Brambly Pines

Chocolate Truffles

2012-02-11T10:36:00.000-05:00

Ready...set...go!

Andrea putting the final touches on them.

Two diabetics eating candy! I know!!

What a fun Saturday it was in the kitchen of Brambly Pines when Lady Melanie and Andrea came to make Chocolate Truffles for Valentine Candy. Andrea had given us some at Christmas time and I was so impressed that she had made them, that I asked if she would please come in February and teach me how to make them. Lady Melanie was so nice to drive up from Birmingham to join us in the fun...and what fun we had! We laughed, chopped up Oreo cookies, softened cream cheese, talked, rolled balls, had a quick lunch and dipped balls in chocolate. All 250 pieces! I think this should be a Valentine's tradition here at Brambly Pines. Chocolate every where and all!

The BIG Tree!

2012-02-11T09:57:00.000-05:00

Funny tree along the trail

The BIG Poplar tree!

Rock that looks like a snake

Stepping Stones

Everyone that talks to us about hiking in the forest, asks if we have been to "B Branch to the BIG tree". The next thing out of their mouths is " it's a long hike"! Chuck decided it was time for us to go see it, so a hiking we went. A very lonnnnnnnng hike. Eight and a half miles, round trip. Through mud and horse poop. Part of the trail was a horse trail and a horse had walked in front of us both coming and going. You get my drift? When we finally made it to the canyon where the tree was, the tree really didn't look THAT big but we were looking down on it. Once we figured out how to get down into the canyon, it was BIG! In fact, it's the biggest tree in Alabama. Not only was the tree in the canyon but two pretty high waterfalls. That made it worth the eight and a half mile hike. Even if my feet were hurting. Chuck added a couple of rocks to some that were crossing the creek so I could go across (I didn't wear my rubber boots) to get to the waterfalls. We had our picnic lunch at the tree and then had to head back since it was going to take us so long to hike back to the truck. I was hoping the person on the horse would come by and give me a ride back but that never happened ...lol. We made it back about an hour before dark. That's cutting it close for me. I sure wouldn't want to be in the forest at night, unless we were camping and had all our gear and a FIRE!

Guest Book

2012-02-11T08:25:00.000-05:00

I finally finished it! The Brambly Pines Guest Book. Why it took me so long, I don't know. Just other things to be done around here, I guess. I wish I had it done from the beginning of all the company that we have had since we have moved up here. It would be half full already though and then I'd have to plan on making another one. So, if you come to Brambly Pines for a visit, plan on writing in the Guest Book. It's so much fun reading what people think of our dream that came true.

Sad Mail box

2012-02-09T08:29:00.000-05:00

A couple of weeks ago, Chuck walked down to the mail box on a Saturday morning and found it broken and laying on the ground. Kid's think it's fun to drive along the side of the road in the middle of the night and hit mail boxes with a baseball bat. They wouldn't think it was so fun, if they had to pay for all the mail boxes they break. I told Chuck that I hope someone does this to their mail box when they grow up but then I decided that kids that would do this, probably won't have a mail box.....they will be in jail!

German cabinet

2012-01-31T10:56:00.000-05:00

I have been looking for something to put our DVDs and CDs in the Thrift Stores and Antique stores for awhile now. The other day when we stopped to pick up a "not Fiesta ware, Kool-aid looking blue pitcher" at Sweet Annie's that Lady Melanie had seen and decided she wanted, I found this 1900's German cabinet. It was made differently and was old. That's what made me want it. The door doesn't even have hinges. It just fits inside a groove on the top. I wish it was twice as tall but it's still neat to have. Another fun find!

A Month Early

2012-01-30T11:27:00.000-05:00

We've had a crazy warmer winter than the last two. Everything thinks it's early Spring already. The Bradford pear trees are budding, my lilac has buds, the tulips are coming up and the daffodils are starting to bloom. They normally don't bloom until the end of February. It's making Winter go by fast this year. I did miss the snow but it's nice seeing Spring so early.

The Star Theatre...RIP

2012-01-30T08:48:00.000-05:00

Remember when we went to the "sale" at the Star Theatre in our little town, a few months ago, because they were going to tear it down? Well, Saturday was the day. They had already started by the time we got there. There were several people there, taking pictures along with two "news reporters". It sure looked little without the other buildings around it. It was sad to see them tear it down. I wish with all my heart that they could have restored it and we could have enjoyed going to movies in our little town. This wasn't even the first movie theatre in town. The first one was over a department store on the other side of the square. How I wish I could go back in time and see our little town like it was 50 years ago. We have heard so many stories from the people who grew up here. I wish I had such stories to tell.

Got One!

2012-01-27T12:15:00.000-05:00

Chuck went down to the garden to empty the compost bowl from the kitchen, this morning and came back to the house to grab his gun. There was a coyote down by the garden. He said it stood up and looked at him as he went by and then laid back down. It was still there when he got back down there with the gun. It apparently must have been sick or something for it not to run. It won't be running any where now! Chuck is burying it as I write this. I sure hope it's the one that killed "the girls". There are so many around here. I wish we could get rid of them all but at least there is one less now. I love most animals but there are some that shouldn't be left to roam the woods. This is one of them!

Family Company

2012-01-27T09:33:00.000-05:00

They're here!

Lady Melanie

Not my Friend, SIL Elaine

Sharing my tea!

Calendar I had printed for Chuck's birthday

Enjoying the Spring like weather on the porch

Elaine, Chuck, Charlie and Fred

There they go :-(

We had a fun filled, packed long weekend when Fred, Elaine and Charlie came up from Florida. They flew up but rented a car in Birmingham. Our time was spent on Saturday with the guys going to see the Rocket and Space Center in Huntsville and Elaine and I met Lady Melanie in Hartselle to shop, which included us walking down the middle of town carrying a 5 ft giraffe, an old high chair and several bags of goodies. What's a shopping trip without going to lunch (for salads of course since all three of us are diabetic) and spending an hour in " the thrift store", in Decatur. We ended the afternoon with having "tea at Brambly Pines".
Chuck's birthday was Sunday and we celebrated with going out to dinner and surprising Chuck with presents. Chuck is officially old. His social security starts in March! :-) I'm not old for another six months.
Chuck and Fred did get a small hike in the forest, this trip. We'll have to wait for all of us to spend the day in the forest for when Fred and Elaine come back, this summer. It was a bit hard having Charlie come this trip but it was good that he got to see where we have moved too. I know it's hard to picture Brambly Pines, until you have seen it in person.

Life Marches On.

2012-01-17T18:29:00.000-05:00

Family Cut Glass Punch Bowl

Blue and white hen from Sandy

Chuck drove down to Florida for his Dad's 90th birthday and to help clean out his Dad's house. Charlie is now living in an assisted living home and it's time to give his house up to the reverse mortgage company. I know it is hard for Elaine and Chuck to go through a house full of life time of memories and decide what to keep and what to let go. After a week of going through each room and the shed out back, Chuck had a truck load to bring home. The kids all went over and picked out things that they wanted for their memories of Nana and Papa. While Chuck was at his Dad's house one afternoon, Sandy came by to give Chuck a box to bring home to me. It was like Christmas all over again for me. In Sandy's box was a pretty blue and white hen casserole dish, some bath soaps, a Halloween decoration and a "Sweet Home Alabama" movie. The pretty blue/white hen looks so pretty in my cabinet. I love her! Chuck bought back a beautiful cut glass punch bowl that was his Mothers along with several matching cut glass pieces that matched it. Shell helped Chuck go through things in the house and picked several things that she thought I might like. There were lots of pieces of silverware that were black, but once I polished them, they turned out to be really pretty. Shell sent home several table cloths and napkins, along with a tea cozy. It was fun cleaning everything up and finding places for it all in our house. It's sad that Charlie can't live in his house any longer, but knowing that he is being taken care of and that he likes living where he is now, I know it is a relief for Chuck and Elaine. The house is one less thing they have to worry about also. Life keeps marching on and it all goes so fast once you get to be our age. It makes you stop and think about each day. Don't waste a single one!

Early Valentines

2012-01-14T14:21:00.001-05:00

Look what came in the mail today!!!!! It's an early Valentine's present from my Florida Debbie friend. Had to make sure I put Florida in there because I have several Debbie friends. One from Alabama/Texas, one from New Jersey and Ryan's mother in law's name is Debbie but I call her Dee. Oh yeah! Genavive's other grandmother's name is Debbie also, even though Genavive calls her Anna. (that's another story) Sure are a lot of Debbies in the world. So, Florida Debbie knitted me a pair of beautiful socks! I know!! They are to pretty to put on my feet and walk around in them. I love them! When Debbie was here last summer, she was knitting herself a pair to wear under her cow girl boots. I guess I'm just gonna have to get me a pair of cow girl boots to wear my socks in. She also sent me a pretty little Spring time bud wreath and a BFF rubber stamp. I know everyone thinks BFF stands for Best Friends Forever, but not so between Debbie and I. We came up with our own wording for it, only I can't tell ya what it is. It's a secret. It makes Debbie and I both laugh every time we see the letters BFF and it's oh so true. I sure do have the best " knitting friends" in the whole wide world! Thank you Debbie and Carmen for being such good friends to knit me beautiful things. I wish I could knit such pretty things.

Just a Dusting

2012-01-13T19:21:00.000-05:00

It has been a mild winter compared to the last two winters here in Northern Alabama. I think this is more like normal though. This time last year, we had the 8 1/2 inches of snow and really freezing weather. Yesterday the temperature kept dropping as the day went on and by late afternoon, it started snowing. It only snowed for three or four hours so we ended up getting a dusting on things. It's still neat to see it falling from the sky and build up on things. It was still on the deck and in a few places on the ground this morning, until the sun came out and it didn't take long for it to melt. Even though, our high today was 36. It's back to being in the 50's for the weekend but it was fun to even have this little bit of snow.

