Weekend of The 3's

This past week "The 3's" gathered at the Baton Rouge home of our friends the Smith's.  As you may recall, there were four couples of us who had been friends since all of them (except me) were in college together back in the early 60's.

Wayne and I have known each other since we were children, so we had that connection.  Everyone was a music major except Wayne and I.  Our joint friendships developed through everyone's personal involvement in the Louisiana Baptist State Music programs.  We traveled to conferences together, camped together, did state-wide and convention music programs, and our seven children grew up being friends as well.

Due to moves out of state and life in general taking over, we lost our connection through the years.

In 2017, we all met up for lunch and the reuniting began.  Since that time, we have made it our mission to get together at least once a year.  We did that as four couples until the passing of Nancy this year.  Then Wayne designated us "The 3's," and that is sadly what we have become.

As Wayne was visiting his children in another state, he was unable to join us for our most recent get-together this past weekend.  We decided once a year was not enough any more, because we never know when it might be the last time for one or more of us.

Isn't it unfortunate when we take our special moments with family and friends for granted?  We tend to think those opportunities for sharing love and memories and new experiences will last forever.  But, they never do.

I told you we would definitely eat well because Vicki is a wonderful cook.  Dinner Thursday night was a typical "Southern" menu with squash casserole, macaroni and cheese, sweet potato casserole, rice and gravy with roast, with home-made rolls.  I didn't get a picture because I was much too busy enjoying this delicious fare to think about anything else.

We enjoyed our early Friday morning on the patio overlooking the pecan orchard expanse of the their backyard.  Rain from Storm Hannah was headed our way, so we loved the glimpses of sunshine through the trees.  And yes, it was a very humid and muggy 80 degrees at 8 a.m. in Baton Rouge.

Friday morning breakfast was perfect because we knew we would be eating better than we should for lunch.

We had breakfast banana splits (minus the Blue Bell ice cream) with lots of berries on bananas topped with nuts, granola, and yogurt.

Healthy, tasty and pretty is a perfect combination.

Lunch time found us about an hour southeast, nearer New Orleans than Baton Rouge at Manchac where we ate fish prepared in several ways.  Their specialty is thin fried catfish and all I can say about that is, it must be tried to believe how good it is.

The storm hit and we were unable to walk outside and enjoy the sights and sounds from the Manchac River and resident animals there.  However, the drive in the rain was well worth it for the renowned food.

Friday night we sat around the table playing games and eating popcorn with chocolates.

 Before we reluctantly went our separate ways Saturday morning, we had one more delicious meal together.  This Cinnamon Roll dish was as easy to prepare as it was good to eat.

Simply cut 2 rolls of Cinnamon Roll Dough into quarters and mix with a can of Apple Pie Filling, and chopped walnuts then bake at 350 until done.

We served it with our left-over berries and yogurt.

After we had devoured most of it, we remembered Vicki's special cream sugar topping she had made.  Needless to say, it was good even without it.

A few years ago, Vicki and Marvin's home was totally destroyed by flooding waters.  After it was rebuilt I painted this linen canvas for her to remind them that God's mercies are new every morning.  I loved seeing it again hanging in their home.

We are grateful for our time together as The 3's but still desperately miss when we could have been called "The 4."

A South Louisiana Road Trip

Last week Dick and I did one of the things we most enjoy - a road trip.

This one happened to include time with family and friends which is always special.

Our first stop was at my sister's house for an over night visit, which we always enjoy.  This was also a work visit.  My reason for including this is to share with you how God blessed us.

My brother-in-law has Parkinson's and they recently had a new porch and ramp build on the back of their house.  For safety sake, it needed to be covered.

Before we left Shreveport, Dick contacted a local carpet business and they GAVE him the exact amount of indoor/outdoor carpet that we would need.

This is the end result and they could not be more pleased.  Next trip we will add a hand rail for him.  God is so faithful!

On Thursday, we went to Baton Rouge to spend a couple nights with our long-time friends, Vicki and Marvin.

This is how far back our friendship goes.

On Thursday night, after eating Vicki's delicious homemade lasagna, we went to a David Phelps Easter Tour concert at a local church.

He is an amazing tenor and former singer with the Gaither Trio.

