Some News About Around the Town Tuesday

Several weeks ago my bloggy pal, Jes and I rolled out a new blog hop called Around the Town Tuesday.  We were very excited about it and thought it would be something unique and somewhat encouraging to bloggers to get out into their communities as well as learn about fellow bloggers' communities, especially since warm weather is upon us.  We got lots of positive responses on our blog posts about it, in our BlogFrog communities, Twitter, etc. and we still get great emails and comments about it.  However, the linking up has been pretty scarce and it's an awful lot of work on our part to prepare the posts, the schedule, post reminders, promote.... you get the picture.  So for now, Jes and I have decided to put it on hold and re-evaluate the blog hop.  We're going to talk about it, maybe change it up a bit, marinate in our thoughts and could very possibly bring it back - if there's any interest.  So if you are interested in participating in this blog hop in the future, please leave a comment or shoot us an email.  Constructive criticism is certainly welcome.  We'd definitely love to hear from you about how we could improve it, change it up, whatever.  But if there's no feedback, it will most likely be discontinued.   

Have a great day y'all and thanks in advance for any comments or suggestions!

Around the Town Tuesday - Best Food in Town

Welcome to Around the Town Tuesday!  Today we're learning about the best food in town.  While my little town of Arlington is lacking in quantity of restaurants, we are not lacking in quality.  I had a hard time choosing my favorite.  But when I asked my husband what his favorite was he was like, are you kidding?  RIZZI'S!  Rizzi's is a great little Italian restaurant just minutes from our house (that's the great thing about living in a small town).  Their pizza is some of the best I've had.  There spaghetti & meatballs are probably right up there as well.  Seriously. Very tasty.

These are their garlic knots - covered in butter and tons of garlic.  They are delicious.  But if you are not a big fan of butter and garlic then you're crazy you probably should stick to the cheesy bread which is also very good.  The marinara sauce is awesome.  Not sweet, not too salty.  

The first time I had their spaghetti & meatballs, I have to admit that I was more than impressed.  The sauce was seasoned perfectly as were the meatballs themselves.  It was delicious and one of my husband's favorite dishes.

But here is the star of the show.  Their deluxe pizza is truly a work of art - in my opinion.  Mike goes on and on about the mushrooms and how they had to have been sauteed in butter and garlic first.  I don't do fungus mostly because of the texture.  But they do smell good.  The sauce is not sweet, just seasoned enough so you can still taste the pizza topping - all fresh and still with a slight crunch.  The crust is thing and crunchy.

Rizzi's is a little pricey but so much better than ordering Domino's.  I'd rather pay the price for this delicious slice of heaven any day.  

Now link it up and tell us about your favorite food in your town.  MckLinky will be up and at it until midnight tomorrow night - Wednesday, May 5th.  Don't forget to grab the code for your Around the Town Tuesday button by clicking the link in the menubar.  Remember, I'm on vacation but will try to get a look at everyone's posts and make some comments as soon as I can.  If there are any questions, contact me.  I'll have access to email.  If there are MckLinky issues,  please contact my bloggy pal, Jes at Exposing the Drapes to My 20's.  Thanks, y'all!

Around the Town Tuesday - Parks

Welcome to our second Around the Town Tuesday post!  This week we are featuring the parks in your community.  To grab your Around the Town Tuesday button or read about Town Introductions (previous post), click the link above in the menubar.  We've extended MckLinky time to midnight, Wednesday, April 21st to give everyone more time.  Hope this helps!  Let's get it started!

My little town of Arlington, TN has one park, but it's really a great park.  Hughes-College Hill Park is where you'll find the majority or our community on pleasant days.  It's located very near our town square.  

There's a big, wide open space for frisbee, a friendly football game, or picnicking.

There is also and outdoor amphitheater down in a nice shady area of the park.  However, I don't believe this area has been used for much lately.  But the kids love to stomp around on it.

There are 3 total gazebos in the park.  You'll often see birthday celebrations held in one or more of these on a weekend.  These are the two smaller gazebos with only a couple of benches.

There are lots of gorgeous, mature trees throughout the park.  

This is the original playground.  There is a grill and picnic tables nearby.

We have a nice walking track with fitness stations along the way.  

And here is the third gazebo, the largest of the three in the park.  There are 2 large picnic tables and a grill nearby, great for an outdoor family event.

There is a lovely memorial dedicated to the citizens of Arlington who served in past United States wars.  

Hughes-College Hill Park is also home to the Playground of Dreams.  Now, this is kinda cool.  In 2006, Arlington residents as well as volunteers from other communities nearby came together to construct this awesome playground.  

This playground was conceived, constructed and named by the children of Arlington, TN  Below is their permanent stamp on their work.  A design firm from New York was brought in to make their ideas a reality.  It took months and months to complete the design itself and raise the money within the community to get ready to build it.  But it took only one week of vigorous work to complete the amazing project.

