My baby done gradjee-ated

Here we are after commencement, 16th May 2009, ASU Convocation Center. (When I was in high school, we just had graduation in the gym. Oh well!) Thank goodness high school is over. Now on to university!


And here we are at Craighead Forest Park. Hubby, son, nephew Jeremy and I had a little picnic lunch then went for a walk all the way around the lake. It was fairly warm, but most of the path is in the shade. We saw lots of ducks and turtles and one snake! Fortunately, it was swimming across the lake and not slithering across our path, or I would have fainted.





I wanted to show Derek something other than the delta, so we went toward the Ozark foothills to Mammoth Spring, Arkansas. We stopped for a bit in Old Hardy Towne, but if you're not on the market for a quilt or jar of fake molasses (ingredients corn syrup and caramel coloring!) with a picture of a hillbilly on it, there's not much to do there, so we were back home by the afternoon. It was lovely hot day, though, and we enjoyed walking around the spring, where Derek took more photos of ducks and geese. Of course!




This water wheel is just outside Hardy. Ever since I was a kid, this has been a place to stop and look around, stretch your legs. There used to be a Water Wheel Flea Market and Quick Shop across the road, but it seems to be out of business. When I was little, the water wheel didn't work, but they got it working some time in the 80s I think, and it was running while we were there. (But the maintenance guys were working on it so it's stopped in this photo).



Here we are on the other side of the stream behind the water wheel. There's a 'nature trail' but it was closed and the maintenance guys recommended we avoid it anyway because of ticks. I forgot about ticks. I have to say, I don't miss sticky Arkansas heat, mosquitos, snakes and ticks! Nice photo, though.