As you may know, when fall comes around, Jacqui is all about football, Octoberfest and tailgating. She has also added a few other activities to her loves:, hiking, leaf peeping, donkey jump and Halloween parties (for children).
We’ve been closely following the MI State Spartans, while keeping an eye on The Irish, but have been trying to watch a lot of SEC games this year, with special attention placed on the Arkansas Razorbacks – Pig Soooie!! I got a chance to 
tailgate with Chad and some fratboys at a
recent game. We put the feedbag on - Big Time!
They have some fun sayings like
“When the Crown goes around,
someone’s going down”.
The leaves began to turn colors in our area a few weeks ago, but the heat and drought in August put a lot of stress on the trees, so they’ve been dropping leaves early in some areas. A few weeks ago we headed out to see some foliage and hiked to an area along the famous Trail Of Tears and saw the beginning of the southern foliage season. The Trail Of Tears was the forced march of native Americans out of this area, and took place during the decade after the passage of the federal Indian Removal Act in 1830. Approximately 60,000 people crossed through the area, headed for resettlement in nearby Oklahoma. Many didn't make it.
Here's a photo of Jacqui and Jack on a recent hike near the most photographed site in Arkansas, called Hawksbill Crag, or Whitaker Point, depending on who you ask.
The leaves began to turn colors in our area a few weeks ago, but the heat and drought in August put a lot of stress on the trees, so they’ve been dropping leaves early in some areas. A few weeks ago we headed out to see some foliage and hiked to an area along the famous Trail Of Tears and saw the beginning of the southern foliage season. The Trail Of Tears was the forced march of native Americans out of this area, and took place during the decade after the passage of the federal Indian Removal Act in 1830. Approximately 60,000 people crossed through the area, headed for resettlement in nearby Oklahoma. Many didn't make it.
Here's a photo of Jacqui and Jack on a recent hike near the most photographed site in Arkansas, called Hawksbill Crag, or Whitaker Point, depending on who you ask.
There are quite a few great hikes in the area. We recently drove 2 ½ hours to hike along the bluff leading to the highest point in the Ozarks, Mount Magazine. Along the way there we stopped for directions at an old folks home. Jacqui made me go in and I have to say, it was bizzah. I thought I was in a horror movie. It seems there’s truth to the saying “it sucks to get old”. It sucks even worse to get old out in the boonies.
The hike we wanted to do at Mount Magazine takes you up to an elevation of about 2,700 feet above sea level. Not very high, but all the area around it is lowland and valley, so the entire elevation is a vertical climb. About 15 minutes into our hike up the trail, Jack started to flip out. We had to turn around and begin the 2 ½ hour drive back home. Note for future hikes: remember to bring an extra pacifier on the hike.
We went to Pea Ridge with Jacqui's friends Lindsey and Joel for some fall fun (apple crisp, bouncy house, donkey jump). What can you say about The Donkey Jump? It's
good fun for the family, and the donkeys don't complain that much. I've got some literature around somewhere, but as I understand, area donkeys were trained to jump fences and rock piles in preparation for coon hunting season.
We got some great shots of Jack in his first Halloween costume. He was a lion - ROAR! He got some good use out of it as Jacqui took him to a block party, then a fundraiser / party at the place he goes for daycare, and then to a party at one of our neighbors homes. He didn't mind the suit, but the furry mane made him look like Abe Lincoln, and when people laughed, he got self conscious. 
Here he is with some of the neighbor kids being a ball-hog. Earlier he had been trying to pick up three at once, and when he realized he couldn't hold them all at once, he just sat on them, so no one else could get to them. I think the clinical term is only-child syndrome.
Looking forward to catching you up with more of Our View Of Life In The South. Next up: apple pickin', brush-hoggin', and the Prairie Grove Civil War battle reenactment (I'm proudly joining the Yankee side).
Looking forward to catching you up with more of Our View Of Life In The South. Next up: apple pickin', brush-hoggin', and the Prairie Grove Civil War battle reenactment (I'm proudly joining the Yankee side).
