Mom came down for a visit. It's been awhile since she's been down since she bought the new house - she's been busy up there with moving stuff.
We went to church (photos here b/c Grandma and Isabella "match" -- the patina green of Isabella's Lady Liberty dress matches!
Our neighbors, Orie & Jeannie, invited us all to go on a pontoon boat ride on lake Altoona. We were in for quite the experience, as we were about to go out, a HUGE thunder storm moved through! We waited out the storm & ate dinner under the boat dock cover (eek b/c it was lightning all around us & the cover was made of metal!) You couldn't see that far out b/c it was raining so hard. Isabella called it a "white out."
But - after the storm passed through, it provided a nice drop in temperature and a fairly clear (less populated) lake to go out and troll around on! Mom said it had been 20 years +/- since she's been out on the water! We are grateful for the chance to go out on the boat any time they offer.
It is so peaceful!
We cooked A LOT while mom was here too. One night - it was crazy in the house as Todd was smoking customized pizzas. It was "all-hands on deck" prepping them all! The next day, Todd smoked ribs for the 4th. (Hip Hop did not leave Todd's side while he was cutting ribs. He was hoping something would drop!)
It was raining off & on, so.... we drove to the hospital parking deck and watched the fireworks over my old project / Todd's current project (a Catholic church & school).
Isabella attended her 3rd (and final) enrichment camp this summer. (Last year, she was in a lot of camps b/c I was trying to wrap up renovations... this year, she was in camps b/c they were things she was interested in. She said this has been the BEST summer so far because we weren't as busy and we've gotten to spend more time together too. :) I have to agree - we have had a better summer this year!
This week, she was at "Critter Camp" which was hosted by the Amphibian Foundation located in the Blue Heron Nature Preserve. We went to AF during this spring's Atlanta Science Festival (no photos allowed). Inside the foundation building is not a "curated" museum experience -- it is definitely a place for research & scientific exploration!
The camp director said they'll post photos at the end of the week (I'll update here)... but there's a few of the inside that I pulled off of the web just to document the look / feel of the place. I found these photos on the AF "frog blog" pages. This place seems legit.Day 1 was about Salamanders.
Day 2 was about Frogs.
(Yes - even on the 4th of July!)
Day 3 was about Turtles.
Day 4 was about Lizards.
Day 5 was about Snakes.
Here's her camp tee - each of the 5 icons correspond with the topics each day. Cute!On day 1, mom & I picked Isabella up from camp and she was talking talking talking along the walk back to the car + in the car. Then she said she needed to stop talking and needed to sleep. Day 2 - the same. Day 3 was different. (more below). Day 4 - she fell asleep again on the way home!
Yay - camp did it's job -- taught the kiddos some things and wore them out!
The 3rd morning when dropping her off - she asked that I wear water shoes when I pick her up that afternoon. She wanted to show me the creeks and ponds that they've been exploring. So we spent a couple of hours hiking / exploring / playing!
There's actually a bit of art interspersed throughout the property.
This one is hard to see - should've taken an up-close photo... it's a heart-shaped piece of a tree with wire wrapped around it. The signage next to it talked about "reciprocity" with nature... it gives us much. We need to give back. (I have been listening to the MOST BEAUTIFUL book on audible - "Braiding Sweetgrass" - it's poetic and scientific... and the author is constantly talking about reciprocity with nature.
Just interesting that this comes up again.
Random photo - but this also came up again as we found this plant on the trail. I had seen this at Serenbe for the 1st time last month. Isabella and I did a photo search on my phone. It is "hops" (I had to explain what that was - used for beer production!) crazy - I did not know hops grew here!
Isabella and I did a survey of some of the stuff in our pond with "scientific" tools. The green stuff on top is duck-weed. (covers the top in stagnant waters.) It is apparently full of protein. We could skim it out. (boil + dry it out) and use it in smoothies??!
(notice the repaired boards on the table?! At this writing, the final 2 boards have been replaced, but we still need to work on sanding of the wood to take off the sharp edges + cleaning the aluminum... and we're back to being able to use it!)