Shadow Kitties

2012-01-06T09:54:00.000-05:00

Ok, turn your head to the left....

Now, look straight ahead......

It was a nice sunny day yesterday and Marmalade wanted out on the porch to be in the warm winter sun. As I was in the kitchen, I looked out the windows and happen to see that George was out on the back steps and Marmie was at the door. They used to fight through the screen but they have grown to like each other so they just "hang out" together now. It was funny how they were both sitting the same way and every time one would turn his head, the other would too. I grabbed the camera but knew if I opened the kitchen door, that Marmalade would move, so I took the pictures through the kitchen windows. They sat there for awhile, until George saw something in the woods and took off to chase it. I know Marmie would have LOVED to have been able to chase along with him but since we moved up here, he's been an "indoor kitty". I keep telling him, it's for the best. I don't think he thinks so though.

A Surprise!

2012-01-04T10:55:00.000-05:00

When I opened the mailbox yesterday, there was a ton of mail. In the middle of it all was this package. I'm thinking, " who is sending me something, Christmas is over". The return address wasn't one that I am used to getting mail from. It was from Carmen in Washington State. Let me tell you about the story of Carmen and Don. Do you remember the stupid chat rooms that were on the Internet about 15 years ago? Well, I have to admit, I did sit at night and talk to people from all over the world in them when I got my first computer. It was fun and I made some really nice friends. Some came and some went and it makes ya wonder what ever happened to those people but some have turned out to be some of my best friends. I have talked to some of them on the phone and have even met some in person. Any ways... Carmen and Don and I have kept in touch though out the years and when Face Book came about, we found each other on there. We have talked on the phone several times but we have never met in person. I feel like we have known each other forever though. We've been through good times, bad times, children's weddings and grand babies being born. Yes, we are real friends even if we have never hugged in person. Well, Carmen sent me a pair of the most prettiest, warm gloves that she knitted. It was a wonderful surprise and put a smile on my face all day. It really made my day and I will think of Carmen every time I put them on my hands. Some day maybe we will be able to really hug each other.

Pumpkin Seeds!

2012-01-02T15:23:00.000-05:00

About three months later, we finally cut all the pumpkins that we had collected for our Fall decorations. They sat on the picnic table by the TT all through the Christmas Holidays. One day as I was walking by them, I noticed a couple of them were really soft and funny looking. That's when I decided we had better take care of them. Chuck cut them all open with his machete and I scooped out the seeds. I spread them out in a box to dry. I wanted the seeds so I could plant them this Spring. We're moving our pumpkin patch from the garden area, in hopes that they will grow better in a less wet area. We'll see how they grow this year. Hopefully big ones, little ones, orange ones and white ones. We'll see.

Snowmen...It Must be January

2011-12-31T18:51:00.000-05:00

Brambly Pines Cardinals

Dining Room snowmen

Kitchen

New hunky snowman I got on sale the day after Christmas.

As I was taking down all the Christmas decorations, I was digging out my snowmen. It never made sense to me to decorate with snowmen when I lived in Florida. Now it's fun! If we are lucky, we will get snow sometime during the month of January. Here's hoping anyways. It will be Spring before we know it . The daffodils are already coming up. So, I'm going to enjoy all my snowmen decorations and dream of all the snow we had last winter. After all, that was the most snow northern Alabama has seen in about 40 years.

Christmas comes and goes.

2011-12-31T08:46:00.001-05:00

My 12 Days of Christmas!

Birdhouse from BNOE
and
Hummingbird feeder from Ryan & Nic's family

Chuck's present from Ryan/Nicole and girls.

Pretty "nest" picture from Shell

1988 German Plate on bottom right.

New corner in living room

We had a very nice Christmas even though it's not what it used to be. Let's just say it's "different" now from all the presents under the tree and all the special foods that I used to cook. Having two children and then a grand daughter to celebrate with on Christmas day. Families grow and change and so do the Holidays when children make their own traditions. Then, we moved to make our dreams come true and our Holidays even changed more. We have made new traditions and remember all of the fun Christmas memories we have from the past. One of the new tradition is, Shell and I do 12 days of Christmas. Starting on Dec. 14th, we each get to open a present from each other for the 12 days. They don't have to be "big presents" every day...maybe a package of fun paper napkins, a $5 gift card to Star Bucks or some scrap booking stickers. Then in the middle of them all is a special present, like a pretty scarf or a framed picture. On Christmas morning, you get to open your " real Christmas present". Mine was three more printed books of my "Brambly Pines Blog". Shell was the "Christmas Elf" this year and brought our presents from Ryan, Nicole and the girls, plus presents from the Blomberg's,when she came up at Thanksgiving. We got to talk to Ryan's family Christmas morning as we opened the presents from them.That made it even more fun. Chuck got tools and a nice tote to carry them in and mine was a pretty hummingbird feeder made from a bottle with pretty beads on the wire to hang it. (I think a little birdie told Nic what would be a great present for me) Oh! what a special present from the Blomberg's! It was a pretty blue German plate with the date 1988 on it, to hang on the wall. That was the year we were soooooo lucky to be able to visit Christina and George over in Germany for 17 wonderful, fun days. George was over there for work, for two years and we all took turns going over to see them. Mom, us, Marina, Derek. What a great chapter in our lives. There was another special present under our tree and it was from Gene Johnson (Gene's Mom). A very pretty little powder sugar sifter that you put on the table to sift your powdered sugar onto your french toast or what have you. We had used one just like it at Gene and George's the last time we were down there and I fell in love with it. I think I have a little birdie working for me down in Cecil too. A few days before Christmas, we had gone over to the BNOE to take a little Christmas to them. We came home with some great presents for each of us. Chuck an Alabama, Roll Tide snuggie...lol and me, some nice blackberry soap with a pretty embroidered Christmas dish towel. Then, for both of us was the wonderful cedar birdhouse! All in all, we had a really nice Christmas but I was ready for all the decorations to all come down for another year. It took me a couple of days to get them down, but I made it before New Years. Yes, it is "bad luck" not to get down before New Years. It has been proven and I have Paula Deen to back me up. When I took the tree out of the living room, my mind starting in on the " decorating mode" and I decided to take the two wooden chairs on each side of Mom's little round table out and I had Chuck bring up the wing chair, recliner that was still in the barn.(I'm still barn shopping after two years) It fit prefect in the corner. I know! the fabric on it isn't perfect but that is going to be taken care of down the road. Mom's little table makes for a great little library table. I filled all the cubbies with books. Now, we have a great corner for putting our feet up and reading our books or my "kindle". I forgot to tell ya! Chuck got me a kindle for Christmas and I LOVE IT! I'm glad to have Christmas over with but we did have a nice one!

Who's Who Wine Glasses

2011-12-24T12:55:00.002-05:00

Remember my chalk board paint? I still have almost a whole can of it sooooo, I put it to use again. I had seen in Pier One, some wine glasses where they had painted a square on them so people could write their names or what have you on their glass they were using at the time. Of course anything that comes from Pier One costs an arm and a leg, so I set out to find some nice glasses that I could paint on. Found some! Also a nice black tray that they would look nice on. By the way, this was the BNOE Christmas present that we already gave them. Chuck taped off the area on each glass for me and I started painting coat, after coat, after coat of paint on each of them. I finally got enough paint on the glass that I thought would cover the glass and also stay on the glass when washed. There are tons of instructions on the Internet on how to dip the stems of glasses in the paint and then you have the area on the bottom of the stem to write on. That doesn't give you very much room to write, so I decided to do them like the ones I had seen in the store. All in all, I think they turned out nicely and just might be painting some more one of these days.

More Christmas

2011-12-24T12:21:00.001-05:00

The tree is so much prettier in person!

One of six of the baby peeps on the tree representing " The girls".

Glass based card holder

I thought I was done with all the decorating, present buying and what have you that goes with Christmas...BUT! Chuck read in the Moulton weekly paper that everything in Roden's was 50% off! Of course I had to go out and make sure there wasn't anything that I HAD to have at that price. Ha! should I say I ended up with a cart full! Well, some of it was Shell's because I called her to see if she wanted anything. I ended up buying six little peeps to hang on the tree, along with some spikey uppie things to put on the top of our tree. Then, there was this pretty glass based card holder and rolls of mesh that Shell used to make our wreath. I grabbed another bag of chopped pecans ( they weren't on sale) to put in the freezer for all my cookies I make through out the year. Any ways....I THINK I'm done with Christmas...at least for this year.

Bottle Tree

2011-12-20T09:45:00.000-05:00

We FINALLY got it! We ordered the 34 bottle, bottle tree from Dave ( our iron man) in September and it was suppose to be done by the end of October. Well, with all his work that he has to do for all the Fall Craft shows, it wasn't done. We kept checking with him ....and last week, he reported that it was DONE! Charlotte and her Mom, each had ordered one also. ( they are the rage up here) I had been collecting my wine bottles and have been looking for different colored ones. Mostly I had the cobalt blue ones. I decided that I was going to make my tree ALL blue! When I was talking to Gene on the phone the other day, she told me that the cobalt blue bottles are suppose to ward off " evil spirits"...ha. I'm not too sure about how many evil spirits we have on Brambly Pines but maybe they will ward off evil coyotes!

Cranberries and Pop Corn

2011-12-20T09:17:00.000-05:00

Our first Christmas tree we had in the TT

After lunch, yesterday Chuck and I sat and strung cranberries and pop corn for the little live tree we had for our first Alabama Christmas in the TT. We planted it in our back yard and we can see it from the screen porch. It has grown but I think it's going to take more years than we have for it to grow into a huge pretty tree. It will always have a special place in our hearts. I'm hoping that the birds will enjoy Christmas goodies on the special little tree.

