Relishing in His Goodness: Day Tripping

A page that I follow on Instagram, Explore Georgia, shared a post about a rock garden that I'd never heard about. The photo they shared was of a castle made of rocks, and set beside a creek and adorned with bright flowers, big trees and all things whimsical. Being the Harry Potter/nature loving/folk art adoring geek that I am, this place peaked my interest, so I decided that I'd surprise Ella and Jacob with a day trip that coming Saturday. Much to my delight, the older two were off from work, and were just as excited as I was about our lil adventure. A family who geek out together, stay together...or something like that.

It's been a really, REALLY long time since I've had all four of my biological children be able to commit to day plans with me, but I was able to pull it off! Victory is mine! Woot! Lindsey spent the night and we all woke early for breakfast and coffee before setting off.

With a picnic bag in tow, we piled into my Enclave, lovingly dubbed Betty White, and set out on our quest.

Betty White was full of chatter and laughter as we navigated toward Calhoun, Georgia. The drive, though long, was easy; nearly a straight shot all the way there.

The Rock Garden was created to be a prayer garden, by volunteer artists, behind a church. If you ever plan to visit, be prepared to enter the church's parking lot before finding access to a separate parking area for the Rock Garden. You cannot see it from the road! It's simply a hidden nugget of goodness that'll bless your soul so well.

FYI, their website does warn that you may enter the creek at your own risk, but to keep in mind that there are water snakes, snapping turtles, and leeches inhabiting said creek. It was far too cold for us but the water was really pretty. I can imagine a ton of Southern folk have had a good bit of fun playing in it. I've never met a blood-sucking leech, though, and don't plan on it in the future, is all I'm saying.

Just a few tidbits:

-There were an abundance (a literal abundance) of cardinals flying all around the gardens. I've never seen so many Cardinals at one time. In a photo, posted below, there were ten male and female cardinals resting in a tree just above our heads. See if you can spot them all!

-The structures include replicated ancient cities such as Bethlehem and Jerusalem , a replica of the Roman Colosseum, as well as castles, and a prayer structure that you can enter.

-If you go, make sure to take the time to peek inside all of the little windows of the structures. The artists included scenery and characters such as little handmade people and animals. In a photo below you can see a bakery scene.

-Among the materials used to create the pebbled structures are tree bark, metal, moss, stained glass, and decorative religious embellishments such as crosses, hearts, bible verses, and words of encouragement.

-The website says that the park closes at 7:00 p.m. but there were a couple of signs that stated the gates would be closed and locked at 5:00 p.m.

-There are several picnic tables available, as well as one port-a-potty. We didn't utilize either so I have no knowledge of the cleanliness of these things.

-There is no cost to visit the rock garden but there is a donation box close to the entry way.

-According to photos that I've seen, flowers are planted throughout the garden so I'd suggest visiting in the Spring...although, it was still a quite serene and beautiful place without the flowers. I am looking forward to a spring visit, though.

Here are some photos we took:

After spending a couple of hours marveling at the folk-type handy work and gorgeous setting, we headed six miles away to Buc-ees. Simply because you can't be that close to a Buc-ees and not go. Hands down, cleanest public restrooms around! This was Gabriel's first time being at a Buc-ees and I think he was a little googly eyed. He and Lindsey nearly stood in line to have their photo taken with a mascot. Funny how the older two were giddy about a photo with the mascot while the younger two just looked on with mortified embarrassment. Ha. The difference between tweens/teens and young adults.

After that obligatory stop, we found a park, nearby, to feast on our picnic lunch. I didn't plan this portion of the day trip out, well, evidently. It was frigid out. We ate our lunch quickly and through chattered teeth. We laughed a ton, despite the cold, however. I particularly thought it was funny that the city named the park Yellow Park, simply because the jungle gym was yellow, I'm assuming. How clever. ha.

The drive back home was made with two short stops. The first of which was to take a photo of a sign that we spotted for a road called Booger Hollow. You best believe that I made a u-turn just to go back and take a photo of that street sign. I'd love to interview the person who came up with the name of said street. What inspired such a name, I'd ask. The second stop was for Krispy Kremes. We don't live near one so this was an exciting treat! Hot and fresh glazed donuts, please!

The older kids got Valentine donuts for their sweeties.

The rest of the drive home was spent listening to good music, while two of the four kids slept. I was the one in the driver seat with a full heart and joyful spirit.