I, personally, love this at the entrance to the playground.  In mid to late summer, this trellis is covered by these honeysuckle bushes and they smell so good!  Reminds me of my childhood back in Kentucky.  Honeysuckle bushes were ample behind my grandparents' house.

If you know anything about Memphis, you'll know that FedEx is based here and is a major sponsor for many things.  Obviously, they were a big part in the Playground of Dreams project.  Keegan loves to play in this airplane.  

I also love that they have a few different touches - a tic-tac-toe board and chimes for some "lovely" music.

Gotta love that these are still around.  And still a hit with the kids!

And it's not really a playground without a tire swing, right?!

And swings galore.

While the kids love the playground, I love that there are big open spaces and trails to walk around and explore....

and experience nature....

I hope you enjoyed learning a little about my community park.  We sure love it and are very proud of it!  

Link it up!  If there are any "bugs", issues, etc. with MckLinky, please contact me ASAP.  Thanks!

Around the Town Tuesday Schedule

I wanted to post the Around the Town on Tuesday blog hop schedule so it would be readily available to anyone interested in joining and/or working ahead.  For additional information about the blog hop, please click on the link in the menubar.  There is currently an option for the first blog hop post, Town Introductions, and I will continue to link future posts as well.  There will be an option in the drop down menu in the menubar.  It will be updated regularly.  Contact me with any additional questions.  Hope to see some linking up on April 20th!

UBP 2010

Happy Friday to you all!  First I want to thank those of you that linked up on Tuesday for the premier of Around the Town on Tuesday blog hop that Jes @ Exposing the Drapes to my 20s and I worked very hard on putting together.  We have had quite a lot of interest for the next post day so I hope we have more linking going on.  The next post day will be Tuesday, April 20th and the subject is parks.  Show us at least one park in your town - or all the parks.  Give us a little information about the park.  The choice is yours!  For information about Around the Town on Tuesday, click on the graphic on my   sidebar.  Now onto to some more fun....

I am linking up today with 5 Minutes For Mom for their Ultimate Block Party 2010.  So to all of you visiting today, welcome!  I hope you'll click around and stay a while.  To my regulars, stick around.  You might learn something new about yours truly.  ;)

I'll properly introduce myself.  My name is Courtney.  I am a 35 year old stay at home mom to two children.  Keegan is four years old and Presley is almost 16 months old.  They are the light of my life.  I'm a Christian woman.  I've been married to my husband, Mike for over 7 years now.  We met on a blind date which still sounds crazy to me because it's so not like me.  When we got engaged, we were officially engaged for five days before we ran off and got married.  I still wouldn't change a thing.  I'm still madly in love with him after all these years.  He's a wonderful husband and father.  

Mike and I are both originally from Kentucky.  I grew up in a small town called Madisonville which boasts to be "the best town on earth".  I would beg to differ.  While I loved growing up in Kentucky, (and I still bleed Wildcat blue) I don't think I was made for small town life.  I seem to thrive in the big city.  And there were no big cities close by.  After Mike and I were married for a matter of months, we moved to Hendersonville, TN which is a north suburb of Nashville.  We loved it there.  This is where Keegan was born so it will always hold a special place in our hearts.  Then Mike's job transferred us to our current location, Arlington, TN which is just northeast of Memphis, TN (my big city).   We've lived here for almost 3 years now.  This is where Presley was born.  Living in Memphis is a bit surreal to me because since the tender age of four, I've been mildly obsessed with Elvis Presley.  I also love history and there certainly is a lot of that around here.  So I have immensely enjoyed exploring Memphis.  

I have many hobbies which is mostly what I blog about.  I love to scrapbook (though I'm way, way behind), cook, love to dabble in photography, just started quilting/sewing and blogging has become quite the obsession.  I do what I can when I can with two little ones running around.  I'm a bit of a neat freak, but am starting to realize that a clean house is overrated.  Try hard as I may, I am just not Superwoman.   Something has to suffer.  My kids and hobbies are way more fun!

I hope I didn't bore y'all too much.  Have a great weekend!

Y'all come back now!

Around the Town Tuesday

Welcome to our first Around the Town Tuesday blog hop day!  YAY!  To grab your blog hop button, click on the graphic on the left sidebar.  Don't forget to link up!  If you find any snags, issues, etc. please email me ASAP so we can get it worked out immediately.  This is our first blog hop so don't be too surprised if there are some.  I won't be.  ;)

I really enjoyed getting out and taking some pictures of my little town and learning a bit more about it's history.  I currently live in Arlington, TN.  Arlington is a tiny town just northeast of Memphis, TN.  It has been called Shelby County's best kept secret for a while now because despite growth all around it, Arlington has remained a very small, very quiet little town.  According to the 2009 Census, Arlington was home to approximately 9,700 people.

