Here is our family Photo --taken out of the farm. I set the timer and RAN and jumped up on the tractor. How funny.
Read more!
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Friday, October 23, 2009
Saturday, September 19, 2009
A Picture Perfect Summer
September: While working in CA, My little sister and I visited a Castle Winery.
August: My little monsters start school (her first year)
August: Worked in DC. The capital building tour was amazing!
July: Went to Kerr Lake, VA, for our family vacation. Great fishing! 
July: We harvested our first honey. YUM!
June: Took Daniel and Cousin Casey to the Pacific for the first time.
Friday, May 15, 2009
In One Word - Crazy, Nuts, or Brave. . . .
Our new family adventure this year is "Beekeeping". I have learned that 11 year old boys have no fear! See my husband all suited up? See my son in shorts and short sleeves. This frame is covered with bees and the bee hive is right below on the ground with a second hive beside of that. How crazy it that! In this shot they are looking for the queen. She is shy and hard to find.
Meme-type thing:
http://pardon-my.blogspot.com/ tagged me to answer this set of random questions. So, here goes:
Current obsessions? Getting my 11 yr old successfully through school and getting the kids summer activities set up.
Item I wear most? My sweat pants!
What's for dinner? Brown gravy over deer steak, corn on the cob, & rolls.
What are you listening to? Bluegrass music
If you were a god/goddess what would you be? Airmid, Celtic Goddess of Healing, Medicine, and spring. Brings the dead back to life.
Favorite holiday spots? When I was little, we use to go to Shenandoah Acres Campground. It’s closed now (boo-hoo)
Reading right now? “In Pursuit of Peace”, by Joyce Meyers (LOVE IT)
Four words to describe you? Caring, mother, wife, & lucky
Favorite spring thing to do? Work in my flowers & on the farm.
Planning to travel next? Napa, CA in June
Best thing you ate recently? Sunflower Seeds
Biggest life lesson learned from your kids? How to dance at the age of 40.
Song you can't get out of your head? “He’s Gonna Bring Me Out of the Desert” my cousins sang it recently at t gospel event.
Spiders -- do you squish or relocate? If it’s on me-squish! If it’s nearby, watch closely.
Read more!Thursday, April 23, 2009
A Month of Madness . . .
I went to Salt Lake City and heard the Morman Tabernacle Choir. (WOW!)
Installed our first ever bee hives! (no one's gotten stung yet)
We caught our first fish of the year. (Can you see it???)
And got all dressed up for Easter. (ahhh she loves her shoes)
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
March . . .
First weekend - A foot of snow.
Second weekend - - 70's & flowers comming up.
This weekend - - expecting snow flurries.
Welcome to March!
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Yum! Pancakes!!
Did you have a wonderful pancake dinner Tuesday??? We sure did! Shrove Tuesday or Fat Tuesday celebrates the beginning of Lent (pre-Easter Season) and refers to a day when a thrifty housewife would use up certain food items in the house to prepare for the Lent Fast (which would start the next day). Pancakes are a great way of using up those items. I just love to have the pancakes to celebrate the beginning of Easter season.
Here are some "Lent Facts":
- It lasts 40 day’s from Ash Wednesday to Easter (Sundays aren’t counted)
- "Lent" comes from a old Anglo-Saxon word meaning "springtime"
- 40 day's came from the 40 days Jesus fast in the wilderness.
- The color for Lent is PURPLE ( the color of royalty).
- A time for repentance, scripture reading, & self-examination.
- A time of commitment (or recommitment) to Christ.
- Lent was originally a period of fasting & scripture study prior to a person's baptism which occurred on Easter weekend.
- Lent is mentioned first in history by Irenaeus (180 AD)
- Lent is not mentioned in the Bible. Christians use it as an opportunity to strengthen their faith.
- Instead of a Fast, some people give up something they enjoy, like “chocolate”.
How about you? Are you giving up anything for Lent???
Read more!Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Working at Pebble Beach, CA
After a week of working and rainy weather . . . my workshop came to an end and the sun decided to shine. I'm flying home tomorrow!
Read more!
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
California Here I Come!
I leave Saturday for business at Asilomar Conference Grounds, CA (which is near Pebble Beach). It's quite beautiful there. Here's a photo from my last visit.
Thursday, February 5, 2009
First Ski Trip & 6 Randome Things
Her first ski tri. . .
My dear friend tagged me for "6 random things". So, here goes!
