Happy Halloween to All!

 

I totally forgot about Halloween the

past couple of days. I hope everyone

has a fun and safe holiday with lots

of candy and good things to eat!

Digital Photograph - The Red Roof Barn

Some Local Grafitti - Digital Photographs

 

 



 

Isn't this great? Someone took

a lot of time to paint this wall.

I was looking for a short cut when

running all those "before the storm"

errands. This was my reward. 

I just fell in love with this wall.

 

Before the Storm...Digital Photographs

The Road to Tennessee

 



Here are a few shots I took late
Sunday afternoon looking toward
Tennessee. I am very close to the
Tennessee/North Carolina border.
You can see the swirling clouds.
Soon warm air is going to be touching
Arctic air. Lots of snow in the
higher elevations are expected.
One of my boys who lives closer
to the Eastern Continental Divide
is expecting a foot or more.

Hurricane Sandy is one of the
reasons I left the beach after ten
beautiful years. I just could not
face the destruction and the impacts
associated with these storms.
After living almost a lifetime of
watching them come by up close and
personal I decided no more. I do
understand that snowstorms can be
dangerous. However, with a little 
planning you can get through them
pretty unscathed. There is no
running from Mother Nature.
I guess it is a little like
picking your poison - earthquakes?
tornadoes? snow storms? hurricanes?
I chose snow!
 

Digital Photographs - Birdhouses

 

 

 

 

 

On Sunday I went to lunch with a

friend and then we did the local

Art Safari tour. It was cool, brisk,

and at times rainy. We were given

a map with the various artist's

studios and homes on it. Off we

went to discover all sorts of new

places, new artists, and just to

enjoy the day.  Along the way

I spotted a lot of bird houses.

I really enjoyed what each artist

had as visual treats before

we even got to the door. So much

creativity. Here is a sampling

of some of the bird adobes

we ran across. Enjoy!

Digital Photographs - The Red Barn - Worn

Timeless Photographs

I found these old photographs today.

I love how these women are showing

off their cornstalks, their flowers,their

beautiful yards. I love the one of

the women reading the book to her

child surrounded by her lovely yard.

I have these same pictures in my

photograph albums. Me with my garden or

a particularly gorgeous flower bed,

or me with one or more of my boys.

Enjoying the day in our yard.

These types of photographs are

timeless.

Digital Photograph - Gray Barn

Gray Barn

Took off early this morning to take
pictures. It is suppose to rain the
next couple of days. Thought I would
enjoy the last of the sunshine.
Hope you have time today to enjoy
the little things in your day.

Digital Photograph - Cornfield

Cornfield

I love the weekends. They are comforting.
An excuse to do nothing or everything.
Today started out all bright and
shiny. Then the clouds arrived.
Even here in the mountains we can feel
the arrival of the first bands of
Hurricane Sandy. Hold on to your hats
this one could be rough East Coast.

Digital Photograph - The Green Door

The green door

Traveling the back roads I ran across
this old store. Remember when
people would  use the neighborhood
store instead of the big box stores?
Here you could find a little bit of
everything. Local produce, fresh meat
from local farms, nails, shovels, ice
cream, you name it they had it.
I remembering visiting my grandmother.
She would often send me off to get
something or another she needed.
I was allowed to get a fresh ice cold
Coca Cola in a bottle and a pack
of salty peanuts to put in my coke.
That was the best thing I have ever
tasted. What memories this old
place brought back to me. I wonder
how many memories those old green
doors have...

Freebies - Birds

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Some beautiful birds for you. I have

been setting up my new home when

I have been here. Still unpacking,

organizing,sorting, and getting rid of

things. It is amazing how much I

no longer need or want. The things

that seem important are the things

I have had for a long time. I am

going to have to get an Etsy or Ebay

store to get rid of all the

old treasures. I have tried giving

them to my boys but they like

an uncluttered life.

Sorry I have been missing in

action for so long. I have really

missed all of you. I am just trying to

get all of this move stuff out of the

way. Downsizing is hard!

Digital Photograph - Metal Silo



Loved this old grey barn with it's
rusted silo. Found this beauty in
Virginia late this summer. Enjoy!   



Digital Photographs - A Yarn Bombing

 Outside the Library

Bench with yarn

 

I went to the Library the other day and

the outside of it had been yarn bombed.

Also, the few stores and resturant

next door had also been bombed with

yarn. It was a lot of fun to see what

they had done. I particularly liked

the library. The librarians were

not sure what to make of it. I liked

the way they covered the bench

and the teddy with the book.

At the pizza resturant they had made

yarn tomatoes and hung them from

the outside railings. Very imaginative.

Digital Photograph - Wild Flowers

Wildflowers

Found these wildflowers up in the
mountains. They remind me of
messy daisies. So much of my life
is messy right now that they seemed
right. Hope you are having a
wonderful Monday!

Digital Photograph - Tomatoes

The last of my tomatoes

These are the last of my tomatoes. I was
able to enjoy them all summer long. I
harvested them by the handfuls several
times a week. Enough to enjoy fresh
tomatoes every day. I will definitely
do this again next summer. I was
surprised by how easy and inexpensive
it all was. If I had thought ahead of
time I could have brought at least one
container inside and probably had
tomatoes through part of the fall
and winter. Next year...

Quote #23 -

Digital Photograph -

An old fence

Late summer and early fall found
me running up and down the Shenandoah
Valley to Washington D.C. visiting
family and enjoying their company.
We are still exploring those "first's"
without Daddy.  We all miss him
terribly. Yet, I like to think that
he is always close by enjoying us
girls cooking in the kitchen,
driving with me as I am awed by
all the beautiful fall colors,
watching all his grandsons grow
into such interesting men.
No one told us it would be so
hard to lose this fixture in our lives.
So, we have good days and bad days.
Always remembering how lucky
we are.
  

Four Letter Words - Fate

Digital Photograph - A Nest

A Nest


I found this little nest in one
of my plants. I had wondered why
it was not growing as well as some
of the other potted plants around it.
I went to water it and there was
this sweet little home.
I watched it carefully and soon
eggs appeared. Then little baby
wrens. One day they were gone.
All grown up.
My first nest, my first set of
baby birds in my new home. I
decided to keep the nest.
So, this weekend I gently pulled
it out of the potted plant.
The nest was made so carefully.
The mama had even used a plastic
bag and some fur to line her nest.
I too am carefully setting up
my nest.

Freebies - Currier & Ives Beauties

Flora

 

Rachel

 

Georgianna

 

Elizabeth

 

Eliza Jane

Thought I would do something
frivolous this week for my
freebies. I have a fondness for
Currier & Ives prints.
All of these were done before
1847. They give you the
idea of what was in fashion
and what was considered
beautiful then. I am so
glad we do not have to
wear our hair like that
any more. However, I do enjoy
putting my hair up in a bun.
I also would not mind some of
the jewelry they wore back then.
Just saying...

 

Welcome to the Family - Stella Rose

new pup

I would like to introduce you to the new
pup - Stella Rose. She is a 10 week
old Australian Shephard. My son and
his girlfriend got her about two weeks
ago. I went up last weekend bearing
gifts - dog crate, honey, and
apple butter - to meet her. She is
adorable. So smart. She can sit and shake all ready.We took her to the park to
swim and run off some energy.

fearless swimmer

This is her fifth or sixth time swimming.
She is very good. There were several
larger dogs there fetching and swimming
Stella caught on real quick.

taking a break with my friend Austin

Sometimes it is nice to just sit and
watch. Soak up a few rays and enjoy the
perfect day. In a few months we will
be wishing for days like this.

great day at Trout Lake