Museum of Arts and Sciences Macon, Ga

One of the favorite things my kids love to do is check out new museums. Since we have the ASTC membership this is a nice usually free thing to do. FREE is my favorite word! So I went ahead and found us the Macon Museaum of Arts and Sciences. I always wonder how nice these places are going to be when they are in smaller towns. I don't know why I am always so shocked when we find a really nice museum and the one in Macon was no exception.

We started int he little art gallery they had. Monkey really loved this section as he loves art. We had a nice time talking about the paintings, how they were made, what they might mean, and what they made us think/feel.

Next we headed to an area with a section where were got to make butterflies with tissue paper squares, saw different butterflies mounted in boxes, a big polar bear, and more.


Then we headed upstairs where they had a little play area. There were puzzles, art stuff, things to build, this cool light/screen thing where it made your shadow in different colors, these huge metal ball mirror things, and more. We actually went here twice during the visit. It was really fun up there.
After playing we headed outside for a bit to let Princess run around and Monkey finish his lunch before the animal show was due to start. They had a caboose outside which is my FAVORITE but sadly we could not go in it. So the kids just played around it and killed some time before the show.

We then went inside for the animal show. The brought out this bird Georgia. She was soooooo funny. I took some videos of her talking to us. Then they asked for a volunteer. The Boy got picked and had to hold something in his hand but they didn't tell him what it was. Well the video speaks for itself. He has learned to NEVER volunteer himself again! LMAO! Then they brought out the snake. Princess was in LOVE.

We then went to the basement level to dig for dinosaurs, work in the weather station, and learn about sound.

Last we stuck around till the guy came to run the gyroscope. Monkey was to short and The Boy and Cat Boy were wearing flip flops. You needed sneakers and thinkfully they have big feet so could fit in my sneakers. So I took my shoes off and let them use them. The Boy went first and LOVED it. I took video, it is long so I won't bore you with it. Cat Boy decided he was not ready to ride it just yet and that was just fine with me. He will do it when he is ready.


Overall it was a great day. We had a really great time and would not hesitate to go again. I would highly recommend it if you are every in the Macon area.

Super Bowl and playground fun

We got to the new RV park the day before the Super Bowl. We were told they were having a pot luck party for the Super Bowl and were welcome to come. We didn't care about the teams playing but always welcome a chance to get out and meet people at the places we are staying. So I went to the store that morning to get some food to make to bring. The kids were super excited and were counting down till the party. When I got home The Hubby came out with Princess. She had changed her outfit. Yes, that is a Build A Bear shirt she is wearing! LOL I made some BLT dip and brownies and headed over when it was time for the game to start. There were about 10-15 people there and a couple of kids for the kids to play with. We all grabbed some food and I tried my first pineapple and mayo sandwich. Apparently this is a thing in the south though there is a debate on how to make it. I was the only one in the family brave enough to try it and I Will say it wasn't bad. It isn't anything I will make on purpose but it wasn't bad. Princess loved the half time show and enjoyed dancing for everyone in front of the screen. Yeah, we are in trouble with her. The boys spent most of the time in the back playing carpet ball. The next afternoon we took advantage of it not raining and checked out the little park there. They have a couple swings, those big black tubes which are fun to lay in as someone rolls you around, a slide that you can only get to by climbing a rock wall, ( no fun with Princess but we managed), and of course one of our favorites, tether-ball. We didn't stay a long time because it was pretty nippy out and mommy doesn't like cold. That is why I was trying to go south as fast as I could.

Welcome to Georgia

So the day had finally come. MOVING DAY! I love going to a new location but this one was especially exciting. Not only because my foot was better but we were going to GEORGIA! Not sure why I love the idea of Georgia so much but I do. I think it is the whole older Southern Belle image. The whole thought of saying " Why I do declare." while sitting on a rocking chair on a porch sipping some sweet tea on a warm summer day. Except I hate both summer and sweet tea. LOL But it SOUNDS nice. Plus Savannah is in Georgia and I have always wanted to go there. So needless to say I was giddy with excitement.