Decorating for Christmas

2011-12-12T09:42:00.002-05:00

Wreath that Shell made while she was here.

The Blomberg Christmas bowl and St. Nick goodies.

Bed room tree

Real cedar swag.

Other than finding a few more red cardinal birds to put on the vines in the dining room, I think I'm done decorating. Good thing, because it will be time to take it all down before I know it. I'm the one that takes it down the day after Christmas. As I have said before, Paula Deen and I say it's bad luck if you don't have it all down before New Years. Besides, by then it's been up for so long, I'm ready for my house to be clean and back to normal. After all, the house has been decorated for the past four months, starting with Fall, Halloween and Thanksgiving. The story about our Christmas tree is, I wanted a table top tree so we didn't have to move any of the furniture out of the living room. That's always such a pain in the butt, plus finding a place to put it. Soooooo, we set out to find a table top tree. Well, the only two places we found them were Krogers and Home Depot. They were $25 and they were only about two feet tall....no kidding! Waaaay to small! So, we ended up buying a 6/7 ft tall tree for $30. When we got it home, Chuck cut the bottom third of it off...yep now it was only about 4 ft tall ...BUT! I had all the left over branches that were cut off to decorate with. I ended up covering both china cabinets with it and I made six arrangements that I shared with my dear friend Andrea. I think we got our money's worth out of our tree this year, plus got the perfect size table top tree. :-)

Moulton's Christmas Parade

2011-12-09T08:31:00.000-05:00

I think Chuck and I have a new Christmas tradition. The Moulton Christmas Parade! We put on warm clothes, grab our chairs in a bag and head to the square in Moulton. Since, we have no interest in collecting all the candy that the floats, kids and everyone else in the parade throw out, we park our chairs up on the hill of the court house yard. Ya just never know what you are going to see come down the street...from decorated sparkling white garbage trucks, tractors pulling homemade floats, dune buggies to every horse that lives in Lawrence county. Even the horses have lights on them. The high school bands are the BEST! It makes you want to get up and march down the street with them. ( yes, I was in the band, majorette and all) It might not be a fancy parade like big cities have but our little town's parade can't be any more fun.

Another Good Bye

2011-12-08T09:03:00.000-05:00

Telling her Daddy Good Bye.

Another Thanksgiving has come and gone. Another Holiday of memories with pictures to go with them. Shell says it's not Thanksgiving unless she spends it in Alabama. All of our Thanksgivings when the kids were little, were spent in Alabama at Gene and George's. We would pick the kids up from school and head north for eight hours. We would get there around midnight, with Gene and George always waiting up for us. Oh! the fun memories we have from those days! Our ways of making Thanksgiving memories have changed...from freezing our butts off in tents, then the no-electric or water in the TT, fixing our Thanksgiving dinner on the camp stove in the barn, to a nice heated house with a pretty dining room and a real stove to cook on. I wouldn't give up any of those memories for anything. We even have a couple of Thanksgiving traditions that we look forward too. One is after putting all the food away from our Thanksgiving dinner, Shell and I jump in the explorer and go out to Roden's to shop. We've been doing that since our days of camping out in the tents. Then of course, the day after Thanksgiving is our hiking day in the forest. I can see why it's not Thanksgiving for Shell unless she's in Alabama. It wouldn't be Thanksgiving for us, without Shell here.

Winter Garden Goodies

2011-12-08T08:29:00.000-05:00

We've had perfect Fall weather for the winter garden. I've been picking fresh lettuce for my salads for a couple of months now. Of course I had to cover the lettuce plants up with cut off Ginger Ale bottles, a couple of times when we were predicted to get frost over night. It worked though! We've picked collards a couple of times and it's ready to be picked again. My cabbage is just starting to " head" so not sure if it will make it in time before " true winter" is here or not. Same with the broccoli. The leaves look pretty but there is no broccoli to pick. We'll see what happens with that. While Shell was here, she picked enough collards for us to have for dinner one night, along with ham and black eyed peas. A true southern dinner!

Our Black Friday

2011-12-07T08:48:00.000-05:00

Shell's pic of the heart in the tree

Putting rocks down in the water for stepping stones

Piggy back Mama!

Our annual tradition of Black Friday isn't spent like most people. We pack up turkey sandwiches and head to the forest. The day is spent hiking for hours, looking for a pretty waterfall to eat our lunch by. We try and take Shell to a new place in the forest, every year. This year, it was new to us too. After hiking for a while, we came to the waterfall that was suppose to be, but it was dry as a bone. I usually wear my rubber boots when we hike so I don't have to worry about getting my shoes wet, but this time I thought I would try hiking in my tennis shoes. They worked great, until it came time to cross the river. Shell was smart and wore a pair of my boots. Good thing! Crossing the first part of the river was fine because Shell made a rock path through the shallow water. BUT! the next part was too deep! That's when she decided to " piggy back" Mama. Let's say, Shell is strong and we all had a good laugh over it. Shell came across a unique tree with a small leave growing in the middle of it. It sure made a really neat picture. Even without pretty waterfalls, we still have a fun time in the forest!

First Turkey!

2011-12-04T08:52:00.000-05:00

What's in here?....you're kidding...right?

Shell had never had the chance to cook a Thanksgiving dinner so I thought it was a good time for her to learn....from sticking your hand down the butt of the turkey to pull out the bag of " stuff" along with the long skinny neck and trying to get everything to the table at the same time so it would all be hot. That includes the day before when you make the pie and the cranberry jello mold. She did it all . It turned out so good, I think I'm giving the cooking job over to Shell every year and enjoying this great dinner without all the work...ha.

Gobble, Gobble

2011-12-04T08:43:00.000-05:00

You get her from the front and I'll get her from the back!

Shell chasing turkeys

We made another stop on the way home from Birmingham at the Dutch Bakery for Shell to buy some of their wonderful rolled butter to take back home with her. When we shop there, I always like to go outside and look at all of their chickens. Yes, I still miss "the girls". You can buy chickens and piglets there but trying to catch the certain chickens you want is almost impossible. They are all free ranging so they run like the dickens. Well, as Shell and I were looking at all the chickens running around, these turkeys came up to us. At first they were a little scary because they weren't really afraid of us but then it got to be fun trying to take pictures of them. Little did they know, that we had their cousin in the refrigerator, waiting to be cooked the next day.

Covered Bridge

2011-12-03T08:19:00.000-05:00

walking with a kitty between your legs isn't easy.

Clark the kitty

Eating $10 a pound lobster salad

On the way home from Birmingham, we took a little detour down a country road and stopped at this covered bridge. ( Chuck knew were it was from studying his maps) As soon as we got out of the explorer, a kitty came running, meowing at us. Shell named him Clark since the bridge was named Clarkson. He followed us everywhere and was so sweet. He kept walking between our legs as we walked down the bridge. Chuck decided we should give him a spoonful of lobster salad that we had bought at Fresh Market in Birmingham. I know!! What kitty gets $10 a pound lobster?....well, maybe ours, but a stranger kitty? It made us all laugh and Clark purr.

New House/Redo

2011-12-02T18:45:00.000-05:00

Family Room

Lillie and Lulu's future play room

Willy Wonka Kitchen

Fun 1950's Bathrooms

Living Room

After our wonderful Christmas/Thanksgiving breakfast and the opening of presents, we went to see Kellet and Josh's new/1950's house. It's only three houses down from Lady Melanie's. How fun is that! We got to explore and ewwww and ahhhhhh over every room with using our imagination on how each room was going to turn out once it was redone with some paint/ fabric or what have you. When I walk into a room that needs something to be done to it, my mind just starts rolling. It's so much fun to come up with ideas with what can be done. I did that the first time we walked into the TT. I wasn't looking at the icky carpet, dirty walls and dated cabinets. I was thinking....what color paint, taking the icky plastic panels out of the kitchen cabinets and having fun making pretty curtains and valances. I can't wait to see what Kellet and Josh, with the help of Lady Melanie, come up with to redo the new/old house. It will be fun to see the progress each time to go down to Birmingham. Congratulations to Kellet, Josh and their girls on their new house!

The Begining of Thanksgiving

2011-12-01T08:51:00.000-05:00

Here she comes!

Lady Melanie's beautiful table.

Lady Melanie!

Pretty Cousins...Kimber and Lillie

Shell and Miss Lulu

Fun presents!

Chuck reading one of his presents

Our Thanksgiving started at 6:35 am on Wednesday, picking Shell up at the airport in Birmingham. Yes, we got up at 3:30 am to get there on time but there wasn't any traffic for sure! As soon as we got all of her luggage, we headed to Lady Melanie's house for a beautiful Thanksgiving/Christmas breakfast. The table was set so pretty with Christmas china, beautiful etched glasses and shiny silver. The food was just as pretty! After we ate, of course there were lots of "presents" to open.

Thanksgiving Decor

2011-11-25T09:42:00.001-05:00

Kitchen Thanksgiving

Living room

Dining room table

I always have fun decorating the house for the holidays. I think Thanksgiving is my favorite. I just love all the Fall colors, pumpkins and turkeys. July 4th is my next favorite decorating holiday. Christmas, not so much and I don't know why. Maybe it's because I've seen Christmas stuff in the stores since August. I did start taking down my Thanksgiving stuff last night and drug out a few Christmas things. I will keep adding decorations as the month goes along. I try and do something different with it all, every year.

