The "Fire Camp"

Our grandsons, Parker and Luke, are growing up so fast. One of their very favorite things to do is to come over to Nonna and Poppa's house. Brooke says the boys get so excited when they find out they are coming for a visit. She will not even stop by to drop something off to me if she can not stay because they will cry all the way home. Of course this just makes Nonna and Poppa over-joyed!
Lately we have been enjoying the cold (not freezing!) nights outdoors by having a cookout/campfire. Parker and Luke unintentionally have named this outing a firecamp! They absolutely love to have their firecamp in the evenings whenever they possibly can.

Even little Reese gets in on the fun. This is the rare occasion that she is not dressed in something girly! Don't tell her mother but she kinda likes getting dirty too (tee...heee...heee!)

Monroe and the boys have built an open fire stove pit for us to cook on. We have tried stew and chili and both were delicious. Love that cast iron!! Why is it that food tastes so much better when it is cooked outdoors?

Tonight as Poppa and Parker were putting out the "fire camp" with the water hose Parker told Poppa he wanted to make a wish before they put it out. After they finished dousing the fire Parker told Poppa what he wished for. Would you like to know his wish? Because I was dying to know what my four year old grandson would make a wish for. This is so cute. He wished that Parker, Poppa and Daddy could all go hunting and get a deer. Ain't that just precious!

Gettin' Ready For Spring

We have been busy getting our garden ready for planting. Monroe has tilled the soil several times in the last month. I intended to have the soil tested before we began planting but every time I found myself at the feed store I didn't have my soil sample with me. So, when my husband says, "Today we plant.", then today we plant soil test or no soil test. Actually he is not quite that bossy he just doesn't want to fool around with minor details when he gets ready to do something. Skip the soil test, Let's Plant!! We planted red potatoes and sweet potatoes. We have some white potatoes to plant as well. We also planted a variety of lettuces, kale and onions. We will be planting carrots, butternut and spaghetti squash, cantaloupe and watermelon in February. Then in March we can begin to plant other summer vegetables according to the planting guide for our area.

We started by cutting the "eyes" of the potato off.

Then we planted the potato with the eye upward and covered the hole. It is a very easy vegetable to plant and grow. So far we have had great yields with our potato planting. However, I have learned in the few short years we have been gardening that each year's growing and producing varies greatly. Just because we had okra and black-eye peas coming out our ears one summer doesn't mean they will do well the next summer. I also learned another lesson. I tried flash freezing the rattlesnake beans we harvested last summer. Then I packed them in my food saver vacuum bags and put them in my deep freeze. When I cooked them I was very disappointed as they still were very mushy. The taste was good but the texture was not. This summer I will can them and be done with it.
Our farm animals are so funny! I had to include them in this gardening post! Every time we go out to the garden to work they all come around to see what we are up to. I never knew cows could be so curious!

Do you remember the little orphan Brahma bull with the bummed up leg that we inherited? Well, he is getting to be a pretty big fellow. He has such a calm and docile personality. His deformed leg is doing great. If he would have stayed on the huge ranch with the other Brahmas he wouldn't have been able to survive because of all the walking the large herd does daily. He would not have been able to keep up. It looks like his leg has straightened and we can't even tell he has a deformity. Here he is, coming to give us his opinion on our gardening!

And here is Missy or a better name for her would be Ms. Bossy!! She is definitely at the top of the pecking order. That may very well change, however, when Lil' Bit, the Brahma pictured above, grows up.

Then Isannah showed up hoping for some fresh oak leaves for a little snack. Doesn't she look so sweet and pleading?

It was such a nice afternoon to get out and work in the garden. It is always a rewarding feeling to plant those seeds and then see them begin to sprout and grow. Then it is time to battle the BUGS! GRRRR!!

The Best Birthday!

Wow, is it already the second week in November???? My days have been extremely busy lately and I don't "do" busy if you know what I mean. Also, my family has been taking turns with a stomach virus for over a week now. Just about the time traffic slows down to the bathroom and I breathe a sigh of relief....someone else darts by me headed to the bathroom. It has been a couple of days now with no "incidents" - dare I breathe that sigh of relief? Ahhh, such is life in a large family.


My birthday was the last week in October and I was fortunate to spend it in my favorite place ever, the Appalachian Mountains!!!! Monroe and I sort of had a trade-off. You see, he was invited to go to Texas on a hunting trip with a friend. As a matter of fact, he has been gone this week on his hunting trip (he missed out on the sharing of the stomach bug...lucky). So when my dear friend, Kay, mentioned that she had a trip planned to the mountains to see the gorgeous fall leaves it was a done deal ;-) I think we hit the autumn show at the peak time too.


This time Bran and Bryce were able to go along as well. We had such a good time just being out in nature enjoying God's creation. We went on long drives every day we were there. I know the pictures don't really capture the true beauty we saw but here are a few of my favorite shots.

This red tree just stood out all alone. Isn't it beautiful!