It wasn't a very long drive, The Hubby has about a 200 mile radius. So we got started and drove through mostly back roads. At one point we got to a busy area and we started seeing all these wooden shacks on the side of the road. I had NO CLUE what they were. They was literally one every 20 feet or so on BOTH sides of the road. Then finally some of them started having people at them. They were Sweet-grass Basket stands. I had never heard of these before and really wish I could have stopped but I was following The Hubby and I had no cash on me. I really wanted to find them again while we were in GA but I never saw the stands anywhere else. I got Cat Boy to take some pictures as we were driving by so forgive the quality. It really was one of the coolest things I have seen. I love just driving to our next location never knowing what we will see along the way.


When we got to the campground we quickly set up and headed out to our traditional new location dinner of Mexican. We needed gas and were lucky there was a gas station at the corner. Till we pulled up. I about died I was laughing so hard. The Hubby was wondering what kind of backwards town I took him to. The gas station didn't accept credit cards at the pump. You had to go inside. LOL I didn't even know they had places like that anymore. Again, you just never know what you will see.
After dinner we ran over to Walmart to get some stuff and I saw yet ANOTHER thing I never knew existed. A FIVE POUND tub of sour cream!!! FIVE POUNDS!!!! Who needs five pounds of sour cream? I mean even if I made a lot of dip for a party I don't need that much. So yeah, I needed a picture. Still to this say I have no clue what one does with that much sour cream. So if you know please leave me a comment and educate me on the ways of the 5 pound bucket of sour cream!

Lakewood Camping Resort

The Hubby wanted to stay on the beach. He decided he wanted to go to Myrtle Beach. So I searched and searched spending HOURS reading reviews. I mean HOURS. I had pages of notes, read reviews, called a bunch of places. We usually stay somewhere a month. It is cheaper that way and gives us time to see everything without feeling rushed. However, I was worried that we would be bored after being in Myrtle Beach a month because we are not big tourist attraction people. So we agreed we would stay a week at Lakewood Camping Resort.

We pulled in and got to our spot. We had a clear view of the ocean from the door. Before we were even hooked up The Hubby and the kids were on the beach. The Hubby was on the sand all of 2 minuted before he begged me to let us stay a month. I called up to the office and she happily switched us to a 5 week reservation since they were running a stay 4 weeks get the 5th for free special. So we were there for a while and The Hubby was happy.
We didn't get to use a lot of the features of this campground since it was winter. The store/restaurant was only open the first few days we were there. It closed after Thanksgiving. The outdoor water park was of course closed. we never made it fishing in the ponds. Also we never did check out the arcade. One of the food trucks were open once when we were there and The Hubby did get a snack from it. They have a calendar of activities but we were unable to attend them all due to my broken foot or them being a potluck and us not wanting to risk Monkey having a reaction. We did however rent a golf cart one weekend, check out the indoor pool, play at the park, and go on the beach. We also used the laundry room and The Hubby used to gym a few times.

The indoor pool was decent. It has a hot tub as well for adults only and a tiny baby pool. It was really humid in there since it is a heated pool which was nice. They did have a lifeguard there but there are signs saying there is not always one there. They did have adult only swim between 1pm-2pm every day. We went at night most of the time and it was a bit dark but the kids didn't mind. They have showers in there as well as bathrooms. When it rains it does rain into the pool a bit since the roof has a gap in it to try and help the heat escape. Overall it was a good pool.

The park was great. My kids had a blast there playing with other kids, swinging, playing basketball, and playing in the sand. It was well maintained as well. There is not a separate toddler area but at just under 2 Princess was able to get around just fine and had a blast. They do have both baby swings and regular swings. There are 2 basketball courts as well as some courts for other games. You can rent equipment from the office but we never did so I am not 100% sure how that works.

The beach of course was a beach. It was very sandy, not rocky, there was lots of room, and everyone really enjoyed it. There are garbage cans close by if you need to use them and there were bathrooms at the arcade and pool that you could use if you didn't want to go back to your rig. Lots of people took walks up and down the beach. You could go really far as the beached were not blocked off between places. The Hubby even rode his bike on the beach a few times. What a work out that was. (And what a MESS he was).

I only used the laundry room once since The Hubby did laundry while my foot was broken. It was a nice laundry room though with lots of machines. They even have triple load washers that do 3x as much laundry at once. There are video games in there so your kids can play while you wait. There are also baskets you can use to transfer your laundry. Another really nice thing is there is a coin machine in there. Super nice not to have to make sure you have quarters before you go do laundry.