Fun Treasures

2011-11-25T09:34:00.000-05:00

terra cota chicken roaster

Sun room table

Last weekend, we headed to Hartselle because I wanted to look in the really nice "kids store", downtown for some pretty things for Lily Ryann. You can almost count on finding something pretty there and we did. ...shhhhhh don't tell Lily Ryann. As we were walking down the street and looking in the stores windows, there was an antique store that had a sign for 75% off. Of course we had to go in and check it out and sooooo glad we did! We found a terra cotta chicken roaster that was $18 but ended up costing only $4.50. It had never been used. I picked up a couple of things for $.50 and $1 but our best find was a huge picture of two ducks in a custom frame. I was thinking it could go over Chuck's bed. It started out costing $25 but cost us only $6. We stuck it in the car and went down to another antique store. Well, I found this unique coffee table. I stood there and looked and looked at it. It was high and two tiered. I knew it wouldn't go in the living room but I sure did like it. We went on home without the table but for the rest of the day and night I kept thinking about the table. As I sat in the sun room having my tea, I finally decided that was the perfect place for it. So, come Monday morning, we went back to Hartselle and I was lucky, because the table was still there! I was so happy. Came on home and Chuck put the table in the sun room and I fell in love with it all over again. I love it being high. It's perfect for serving tea and there is lots of room for books and gardening magazines. Oh, I forgot to finish telling you about the "duck picture". When we got home that day, Chuck went on line and looked the artist up. Well, I have to say...I think this is the best find we have found up here so far. The print is signed and numbered. This one is 1570/1950 (the year we were born) Chuck found two of them on line, selling for $400!!!! We couldn't believe it! It looks wonderful over Chuck's bed and we now have a story to go with it. It's so much fun to go shopping up here. You just never know what you will find.

SWAG

2011-11-24T21:50:00.000-05:00

Author Melinda Rainey Thompson brought her collection of Southern Essays and tall tales to the Lawrence Country Courthouse on Nov 15th. She shared many of her writings and life experiences and reading from her three books. Melinda began writing a humor newsletter about everyday trials of being a housewife and mother for friends and family members. The readership quickly grew to about 5,000 subscribers in 48 states. Then, she decided to turn them into books. She lives in Homewood (Birmingham) with her husband, Bill Thompson , a judge on Alabama's Court of Civil Appeals, and their three children. I bought her first book...SWAG (Southern Women Aging Gracefully), which she signed for me. Another entertaining and fun evening in small town Moulton.

Getting things done.

2011-11-12T12:34:00.000-05:00

New Deluxe Bird House

George's house all done.

George waiting for his house to come back.

While I have been working on my "to do list" on the inside, Chuck has been working on the one for outside. I told ya how he made George a real house so he didn't have to live in cardboard boxes this winter. Well, he took it back down to the barn to paint it and put the shingles on the roof. Meantime, George crawled into his cube and took a nap. I put the cube in the back of the house and his blanket inside, spilling out into the front of the house. He loves it! When it's really cold, he curls up inside the cube but when it's not so cold, he stretches out onto the blanket. If it gets down to freezing, I give him a hand warmer to lay on all night. What a lucky kitty boy he is! He picked the right house to come live at 1 1/2 years ago.
Also on the outside to do list was a deluxe birdhouse to go on the stand that I got at Dave the iron man's. Chuck surprised me and made it yesterday. He even put some little pots of mums in the flower box part of it. :-) I can't wait to plant some pretty drippy downy thing in them come Spring.

Pro Bass Shop/Outdoor World

2011-11-12T08:36:00.001-05:00

Yes, it does exist and Tim Allen works there...lol

This isn't even 1/3rd of the place!

Chuck looking at the fish in the tank

I wish this was the coyote that killed the girls!

Pro Bass Shop...how many times have we passed it and said some day we were going to stop? I can't count. We are always in a hurry to get to Gene and George's or to get home. This time we took 15 minutes and stopped. Let me tell ya, you can't see it all in just 15 minutes. It's every outdoors man dream! It was pretty neat to see for a woman too, but I noticed they built a brand new mall across the street from it...ha. While the men spend the day at "Outdoor World", the women can spend the day at the mall. Good idea! This place was HUGE!! Two stories of everything to do with outdoors. If a hunter can't find what he's looking for in here, then it doesn't exist. There is even a place to eat in there. I'm sure we will be leaving an hour early on the way to Gene and George's next time, just so we can stop and spend more time in there.

It must be Fall

2011-11-07T10:22:00.000-05:00

It certainly is Fall when the BIG tree has changed it's color and the leaves are starting to drop. The green house is full and the heater has been turned on. Yesterday, Chuck and I mowed the yard and winterized it. I went around and gathered everything up that was made of ceramic, glass or would get broken in the freezing winter. I took the fountain off of the deck and loaded everything up in Little Red's cart and took it all to the barn. Then, I pulled up my marigolds and moon flowers so I could plant all of my bulbs. All 125 of them! Chuck planted the four Bradford Pear trees and I planted the flat of purple pansies that Lady Melanie had given me. We even took the four chairs that go to the table on the front porch and put them in the basement. Chuck took down all of the hummingbird feeders. I think we are ready for winter. It will be here before we know it. Another season to look forward too.

Just Being George

2011-11-07T10:05:00.000-05:00

George in his house.

George in my bedroom window box.

George kitty has the run of the land and he comes up with some pretty funny places to get. I never know where I'm going to see him. For a couple of days, his favorite place was to lay in the window box, outside my bedroom window. Yesterday, I had gone over to the TT and had left the door open until the wind blew it shut just minutes after I had gone in. As I was walking down the hall, I saw movement in the little bedroom and I jumped back for just a second until I saw it was just George. He had come in and walked past me and I never even noticed. When I was trying to get him back outside, he went into the living room and laid down on the carpet like that was his new " kitty house". I know he would like to be an indoor/outdoor kitty but that can't happen with the other two in the house. He does like his new kitty house that Chuck built him. He gets in it all the time and especially when it's cold at night. His house isn't finished yet. It needs to be painted yellow and the green shingles put on the roof. That's on the list of "things to be done around here".

Sad, Sad Day

2011-11-07T09:47:00.000-05:00

Halloween evening was a terrible day here at Brambly Pines. I had walked down to the barn to look for something and on the way, I thought I heard a noise in the woods, like something jumped down from something. I stopped to look but didn't see anything so didn't think anything of it. If I go down to the barn, I usually go back and see the chickens but for some reason, I didn't this time. When Chuck went down to put the chickens to bed, they were all dead, in their mansion. The screen had a huge hole torn in it. Our conclusion was a coyote had jumped through the window and killed all of them but didn't get a chance to eat them, because they heard me coming down to the barn. Chuck had been down there just before me, around 3:30 and they were still ok, in their yard. So, it happened between 3:30 and before 6:00. Lydia, our back neighbor had asked me if I had seen the two huge coyotes the week before. We hadn't but had heard them. She said they were down at the back of their land which would be behind our barn. I decided to make a pet cemetery in an area along the path to the garden. I tilled the area and Chuck dug the six deep holes. Yes, each girl has their own grave. I put their names on some sticks so I will know where each of them are, until I can make stepping stones with their names on them. After all, they were a lot more than "just chickens" to us. They were pets and gave us eggs every day. When we were down at the barn yesterday, we both commented on how quiet it was down there without them. Chuck said it was just weird. Come Spring, we will decide if we want to hunt down some "fancy breeds" or just go to Tractor Supply and get " plain ole chicks" again. After all, they were good girls and gave us extra large eggs. We bought a dozen eggs at the store the other day. That was sad too.

The Fourth Annual Campout

2011-11-06T19:46:00.000-05:00

Raimey cooking the pheasant

Sandy eating her first Alabama smore!

The overnight campers

Remember the first night that we got here when we moved? Well, it was the same night that the BNOE had their "annual camp out" in their back yard. Only it was the weekend of November 8. Since it has been so cold that weekend, Charlotte has moved the camp out up into October. It was still cold, but not near as bad as in the past. It was Sandy's last night in Alabama and we were invited over for Alabama Smores. Raimey had gone hunting and had cleaned a pheasant to cook over the fire. We all got to taste it. It went pretty good with our wine and smores. Sandy loved the Alabama smores as much as we do. How can you not? It was fun seeing Charlotte's friends and seeing how much all the kids had grown. Looking forward to the 5th Annual Camp out next year. I don't think we will wait that long to have Alabama smores again, though. I'm sure there will be another " bon fire" before winter is over.

A Day with the Amish

2011-11-02T20:31:00.000-04:00

Naomi Judd in the sun glasses

Naomi Judd's car

they were making sorghum

the end of the porch was covered with tomatoes

my beautiful oak rocking chair

The third day that Sandy was here, we decided to go to Ethridge Tennessee to the Amish Community. It takes us about an hour to get there and it sure is an interesting place to visit. The Amish make their livings by working the land. They also sell fresh vegetables, molasses, quilts, rugs, baskets, hats, furniture and other hand made goods from their homes. Before going to their community, we had lunch at the Red Rooster Restaurant. Man oh man! was it ever the best food and so much of it! Sandy was so nice to buy Chuck's and my lunches. Chuck had walked into the connecting store as I waited for Sandy to pay the bill. Afterwards, when Sandy and I went to find Chuck, we realized that the boy only charged us for two lunches ($6.99 each). So, Sandy went back into the restaurant to tell the boy that she owed for another lunch. Well, a man in line, asked Sandy if she saw Naomi Judd at one of the tables, eating lunch? Sure enough...it was her! So, Sandy came and told me and I went back in to see if I could get a picture of her. I didn't want to walk up and ask her if I could take her picture, while she was eating her lunch, so I took it from across the room. When we went outside, her Jag was parked right at the door. I guess you never know who you are going to see when you are in Tennessee! Our ride through the Amish community was fun. We stopped at the one house where we had bought Chuck's hat and jams last year, so we could buy some more jams. The next stop was at a house that sold outdoor furniture. There is was!!!!! The most beautiful oak rocking chair that I have ever seen and once I sat down in it...it had to be mine! Chuck said "yes", so we put the one seat down in the Explorer and there was still room for Sandy..lol. I now have the most comfortable rocking chair on the back porch, facing so I can see the whole back yard and woods. What a great day we ended up having!!