KATHY'S 6 RANDOME THINGS
- I love taking pictures! So the only blogger I know, http://pardon-my.blogspot.com/ told me about Wordless Wednesday. It's exciting to get comments back about my pictures from people all over the world.
- I don't like cold weather!
- I just like plain things. Plain burgers and sanwichs- just meat and bread.
- I have 3 crazy kids ages 4, 11, and 20, who keep me mostly nuts.
- God and I - I've always had an inner calling to serve Him.
- I recently messed up my blog. I did have it set up so you could just see a pic and a few words. Then you could click "read more" IF you wanted too. But I did something and now the "read more" button isn't working. Where is the magic wand to fix it???
Friday, January 2, 2009
Holiday Hike
My crew enjoys a local hike through the holidays. It's a great way to get out of the house and do something physical after consuming all our Christmas candy. This year we made the trip to Mt. Lake. The lake is one of the few natural lakes in the US. This lake, at full level, is usually about 25 acres in size. The water exits the lake through the natural rock springs under the lake. Unfortunately, the lake "has a leak" and the large water reservoir is WAY DOWN. The water level may now only cover about 2 acres. This made the lake even more of an adventure to us. The kids had a great time hiking down "into" the lake basin. It was like a huge science project to explore. It was still so beautiful and the mountain trail around the rim of the lake was great fun! It's a "have to see" whether the lake if full or low!
If you want to learn more about the lake you can go to their web site at: http://www.mtnlakehotel.com/Section_Home.asp?SID=42
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Merry Christmas!!!
From me and my crew - - Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to ALL of you out there!
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Memories
I can’t believe he’s 20. Oh my gosh!!! I'm so proud of him! It's amazing to think about our journey together. And the wonderful people who helped us along the way. It seams like just yesterday that I found out I was expecting. Not in a traditional way. I was an unwed senior in High School with no plans for parenthood at the time . . .
I saw a young mother in a local grocery store soon after I found out I was expecting. Her child was about 6-8 months old. The child was dirty with no shoes on and only wearing a diaper. The mother was fussing at him and the child was crying. They looked poor and so unhappy. I decided right then–that wouldn’t be us.
Don’t get me wrong. We were still poor for quite a while. We lacked many things through the years (including maturity). At the time I brought him home, he had a chest of drawers in his tiny little room which had a few socks, a few shirts and 4-5 pair of pants leaving most of the drawers empty. I remember baking cookies with him as a toddler. I’d let him stir the batter and I acted so excited about the cookies. But what I was really doing was trying to keep us warm by the stove because the house was cold. For Christmas one year I got together a bunch of happy meal toys, wrapped them and stacked them like a pyramid to make it look like there were a large amount of presents under the tree.
I thank GOD for all the wonderful family members and friends who surrounded us like a host of angles sent from above to help us on our way. These people filled our drawers with clothing, our belly's with food, and our hearts with hope and love.
I cherish these memories. Hard times they were but time like these can be full of love and special moments. I felt like we were a 2 person team. I loved the hikes we went on - just the two of us! Oh, how I loved to foot wrestle with him on the couch and going to scout meetings and the ball games over the years. I could cheer for him for hours. He was so well mannered, well spoken, smart, athletic, and he had such an awesome attitude! We both leaned so many things together.
I can’t imagine my life without him. I’m so proud of him. He’ll always be special to me in a way that words can not explain. It’s funny to think how at the time I felt we had nothing. But on the contrary – we had it all! Just he and I, and a host of angles to help us along the way. The perfect recipe for success!
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Falling
Fall! A fabulous time! But it doesn't last long enough. Has anyone else been up to the Cascades? It's in Virginia only 25 minutes from Virginia Tech. It's a great 2.5 hr hike. To see more pictures click read more below. And here's a few more. 
Thursday, October 9, 2008
Harvest Time!
Visit http://skyley.blogspot.com/ for more great sky pictures!
Our first garden was a WONDERFUL success this summer. For the first time our cabinets are full of food we grew on our own. The corn was unbelievable. And that was even after part of it blew down in a rain storm. Click below to read more and see more pictures! 
I picked green beans until we had canned over 70 cans. We could have got another picking too but decided enough was enough. Unfortunately we couldn't find anyone else who wanted them either.
Oh, the watermelon was such a treat. This doesn't grow very well in our area but we had GREAT luck!
My 10 yr old ask "so how big will a cucumber get if we don't pick it"? So the garden was even a science project at times. 
My husband did most of the work and it was a hoot to work in the garden with the kids.