We found worm-like things in the pond - blackworms. Isabella took samples of both to camp. The amphibian foundation said the worms were GREAT foods for the frogs we have... and they pay a lot of money for them.
The strangest thing happened. We found a tree frog in our house the MORNING AFTER her camp was over. This is suspicious! (She swears she did not bring it home! She made a little habitat for it and played most of the day with it. But - will be letting it go..... soon.
Hmmm.... we're still just baffled & confused! This has never happened in our 20+ years of living here and the day after her amphibian camp... one of the animals they were studying just appears?! ????!!!
I have to post - this is random, but cute:
Mercer walked to the square one day with a friend. He ended up buying Isabella a ski cap! Even though it's the summer, she's been wearing it. She says it's sentimental.
Also - she noticed that M changed the background image on his phone earlier this summer. SO SWEET! This makes my mama heart happy! :)
One day while Isabella was at camp, I went to the Atlanta Botanical Gardens then met a friend for lunch. I enjoyed my time at both. Here is a photo dump of nature & plants at the ABG + the artwork on exhibit (with maybe a little commentary to go along with the pics... or maybe not!) :)
Beautiful bird wire sculptures - maybe 8 - 10' tall. One of my favorite things in the garden art-wise!
And - they still have some of the Chihuly pieces on display. (I suppose when they have an exhibit - maybe the artist makes specific pieces for specific spaces in the garden... or they buy (or a donor gifts) a specific piece? Anyway - always love seeing Chihuly in the Garden!
The design was stunning from ALL angles -- the water moving through this section of the garden (reflecting pool, cascading steps, spiral, the water channel, etc.... all just great!)
The Mary Ellen Imlay Channel Garden project today in Storza Woods
I looked up the designer (Spurlock Landscape Architects) and found some construction photos. Just wow - what vision!
(and wow - what a price tag: $3.5 million - construction back in 2021!!)
There was a piece from a previous exhibit that I had not seen: the Imaginary Worlds exhibit with a "Mosaiculture" installation. The piece that remained from that exhibit is the Earth Goddess. There is a crazy amount of up-keep with 18,000 plants that are plugged in for their color and foliage + an internal irrigation system!
It was quite stunning too. Such a draw (and so much merchandise with her image on it in the gift shop!)
You can't get up-close and personal to see it.... they've designed the exhibit to see it far away. But - it IS impressive!
The current exhibit seems like it's geared more for kids - with catchy names + fanciful stories for each of the troll characters.
I read up on the artist. He was inspired to recycle / dumpster-dive + incorporates that into his art... but the only thing I could see that was re-used were the plastic items used as beads in a necklace for one of the giant trolls. The rest looked like nice wood. (Unless somehow it was reclaimed and re-used?)
For scale - a person comes up to the arm. (This is 20+/- feet tall)
This one is called "Rosa Sunfinger" and her description: she shows how plants can make even the most useless items come back to life.
It was cute (and the wood construction looked to be well-crafted).
Of course, the plants are the show-stoppers at the gardens. Love this hydrangea.
Pineapples in the edible garden!
Orchids in the orchid house
This beautiful painting graces one of the walls in the building - it's called Orchid Daydream.
The water lilies are always stunning.
Love the variegated leaf on this one!
And... the winner of the WHOLE visit: these mosaic plants!
I've never seen these before, but now MUST have these in our pond! :)
(It looks like the Fibonacci Spiral!)
As I was leaving, I found a "Tiny Door" - the concrete block line to the left of the door can be used for scale - it's 8" tall.
I've seen tiny doors before on the Beltline but there's a whole site with locations:
https://tinydoorsatl.com/pages/doors
After walking for hours in the hot, humid morning + running out of water in my water bottle, I enjoyed my "mocktail" in a secluded, shady plant-covered hut with cool concrete benches inside. Hardly anyone even noticed me tucked into this great little hide-out! And I - literally - chilled for awhile before leaving the garden.
This orange-basil mocktail was SOOO good that I had to look it up online / find out where to get it. I bought some to stock in the 'fridge.
