Lots of different topics here, so hang on . . .
The Eastern Shore Art Center is scurrying around setting up a show to accompany the Poppies For Veterans Symbols of Sacrifice outdoor public art display next week. This indoor show will feature a giant mixed media mural, photos of local veterans and lots of other surprises.
Click HERE to see my original story on this huge undertaking of making and displaying over 3,400 ceramic poppies! Saturday morning (don’t rain – don’t rain!) will be our popular Veteran’s Day Parade. This is one of my favorite photos from a parade a few years ago.
The indoor show will include letters from local children and will be ready for the public tonight at First Friday Art Walk, 6pm-8pm.
If you are in or close to Fairhope, make sure you plan to come over next Wednesday to see the poppies on display. There will be a ceremony at 4:45 pm, in time to see the sun set over Mobile Bay. If you’ve bought poppies, ($20 each or $50 for 3) you can pick them up Thursday morning. Proceeds benefit our local Veterans, so get out and buy poppies!
In the main gallery of the Art Center, Ardith Goodwin will be exhibiting her colorful works. Each one is filled with enormous amounts of detail.
And to show you what my homeschool kid has been up to . . . last weekend he and his Robotics team (40 of them) attended Jubilee Best, a robotics competition for schools in Mobile and Baldwin Counties.
Over 40 school groups competed in the areas of robot design and performance, budget, spirit, commercial, public relations, oral presentation . . . and more! Our local schools stopped participating in Jubilee Best a few years ago, so we were excited to find the homeschool team.
The competition was held in the Mitchell Center at University of South Alabama, and it was LOUD and ROCKING!!! Flashing lights, pep bands, screaming and cheering . . . my ears were ringing when it was all over!
Some teams had fun with their theme, and this young lady from another school had the coolest butterfly get-up I’ve ever seen. The butterflies around her neckline and down the front of her dress were 3-D and seemed to flutter all around her. Its hard to see, but she had a black tule mermaid style skirt at the bottom. Such creative kids!
And other excitement around here . . . it’s peanut season! Not only is the cotton ready, but our favorite football snack is here. I bought a big bag to bring home and boil for the Saturday football games!
And speaking of things that grow around here . . . the bananas on my backyard tree are getting huge! We have lots of banana trees in our area, but it’s rare to have them actually produce fruit. I’m keeping an eye on them and will pick them before the first frost. I’ll keep you posted. Oh, the anticipation!
Earlier in the week, I got the chance to hear Lou Schell talk about her book, “Revisiting America.” She was absolutely charming and the crowd hung on her every word. We met in the new event space at Page and Palette, and everyone is talking about how it is going to be a great addition to their store. Click HERE to see her segment from CBS Sunday Morning.
If you follow me on Instagram, you saw this photo of part of my back porch arrangement with white pumpkins and cotton. We’re expecting rain this weekend, but hopefully it will bring cooler weather and it will finally . . . FINALLY feel like fall.
Question: When it rains, why doesn’t the cotton in the field shrink?
Just always wondered about that.
Wishing you a happy weekend (with or without boiled peanuts or cotton), wherever you are!
Another reason for me to move to Fairhope…. I LOVE peanuts and anything that is made from them. Wow… such talented kids. Hope you have a great weekend!
Thanks Katie. Dothan Alabama claims to be the peanut epicenter of the world, but all over South Alabama and North West Florida, you can find them fresh out of the ground this time of year.
Happy weekend to you as well!
There is always something to do in Fairhope isn’t there?? I love the poppies. I do remember that people used to wear paper poppies on their lapel for Veterans Day. It always brought back the poem I learned in school, In Flanders Fields where Poppies grow upon the crosses row on row. I am so thankful for those men who gave their lives for my freedom!
Hi Arlene, as they were installing the exhibit, I saw a copy of that poem they were preparing to hang. It’s going to be so beautiful, both in the Art Center, and out on the bluff where the thousands of poppies will be! I’ll be sure to get lots of photos!
A fun Friday email — I hope it won’t rain on your parade. What a talented artist Ms. Goodwin is. I love this painting. Enjoy your boiled peanuts. That’s my favorite fall food! Have a lovely weekend, Leslie Anne!!
Thanks Rachel, I’ll think of you when I snack on my peanuts!
The white pumpkins always looked a little strange to me but paired with the white cotton they make a delightful arrangement. Love it.
Yes, I’m starting to like the white pumpkins more and more. These little ones were at the farmer’s market a few weeks ago for 75 cents each!
Now I like them even better!!
What a great way to honor the Veterans than the display of poppies and the parade. The main gallery sounds interesting with the Ardith Goodwin exhibit. Love the cotton and white pumpkins arrangement. Peanuts always a favorite here, we like them roasted and warm from the oven. Hope you have a great day for your parade………….We have a big game here tomorrow. RT
It’s going to be a good rainy day for football watching! After the parade, I hope!
Oh, boiled peanuts, how I love thee. Believe it or not, a few years ago way out here on the edge of the world, there was a boiled peanut vendor in Snohomish WA. No kidding. Of course, the husband and wife duo were originally from Georgia. I miss the beautiful cotton fields. Your blog really makes me home sick sometimes. But, I’ll keep reading and now then shed a tears of happiness knowing that there are still places that honor veterans and America. Thanks for sharing.
Oh Sylvia, if you send me an email with your address I’ll send you some boiled peanuts. You are the sweetest! I’m serious: la@fairhopesupply.com
Thanks for making my day!
We visited Fairhope six years ago and loved it!!
I think it’s time for another visit sometime soon!
You’ve got so much fun included in this post. . .where do I even start? I didn’t make it out to enjoy the poppies, but I contributed in a small way. My SIL was helping with the project and needed some bamboo to display some of the larger poppies, so she came out here and got some off out property. Ha!
I have a much larger stake in the robotics though. My nieces have been involved in BEST for several years and I’ve helped a time or two. Their team is one of the several from the Jubilee area that’s moving on to the state level in Auburn. I’m pretty sure I’m getting to go with them also to see what’s next. As for the girl with the butterfly costume – she’s dressed as Effie from the Hunger Games series. It’s a fabulous rendition of the movie’s costume too!
Oh, and while the cotton doesn’t seem to shrink after it rains, it sure does sag. It looked so very sad after those bad rainstorms we had. The fields didn’t look quite as fluffy and happy as before.
Anyway, love the post! 🙂
Hunger Games! I knew it must be a hip young character I didn’t know. She was fabulous! Have fun at the robotics tournament in Auburn. It should be awesome!