We also grew peppers, onions, and potato's. We did have a battle with potato bugs! (Where do those things come from?) This has really helped with the grocery bill to and I feel good knowing we have what we need no matter what happens with the economy. We are prepared for the "storm".
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Country Boy In Philly!
Took my country boy to Philly. It was his first large city trip. He loved the fountains and statues. At this fountain, he just had to see how cold the water was and before I knew it HE WAS STANDING IN IT! (he he he) To be a child again! 
It's been a crazy month. Unfortunately, finding time to enjoy this bogging picture adventure has had to take the back seat! In summary - -
1) Went from working 2 day's to 4 day's a week.
2) Decided to take a class
3) Started taking the tot to preschool
4) 10 yr old is back to school and sports.
5) Took pictures for a family members wedding.
6) Work trip to Philly.
7) On top of that, now I caught a cold!
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
N-D-Grass & Skywatch
She's my girly-girl. But sometimes I see a little tom-boy in her too.
THERE SEAMS TO BE A SKY PHOTO THEME GOING ON TODAY!
SO HERE'S A SKY SHOT TOO!
("Skywatch" http://skyley.blogspot.com/)
Monster #1 is very little like me. She loves ribbons and bows and pretty little dresses. She likes to sit in front of the mirror after her bath and comb her curly hair and put perfume and powers on. It's so cute! At 4 she picks out her own outfit, which usually includes a frilly dress. Despite our differences, I encourage her to be all that! And thank goodness she has a grandma who has supplied her with all the pretty little things a little girl loves.
But I try to encourage her to check out things like spiders and other creepy crawler's too. When we go to the farm I assure her that jeans and flannel is the best thing to wear. Daddy found a little frog while mowing today and took it right to her to investigate (as he held it). Hopefully my husband and I will together raise her to be a well rounded individual!
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Field Shot
A year ago someone mentioned there may be a bear in the area (a small one). We giggled and said "sure". My husband caught this on his field camera. Unfortunatly, the camera dosen't have a very fast shutter speed (sorry for the blur). Click on the "read more" button below to see the "Rated-R" one! I just couldn't believe it!
We couldn't have caught this if we were trying. My hub and I laughed till we cried!
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Buggs Island Beauty
Summer started off a bit crazy but we had a great vacation at Buggs Island!
What a summer! As my children finished school in June, my father went into the hospital. This seamed to bring time and life to a stand still. He had open heart surgery and for 2-3 weeks his life was dangling between with us – or onward. Thank goodness he came through and continues to heal as we go through the summer. Thanks to all my friends for their prayers!
After Dad became stable, we took our annual summer trip. Our summer vacation took place at Bugs Island this year (or officially called John Kerr Reservoir) , which is a huge lake on the Virginia/North Carolina border. It is a wonderful place (minus the bug bites). My in-laws made all the arrangements from the campsite to the wonderful food that they feed us all week. It was a wonderful vacation that two of my children will always remember!
If you love fishing and the beautiful outdoors, this place is a must! It had great camp sites, beautiful views, excellent fishing, and the beach area was lots of fun for the kids! And don’t forget an important camping need – the bath house was always clean.
If you want to visit the lake, check out their official web site at
http://www.saw.usace.army.mil/jhkerr/index.htm
Thanks for dropping in!
.
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
What Do You See?
Can you see the past . . . present . . .future??
Oh, the things that I see. . .
As I look at this old barn I can see the past . . . I remember a time when there was a fence around it to keep the cows out, and how we plowed the field. I remember planting the tobacco plants in the ground when they were only a few inches tall and hoeing around them all summer long. I remember all the family gathering on harvest day. The stalks stood above our heads and we worked all day to cut it and hang it in the barn to dry.
I can also see today. My kids are running in the tall grass and playing in the cow-less and tobacco-less field. The kids are so excited to see how tall the grass has gotten in only a few weeks and how they look at it as if it is a new play ground. I see my husband sitting on the tractor mowing the grass and how the swallows swoop around him to catch the insects. We planted a Weeping Willow tree on the edge of the creek and the dog is taking a moment to lay his belly in the cool creek water.
I can see the future too. A time when we might put in a pond and enjoy fishing off the edges. I can see us planting new trees and flowers. There will be more traffic on the little dirt road then. I can see my kids riding 4 wheelers and going over the humps and bumps of the field. There will be new ideas and new memories I can't even imagin.
And I can clearly see myself taking a moment on occasion, to remember, how I use to see . . .this old barn.
Always Embrace Change!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)