Bingle Bell

Whenever people mention day trips from Huntsville I make sure to bring up Bell Buckle, Tennessee. I'm always surprised at the number of people that have never heard of it. It's only an hour and a half away and meanders through some really pretty country. Horse farms and the like. 

I first started going to Bell Buckle...

Wait! Rabbit Trail! How fun is the name Bell Buckle? I love to say it. It reminds me of the scene in Fellowship of the Ring where the hobbits are trying to make their way to Buckleberry Ferry - which is just a darn good part of the movie.

...in the eighties to watch my brothers play basketball. There is a prep school there called the Webb School and get this - their mascot is 'The Webb Feet.' Seriously! There was a big ole painting of some Chuck Taylors with a gnarly toe sticking out on their gym wall!

Now, as I was typing this I thought 'I probably just remembered that wrong. It was a long time ago. Surely, they wouldn't actually be called The Webb Feet.' But, oh no, they are! I googled it:

Bell Buckle has a railroad that greets you as you drive into town. And by 'greets you' I mean you'll probably have to wait on a train either on your way in or out. Seems like one of the shop's proprietors told me it comes through ten times a day. We were there from ten to two and it rumbled through four times. 

It's a pretty little town surrounded by Victorian houses and shops - perfect for a lazy afternoon. 

My favorite shop is Phillips General Store.

"Hi, Mom!"

I mean...if I had to describe Phillips, and Bell Buckle really, I'd show you this picture:

It's eclectic, quirky and filled with Moon Pies. No really! These people love their Moon Pies and RC Cola's. They even have a festival for them.

Which isn't really saying much, Bell Buckle has a festival every time you turn around.

Personally, I'm not a big Moon Pie girl but I do like a cold RC Cola.

Phillips always has nice big baskets of old letters for sale.

Ten years ago I bought a big batch of WWII letters that were really entertaining. They were from a young wife to her husband in which she spent the majority of time complaining about her mother in law. Poor man - having to fight on two fronts!

Um...Let's talk about who you should not bring to Bell Buckle.

Toddlers. They feel the need to place their grubby fingers on everything and generally just make a nuisance of themselves. Navigating the strollers through the aisles of antiques was quite troublesome. She barely redeemed herself by pronouncing the words 'Bell Buckle' as 'Bingle Bell' and thus redeeming herself with her cuteness. 

If you aren't into old letters I'm sure you can find something at Phillips. Something like this!

Pillows with cats playing the parts of major figures from literature.

Awesome old canisters

And boocoodles of fun decorations for any season, regardless of the season it is now. 

Hmmm, how odd. Spellcheck and I are in a disagreement over the spelling of 'boocoodles.' As it is my blog I win that little argument.

Just steps away from the Bell Buckle Cafe this mural on the sidewalk pays tribute to the quilts that are popular in the area.

The Bell Buckle Cafe is a great place to eat. I've been there several times and never had a bad experience. On the weekends they have live music in the cafe.

Think Andy Griffith and friends picking on the guitar not Smoke on the Water.

Which, by the way, my nine year old heard for the first time a few weeks ago and now thinks is the most awesomest (his phrase) song ever. 

Not to be all Facebooky and share exactly what I had for lunch at The Blue Bird but this IS what I had:

Meatloaf, fried okra, and twice baked potatoes. My oh my, was it good!

Now, of course, normally I would NEVER get dessert.

*Crickets Chirping*

But since I knew I needed to blog about it I got this amazing fudge cake.

It tasted like brownie batter. Hot, gooey, delicious brownie batter.

The servers had a unique way to carry all the glasses of tea and lemonade. It made me nervous. I'm glad I wasn't carrying eight glasses at a time.

After we walked around a little more we slipped around the corner to Bluebird Ice Cream.

Having already had fudge cake I declined but decided to get some for the vexation that was this baby. 

Did she deserve this?

The less said the better.

The more said about Bingle Bell...Er, I mean Bell Buckle though most definitely the better!