A Pretty Fall Day

2011-11-02T20:03:00.000-04:00

old wooden bridge at Sipsey picnic grounds

Sandy preaching at Pine Torch Church

Chuck and Sandy on the dock

The second day that Sandy was here, we headed to the forest. We went to the Sipsey Picnic Area and hiked the short hike into the canyons. There was hardly any water in the Sipsey River and none of the waterfalls were flowing. Other than seeing the beautiful colors of the trees, Fall is not the best time to hike in the forest. Well, I shouldn't say that. The weather was perfect. Next we went to Brushy Lake and had our picnic lunch at a table right there by the lake. Afterwards, we walked out onto the dock and then down to the dam. There was no water going over the dam either. We ohhhhed and ahhhhhed over the beautiful trees of Fall though. At least Sandy got a small taste of the forest that we love.

Here comes Sandy!

2011-11-02T19:53:00.000-04:00

She's here!

Miss Lillie May at our Tea Party

Picking lettuce and collards in our winter garden

Two days after Fred and Elaine left, Sandy came! Sandy and I worked together at Allstate Insurance and remained friends through out the years. Before we moved up here, I would go to Sandy's house and she taught me how to paint. We'd spend our Wednesdays painting pretty things on anything we could get our hands on. Sandy had never been to Alabama before so I couldn't wait to show her Brambly Pines and the area around here. As always, we were invited to Lady Melanie's house for a Tea Party after we picked Sandy up from the airport. Miss Lillie and Miss Lulu joined us since Lady Melanie keeps them during the day. Miss Lillie has been having tea parties ever since she could sit up and hold a cup. I'm talking about "real china tea cups" too. Of course her tea is really apple juice but no one would ever know. The two girls are always dressed in beautiful dresses and bows or hats. Lady Melanie and I think a like...if you have a little girl, make her a little girl!
Sandy loved being able to meet Lady Melanie and seeing her beautiful home. Thank you again for a lovely time, Lady Melanie...until next time.

We'll Be Back!

2011-11-02T19:25:00.000-04:00

Bye!...We'll be back!

Fred and Elaine were suppose to stay until Tues, but due to a tropical storm that was suppose to cover most of Florida, they decided it best that they leave a day early. They promised to come back soon and they are. They have airline tickets to come back in January.

Indian Museum

2011-11-02T19:21:00.000-04:00

Elaine and the Sequoyah Statue

Loom used by the Indians

We were able to fit a trip to the Indian Museum that isn't far from our house, before Fred and Elaine had to return home. There are Alabama wildlife displays and thousands of artifacts. Also, there is a 12 ft. hand carved statue of Sequoyah by a friend of Gene and George's. Plus, a nice gift shop where Elaine bought several "dream catchers" for her grand children.

A Day in the Forest

2011-11-02T19:10:00.000-04:00

Elaine finds the Geocashe

resting on a tree on the way back

We took Fred and Elaine to Parker Branch, Shell's favorite place in the forest. The water falls weren't flowing like they were last Spring but the one big one still had some flow to it. It's still a pretty place with the canyons all around you. It's a little hard to get down to the bottom of the canyon but it's worth the hike. We enjoyed our picnic lunch while taking lots of pictures and Elaine found the Geocache.

Modern Day Cotton Picking

2011-11-02T19:05:00.000-04:00

We were on our way to the forest with Fred and Elaine and heading down the road was a " cotton picker". There in the field where it was headed, was the rest of the equipment that they use to pick, and bale the cotton. Very different from the olden days where it was picked by hand. I have no idea how it was baled back then.

Ava Maria Grotto

2011-11-02T19:02:00.000-04:00

Noah's Ark

Fred's new friend

Please let me in!

Since we were already in Cullman, we decided to go to someplace where Chuck and I hadn't been before...to see "Ava Maria Grotto". It's called Jerusalem in miniature which provides settings for miniature reproductions of historic buildings and shrines in an area of 4 acres. Brother Joseph Zoettl, a monk constructed 125 miniatures over 50 years, from 1912 to 1958. It was a very interesting walk through the area, seeing what all Brother Joseph had used to make the miniatures.

At the end of our walk, a friendly, grey kitty was wanting to be petted. He took to Fred and didn't want us to leave him.

Alabama Gourd Show

2011-10-29T09:31:00.000-04:00

Find Fred and Elaine

Fred buying his boiled peanuts

After lunch on Saturday, we jumped into the explorer and headed to Cullman to the Alabama Gourd Show, with a stop at the Dutch Bakery on the way. Chuck and I had attended the gourd show four years ago and I am still fascinated on how people cut, glue and paint the things they make out of gourds. I sure wish I could turn all the gourds I grew and are stored in the barn, into some of the things we saw at the show. We did buy some more gourd seeds so I can try and grow the ones with the long tails. So far I haven't had a problem with growing gourds. We'll see what I end up with by next Fall.

Elaine and Fred are here again.

2011-10-29T09:24:00.000-04:00

what can I say?....this pic just makes me laugh...Brother -in-laws

my climbing roses

the last of my 6 ft zinnias

Elaine and Fred came to visit Brambly Pines for the second time, the Saturday after Shell went home. The first time, we were still living in the TT and they couldn't stay with us. So, this time it was a lot more fun since we were in the house. It was also the first time they got to see " the girl's and their mansion". We took advantage of the wonderful Fall weather and ate on the porches as much as we could. Elaine enjoyed the winter garden, the pretty flowers and gathering the eggs, while Chuck and Fred caught up on things, sitting on the porch.

The Fun of Fall!

2011-10-29T08:55:00.000-04:00

With stopping at the real pumpkin patch in Tn. with Shell, sure gave me lots of pumpkins to decorate with. I had been having fun, buying one here and there, plus I found some corn stocks. We bought the bales of hay a long the side of the road where a man had his tuck and a trailer full, for sale. I think it's more fun to decorate for Fall than it is Christmas. I have some really neat pumpkins and I'm going to cut them open and save the seeds to plant, come early summer. Hopefully, I'll have my own pumpkin patch to pick from next Fall.

And She's Off!

2011-10-29T08:50:00.000-04:00

Shell and I met up with everyone from the Wedding, Sunday morning for a great breakfast at the hotel, before leaving for home. We ohhhed and ahhhed over all the pretty trees of Fall and peaks and valleys of Tn. and northern Alabama on the two hour trip. Chuck did get to spend a little time with Shell before she packed up her Mini and headed to Atlanta to have lunch with Becca before the eight hour drive to Tampa. It wasn't a sad "good bye" as it usually is because I knew she would be back in a month for Thanksgiving.

The Smith's Wedding

2011-10-29T08:42:00.000-04:00

Shell reading a special part of the wedding

Shell and Kerri

The girls dancing the line dance they learned at the bridal shower

Getting ready to leave

Mr and Mrs Adam Smith

The police car from Mayberry

The Wedding was held at a small private college in Franklin, Tn and the reception was at a really cute restaurant that used to be a neighborhood grocery store, way back. Right after the wedding, Shell and I took all the flowers and everything that we needed to decorate for the reception to the restaurant. We had lots of help from everyone that worked there. The owner and workers were all sooooooo nice. The band was really good and sang songs that I actually knew. (ya never know with what they call " music" these days) They had two great photographers that had set up a big white screen and Kerri's Mom had bought tons of fun props for everyone to use to have their silly pictures taken. That was half the fun at the reception. The food was all great too. Everyone, ate, drank and danced the night away. When it was time for Kerri and Adam to leave, they climbed into the orginal police car from the TV show, "Mayberry RFD". How fun was that!!! It was a great wedding and I'm really glad that I got invited. Not only did I get to attend the wedding but I got to spend the time with Shell.

Setting up for the Wedding

2011-10-29T08:27:00.000-04:00

After Shell got her make up done at the mall and grabbing something to eat, we went to the Wedding site and set everything up before getting dressed for the Wedding. There were programs to hang on each chair, flowers to tie onto every other row, bikes to use for decorations, the bar area for cocktail time to set up and signs to hammer into the ground. We got it all done, with time to spare.

A Real Pumpkin Patch

2011-10-24T19:58:00.000-04:00

All pumpkins were either $2 or $4 depending on their size.

Wheel Barrow full!

Now to fit them in the mini

Shell (with her hair pinned up) and I were on our way to have her make-up done at the mall and then go set up for the wedding when we passed this HUGE pumpkin patch. I'm not talking about were you go to a church or parking lot and buy a pumpkin. I'm talking....at least 3 acres of pumpkins growing in a patch and you go out and pick the ones you want! Shell says...."man! I've never seen a real pumpkin patch, I wish we could stop". Right after she said that, she makes a " safe and legal U turn" and before we know it, we're pulling into the pumpkin patch. Shell says, "we'll only pick one pumpkin each and be on our way". Ha! When the man asked us if we wanted to use the wheel barrow, Shell told him "no thank you". Five minutes later, she was going back to get the wheel barrow because we couldn't carry all the pumpkins we wanted to keep. We had the best time trappsing through all the vines and finding the different kinds of pumpkins. We decided it was one of the highlights of the trip and will laugh about it forever.

Scare Crows

2011-10-24T19:43:00.000-04:00

Add caption

Four and twenty blackbirds

Edgar Allen Crow

Smurf

I forgot to tell ya about all of the fun scare crows all around the grounds at the Botanical Gardens. There were lots and lots of them and each one was more fun than the next. The Edgar Allen Crow was Carol's and my favorite. I just love this time of year!

Man Oh Man!!!

