 AM at George Hauk’s Automotive http://www.hauksautomotive.com/ and after examining the truck it was decided that the left tie rod was bad and needed to be replaced, front end aligned and the front tires rotated.  After paying the bill of $310 bucks (which didn’t seem like a bad price) we drove off the lot and headed to do another errand.  We needed to get our propane tank filled, because it’s down right cold here in La  bill total was $27 bucks.. today’s high was 38 degrees and their predicting a low of 28 degrees!!  BRRRR .. Ole man winter has definitely returned! Did I say it’s down right cold outside?  Well let me say it again .. it’s down right cold out there!! 

by the time we got home it was after 2 pm!  We decided it was too late to hitch up and hit the road.  I am not one who likes to leave in the middle of the day!  It’s a cloudy day and it looks darkness will set in early tonight. 

We did go ahead and unhook, pulled the slides in and hooked the truck up.  We backed out of our site and hubby and the dogs took a drive through the campground so that we are facing the right way out in the morning.  Now were parked in the road.  We are hitched up and all we have to do in the morning is unplug the electric, take the satellite dish down (hubby will probably do this before bedtime) and pull up the front jacks.  Were ready to roll.  Since it’s going to be very cold in the morning we wanted as less as possible to do.  We plan to get an early start.  We are only going 130 miles tomorrow which is about 2 1/2 drive to our friends Tommy and Diane’s.  But we need to arrive early as they have a birthday party to attend and need to get us settled in before they head out.  We will be spending New Years with our friends. 

We are a bit on the un-level side but all is well , we have electric and most importantly we have heat!  The dogs are excited although they were a bit upset that their ride was only around the campground.  Were spending a relaxing evening in the warmth of our comfy home. On these bitter cold days make you appreciate all the luxury’s of home.  It’s been a great time here in Woodworth, La but we are ready to move on and start the next journey and hopefully we will find some much needed warmth!

Happy Birthday Jesus and Merry Christmas to all!

 

As we celebrate this glorious day, let us remember the true meaning of this season,  the birth of Jesus Christ.  Happy Birthday Jesus!

Shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night.  And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid.  Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people.  For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying: "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men!" ~ Luke 2:  8-14

I was awake at 4 am with a screaming back and rain.  I went back to bed around 6.30 am and slept until about 8.45 am.  I had to get up and get the turkey going for our Christmas meal.  Since I’m down in my back from the rain, hubby made finished up the trimmings except for the gravy and I did that.  We had a nice simple meal with lots of left overs.

It has rained most of the day and dodging severe weather.  We’ve had several T-storm warnings and tornado warnings for our area.  Once the rain finally left the sun came out for about an hour or so and then the winds started and the cold wave is moving in.

Dessert was a Cherry Cheese cake that I made yesterday.  We spent the afternoon being lazy and just relaxing.  Later on it was time to get things packed up and ready to roll.  The plan is if we can get the truck fixed at a decent time tomorrow to roll out and if not we will see what happens.  But we have everything inside packed and ready to roll except for the things we are using. 

Christmas Eve, Happy B’day Mom

Today would have been my mom’s 72nd birthday.  It’s been a hard day with feeling blue.  I’ve thought of my family and how hard it is to go through your first holiday without those you love.  This is our family first year to spend the holidays without either of our parents.  I think it’s easier when you have one parent living as you tend to be stronger for them.  Here is a little something special for my mom on her birthday.  Happy Birthday mom, we love and miss you.



Dear Mother, you are not forgotten
Though on earth you are no more
Still in memory you are with us
As you always were before                                            
A gentle wind blew cross the land
Reaching out 2 take a hand
For on the winds the angels came
Calling out a mother's name.
Left behind, the children's tears
In our hearts your memory lingers
Sweetly tender, fond and true
There is not a day dear Mother
That we do think of you and now 2 God a mother’s sent                                                                                                         

                                                                                                     
It’s been a beautiful day with lots of sunshine and warm temps.  I took the dogs for a run and to the Lake to spend some time and shockingly Lexi got in the water!  She was trying to get the stick I threw for Roo

There is a sand pile by the lake and the dogs had fun chasing each other around it.  It was hard to get a picture as they run so fast but I did manage to get a glimpse of Roo chasing Lexi

they had a great time and I believe the dogs have really enjoyed being here where they can get off their leash to run and swim

We really haven’t done much today, just spent it relaxing and chilling out.  The place we were suppose to take our truck to wasn’t open, guess they forgot Monday was Christmas Eve.  So our plans are to take our truck in first thing Wednesday morning to see if we can get it fixed and be on the road soon.

Dolly spent her Christmas Eve doing what she loves, snuggled up in her blanket

Roo loves laying in my chair when I get up

here is what Roo and Lexi spent their evening doing .. resting up .. Lexi loves laying on her sister and I think her sister Roo enjoys her snuggling with her as well

We spent our evening with our friend Don who came over and we watched the National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation movie together.  It was a great way to spend our evening since we are not with family.  It used to be a Christmas tradition with our kids that we watched this movie on Christmas Eve.

A Relaxing Day

We got up this morning and got ready for church.  We went to First Assembly in Alexandria, La.  Brother David from the campground was speaking today.  It was an awesome message and we really enjoyed listening to brother David.  I could of listened to him all day long! 

After church service we went to the local Chinese to get something to eat.  Our friend Don rode to church with us this morning and we enjoyed our fellowship with him.  After a great lunch we headed home for a nice relaxing afternoon/evening of doing absolutely nothing!

The temps have finally warmed back up and today was actually suppose to be our departure day but our plans have been put on hold at this time.  Our original plans were to head to Sterlington, La to spend Christmas with friends Tommy and Diane but those plans got scratched out and are on hold at this time. 

We have to take the truck in the morning to get it looked at.  Something is wrong with the front end.  I do not like it doing the shimmy that it is.  Just doesn’t give me a good feeling .. so until we get it checked out our plans are on hold.  We do not know when we will be leaving.  We do know that Christmas is now going to be spent here at Twin Lakes Campground as we do not want to travel on this holiday weekend.

It’s been a relaxing day, just the way we like it sometimes.