In early September, my middle daughter gave birth to precious Thomas. She asked me, and I quickly agreed to travel with her to Monroe in North Louisiana for a leadership program meeting with the Louisiana Tourism Association. She is still on maternity leave, but she didn’t want to miss this meeting. What’s more important than being grandma? So I took a few days off to go with her.
I thought I would be stuck in a hotel room, that I may get some reading, writing, and lesson planning done. I was pleasantly surprised by a park connected to the parking lot of the hotel. With the baby in the stroller, we headed out to the trail.
The beauty of this fall day greeted me with a cool breeze and sunlight through the trees.
Red spider lilies dotted the path.
Baby Thomas slept through the outdoor adventure, the first of many to come.
A lone egret looked at its reflection in the lily-covered swamp.
I read the kiosk to learn about this beautiful, wild park. For 50 years, the area had been a sand and gravel pit. Later, many residents used it as a dumping ground. What do you do with such an eyesore? The city of West Monroe excavated the trash and created a wild space, restoring the area to wetlands that accomplish a number of goals, controlling flooding as well as providing the community with a beautiful place of nature to enjoy. Not to mention, a place of peace for a grandma and baby grandson.
Reflections on the Teche 
What an awesome experience for you and your grandson! What is the name of the park?
Restoration Park
Wonderful pictures. The baby is adorable. Love the giraffe. Connie Currie
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What a beautiful story of a place restored to its original purpose. A picture book possibility?
Love how nature gives us a calmness and peace. How great that you could be there to support your daughter and have some bonding time with sweet Thomas.
I love how we both wrote about the history of a space…mine architectural and your’s natural! I so appreciate when others see the possiblity and can make an eyesoar change into a natural wonder. I love that you could explorer with your new favorite explorer!
I love finding those kids of treasures when I travel. Getting outside and seeing a piece of nature or history of where you are makes such a difference in travel. So glad you began this tradition with your grandson — and congrats!! He’s adorable.
What a beautiful space. I like how you’ve captured it in images and words. And Thomas is adorable, even while sleeping through a beautiful walk.
What a beautiful transformation – creating a wetlands out of trash. Fabulous! What a beautiful grandson, too! Congratulations!
So lovely in so many ways. You with your beautiful Thomas enjoying Restoration Park. The rejuvenating beauty of nature along with the legacy of love of generations. It’s all – even to the name of the park – like puzzle prices that fit together perfectly. Meant to be. I celebrate it all with you!
puzzle pieces*
I loved hearing about your travels with Baby Thomas. The photos were so lovely and it is good to see that Grandma and baby were delighted with the trip.