Saturday, September 30, 2006

Turpentine Creek

Today we visited Turpentine Creek Wildcat Reserve for the first time. I've heard it's the largest big-cat rescue in the country. They had lots of animals on display in the compound and overall we had a good time. They also have a couple of playground areas for the kids, which are helpful when the little ones need a break. Aside from the big cats, they also rescue bears, monkeys, goats, llamas, birds, and badgers.

Normally, they charge $15 for adults and $10 for kids, but if you live and work in Eureka Springs, you get in free. Of course, donations are always appreciated and are going to a very good cause. These people obviously care tremendously for these animals and want to help every single one live out their lives in comfort.

Labels: ,

Monday, September 25, 2006

Mystery and Whimsy

I think the two best words to describe Eureka Springs are mysterious and whimsical. We have been walking around town and the surrounding neighborhoods for two months now since we moved here. We are still amazed by the mysteries we discover every time we are out.

For instance, there is a street in town called Flint Street with only one house on the block. But, when you take a closer look down in the hollow, you can see remnants of stone walls and staircases all down the street. I did a bit of research and found out that there used to be a hotel there and I think it burned down in the early 1900's. There are things like this all over town. There are stairways that lead up to very old roads that are no longer in service and old wooden walkways and bridges... very mysterious and very cool. Kind of makes you feel like a detective and you want to figure out what was there and the stories behind it all.

There are many aspects of the town that can be described as "whimsical." First of all, the whole orientation of the town and the steep, narrow, winding streets that seem to have no rhyme or reason. You feel like you are exploring just when you drive or walk around the historic loop. There are houses perched up on limestone walls twenty feet above street level. The residents must climb two flights of stairs to reach their front door. You look at those houses and you think, "Wow, who would build a house up there?" Then you realize that those houses are all over 100 years old and they are still there and have even been kept up or remodeled after all these years. Simply beautiful.

And then we have the springs. All over town, you can find the old "healing springs" that started this town back in the 1880's. They all have gorgeous gardens surrounding them and each one is unique. Some have little gates, benches, fountains, or even gazebos by them. I am very impressed that the springs have been kept up as well as they have, especially since they are no longer drinkable or used for bathing like in the old days.

Anyway, I could go on and on, but I will end for now.
Until next time...

Labels: , ,

Saturday, September 23, 2006

Holy Thunderstorms, Batman!

We had severe thunderstorms ALL NIGHT last night. Good for the vegetation, bad for the children. Both of our kids are afraid of thunder, so we had a very crowded bed last night and very little sleep for the adults. Oh well, if it stays cloudy we will have a good nap this afternoon...

Labels: ,

Thursday, September 21, 2006

Sick kids... again!!

School has only been in session for one month, and there have already been about 3 different colds going around. That's the only thing I hate about public education/social situations - it always seems like someone is sick!!

No matter how many times they cover their mouths when they sneeze or cough and wash their hands until they are red, they still manage to catch every sickness. Luckily, so far they've only been short 24-hour colds, but a pain none-the-less.

Labels: ,

Wednesday, September 20, 2006

Gotta love the weather!

It has been absolutely gorgeous the last few days. The highs have been 75 degrees or so and the lows in the wee hours of the morning are around 50 degrees. Some of the leaves are already starting to change. Yipeeeeee! The dogwood trees are sporting flaming red - beautiful!

Fall is on its way!!! Hopefully we will have a long and "showy" one.

Labels: , ,

Tuesday, September 19, 2006

Vent: wasting food

I know this is probably a well known fact and also a moot point, but I just wanted to vent about kids wasting food. If you have toddlers or preschoolers, I'm sure you can relate.

Why is it that you always end up with more food on the floor at the end of a meal than in the kid's tummy? And for older kids, why are they so picky??? You serve something that they have eaten happily since they were a baby and all of a sudden, they don't like it anymore. Then they eat it somewhere else, like school, and they decide they like it again and will eat it at home too. It is just annoying to me when we are on a very tight grocery budget and half the food ends up on the floor.

I've tried serving really small portions, but if they actually like it, then I'm up 6 times getting more for everybody. You just can't win...

I'm not into the "short order cook" routine for my kids, either. I cook one meal for all of us and serve it. If they don't like some of it, they don't have to eat it, but I don't make anything else for them. Luckily, my kids will try anything at least once (even spicy food) and they love veggies, so it's not all bad.

Labels: ,

Sunday, September 10, 2006

Cars, cars, and more cars

As for yesterday, our decision was made for us (sort of) by our own car. The "check engine soon" light came on, so we decided to just check out the Antique Auto Show and Parade here in Eureka Springs, instead of driving to Berryville to the County Fair. We saw lots of beautiful automobiles, all in tip-top show condition. The parade started at Pine Mountain Village and traveled all the way up Van Buren (aka Hwy 62) to the historic loop.

The people in the parade were throwing candy out at the kids, so now we have enough sweets to last until Halloween! We had a good time and of course, the kids loved it too.

Labels: , ,

Thursday, September 07, 2006

So much to do, so little time...

