Mid week vacation at the Rock City cornfield maze

Rock City Maze Leslie, Elliot, John David

Yesterday I took off and we went to Rock City Enchanted Maize. In spite of the fact that it was in the mid 80's and felt nothing like fall we had a great time. Well, it did not start out that way. When we got there we decided to go through the maze first. The first thing you noticed when starting the maze was that there was a net on either side of the trail to keep people from making short cuts. On top of being just unsightly John David tripped a few times on all the net that had been pulled down into the path. One time he fell pretty hard and was crying a good bit. Leslie and I were both upset about paying so much and it being such a mess. There was even a bunch of trash in there. I think they should have had staff member walk through the maze from time to time to tidy it back up. We are usually not ones to complain to a manager about such things but we did talk to the manager about it. But, he just gave some excuses as to why it was such a mess. It was really bad. No really, it was a total mess. It was so bad that we only did half the maze.

John David in the Rock City Enchanted Maize

Okay enough of that; back to the good times. After the maze we ate a snack and headed to do the hay ride before we left. John David loved the ride. What made it even better is that we were the only ones on the trailer. The ride was only about 10 minutes but we had a good enough time that our spirits began to lift. After the ride we headed over to the kids section where they had this other ride, which is kind of hard to explain so just look over at the picture of Leslie, John David and Elliot. All three had a lot of fun. I think they road around the little field three or more times. John David was ecstatic with joy. I took a lot of film with my camcorder and can't wait to watch it. The pictures just don't do it justice. Elliot looks miserable in the picture but he wasn't. It was just that split second he looked like that.

After the little ride we swung on the swings and did the seesaw/teeter-totter. They also had a few animals for the little ones to look at. Surprisingly, I think John David was having too much fun on the toys to really be interested in the animals. Though come to think of it, when I was getting him in bed last night he was trying to tell me something about the pigs having dirty nooses and them trying to eat, so I guess those little pigs did not totally get past him.

the three in the maze

As we headed out we stopped by the kid's maze. John David and I had a lot of fun chasing each other through the bails of hay. I think he could have stayed longer but Leslie and I were getting tired so we decided to head home. Plus by that time it was 3:30 and neither of the boys had had a nap, so we wanted to get them to bed a little early.

I'm going to try and get a page together with all our pictures of the day on it. Yea, don't hold your breath….

Parking Meter Proposal in Coolidge Park

Can you believe it! I just ran into this article on Channel 12's site. I'm really ticked off about the proposal. Like Chattanooga needs another tax. One of the greatest things about Coolidge Park is that it is free, sounds to me like the city is looking for a way to further capitalize on the revitalization of downtown Chattanooga.

You will notice that in the News 12 article that Brian Hahn is paraphrasing Sally Robinson by saying "They believe it's the only way to resolve overcrowding".

Parking meters have always annoyed me. I totally understand that a city might not want cars parked on the street for long periods of time, but the way they are going about it is all wrong. They are using it just as another way to raise money. Note: if a city is raising money and it is not a bake sale then it is a tax.

The way it should be done:
I think Parking Meters are useful, but the way they are used now is as a tax. Why don't they make meters in a way that when you park on a city street with a meter you should have to hit the button on the meter, which will start your time. If the time runs out before you get back to your car then a meter maid should be able to give you a ticket for using city parking for more than you far share.

Okay, okay maybe my idea is not the greatest idea. I see there would be some issue that would have to be gotten over, but there has to be a better solution then adding a parking tax to Coolidge Park.

I think channel 12 does not keep there articals up for long so I've posted it below.

tennessee aquarium

In the past several weeks the Tennessee aquarium opened its $30 million Ocean Journey building here is Chattanooga. I have not had a chance to go in yet, but from what I hear it is really nice. Here is a link to the Tennesse Aquarium. If anyone has had a chance to go I would love to hear what you thought. Please feel free to leave a comment.

outdoor chattanooga movie

greenway

Elliot sleeping

Yesterday's afternoon we decided to head to the shady side of the North Chickamauga Creek Green way for a walk. As much as I dislike Chattanooga's winter weather I have to admit that living in Chattanooga has its perks. There are so many great walking paths, green ways, blue ways, playgrounds, and parks here in ole Chatt. I have not been to any other city that has so much free family friendly activities to offer. I look forward to getting a canoe when the boys get a bit older and hitting some of the blue ways.

While growing up just north of New Orleans in Covington Louisiana we lived for 4 or 5 years on the Abita River. I use to love to jump in the old pirogue and paddle over and under all the fallen trees in the Abita. The wildlife you get to encounter while quietly paddling on a river is an experience I want to pass onto the boys.

taking a break on a greenway bench

By the way, I wish the city of Chattanooga would put some more effort into their website. It does not do justice to what we have