Aside from the mosaic plant - this was the other thing I was most excited to learn about! :)
On the last day of Isabella's camp, I spent another day in-town. I booked it down to the beltline to join an outdoor yoga class in the park. Did I mention it was HOT in the morning? Even at 9:30 / 10 am!! But - glad I did it. Afterwards, I explored that part of the Beltline for a bit - as I had not been on that part of the trail, but it was not yet paved & there wasn't much to see. But- there was building like crazy (high rise condos just waiting for the day that this part of the Beltline would be developed!)
After cooling off in the AC of my car, I got cleaned up and went to the Carter Center. As long as I've lived here - I've never been! I am so glad that I did -- it was very nice + I learned a lot.
Years ago when Mercer was younger, we took the train to Plains, GA to go see the presidential homestead and surrounding town, but this was so comprehensive of not only his childhood, but also marriage - candidacy - presidency - after presidency / Carter Foundation work.
I have always known about Carter's work with Habitat for Humanity and was bowled over by his / his wife's service, but HfH was just a drop in the hat. They did SO MUCH!
What an inspiring couple.... and as it turns out... the day I visited was their 77th anniversary -- on 7/7 !! They had a display at the ticketing area to sign a commemorative guest book & wish them well for their anniversary / it would be presented to the couple who are both suffering from health issues back in their hometown of Plains. (They are both well into their 90's.)
Look at this sweet photo of them from their wedding day (he was a naval officer and she dressed to match!)
They said that this is a replica of their wedding day clothes. It's interesting to see the style of the dress!
There was also a report card from his school in Plains - (it looks like he was not a fan of music class!)
Inauguration photos and memorabilia
Re-creation of the oval office
There were recordings / photos of him with different musicians (I listened to the Jazz performance at the White House) a funny little bebop song called "Salt Peanuts" that Dizzy Gillespie performed WITH the president!
There was a re-enactment of "a day in the life" with recordings and photos of meetings / conversations. He dictated a journal in the evening... so I suppose he met with someone late in the evening to help document his day!
There are REAL files from the White House (declassified I assume!) - you can go there and do research with 5 million +/- documents in boxes behind thick glass. (I noticed there were a bunch of sprinkler heads in the room where there was a window looking in.)
(a cute non-political document that was on display was a sketch Jimmy did of a tree-house.... basically a platform.
And - later - there was a photo of Jimmy & his 10 year old daughter playing at that tree-house) They did a feature of their daughter Amy (although they had older children too - but I don't think they lived in the White House.)
This was a famous photo I remember seeing on the news - 5 living presidents.
There was a display on energy efficiency (after coming out of the energy crisis of the 70s)
"Save Energy - Wear a Sweater" campaign - and the sweater he wore in the White House.
(I don't remember this, but since I worked in the energy industry -- thought it was clever!) And - on a loop - a School House Rock video called the "Energy Blues" I may use this video during my sustainability unit.... I found it on YouTube.
This was *funny* - saying in the early 80s, they wrote their memoirs on this piece of state-of-the-art equipment. Ha! Things have changed a bit, I'd say!!
There were numerous awards displayed:
Freedom Medals given to Jimmy & Rosalynn by President Clinton- the highest civilian award. (Presented in 1999 for their work after Jimmy's presidency)
Nobel Peace Prize for President Carter presented in 2002.
An award for Rosalynn for her work on Mental Illness - Dortha Dix award in 1988.
President Carter also received a Grammy - also on display - for "Best Spoken Word" for his book Our Endangered Values: America's Moral Crisis (written in 2005)
There was a big section on the Egyptian / Israeli conflict and resolution. This was a (mock up) of the Peace Wreath he presented to Anwar Sedat in 1981 - made by famous Georgia glass blower Frabel.
There was a big section on the American hostage release from Iran (and the controversy associated with it including issues with the economy).
I learned a lot about both of the above situations that I really don't remember in my childhood.
There were a lot of (fancy) gifts that were given to the Carters on display throughout as well... I really liked this one - translated "Peace Y'all"
I was almost in tears reading about the things that the Carter Foundation has done too - including clean water and helping with medical conditions of the Guinea Worm.