2011-10-24T19:35:00.000-04:00

On the way home from Cheekwood, Carol took me through a multi- million dollar homes, neighborhood. My oh my! Carol's son is friends with the man that takes care of the "grounds" of this mansion, so we stopped to talk to him. Not only did we get to see the outside of this beautiful house but we also got to go inside. I know!!!! The people who own it, have a beach house in N.C. and they were gone to the beach for a month. I can't even begin to describe the inside of this house. Yes, I did take pictures but I thought it best not to put them on the blog. I wouldn't want pictures of my house out there for the world to see. All I can say is, I can't imagine living in such a house. I'm not sure I would even want too. It sure was fun seeing it though.

Cheekwood

2011-10-24T18:48:00.001-04:00

Trained Magnolia

Picture this!

Giant hanging angel wing begonia

Strawberry flower

Double Heliotrope

My wonderful lunch!

Beautiful view

Wisteria

The Mansion

Back of the Mansion

I had a great time spending the day with Carol while Shell attended the Bridal Shower and the Rehearsal Dinner. Carol took me to " Cheekwood Botanical Gardens".
In 1890, Leslie Cheek moved with his family from Kentucky to Nashville to join his father's grocery business in Cummins Station. Soon after joining his father's firm, Leslie and Mabel Wood were married in 1896. While Leslie worked with his father, his cousin Joel developed a superior blend of coffee. Members of the Cheek family invested in Cheek-Neal Coffee. Eventually, Joel convinced the best hotel in Nashville, the Maxwell House, to carry his coffee exclusively and the Maxwell House brand was born. Joel Cheek sold his brand to Postum ( now General Foods) for over $40 million in 1928. Leslie traded his Postum shares for IBM stock. He and Mabel purchased 100 acres in West Nashville and built their dream house, which later became known as Cheekwood. It was a 30,000 square foot Georgian-style mansion with formal gardens. Leslie lived only two years at Cheekwood before his death in 1935 and nine years later Mabel deeded the house to their daughter Huldah and her husband Walter Sharp. In 1957, the Sharps offered the mansion and 55 acres of land for the establishment of a botanical garden and art museum. In one of the many ponds on the grounds was a Double Heliotrope, made of wood, steel, mylar, wire, laser discs, CDs, solar lights, and Styrofoam. It's a sculpture floating on water. Paths meander through out the acres with beautiful plants and waterfalls. After our walk through everything on the grounds, we had a wonderful lunch in the restaurant and shopped in the gift shop. It was a great time seeing Cheekwood and spending the day with Carol.

Stand by

2011-10-23T20:56:00.001-04:00

Please stand by...I'm having technical difficulty.

Learning to Spin

2011-10-13T09:05:00.001-04:00

combs and wool

learning to card the wool

Shell and I were lucky to be able to stay with the BNOE's Mom in Nashville while we were there for the wedding. While Shell was busy with all the Bridal parties and showers, I stayed and had fun with Carol. Her house is just beautiful, on the side of a mountain. You feel like you are in a tree house, when you sit on her porch and decks. Carol has a loft in her house where she keeps two looms and her spinning wheel. What fun is that! I have always wanted to learn to spin yarn. Well, I thought I did. Man! it's harder than it looks. I sure had fun trying though. First you have to card the wool that you have already washed. You have these two combs that have metal teeth. ( you could comb your kitties with it and get tons of cat fur to spin...lol) You put a little of the wool onto one of the combs and pull it with the other comb. Once it's been carded over and over, it's time to spin. Well, let me tell ya! Just getting the wheel to keep going in the right direction was a job. Then you have to hold tight to the wool, pull it until it's really thin with one hand with out breaking it and let the spinning wheel twist it and add it to the bobbin. You do all of this without stopping the spinning wheel. It's really hard to keep your yarn the same thickness. I know, it's just like anything, it takes practice, practice, practice. I think it would take me a year of spinning the way I was going to have enough yarn to make a scarf. It sure was fun leaning how it's done. Thank you Carol!

She's Here!

2011-10-13T08:50:00.000-04:00

Shell's new Mini

After driving the lonnnnnng 12 hour drive, with making a quick side trip to Lady Melanie's house in Birmingham to pick up a tote bag, that had been at Becca's house, then brought to Gene and George's house and then to Melanie's, trying to get it closer to me over the months. Not only bringing me the tote, but she had a 50 lb bag of chicken food for " the girls" from Paw, a little red bud tree and a jar of blueberry jelly from Melanie's kitchen. That was all on top of everything that was packed into her Mini for her week stay and all the stuff for the wedding. Don't under estimate the room in a Mini.

Multi Tasking

2011-10-13T08:38:00.000-04:00

making cookies in one corner, apple pie filling at the island

6 quarts of apple pie filling

40 sugar cookies ready to be iced

Shell asked me if I would please make my " famous" sugar cookies cut into hearts for her to decorate for the up and coming wedding of her friend that she and I were going to attend in Nashville when she drove up last week. I still had half of the apples that we had bought at the orchard and I knew I'd better do something with them before I headed off to Nashville for four days. I decided to use them in apple pie filling. I had made up two batches of my cookie dough and put it in the refrigerator for the day. After dinner that night, I started rolling out the cookies. When I got the first batch into the oven, I started coring...actually, Chuck cored them and I peeled and cut the apples. Notice I said " started". Had to stop and take the cookies out, put them on the rack to cool and cut out more to go into the oven. Back to the apples! I put the apples in two big bowls of water with lemon juice in them to keep them from turning brown until I was ready to use them. Time to take the next batch of cookies out of the oven, roll out more and stick in the oven. Now it was time to cook the filling to put the apples in. Of course in the middle of that, I had to take a batch of cookies out of the oven and add more. Ok, where was I? Oh yeah...cooking the filling. I added the cut up apples to the filling and put it all in the quart jars, then put them in the hot water bath for 25 minutes. At least that gave me enough time to finish the last batch of cookies and clean up the kitchen. Whew! I found out that I'm not good at " multi tasking" thing as I used to be. Don't try this at home if you are over 60 and haven't multi tasked in a very long time. You will feel like your head is spinning!

New Gravel!

2011-10-13T08:19:00.000-04:00

Making the drive way longer

Remember all that gravel we had delivered before they built the house? Well, most of it was gone! With all of the delivery trucks and cement trucks, the rain and just normal comings and goings sunk the gravel into the mud. When your tires are constantly covered with mud and you almost get stuck backing out into the drive way, it's time to get new gravel. Chuck cleared the "backing space" in the area going to the basement and had some of the gravel dumped there. It sure is nice having a real road from the mailbox to the house again. Hopefully we won't have to do this again for awhile.

Apple Butter

2011-10-12T20:16:00.000-04:00

cooks 6 to 8 hours in the crock pot

13! jars of the best apple butter!

Apple butter is my most favorite thing that I have learned to put up in the Fall. It's fun to go to the orchard and pick out the apples, knowing that half of them will end up being my apple butter. I make it in the crock pot and it takes all day so the house smells sooooo good! I have added an extra step to the recipe though. After it cooks all day and before I put it in the jars, I put it in the blender for just a few seconds. It makes all the difference in the world. It doesn't look like brown, chunky apple sauce. It actually looks like the apple butter you buy in the store...but it tastes much better! This batch should last us until next Fall, even with sharing with family and friends.

Civil War Period

2011-10-12T20:07:00.000-04:00

Confederate Uniform

Southern women dress

First Confederate flag

Yankee Uniform

Northern Woman dress

U.S. Army flag

I'm learning so much about the Civil War. There are museums, historic markers and burial grounds all around here. As much as I love the South, I have to say, the North had much nicer uniforms and period clothing for the women. It seems that the Yankees where better equipped to fight a war also. At least that is the conclusion that I have come to by watching the Reenactments. This period of history interests me and I'm having fun learning all about it.

Oktoberfest in Cullman

2011-10-03T08:20:00.001-04:00

One man band

Lady in her pretty dirndl

1/2 brat, brown bread, german potato salad, cucumber salad,sauerkraut and apple dessert

October 1, was the first day of Oktoberfest in Cullman. It goes on for a week. It was suppose to be the first Oktoberfest with "beer" because the city of Cullman voted to not be " dry" any more, but we didn't see any signs of " beer" anywhere. (As Christina says...how can you have Oktoberfest without beer?...lol )When we were talking to a lady in her "German dirndl" she asked us if we wanted free tickets for a bratwurst tasting at 11:30. Of course we took them but didn't know what to expect. We walked around until it was time to get in line for the brat tasting. They had the people with the tickets to get in front of the line and then they started dishing up a whole meal to give us. It was wonderful! (I always did like eating all the German food that Christina made, when I was growing up) After eating, we walked down to the used book store and I got two bags of books ( they're 5 for $1...I know! how can you not come home with at least two bags full) We had also bought a big bag of pretty ripe tomatoes there at one of the booths on the street and some beautiful hand towels in a store called " A Touch of German". Well, Oktoberfest in Cullman, can't compare to our experiences in Germany but it's still a fun morning for being in Alabama.

It's Cotton Picken Time!

2011-10-02T11:47:00.000-04:00

My Cotton Bouquet

A field not far from our house

It's " cotton picken time" again! It's just so neat to drive past the cotton fields and see all the " white". It amazes me how this all turns into clothes, sheets, towels, etc. I wonder who figured out that all this fluffy white stuff that grows on a plant could be turned into such things? Maybe I'll have to " google the history of cotton" one of these days. It sure makes a great bouquet for the fall. Ya never have to put it in water and it will last forever.

Pumpkins, pumpkins and fun pumpkins!

2011-10-02T09:44:00.000-04:00

Find Chuck

Mamaw and Papaw

yep! I'm a real kitty.

