When visiting The Schiele Museum yesterday Coleman and I walked down a different staircase than we’ve taken before. Part way down the stairs in between floors was a swiveling chair which Coleman proceeded to climb upon. His antics and expressions can be viewed in these slideshow photos.
We are still having a lot of rain several days out of the week. Even so Coleman and I managed to get a little walking in. We walked for a mile and a half before deciding to get on the bus. We rode the bus to a park we had not previously visited.
We visited the Erwin Center Park and Recreation. We rode the Blue line to the station, then switched to the Yellow line. The Yellow line took us to right across the street from the park.
The Erwin Center opened in 1961 in the Highland neighbourhood of northern Gastonia. The Center was named in honour of Dr. Herbert Erwin. Dr. Erwin was Gaston County’s first African American physician. He was a well known advocate for youth sports and activities. The Community Center has a game room, meeting room, kitchen, lounge, and offices.
In 1967 a full-size gymnasium and an outdoor basketball court were added. Today’s outdoor facilities also include a swimming pool, a splash pad (open during the summer months), a grass volleyball court, horseshoe pits, playground, tot play area, a large picnic shelter and a walking track.
In the summer of 2020, a Black Lives Matter Mural was painted on the Erwin Center basketball court by Ezekiel Clay, Jr.
… On the Top of a Slide… On the Bottom of a Slide … on a Swing
The Erwin Center Park and Recreation outdoor park areas are open daily from Dawn to Dusk.
This park is a little further away from the park we normally visit, however it does have activities and playgrounds which are of interest to the very young as well as older children, teenagers, and adults.
If we were so inclined to travel a little further from home than usual, we would visit the park again. Coleman enjoyed the playground and wished it was already summer so he could have enjoyed the Splash Pad.
Cee’s allowing us to post any road, path, step, bridge, or sign this week for her CWWC. For my selections I chose some from Coleman & my adventures this past week.
Car Driving on Bridge Shot from the Avon Catawba Creeks Greenway Gastonia, North Carolina
Coleman Walking on Sidewalk New Hope Road; Gastonia, North Carolina
Coleman Walking on Brick Ledge The Schiele Museum of Natural History Gastonia, North Carolina
Coleman Climbing on Playground Equipment Ladder Steps Erwin Center Recreation and Park Gastonia, North Carolina
Coleman Sock Skating The Schiele Museum of Natural History Gastonia, North Carolina
Coleman Hiking & Playing Along the Avon and Catawba Creeks Greenway
The hiking adventures with Coleman are always fun and interesting. He doesn’t always stick to actual pathways or trails, however, he always gets to where he wants to go and has a fantastic time along the way.
It is almost guaranteed that while Coleman and I are out hiking along a trail, he’ll decide to sit and rest a second or two before moving on. He can choose to just plop on the ground or hop up on one of the benches scattered along the trail. On this day we chose to hike around Lake Haigler at the Greenway.
One never knows where Coleman will decide to Pull Up a Seatfor a spell. The first two are of places he chose to Pull Up a Seatat the Schiele Museum of Natural History in Gastonia and the third one is of his selection in the Greenway.
Describe an item you were incredibly attached to as a youth. What became of it?
The item I am most attached to from my youth is a stuffed monkey. Yes, I said a stuffed monkey. It is not just any ordinary stuffed monkey. It is a vintage red and white Mr. Bim The Monkey rubber face plush toy. I’ve had him since I was about five years old, (I really do still have him.)
The Mr. Bim The Monkey was a plush toy made to resemble a real chimpanzee from the 1947 children’s show Howdy Doody. (As a sign note, I still have a 45rpm with the Howdy Doody song.) In the 1950’s the Rushton Toys Co. produced a chimpanzee plush named Zippy Zip, which became popular with children. Mr. Bim Monkey stands roughly 18 inches tall. The majority of the 1960’s Mr. Bim the Monkey plush toys were black and yellow with red suspenders with a yellow banana in its right hand. The red suspenders had bells attached on them.
Above shows Coleman holding my Red and White Mr. Bim The Monkey. He is over fifty (50) years old. His suspenders have broken due to lots of love and play. His bells have long since vanished and he is a little dirty from lack of cleaning. However, he’s been a faithful companion throughout the years.
God Bless. Thank you for sharing your time and thoughts with me. Looking forward to seeing y’all’s Last on the Card photos. I appreciate y’all very much.
Camera: Canon EOS Rebel T3i with Canon EF-S55-250mm lens.
Video: Created in Google Photos App.
Location: Lake Haigler Entrance; Anne Springs Close Greenway; Fort Mill, South Carolina, USA.
God Bless. Thank you for visiting and sharing your time and thoughts with us. Hope you enjoyed the video of Coleman having a fun time in the Greenway. I appreciate y’all very much.