Here is the mission from the Carter Foundation website (which is also located on the same campus as the Carter Center & Presidential Library):
Our Mission
The Carter Center is guided by the principles of our Founders, Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter. Founded, in partnership with Emory University, on a fundamental commitment to human rights and the alleviation of human suffering, the Center seeks to prevent and resolve conflicts, enhance freedom and democracy, and improve health:
• The Center believes that people can improve their own lives when provided with the necessary skills, knowledge, and access to resources.
• The Center emphasizes action and measurable results in the lives of the people it seeks to help.
• The Center values the courage to break new ground, fill vacuums, and address the most difficult problems in the most difficult situations.
• The Center recognizes that solving difficult problems requires careful analysis, relentless persistence, and the recognition that failure is an acceptable risk.
• The Center is nonpartisan and it seeks to work collaboratively with other organizations from the highest levels of government to local communities.
As mentioned - I really only knew about Habitat for Humanity, but learned so much on these few hours of exploration -- which I am so glad I chose to spend there!
I was telling a neighbor yesterday about the visit - who is close to my age / she has lived in-town and admitted she's never been either. How is this happening? I noticed in the guest book there are LOTS of visitors from all over the country - who put this on their tourist visits when coming to Atlanta. (We talked about how old they are. She said that she hopes they both "go" together.... she can't imagine one of them living without the other.) True. When looking for a July update on their health - I could not find one.... but... one article coined President carter as a "Humanitarian Hero." Yes! He did so much after his presidency / used his platform to help others. I did not get a chance to explore the grounds beyond the pond & waterfall - where I sat and had a quick lunch before picking Isabella up from her last day of camp. Although we're in a heat wave, I was nice and cool next to the water (thank you science & evaporative cooling) and thank you to the shade of this tree I was sitting under.
I can... and will... go back out to the grounds to explore more one day!
Wishing continued peace and love to this admirable & honorable couple !!
One parting photo from this week: Isabella was happy to give up her bed / set up camp in the room behind the kitchen because the dog got to sleep with her! He was a happy pup too. :)
Looks like they had "classroom time" every day.
This is a red-footed tortoise & wanders around the foundation classroom. (And - I asked Isabella - yes - it pees / poops on the floor / gets cleaned up~) 
Marble salamander 
Long-tailed salamander (she thinks)
There was a spot that had leaches. She promises me she did not go into that spot... but the boys in the camp did & got some on them! 
This is day 2 - frog day.
It peed on her friend's hands and onto the floor... so Isabella is ducking under the table / moving her shoes!
Cane toad. The bumps shoot out poison as a defense when it is bitten... not with the kids holding it. whew.
This was one of the counselors - who was the dad of the girl with the bright red hair that Isabella was friends with... I thought this photo was funny b/c at 1st it looked like he had something HUGE on his shoulder! (photo bomb!)
This the camp counselor, Sydney, that she liked a lot.
This is Day 3 - turtle day.
This is a snake-neck turtle! (I don't like this one... it reminds me of a snake.)
It looks like there's educational programming during lunch.
Day 4 - Lizard Day.
Bearded dragon.
This is a legless lizard (she explained to me that the shape of the head & jaw is different on a snake). 
This was the last day of camp "Snake Day".... but this thing is a tegu. (His name is Herb & they couldn't get to him on lizard day b/c they didn't have enough time.) 
It has a forked tongue so it can smell things on either side.
She thinks this is a king snake.
Coral snake. 
This is Frank - the albino boa constrictor. And - all of the kids in her week at camp. 
Here's the director of the program, Crystal. Isabella said she was really nice. (I asked her - since Isabella said she wanted to go back next year - if it's a repeat. Sounds like it usually is, but this is their 10th year of doing it, so she wants to change the programming next year / should be all new.) 
Apparently, the sprayground director had someone taking photos (maybe for their website?) but - she printed this one out and gave to Mercer -- this is him in action @ work!
Mercer decided last minute that he wanted to get his hair cut before the tournament. He said he knew I snapped this photo... I've never seen him with a man-bun! He asked for a copy of the pic, so maybe he's not mad I took it.
And - he asked me to take this one - obviously - because he's posing. Rare opportunity! (post- hair cut) :)
Isabella named this one "Cheese Ball." 
Moss lizard.
Chameleon. 