Our three stacked pumpkins

On the way home after passing the state line, we came upon this produce place that had tons and tons of pumpkins. Really FUN ones too! I've always wanted some that you can stack and that I got! The bottom one was called a " peanut pumpkin". It does look like there are peanuts all over it. The next one is called a " Patty Pan"...don't ask me why. ...and the top one is called I don't know .....a "squatty, orange one?". (I'm going to save the seeds from them all and try again to grow them next summer) There were so many fun pumpkins, I just wanted to walk around and look at them all. I went around the corner and happened to look down and there was a real kitty laying on a hay bale with a pumpkin next to it. Couldn't stage that picture if ya tried. lol. The neat thing is, all the pumpkins where cheap. The ones that would cost $20 in Florida, were only $8. I guess they are cheaper up here because they are locally grown, not like where they have to ship them in to Florida. I just love this time of year with all the pumpkins, hay bales, corn stocks and cool, cool weather! Another "real season" to enjoy.

Lunch in Fayetteville, TN

2011-09-30T18:28:00.001-04:00

This guy was on the sidewalk by one of the stores.

O'Houlihans ( on the corner)

Funny shelves with old timey stuff on them.

1950 House Beautiful and 1970 Better Homes and Gardens

The side of O'Houlihans

We ended up eating lunch at this really fun place called O'Houlihans. All the table and chairs were different and the food was different too. It was kinda like a " deli". I had "fruited chicken salad in a wrap and white chili. It was very good, only the chili was a bit spicy. I think Chuck had corn beef on dark rye. There was one whole wall of shelves and they had old timey stuff on them. By our table there was a stack of old magazines. I started looking through them and found a 1950 House Beautiful. It was so fun to see things that was in the magazine the year we were born. I really wanted this magazine, so when it was time to pay our bill, I asked the man who owned the restaurant if any of the stuff was for sale. He said "no, that it was all in there for people to look at". I told him how the magazine was from the year that I was born and he laughed and said they didn't even have magazines the year he was born...lol. Then, he told me to make him an offer. I offered him $5 which was high but I really wanted the magazine and didn't want him to tell me " no". He 'd didn't! He said " OK". Then, we went next door to an antique shop and was talking to the nice lady that owned it. I told her about my magazine that I just bought and she said she had some in the back of the store. ...and of course one was Better Homes and Gardens from 1970...the year we got married. Her magazines were only $2, so I came home with two really neat magazines. After looking in a couple more antique stores, we headed for home. ...with still two more stops to make.

Fabric!

2011-09-30T09:35:00.000-04:00

Sirs Fabric Store behind the bank sign.

Every color toile

The ladies of my Quilt Guild had told me about this great fabric store in Fayetteville. I was bound to find it...and we did! It was actually two stores. One across the street from each other. The one store had all the Home Dec fabrics in it and the other one had everything else. They had toile fabric in every color you could be looking for....plus checks and ticking to match each color. Yep! even my lavender and yes, I did get a yard of it and the matching check. One whole room had ribbons and trims. A person could just spend the day in there. Oh get this! They had quilting books ...FIVE for $2.99! I know! Yep! got those too. The front of the store had a " husband pit" with a couch, chairs and free coffee. Chuck didn't take an advantage of it though. He walked around and looked at all the fabrics and helped me get my fabric cut. Maybe it's a good thing that the store is in Tennessee and we live in Alabama. (smiling)

Fayetteville Tennessee

2011-09-30T09:02:00.000-04:00

Civil War Tribute

Town Gazebo

Courthouse in the middle of the square.

Okra Restaurant

Old Movie Theatre

It was just a few minutes before we were in Tennessee. It just makes the day so much fun when you can run around in a whole different state for the day and then just drive back home. I had heard how nice Fayetteville was and have been wanting to go check it out for awhile now. Since we were so close to it we decided Wednesday was the day. The town square is much bigger than Moulton's and all the stores are being used. Most of them are antique stores or businesses like a bank, drug store, etc. There were four restaurants. One of them was called " Okra"...lol. I liked that name. ...but we didn't eat there.

Only in Alabama!

2011-09-30T08:10:00.000-04:00

only in Alabama..lol

After leaving the apple orchard, Chuck looked on the map to see how far from Fayetteville TN we were and it was just a few miles up the road....so off we took. First, we stopped a couple of times while we were still in Alabama to take a couple of pictures. We laugh, every time we past the " Butter and Egg" road going to the orchard. How in the heck do these people come up with these names? lol. I guess maybe someone sold butter and eggs who lived down that road...or still does. ha. We are always passing neat old barns and they remind me of my grandfather's in Illinois. Shell wants to make a " coffee table book" of pictures of old barns. Sure are enough of them up here to do it. It's a neat idea. Maybe someday you will see one on our coffee table.

Back to the Orchard

2011-09-30T07:47:00.000-04:00

Everything we bought!

We decided it was time to go back to the orchard since we were too early last month. As we drove into the parking lot, we knew it was " time" to get apples, apple cider and pumpkins. Lots of people were there and " man! were they ever buying the apples!" Bags and bags of them. I kept wondering what the heck were they going to do with all of those apples? Mine are going to be apple butter, apple sauce and apple pies. The apple cider is the best I've ever had in my whole life. It tastes like you are drinking an apple. I think since it's going to turn cold this weekend, that "hot apple cider" is in the picture. Don't ya just love Fall!!!!!

Sun Room Update

2011-09-30T07:35:00.000-04:00

New Bee Pillow

Blue Jay and Chick a dee pillows

Both kitties love the new rug.

Flowers from the yard

I've been working really hard on getting the Sun room finished, since Debbie came and made new covers for the chase and love seat. It's really been fun making all of the new pillows. I still have a couple more to make. Lady Melanie gave me the pretty blue/white rug with the bees on it, the last time we went down to Birmingham. It goes perfect in there! The kitties think so too. As I was walking around the yard the other day, I came across a hand full of pretty flowers that said " pick me! and put me in the Sun room!" They are so pretty. Wish they would last forever.

Three little kitties.....

2011-09-29T17:31:00.000-04:00

Three little kitties, waiting to be fed.

George with his head on the rocker.

George kitty knows if he scares the indoor kitties and they run out of the laundry room without eating their food......he will end up getting it. lol His bowl on the porch is always filled with crunches and he gets the " left overs" from the other two, so he sits at the window in hoping that they will look up and see him and then " run". Most of the time it works. ...especially with Marmie. George sleeps in the funniest places on the porch. The other day I looked out and he had his chin on the rocker of the chair and was sound asleep. When I took his picture, he opened his eyes but didn't move his chin. He's such a silly cat.

Signs of Fall

2011-09-27T20:27:00.000-04:00

gourds, gourds, gourds and one little pumpkin

Indian corn

Back yard Mums

It's beginning to look a lot like Fall around here. All the little gourds I have on the back porch, I grew....except for a handful that I got out of the BNOE's garden. The only little pumpkin that survived the animals and the rot is in the middle of all my gourds. I bought some pretty "Indian corn" at the Hartselle Depot Days a couple of weekends ago. The dried okra pods are really neat looking. They took on a two color stripe as they dried on the plant. We still need to go down to Cullman and see about getting the corn stocks for the posts to the back steps. I will be on the hunt for the perfect pumpkin, like last years. I'm sure in our travels over the next month, I will find it. The weather sure is saying " Happy Fall Ya'll"! Even the trees are starting to change. This has to be one of my favorite seasons.

Back Yard News

2011-09-27T07:56:00.000-04:00

Fall Mums

the grill house

leaning pots

As we're still working on the inside of the house, we're still working on the yard. I know! the yard will NEVER be done but we have a lot to do out there. I have all these ideas in my head ....just need the money and the time and work to get them done. Chuck brought the cement bench up from the garden. Now that wasn't an easy job but thank goodness for the tractor. Since we moved, that poor bench ( or should I say, Chuck's poor back) has been under the tree in front of the barn, then it took a tractor ride down to be under the tree in the garden area and now it's up in the flower bed in the back yard. I really like it there so maybe that is where it will live ( at least for now, or until I get another brain storm and want it moved again..lol) Chuck built the " grill house" as I had pictured in my mind. It looks good right off of the deck and comes in handy when it's raining. Plus, it's keeping the grill out of the weather. We tried for two months to buy our grill. They were really popular this summer since they have a gas grill, a charcoal grill, a smoker and a side burner all in one. They couldn't keep them in stock. Chuck likes to use the charcoal grill for our steaks He uses the gas grill for everything else and he smoked his first " boston butt" a couple of weeks ago, in the smoker. Turned out wonderful!
Everyone that comes here, wants to know where we got out " stacking pots". They are pretty neat. The secret is just a steal pole with a base on it, that goes down the middle of the pots. Our " iron man" makes them. We are always running down to his house to buy "poles or big rusted flowers" for our company to take home with them. Great souvenirs of Brambly Pines...lol. ( that is if ya drive up here and not fly)

Fried Green Tomatoes

2011-09-23T09:37:00.000-04:00

Melanie's Armoire

Lady Melanie showing her " Fried Green Tomatoes".

my fried chicken, fried okra,cabbage,cole slaw,fried green tomatoes,sweet potatoes AND peanut butter pie!

Pictures from the movie

Sunday, we finally! took Lady Melanie's armoire that we bought way back in June down to Birmingham. I am honored to be " The Lady's Personal Shopper". It's way too much fun! Melanie had us on the " look out" for an armoire. Well, we found one and Melanie said she trusted me on it because everything that I like, she likes and vise versa. Sooooo, the armoire came home with us and stayed in the barn all summer. We just couldn't figure out the time to take it down, since we all had such a busy summer. Sunday was the day! Chuck loaded it up in the truck and off we went to Birmingham. After unloading it and taking it into Melanie's living room, which it stayed until she could get her strong son and SIL to come move it upstairs. ( they had to take it outside again and up a ladder and through one of the two story windows....I know...scary huh?...well, it wouldn't fit going up the stairs because of the landing) Melanie took us out for lunch at the most fun place ever. If you remember, Fanny Flagg is from Birmingham and when she wrote the book " Fried Green Tomatoes" the "real" Whistel Stop Cafe" was the " Irondale Cafe". The train tracks run right in front of it. The food was WONDERFUL!!!! and there were lots of pictures on the walls about the " movie". Two trains even went by, while we were eating. We had the best time and was " stuffed" when we left. I even bought a " Whistel Stop Cafe Cook book". When it was time to come home, we loaded the truck up with many, many presents from Lady Melanie.....(my head is spinning, trying to remember all of them. ) Thank you Lady Melanie for another fun day with you in Birmingham!