Arlington was originally named Hayesville after Sameul Jackson Hayes, the original landowner and nephew to President Andrew Jackson.  Settlers began arriving in Hayesville in the 1830s.  Hayesville was renamed Arlington in 1883.  The charter was received from the State of Tennessee in December of 1900.  The name change was suggested by Captain Henry Pitman who had visited the national cemetery in Arlington, VA and thought it was the most beautiful place on earth.  So yes, my little town was named after Arlington cemetery.  I'm a huge history buff and could on and on but I promise to try to keep it brief.  To read more about Arlington's history, click here.  

Everyone here in town refers to our main part of town as Historic Depot Square.  Withe Depot was established as the Memphis and Ohio Railroad developed.  The trains still storm through town square.

This is the center of Historic Depot Square.  The large tree you see in the middle gets a huge makeover during Christmas.  This is our Rockefeller Center.  Everyone in town comes to see the tree lighting as well as the Christmas parade that goes right down the road to the left.  The building you see behind the tree is the old blacksmith.  It is actually still up and running but only on special occasions.  It's a treat for kids to see the blacksmith at work.  Wish I had thought to get a better picture.  Oops.  

This is Murray Gin, an old cotton gin that still stands.  However, it is very vacant.  No activity here these days.  Kind of a shame.  

This cabin is called the Harrell Farm Log Cabin and I can't really find any information on it except that it was built in the 1800s and it was moved here from it's original location.  I have no idea what the original location was or why it was moved.  But inside, there is a spinning wheel on display as well as a rope bed.  You can go inside by appointment only.

This is the original post office that was established in 1900.  It also has items on display and is viewable by appointment only.  I think it's so cool that it's still here in the middle of town.

Love this stuff!

Oliver's Barbershop.  

This is the next street over.  A few little business.  We definitely don't have much in Arlington.  They've kept it small.

Across the street from the picture above.

This is S.Y. Wilson & Company which was where residents of Arlington went for just about anything and everything in the early 1900s.  Now, it is a lovely antique store in the center of our town.  

I truly enjoy living in Arlington, TN because it is a small rural little town.  Growing up in a small town in Kentucky, this place reminds me of home a bit.  The people are friendly and we might not have much but we're just next door to Memphis, TN which I'm sure you'll get to learn a little about as this blog hop progresses.  However, I will try to stick to my little town as much as I can.

Looking forward to learning where y'all live!

Introducing Around the Town on Tuesdays Blog Hop!

Take out your cameras and put on your walking shoes!  Jes @ Exposing the Drapes to My 20’s and I are thrilled to introduce to you our very own blog hop, Around the Town on Tuesdays!  In honor of our readers and the arrival of spring, we would love to see where you live, learn about your town and experience it all through your eyes and your words.  This is a great opportunity for all of us to step away from the computer and get out into our communities as well as to connect as bloggers by undergoing a journey through one another’s towns without ever leaving our very own. Think of it - a glimpse back into history, inspiration to try something new, or just plain fun!  Our hope is that you’ll just enjoy it and learn something about one another.

Enough rambling and on to the details.....

Since this blog hop will require a little footwork (hence, the need for your walking shoes) Jes & I are implementing Around the Town on Tuesdays biweekly.  This will give us all two full weeks to get out into our towns and prepare our posts.  We can change this in the future if this proves to be a success and not too difficult for a weekly blog hop.  For each post, we will give you a subject to compose your post around (i.e. best food in town, farmers’ markets, bakeries, etc.).  

There are a few guidelines, however.  This post must be authentic and personal.  We don’t really want to read what Wikipedia says about your town.  We want to know what YOU think and feel about your town.  And again, this is about stepping out into our communities and experiencing something and helping others experience it with us.  Googling it won’t really have the same effect.  But Google and Wikipedia can help you out a little with facts about your town & its history should you need it.  Just don’t make this a book report.  It is understandable that you can’t always get out and take recent pictures.  After all, we all have lives outside of the blogging world.  Therefore, past pictures may be used in your post as long as they are, in fact, your pictures.    

The first official day of the blog hop will be Tuesday, April 6th, 2010.  We’re going to keep the subject matter simple and general for our first post.  Therefore, our first post will be Town Introductions.  Where do you live?  What is your town known for?  When was your town established?  Maybe include a picture of your town square, city hall, the town’s sign, etc.  Your post can be as long or as short as you choose.  MckLinky will be up and going at 5:00AM CST on post day and will shut down at midnight.  Please post the Around the Town on Tuesdays badge somewhere in your post which can be found on the Around the Town on Tuesdays page (click the logo on the left sidebar) linking back to One Mom’s Perfect Imperfection.  A copy of this post will also be included on the blog hop page for you to have at your leisure.  

For future reference, I will have a schedule posted on my sidebar with dates for each blog hop post as well as the subject matter for said dates.  This schedule will be updated regularly.  We hope this will help those of you that like to prepare in advance.  Please email me with any questions and please, please, please get excited about this because Jes and I are stoked about the birth of this blog hop!  It’s unique, educational in its own way and should be loads of fun!  So join us every other Tuesday, won't you?!