I know they all feature my grandson, Coleman. I never tire of looking at his pictures on my iPhone or on my laptop. I also never tire of spending time with him out in nature. He makes me smile, makes me laugh, and amazes me in how much he is growing and learning.
As Coleman and I were wandering through the Nature trail at the Schiele Museum; we featured Up the stairs and around the path downward until he ran off and into the Playscape sand pit. He brought along his friend Mr. Blue.
Up and Around the Stairs
Coleman met Mr. Blue at the doctor’s office. He helped him adjust to receiving two shots. He was comforted by him and decided he did not want to leave him behind when we arrived at the museum.
Why amI on my side? How’d I get this way? Please help me!
Therefore, Mr. Blue tagged along by his Side any which way and everywhere he happened to go. Mr. Blue hadn’t realised he would be cast aside for Dinosaurs 🦕🦖🦕 Coleman discovered hiding in the sand.
Mr. BlueColeman playing with the Dinosaurs That’s not how I meant … I wanted Upright.
Please do not look down on Mr. Blue for being disappointed. I’ll have you know he was not forgotten. When it was time to go back Up the trail to go home, Coleman made sure he gathered Up his new friend when he was packing his belongings into his backpack.
Coleman brings joy and sunshine to my soul. It brightens my day to see him smile and express himself in amazing ways.
Coleman does not get to have special treats like ice cream or popsicles on a normal basis when we are out at the museum or other places. He is lactose intolerant and cannot have any dairy or soy products. So on this rare occasion when I found out the ice cream vendor outside the museum had dairy free popsicles; I gave in and bought him one.
The joy I saw on his face as he was eating the strawberry mango popsicle brought a smile to my face and sunshine to my soul.
On this day Coleman and I hiked from Avon Catawba Creeks Greenway to the Warlick Family YMCA approximately a 2.5 mile hike. Coleman enjoys hiking with me, he also loves to test out the fitness equipment and Pull Up a Seat wherever he chooses. It is good to sit and rest occasionally along the trail.
Coleman on Fitness Equipment Coleman on Fitness EquipmentAvon Creek Greenway Coleman at an Outdoor Table Warlick Family YMCAColeman on a Slide Warlick Family YMCAColeman Resting before getting on a bus to go home
Coleman Fort Mill Dam Fort Mill, South Carolina North Carolina Transportation Museum
From 2022
Coleman overlooking Lake Haigler from the Kayak DockRipples in the Water 💦Coleman Fishing Pier Andrew Jackson State Park Lancaster, South Carolina
From 2023:
Coleman Avon Creek Greenway Gastonia, North Carolina Coleman Green Trail Warlick YMCA Gastonia, North Carolina Trisha (Coleman’s Mom) Playscape Schiele Museum Gastonia, North Carolina Coleman & his Shades Warlick YMCA Gastonia, North Carolina Coleman Playscape Schiele Museum Gastonia, North Carolina
Hopefully this counts, it not a lake, river, creek or any other waterway. Instead it is of a Splayground, or in other words a Splash Pad.
I took Coleman to Lineberger Park where there is a Splash Pad known as Splayground. I believe he had tons of fun. He thoroughly enjoyed himself and wished he could have stayed longer.
Coleman running through the Splash 💦 Pad
It’s a delight when I can bring a smile to my grandson’s face and watch him enjoying himself having a fabulously funtastic time.
I never know how many photos I will have to delete whenever Coleman gets ahold oh my phone. This time it was over > 100 photos. Luckily I caught it in time before the backup to the cloud was initiated.
Some of the other photos were similar to these and others were of the rug, parts of his train tracks, or nothing at all. Hope you are not bothered too much by the open with food it mouth shots. It just turned four (4) so his pictures can be interesting at times.
Playing in his Turtle SandboxSplashing in the Greenway Spillway Relaxing on our New Recliner Loveseat A Year Comparison Playing in Lake Crandall Riding His New 2-Wheel Bicycle
Coleman expressions on the busColeman having fun at the YColeman playing in the SandColeman going Round and Round in the MazeColeman in shades on his 4th Birthday 07/25/23
In a maze one chooses to go this way or that way. Sometimes the way you choose leads to a dead end and sometimes other choices lead you on the path that leads you out of the maze. In life it is similar; we decide which pathway we want to venture on. Sometimes the choices we make lead us to no where and other choices lead us to a more fulfilling path for our lives.
Location: Natural Amazement, The Schiele Museum of Natural History’s Nature Trail, The Schiele Museum of Natural History and Planetarium, Gastonia, North Carolina
God Bless. Thank you for visiting the Natural Amazement with Coleman and myself. I appreciate y’all.
