Posted by Tagged with Artists, family US roadtrip, familytravel, Georgia, Macon, parenting Posted in Uncategorized

Macon Memories

We spent a whole month in Macon, Georgia. We decided that staying somewhere for a longer period of time would allow us to settle in and live more like locals than tourists.

My husband met Aaron, who works at Visit Macon, through a Minnesota connection. Because of Aaron, we met Paul, who manages Airbnb properties. Paul got us situated in our airbnb when we arrived and made sure we had everything we needed. He brought us some extra household items that one-night guests don’t usually need such as a card table, larger pots and pans, and a crockpot. We settled in and made it “home”. Our favorite TV shows to watch in the evenings were Wheel of Fortune and America’s Got Talent. Living in a small space made for a lot of family bonding time. Since we weren’t busy with homework and regular activities in the evenings, we were able to play scrabble, do puzzles, watch movies, and just talk about life.

Macon is a home to Mercer University. I came to realize while staying here that I love a college town. I saw students everywhere we went. The first weekend we were here was homecoming, and the campus was buzzing with excitement. The pep band played as the football team paraded through the crowds of fans, tailgating before the football game.

There is also a strong arts and music presence in Macon, which you pick up on right away when walking through the downtown. Famous artists who came from Macon include Little Richard, Otis Redding, and the Allman Brothers. You can tour the house where the Allman Brothers lived and the studio where their records were made. Mark dived deep into music history while we were here, taking several tours, and doing a lot of reading.

Here are a few of the places I remember visiting this month in Macon.

The Tubman African American Museum

Amerson Park

Ocmulgee Indian Mounds

Wear Thrift Store

Seussical the Musical performed by Miller Fine Arts Middle School

Reboot Retrocade

Macon Bagels

H&H Cafe (trying grits for the first time)

Fall Line Brewery – great outdoor seating with fire pits

Each weekday started out at the Washington Library where the kids and I spent a couple hours doing our homeschool work. We felt so welcomed by the staff in the children’s department of the library. There were days when the girls were not happy to be on the trip and feeling homesick for their teachers and classmates. I think the routine of going to the library everyday, sitting in the same spot, and seeing the same librarians working was therapeutic (at least for me!)

A few surprises in Macon were finding out Malia could play in a tennis tournament, getting complimentary tickets to a Mercer College girls basketball game, and attending a free Middle Georgia University choir concert. Another great surprise was being invited over to the home of a local family, Joey and Sherry, after visiting New City Church. After our visit, Sherry and her daughter asked me to teach them piano lessons while I was in town.

I didn’t know what to expect of Macon, but I can honestly say that I grew to love it. I know I wasn’t here long enough to learn its downsides (every town has downsides), but I don’t have a lot bad to say (other than the stop lights take a REALLY long time to turn from red to green. Also, I can’t get used to being called “Ma’am” and seeing everyone where jeans and sweaters when it is 80 degrees outside. They all say it’s “because it’s fall!”


Enjoy a few more photos of our time in Macon below.

Posted by Tagged with curiosity, Georgia, Macon, parenting Posted in Uncategorized

Becoming More Curious

What does it mean to live life with curiosity?

Does your curiosity lead you to ask more questions?

We were curious about the life of Harriet Tubman. We asked the children’s librarian for books and then were directed to visit the Tubman Museum to learn more.

Is your curiosity about other people, places and history strong enough for you to approach someone to ask a question or do you resort to asking Google? It’s so easy these days to find a quick answer on the Internet to the questions that pop into our heads. What would it take to go out of your way and ask another person your questions?

Reaching out to a real live person to ask a question is more rewarding because:

#1 – A person provides examples from their life and learned experience.

#2 – We are offered human connection and allow the person answering the question an opportunity to feel needed and knowledgable.

#3 – A conversation may lead to more questions and other rabbit trails that are just as important as the initial question.

Here are some examples of Living Curiously from our trip so far.

We found out that our airbnb host, Paul, also manages the Burke Mansion, a historic bed and breakfast in Macon, GA. Mark asked if he could show us around. Not only did he give us a tour, but also told us about his experiences living in Macon, gave us a list of places we should visit, gave the girls game tokens for the local arcade, and offered to bring us a few things that we were missing in our airbnb. This is an example of how a simple question, “Can you show us around where you work?” led to making a new friend and more.

Playing chess in The Burke Mansion.

Mark was curious about the history behind the band The Allman Brothers who lived and recorded their music in Macon. He was so curious that he took a deep dive into the history of the band, arranged personal tours, and has been talking to people in the area who knew the Allman Brothers. In the last week, Mark has toured the Big House where the band lived and worked and visited Duane Allman’s grave. The grave site led him on a rabbit trail when he noticed the angel statue at the foot of the grave with the name “Galadrielle”. He went to a local bookstore and found the autobiography Please Be With Me by Galadrielle Allman. Finally, he took the kids and I to H&H Restaurant where the Allman Brothers ate and became as close as family with Mama Louise, the owner of the restaurant, who they invited on tour with them as the band cook. Mama Louise just passed away the day we arrived in Macon. The restaurant continues in her memory.

I am particularly curious about the lives of other people. I tend to look to Instagram or Facebook to learn more about people instead of asking them directly to share about their lives. I want to get better at asking questions and have been looking for creative ways to do this and involve the kids. I created a board game called Story Hunt that will encourage the telling of life stories. Players will move around the board, asking each other questions and telling stories.

Examples of some of the questions are:

“Tell me about a time when you were surprised.”

“What was a day in history that stands out in your memory?”

“What makes a good friend?”

“Tell me about a time when you got lost”

I found a fabulous article called 38 Ways to Lead a More Curious Life by Ian Sanders. This article offers some great practical ideas for living curiously.

Here’s the Article

Here are a few more photos from our first week in Macon, Georgia. Thanks following our journey. Feel free to share this blog with others that you think might enjoy it!

Swipe Left to see the photo slide show