Smelling the roses

We have been at an out of town wedding and staying with longtime, and very generous, friends of DH:  Pam and the salty old Master Captain, Bill.





An old whiskey barrel
used as a trash receptacle.

In addition to picking us up from the airport, they allowed us to stay in their home for 6 days, AND loaned us a car for our trips here and there and to the wedding during our visit!! 

A glimpse of the Missouri River














On one of our open days, our hosts took us to a quaint little street of restaurants, shops, and museums in a small town along the river....




This was an entrance to an attorney's office. 
I have always loved those spirally trees.

An entrance to the
basement of one of the old buildings.













well, ok, there were also breweries and wineries   and cookie shops and ice cream...  well, it was a win/win thing as far as I could tell.  The only down side was that I could not find a quilt shop in the area!! 


I have not seen a water fountain
quite like this one before...  It wasn't
working but I certainly gave it a shot. 
Stepping on the lever near the
ground activated the water.




The walkway just
begged me to walk up it to this old house.

















On our walk, I was apparently in some sort of "mood" and became enamored with entrances...



Hanging over the door of one of the shops.

An old train car.

 










and other pretty, interesting, or odd things I saw.



Note the foundation of this building!

I have seen all of these things before...  at least similar things...



The side entrance to a former blacksmith's shop. 
It looked like a professionally set scene.




in different....  yet, similar places.

An entrance to a courtyard.








  with different, yet similar faces.

Hydrangeas outside a residence.

A mail slot in a door.

An old Eldridge sewing machine...
no, it wasn't for sale.




A stately old house

But today, I felt like maybe I was seeing everything through different eyes. 


Because of the wedding??





Vintage boot scraper

A wedding is a new start and a new beginning.

It is learning to see the world as one rather than two. 



An old Dodge pickup in the weeds.



An old building functioning as a museum.

It is learning to see how the world relates to you as a couple, rather than just you. 

It is learning to be selfish for someone else, rather than for yourself. 

It is learning to see things differently.



The entrance to a shop in the basement of the museum building.















Is this an opportunity for me??? 

A ladder to a hay mound inside the
former blacksmith's shop.


Am I taking the time to see the beauty behind the façade?  The façade of buildings...  of places....  of people?




A front view of a residence.

I am going to stop and smell the roses...  the hydrangeas...  and I am going take time to look into the eyes of those I love, those I know, and those I meet.


Thank you the new Mr. and Mrs. Cooper for the reminder.


DH was happy to meet Mark Twain. 
He said Mr. Twain had a very solid handshake.

And a huge thank you to our

gracious hosts for a wonderful day!

**I didn't get the email about the denim shorts and white shoes and I wore a dress and sandals... 

so they wouldn't let me be in the photo.

 ** It wasn't my fault...  the cell phone service in this area is hit and miss at best... 

     so as a payback to these clowns, I will note that they resemble the Three Stooges and the center one is NOT Curly!!  :)