North 321 Vol. Fire Dept. Coleman peeping in the Firetruck DoorColeman checking out the inside of Firetruck Equipment DoorA Four year old telling Coleman all about what is kept in this Equipment DoorColeman investigating the Firetruck Generator Door A Look at Coleman through a Firetruck DoorInside a Firetruck Door, Who do we see? Coleman Smiling Ear to Ear
Turtles Sculpture Located at The Schiele Museum PondLittle Tyke Turtle filled with Water, Toys, & Coleman Coleman on his Radio Flyer Big Wheel Clarkia purpurea Calflora
My any kind of seating involves any seating that Coleman deems acceptable for a place for him to sit. His choices of seating are not always what I would choose, but hey, if he’s happy with his choice of seating who am I to say it’s not his kind of seating.
Seating at the Greenway An Adirondack Chair & a Picnic Table with benches Anne Springs Close Greenway Coleman’s Seating on an Adult Exercise Equipment at Avon and Catawba Creeks Greenway Coleman’s Seating on another piece of Adult Exercise Equipment at Avon and Catawba Creeks GreenwayColeman’s version of Seating along the Green Trail at the Warlick YMCA ( A Rock 🪨 for Seating)Coleman’s Seating On a Bar on Exercise Equipment on the Power Loop of the Styz Trail System at the Warlick YMCAColor Pop Close-Up of Coleman Sitting on the Exercise Bar Warlick YMCA SYTZ Trail System
Coleman on bench outside log houseColeman on Farm Bureau benchColeman on ledge of Gazebo Coleman sideways on bench near Grist MillGotta love ❤️ Coleman’s expressionsColeman on backless bench by PondA Rock 🪨 is as good a Seat 💺 as Anything for ColemanColeman fascinated looking 👀 at a leaf🍃 sitting on a wood & metal bench
Coleman and I took a 4.3 mile long hike along from the Daniel Stowe Botanical Gardens Persimmon Trail connecting to the Carolina Thread Trail on Duke Kimbrell Trail and ending with connecting to Worrells Walk back up to the Gardens.
After the long hike Coleman deserved some . Sprinkler Smashing Stupendous Funtime. Here is a video of showing the Sprinkler Fun he enjoyed.
Photo Credit: Deb L. Waters
Camera: Canon EOS Rebel T3i with Altura Fisheye Macro Lens for Canon.
It’s been raining a lot off and on so to relieve boredom I decided to play around with the utilities feature in Google Photos. There are features where you can make collages, animations, and movies. The following is the movie & collage I made.
Let’s walk the Nature Trail together. Coleman leads the way around the farm through a log house and later onto the trail.
Through a Log HouseAround the Farm Past the Grist MillAcross the Bridge Are you coming? You need to keep up, Mawmaw.Working the Way through the Maze in Natural AMAZEmentColeman says let’s play a little bit In Playscape Then we’ll walk around the Pond and make a few splashes just for fun. Follow me, I show you how to get to the car. Go through the Gazebo, across one Bridge, under another bridge and we’ll reach the parking lot.
This month our apartment complex decided to replace all the windows in all of the apartments in the complex. [I saw no problem with the old ones, except they were painted shut so we couldn’t open them.] Today, (Friday, 2023 April 21), is our day for the new replacement windows to be installed. My grandson & the dog do not like the loud noise & the confusion.
This whole process of replacing all the windows in our three-bedroom townhome rook approximately 3 1/2 hours. Two men at a time worked on each window. First, chiseling and hammering all around the old wooden windows to loosen them up in order for them to be able to be taken out. One crew of two men worked on the downstairs windows, while a different pair worked on the upstairs windows. The old wooden windows were replaced with new vinyl windows. At this point, I am not sure if they will be better energy efficient wise or not. One good thing about the new windows is the ability to open them if we so desire. The old windows were painted shut and we were not able to open them. It will be good to have a breeze coming through the windows instead of using air conditioning so much. Especially during the upcoming summer months. The new windows can also be tiled inward for easier access to cleaning.
Our dog had to be shut up in a cage during this whole process which he definitely did not like. Whenever the workers were making the loud noises (which went on throughout the whole process) he would bark. He would bark even more so when they were working on the windows out back where he was located. I felt for him, but there was nothing I could do while the workmen were working. I couldn’t let him out of the cage. He did have plenty of food and water and area of shade.
As stated earlier, my grandson, Coleman, didn’t care for the loud noises either. He hated it so much he would cover his ears with his little hands.
Gotta love his facial and eye expressions. I wish I could have blocked put the loud noise as well. I know we were all ecstatic with joy when they were all done replacing our windows and we could relax and enjoy some much-deserved peace and quiet.
Gfpacificbee’s Insights & photography 