Another nice thing was garbage was picked up at your site. We really enjoy this feature because it makes it easier on us. They also give you a blue bag when you check in to put your cans in for recycling. Another plus in my book.

Internet was decent. It was not the best but it did let The Hubby get his work done. I will venture a guess that during peak times though it will be VERY slow. We had some times where it was rough while we were there and there were not many people there using it. So if you need good internet and plan on going when it is busy I was bring your own internet.

Overall this was a very nice campground. We would stay here again but only in the off season. Not that we did not like it but I thing if I was there when it was busy we would have had a very different experience. The sites are kinda close together and we have heard how busy it can get with the golf club traffic. I think it would work nicely during peak season for a week long vacation, but I would not stay then for a long time or as a full timer that time of year. That is just the opposite of what we look for in a campground.

Kitcheneez

So while I was surfing the Internet one day while I had my cast on I came across this company Kitcheneez. I was interested since I was not digging standing up and cooking fancy things with my cast on. These looked easy enough that Monkey could make dinner without my help or I could with little work. After sending the owner about 6 messages about their facility, ingredients, process, ect I was satisfied that they were safe for Monkey and his nut allergy so I ordered the small starter kit they had on sale. 

The next day I made a sandwich ring. I decided to try some of the Garlic and Herb mix on the top and it was WONDERFUL! In fact I was instructed to make another one the next day. 

I tried most of the things from my kit and was hooked in my next order one of the things I ordered was the Chicago Italian Beef. I miss it. I have tried to make it MANY times over the year and it never is quite right. This one was almost PERFECT!!! I was impressed and so was The Hubby. If I was not already hooked this would have done me in. 

Another favortie is the Idaho French Fry sauce. It is ending at the end of the month so I ordered 3. Pretty sure I will be getting one more order before it leaves. 

Another one leaving the catalog is the New York Coney Dog sauce. No more canned hot dog chili in our house. I ordered 3 of these too but think I need more. 

Lisa is the owner and is AMAZING! She is very attentive to our wants and needs and always listens to our concerns. She has made sure to keep things nut free. In the winter they have fudge made at another facility. Last year it was cut and packaged in our facility but in another area. This year she has done one better and it will be packaged at the fudge place and then sent to Kitcheneez!!! We also have a large selection of gluten free items. They are made I. A separate area to avoid any glutton getting in! Lisa makes everything fresh to order so you get the very best quality. Our items come in re-sealable bags as well! 

If you are interested at taking a look you can check out my page at www.kitcheneez.biz/goobergrl6

North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher

Since I was finally about to walk on my foot we decided to take a drive to the North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher. The kids were really excited to be going to a museum and I was excited to be getting out of the RV. It was a little bit under a two hour drive but we didn't mind, especially since it was free to get in with our AZA reciprocity membership. Some of the pictures made it look a bit on the small side so we were a little worried we would be disappointed but boy were we WRONG!

We pulled in and immediately saw it was bigger then we thought. The kids were super excited to go in and we couldn't get in fast enough. The first section is set up more as a viewing area of animals. Princess really likes going up to the tanks and looking in at all the things. We got to see an Albino Alligator which was pretty cool. They also had a little table set up where we could see alligator skulls and learn things about the alligators.

While the first section was interesting we were really excited when we walked into the second area. It was full of great hands on activities that kids (and adults) just really love. We got to touch some sea anemone. There are a few videos at the end of the post of us touching them and making them go back in. They also had a spot to touch sharks. They are just little sharks that don't bite but it was still cool. I got a video of the kids petting them as well. There was some great info about turtles and how they hatch, how littering effect the sea life, and so much more. We all learned a lot.

They had a little show with a diver in a tank and you could talk to him while he was in the tank. I sat on a bench while we waited for the show to start while the boys went off to explore some other things in the same room. The little tank show was pretty neat and the kids really enjoyed sitting up close and learning stuff. Monkey was a bit bummed we didn't live close because they have a youth volunteer program there he was interested in. He is to young now but we will have to look for something similar when he is older. After the show the kids wanted to head outside to the playground for a bit. It was pretty chilly out so we didn't stay out long but it was a really neat play area.

We headed back in and the kids went back to pet the sharks a bit more. Cat Boy and Monkey decided they wanted to be crabs. We had a great time there and would recommend it to everyone. We will definitely go again if we find ourselves in the area again.