This week, the Carroll County Fair is happening in Berryville. Since the kids are in school, we were going to check it out on Saturday (the last day). But that is the same day as the Antique Auto Show and parade here in Eureka. Trying to do both would be too much for the kids, so we have to pick. Luckily, our kids love old cars almost as much as we do, so they would enjoy going to the car show or the fair. My hubby and I are leaning toward the car show because we won't have to spend any money, whereas at a carnival you always end up spending way more than you planned.

I think I'll find out how late the fair is going Friday night and we can go for a little while after school. Then Saturday will be available for the car show. That way, everyone is happy. :o)

Labels: ,

Wednesday, September 06, 2006

Cooler weather has arrived

Ahhh, the last couple of weeks have been wonderful!! After an extremely hot and humid summer, all of a sudden the weather has completely changed (for good?). The humidity definitely makes a difference, and it has been much lower. Also the average high temperature has dropped by about 10 degrees, making the high temps between 75-80. It seems the fall weather has arrived already here.

We have never actually been in Eureka in the fall before, and it's supposed to be the best season. Of course, the fall is our favorite season anyway, but we are looking forward to terrific weather and a nice colorful, long, drawn out fall. We are used to 6 weeks of fall at best at our last residence. We are looking forward to celebrating Halloween without having to dress the kids for snow.

Eureka! We have found it!!

Labels: ,

Tuesday, September 05, 2006

What do you do?

This is the first question most people ask you when they find out you are a local Eurekan. Since this is a tourism-based community, most people start their own business to survive here. Also, it is a huge artist haven. So people seem really interested on how you make your living.

It's quite refreshing to tell someone you are an artist and they are actually impressed and respect you. In other parts of this country, artists are looked down upon and considered to be "slackers" with no real job. The mentality toward artists in Eureka Springs is more typical of Europe than the United States. Another plus for Eureka!

Labels: ,

Monday, September 04, 2006

Hidden Paths?

I want to mention one other curiosity about our town... I have seen on several maps that there are supposed to be walking paths and stairways throughout town. They act as short-cuts between streets. I have gone looking for some of these and have been very disappointed. The staircases do exist, but those don't really help me since I walk with a baby stroller. The walking paths, however remain a mystery. Twice now, I have almost gotten stuck on an overgrown path that is so steep a mountain goat would cringe. Plus, they appear to be on (or very near) private property, so you feel like you are trespassing.

I am wondering if maybe these paths used to be walkable many years ago, and over time have eroded and become much steeper? Either way, I don't think I will try any more!

Labels: ,

Saturday, September 02, 2006

Getting around town with kids

Everyone who knows our family is aware that we hand-picked the town of Eureka Springs after several years of very extensive research and logging thousands of highway miles. We had very specific criteria to match and ES just came the closest. There are only a couple of small problems we have encountered.

First off is the tourism, which I have to admit has been less of a problem than we had anticipated before we moved. Although, October is supposed to be the busiest month so we'll see how that goes. October (Halloween!) is our favorite time of year, so we were pleased to learn of all the happenings around here for that season. I think we will enjoy lots of "spooks" around town here to celebrate!

My only other complaint, and I know it has been brought up before, is how difficult it is to get around town walking with a child in a stroller. Since we are in the mountains, of course there are some very steep streets. Those are tough, but I can manage. On some of the main streets, however, there are steps on one side of the street while the other side will have ramps. I'm glad at least there are ramps, but they are on different sides of the street depending where you are. So I end up having to cross the same street several times to take the ramps rather than the stairs. I have seen people just waking in the street with strollers, but those streets (Main, Spring, Center) are too busy for that in my opinion. Also, some of the surrounding residential neighborhoods do not have sidewalks at all, so you have to walk in the street. When a car comes, I pull my stroller over into the grass on someone's front yard.

The public trolley system here is simply wonderful. The monthly pass for residents is a mere $5! When you consider that a daily pass for tourists runs $4, we residents get quite a deal! But again, it is a bit difficult with a toddler. Sometimes we take the stroller, but when we see the trolley approaching we have to quickly remove the child and fold the stroller before we board. A couple of times I have worn the baby backpack and just sat on the seat with baby on my back. That worked OK, but was rather painful and hot after a couple of hours around town...

Let's just say I am looking forward to when my little one can walk with us (without running into the street) and not get too tired after two blocks.

Other than those few things, our experience here so far has been wonderful. Our neighbors are great and everyone we've met has been super-nice and welcoming. It seems Eureka Springs is a "melting pot" of sorts, as I have yet to meet a native Eurekan. We've met people who moved here from Oklahoma, Florida, California, Nevada, Tennessee, Colorado, Michigan, New York, Missouri, Texas, and so on. So there is this feeling that everyone who lives here has chosen to live here and works really hard to stay here. That's a good feeling.

Labels: ,

Friday, September 01, 2006

Just starting out...

I'm fairly new to blogging, so please bear with me. I started this mostly to talk about the wonderful town (Eureka Springs) we moved to this summer, and also about my trials and tribulations as a mother of two young children. Sometimes, you just feel like getting things out of your brain an onto [virtual] paper.

Anyway, that's all I'll post to start out. More tomorrow...

Labels: ,