Alabama and Mississippi Trip, Part 1

Over the holidays, the Sheffield girls packed their bags and hit the road.  This time we were traveling through Alabama, and then hitting several cities and towns in Mississippi. 

Because of course, I must selfie...

Ironically, this had been the original plans.  I say ironically because the Sheffield girls could not make up their minds for love nor money this year.  We went from Alabama/Mississippi; to Northern Alabama; to Northern Georgia; to Gatlinburg.  We had FINALLY decided on Gatlinburg days before it was set ablaze.  Back to the drawing board we went. 

As always, the planning of the trip fell to me.  I’ll be real honest here, it is a blessing and a curse to be so very detail oriented.  I can plan a trip, don’t get me wrong.  But then, the neurotic side of me comes out when we veer from my plans.   I will never get caught saying that I’m an easy person to travel (or live) with.   

The magnificent Karli and Wyatt

The first destination of our trip was Greenville, Alabama.  Now, aside from being a beautiful little town, we had two very special people there….one of which had no clue we were coming.  See, Wyatt and I had been conspiring to surprise sweet Karli for a good month or more.  And surprised she was, when she opened the door to find the three Sheffield girls and Wyatt on her front doorstep.  We were able to get a tour of their new, beautiful home.  Sadly, we didn’t get to see Todd, the screaming fox that came with their house. 

Me, Rheba, Wyatt, and Karli at the Cracker Barrel

After a wonderful dinner, countless hugs, and a good night’s sleep, we were off to just outside of Montgomery.  You see, it’s a common occurrence across the South to do a pilgrimage, at least once, to your ancestor’s plantation.   The Stone Plantation, although on the National Register of Historic Places, is a privately owned home.  Unfortunately, we were unable to tour it.  But we did get some beautiful pictures. 

Barton Warren Stone House

Back South we went, with Laurel, Mississippi in our sights.  Of course, any trip to Alabama warrants trekking through Monroeville, hometown of Harper Lee, and where Truman Capote once resided.  We had last been through in 2012, and boy had the town changed.  Our favorite place to eat, Radley’s, had closed down.  And let me tell you…there were three sad girls that day.  Radley’s had Fried Green Tomato BLTs, and the best chocolate pecan pie one could ever hope to taste.  After our dismay, we got lunch at the Courthouse Café and did a little shopping in a local outlet.  If ever you are near Monroeville, Alabama, it is worth a drive through town to see the murals on all of the old buildings, paying homage to their local celebrity’s beloved novel.  The old courthouse museum is also a must-see.  It pays tribute to both Lee and Capote, and is where the courthouse scene in “To Kill a Mockingbird” was filmed.

We made it to Laurel fairly late that afternoon and we weren’t able to go out exploring.  The next morning as we were driving through the downtown area, looking at all of the shops, the hub of the town, it was like going back to the 1960s.  Unfortunately, many of the shops were closed on Sunday, so we tooled around looking at houses and churches until the Laurel Mercantile opened.  Let me just say here, I could easily see myself living in a place like Laurel.  The town was so beautiful.  I would highly suggest that if you are ever in the area during business hours, go take a stroll through the Laurel Mercantile.  The items that they carry are made locally, in Mississippi, or in the USA.  In today’s times, that is a huge feat.  I will mention one of the items I picked up there in a later blog post.

The streets of Laurel and the Laurel Mercantile

After our Mercantile visit, we drove across to the Western side of the state to Natchez.  For those of you who have a love of old, Antebellum homes, this is a place for you. 

The fabulous Cynthia Kay...In Natchez!

I will say, before you visit, read up about the homes, so that you have a better understanding of the homes/buildings.  On that front, I was very unprepared.  We have grown very accustomed to taking tours in towns.  The day we spent in Natchez was possibly one of the coldest days on our trip.  I don’t believe it got out of the 30s that day.  We passed by where a carriage tour would generally take off, and there was a sign stating that he/she was on break (and didn’t have a return time).  We drove down to Natchez Under the Hill, which has some neat-looking little shops, and we ate at Fat Mama’s Tamales.

 A few of the beautiful buildings in Natchez.

Next on the agenda, and about 45 minutes North of Natchez was Port Gibson’s Windsor Ruins.  Here, after the fact, I can lovingly say that I do not know what we would do without our GPS, Pegi.  However, Pegi is getting up in age, and sometimes I think she likes to fool with us.  We went all the way into Port Gibson, took a winding little road that looked like something befitting an episode of Moonshiners….for something like 11 miles.  Needless to say, upon our exit (down a completely different road), there was a much better route that we COULD have taken.  But I digress…  The Windsor Mansion only actually stood for about 29 years, from 1861 to 1890.  But, because of its size, and location near the Mississippi River, it was occupied by both the Confederates AND the Union during the Civil War.  It was the largest Antebellum Greek Revival Mansion ever built in the state of Mississippi. 

And the latter half of our trip will be revealed tomorrow ;)