Friday morning was so glorious that we ate Vicki's homemade Cinnamon Rolls on the patio and watched the squirrels and birds.

Yes, that is a clothesline pole you see on the left and yes, it is still being used.

This albino squirrel seemed to enjoy putting on a show for us.

For lunch we took a drive toward New Orleans to Manchac, which is a fishing village and Wildlife Preserve between Lakes Pontchartrain and Maurepas.

There is a reason everything is built up off the ground in this swampy wetland.

Our destination was Middendorf's for lunch.

The story of Middendorf's is an interesting one.  Louis Middendorf was a traveling salesman living in Houston with his wife Josie and young son Richard.  After he lost his job in the stock market crash of 1929, he moved his family to Manchac where Josie's family lived.  With a $500 loan co-signed by then New Orleans Mayor, he and Josie opened their "cafe" in the summer of 1934.

Old building

Josie did all the cooking and Louis found his niche tending the bar and visiting with folks.  It was during this time that Josie created the legendary house specialty, Thin Fried Catfish.

It is this delicious dish that keeps people traveling to Manchac again and again.  Not many people along the Gulf Coast don't know about Middendorf's.

After more than 40 years of working in the restaurant, with no family to hand the restaurant down to, Granddaughter Susie decided to sell the family business in 2007. It has continued to grow and expand and the new owners are continuing the great traditions while adding some of their own.

One of the fondest memories the Middendorf family shares is the day Prince Albert of Monaco ate at the restaurant. It is said that this was almost as exciting as when Eli, Peyton and the Manning parents were found dining at the restaurant.

Now that is a table full of delicious food.

They also have ducks, geese, turkeys and roosters for after lunch entertainment.

She actually untied Marvin's shoe laces.

The Egret is a common sight in the marsh land of Louisiana.

When in South Louisiana, you don't want to miss eating at Middendorf's.

Marvin is taking a knee in homage to the plate full of Thin Fried Catfish he devoured.

Saturday morning, I again enjoyed the beautiful outdoors of the Smith House.

In 1962, Marvin's parents bought this 3 acre lot in an area yet to be developed just northeast of downtown Baton Rouge.  In 2001 following the death of Marvin's mother, they bought it and have lived here since.

Marvin's parent's grandparent names were "Ladybug" and "Daddy Boy."  Vicki is now "Lady Bug" and Marvin is "Daddy Boy 2".  Carrying on the tradition.

This 3 acres of pecan trees, flowers, and a garden was a retreat for us as we sat on the patio and enjoyed the expanse and quiet.

This was taken from the back of the lot.

It is hard to imagine all this land under more than 4 feet of water back in 2017.

Vicki created a memory book to record the flooding that began on August 13, 2017.

Their youngest son found trucks and means to rescue them.

Their older son who is on staff at a church in Ft Worth, Texas, brought a group of ten to help tear the house down to the bare studs and begin rebuilding.  The church also put them and the workers up in a hotel for two weeks and also gave them a very generous love offering and gift cards.  What a blessing First Baptist Church Lakeside was to the Vicki and Marvin.

Also, a family in Clay's church loaned them a large RV to put in their driveway to live in until their house was habitable.  God's mercy and grace was evident to them in so many, many ways during this time.  They have such a testimony.

Before the sheet rock was added, Vicki wrote scripture verses that had special meaning to them on the bare studs.

This is their memory wall and wall of dedication just inside the back door.

Yes, God is faithful and good to His children.

Before we left Baton Rouge, we visited one of Dick's cousins who lives only two blocks away from the Mississippi River in Port Allen.  They have a wonderful walking path on top of the levee and I thought we should be able to get a good of the river from there.

Little did I know I would be able to get a very rare close up view of the Mighty Mississippi!

I was actually able to walk to the water's edge.  You can see the tops of trees showing how far the river is out of its banks.

The river and all the tributaries south are experiencing extremely high water levels due to the huge amount of snows in the Midwest this year.

This shows how far the water is from the top of the levee.  Very dangerous.

Using my zoom lens, I was able to capture a tug boat and long barge in front of our beautiful state capital.

Tug boats are a very common sight in this petroleum industry section of Louisiana and below to the Gulf.

From the walking park looking down into the historic little town of Port Allen.

We had a wonderful little road trip and thank our family and friends for making it so enjoyable.