I don't know if you can see it but there is a farm down in the valley in this picture. Ummm....what was that tenth commandment?....something about coveting?....ah geeez!

One day we went for a drive on the Cherohala Parkway. You could hear the ooooo's and aaahhhh's as we climbed higher and higher. The contrast in the colors of the leaves was just amazing. Then we began to notice bare trees. When we made it to the highest point it was a completely bare forest as you can see in this picture with Bryce.

We enjoyed delicious picnic lunches each day. Kay baked a turkey breast before we left Georgia and it was so good. We dined on cheese and crackers, sandwiches, hummus and chips. I think it tasted even better because of the atmosphere and chilly weather!! Yummy!

Another picnic spot by the river. This was another day, I promise! We did do more than eat!!

Even on a rainy day Tallualah Falls Gorge was breath taking!!

Another shot by falls. I can't remember the name of these falls.

A highlight of the trip was our visit to Foxfire. The boys and I are studying American History this year and this was a perfect field trip to add to our school year. How about that for creativity. I was able to add in a day of school on our vacation. Shhh, don't tell the boys.

This is a picture of the gorge at Tallulah Falls. It is out of order with the other pictures. I can no longer move my pictures around with blogspot. I'm not sure why. Anyway, views like this one always make me stand in awe of my Creator. He is so big and powerful and yet he takes notice of ME?

"When I consider Thy heavens, the work of Thy fingers,

The moon and the stars, which Thou hast ordained;

What is man, that Thou dost take thought of him?

And the son of man, that Thou dost care for him?

Oh Lord, our Lord,

How majestic is Thy name in all the earth!"

Psalm 8: 3-4 &9

Camping at the Springs

We took a long weekend and went to the local springs for camping and swimming. This is a favorite camping spot for our family. Isn't the water beautiful? In winter months you can come here and see the manatee. This spring is a refuge for them.


This is what I love about camping. Getting away from the phones, tvs, etc. See what happens? I looked out the camper window and Brandon had made himself a bow and arrow. I am not so sure he could provide the family with dinner from that bow and arrow but it did shoot!

Roasted marshamallows are so delicious when you cook them over an open flame. Personally, I like mine burnt!

Don't they look like they belong on the show, Survivor?

A rare photo moment!

Swimming at the spring. Actually, this swimming area is a little ways down from the spring. We swam up river to the spring and the guys loved diving down to see the open spring below. I watched nervously from the surface (with my trusty raft) as they got braver and deeper with each dive. There was a huge fallen tree covering the spring and they would dive down and swim under the tree!!

We had a visit from Brooke and family on Saturday! Of course, I was so excited to see them.....okay to see my grandbabies! Here is the famous Lukie face. Such a cutie! I love it when he makes this face.

Reese's first outing at a state park. She seems to be taking it all in stride. By the way, she looks EXACTLY like Brooke's baby pictures in this shot!

Parker is enjoying the remaining honeydew from lunch.

Just relaxing and enjoying each other.

Poppa and Parker taking a walk to find wild grapes they saw earlier. They were very TART!

Well, we had a great summer! Now back to the daily routine of school, work and university life.

God is so good!

It's a Southern Thang

My hubby has a hobby! He just loves turning this......

into this!! Now for those of you who at this point are thinking, "This What?" let me explain. This is called a swamp buggy and our family loves going swamp buggy riding in the woods! Come along and I'll show you what I mean. We have friends along on this trip. We usually leave in the late afternoon. We pack a picnic supper to take along. Oh, bug spray is a must especially with all the rain Florida has been blessed with.

Time to break out the picnic/junk food. This time we had fried chicken, chips, drinks, sunflower seeds, cookies and bubble gum! I am one of those moms that feels like a meal just isn't complete without some veggies or at least fresh fruit so I just try to sit back and convince myself that there has to be some nutrition in the chicken and those sunflower seeds are nuts, right?

Dear friends enjoying the ride. Isn't this little man a cutie pie? Love those blue eyes.

My brave, strong man blazing a trail!!

Here is the view off the front of the buggy. You can see the water standing in this particular spot due to all the showers lately. We didn't get stuck at all and some spots we went through were pretty deep. Fun times!

As the sun begins to set we usually see quite a bit of wildlife. This is what I enjoy the most. If you look closely right in the middle of the picture below you will see some wildlife.....did you find it?

It is an owl sitting on a branch. He blends right in with the surroundings but he certainly wasn't afraid of us. We drove right on by and he never flew off. Isn't he just beautiful?

This is another trail we took. That is water completely covering the path up ahead. We didn't see any gators this time but we heard the frogs out in that water. Well that is the end of our adventure for now. Anybody ready for a swamp buggy ride?

We have a busy weekend coming up with an annual family reunion at our place. It is a big event in our family and things get a little wild and crazy with all the dare devil boys/men in the family. I'll take lots of pictures so you can see what I mean.