Hartselle Depot Days

2011-09-19T17:08:00.000-04:00

Down town Hartselle decorated for Fall

there were two streets of tractors

Really cute puppet show...they were all singing

Santa and Andrea

Santa's wooden sleigh that he made

Saturday was " Hartselle Depot Days". We missed it last year because we were moving into the house over that weekend. Can you believe we've been in the house a " whole!" year?? It feels like we have lived up here a long time and always in the house to me. The adventure of the TT seems so long ago. I feel like this is home and I lived in Florida in my " younger years"..lol. Any ways....back to the " Depot days". Chuck didn't go with me because he volunteered for a " work day" in the forest. ...soooooo I went with my good friend Andrea. It was a lot of fun and one of the better " festivals" around here. Lots and lots of craft booths, food, music, old cars and tractors. It was right down town Hartselle so you also had all of the stores open to browse through. Of course since Andrea grew up around here, she knew half the people at the festival...ha. I actually did know a couple of people there also. Even Santa was there!! and he brought his beautiful wooden sleigh ( that he made himself) . After eating a wonderful steak sandwich for lunch, while listening to some great music sung by a local guy, we headed to do some shopping in Decatur. When Chuck got home from the forest, I told him that he would probably want to go to " Depot Days" next year. I know I will.

Things Happen

2011-09-14T08:52:00.000-04:00

I found him!

The road where the truck broke down

Big Leaf Magnolia

Well, I guess you can't have 365 good days in a row....no matter how good your life is. Things happen! Yesterday morning, as I was getting ready to go to Quilt Guild, Chuck informed me that he was going with a guy from " Wild South" to " map canyons" in the forest. I thought, ok...that is cool. He's going to be with someone else, so I won't worry about him going into the forest, like I do when he goes alone. He left before I did and said he would call me when I got to QG to tell me what canyon they would be at. After getting to my meeting, I noticed he never called. I really didn't think much of it, just thought he forgot. Then at 11:30, Janice Joplin starts singing in my purse. ( I tease Chuck about how Janice couldn't really sing) Chuck called to ask me if I had eaten lunch with QG yet? I needed to come to the forest and rescue him. The " mapping" was canceled because the other guy couldn't go, so Chuck decided to drive part of the forest that he had never been in before. I know! ya would think with him being in the truck, he would be safe and I wouldn't have to worry about him....wrong! He hit something on the little gravel road and it knocked a hole in the radiator cooler thingy in front of the truck and all the fluid drained out.....so the truck wouldn't go any farther. He was stuck in the forest...where cell phones don't work. He walked about 1/4 mile to a higher road and was able to get his phone to work long enough to tell me he was stuck. So, I packed everything up and left down town Decatur and headed to the forest.( about an hour drive) When I got to the Out Post, I tried calling him to get the directions to where he was. Now, mind ya, I have never driven in the forest alone before and I really don't pay much attention when Chuck is driving because it all looks the same to me. Up and down, winding roads...and trees! It took me calling 6 times to get the information because I'd only get maybe two words of it each time before the phone would drop the call. I started out, thinking...."ok, I have to get this right or I might never find him". Once I got into the forest, I knew I couldn't call him and tell him where I was and where was he? I was proud of myself though because I actually found him by the directions he gave me. He climbed into the Explorer and back to Moulton we went. First we went to the " Ford Dealer" to see if they had the part Chuck needed for the truck.....nope! ( didn't think they would, being a small town dealer). The mechanic did give him a little bag of clamps and a hose to use though. Next, we had to go to Walmart to get the fluid that leaked out of the truck.....nope...none at Walmart. So, next stop was Auto Zone...where Chuck had to buy 14! bottles of fluid stuff. THEN, we had to drive home so he could get his tools and I fed the cats...because I knew we could be gone for hours yet. We climbed back into the Explorer and headed BACK to the forest. ( it's about a 30 minutes drive) I have taught myself to " play Pollyanna" when something not good happens....so as I was walking down the little road in the forest ( while Chuck worked on the truck) I started thinking that we were lucky that I actually " found Chuck". ....and he knew how to work on cars, so the truck wouldn't be stuck out there forever. Then, I had my camera with me so I could take some pictures of things around us AND I also had my sewing with me since I had come from Quilt Guild. I sat in the Explorer and worked on my " hand sewn quilt" until Chuck got the truck fixed. Well, it's " not fixed" but he rigged it so he could get it home. My instructions were to follow him and honk like crazy if I saw fluid leaking out from the truck. Luckily, nothing leaked and we made it home. Not how we planned on spending our day....but..." things happen".

She's Back!

2011-09-11T09:25:00.000-04:00

Cheers to another visit

New ironing board cover

Alabama mud on her tires!

Good Bye for the second time.

A week later, Debbie came back! She was headed home. Her last leg of a 3000 mile trip. ( glad it was her in that SUV for that many miles and not me...lol) It was fun, having her come back so soon. Yes, she even did another sewing project for me while she was here. She made two....that's TWO! ironing board covers. I have an over sized ironing board and you can not find the covers anywhere but on line and they are very expensive. The rest of that day, Debbie took a long nap, getting rested for her long day of driving the next day. I can't believe she came and went....twice already. She promised that she would be back and I believe her. We used to spend a lot of time together in Florida and having her come to Brambly Pines, it made me realize how I missed her not being just a few minutes away. Thanks for making Brambly Pines, your Bed and Breakfast on your trip, Debbie.

Moon Flowers

2011-09-11T08:37:00.000-04:00

Blooming in the rain

Want to plant some " fun flowers"?.....plant " Moon Flowers". They actually bloom at night ...not during the day. They smell wonderful too. I planted some last summer but they didn't do well because they didn't get enough sun, over by the TT. This summer they are blooming their little hearts out. The flower is big...about the size of your hand. I remember Marina having " moon flowers" in Gainesville, outside her kitchen window, but of course I never saw them bloom. If there was anything "different or neat", Marina had it in her yard. After all, she was the " Gardening Editor of the Gainesville Sun". Lady Melanie always plants " moon flowers" along with " morning glories" in her yard. What a neat combination. I think it will be one of my " gardening traditions" from here on out.

Saturday Visitors

2011-09-10T09:11:00.000-04:00

Lady Melanie and Miss Lillie show the stromboli, ready to go in the oven

Miss Lilie wanted to get in Auntie Barbara's tub.

Present time!

We were honored to have Lady Melanie, Kellet, Miss Lillie ( who is talking so much since the last time I saw her. She can count to 21, say her ABCs, say the Blessing and sing songs....AND she won't be two until Nov.) and Miss Lulu come from Birmingham for a short but fun Saturday visit. They catered lunch! Kellet instructed Lady Melanie on how to make a homemade Stromboli to go along with a garden salad that I had made. They also brought Brown Sugar bars and I made " Dixie Lee's German Apple cake". It rained the whole time they were here, but it didn't spoil eating lunch on the porch. After the fun time of presents and lunch, it was time for them to head back south. It was all too short of a time and can't wait for them to come back soon. I know! I know! I have been slacking on taking pictures lately. Don't ask me why....I need to just carry the camera around with me, no matter what I'm doing. I didn't even get a picture of sweet Miss Lulu.

Civil War

2011-09-08T09:55:00.001-04:00

how they spent the weekend, just like in the war

Battle at Decatur

Well, we went to " The Civil War" again. I think last years was better but I still enjoyed going again. After all, I got another " homemade root beer" and got to see all the neat " period costumes" and I never get tired of that. I still don't understand why the soldiers just lined up and shot each other. Who ever had the most soldiers standing...won. Living in the " South" now, I'm learning more and more about the Civil War. It's a very interesting "history lesson" to me. I'm really interested in all of the " Civil War Quilts" that people made and make now. The clothes are fun too, but I sure wouldn't have wanted to wear them in the hot, hot summer. We were hot, in our summer clothes, sitting in the shade, drinking our cold root beer, watching the battle. I felt sorry for the " dead soldiers, laying out on the field in the hot, hot sun, not being able to move until the battle was over. More power to all of the people who are involved in this event every year.

Mooresville

2011-08-31T19:18:00.001-04:00

double click on the pic of the sign and it will get larger so you can read it.

We finally made it to Mooresville. We had heard so much about it and I can see why. Last week the news anchor on the noon news, said it was the best kept secret about Alabama. It's this little neighborhood that was built in the early 1800's. It's about three streets wide and three streets long. The oldest working Post Office in Alabama is there. The houses are just beautiful and you can tell they are from the 1800's. One house even had a clay tennis court. First, Chuck and I walked up and down the streets and then we got in the explorer and drove them. If I had to live in a neighborhood again, Mooresville would be the one I'd pick. We're going to go back around Christmas time. Something tells me that the whole neighborhood is going to be decorated. Charlotte said that sometimes they have " walking tours" and you can even go inside some of the homes. I sure hope I can find out when the next one is. I kept telling Chuck as we walked around, that I wish I could see what the houses looked like inside. Maybe some day, I will know.

Across the Pond.

2011-08-31T10:13:00.000-04:00

There is this " outdoor" shop that we see advertised on TV all the time and we went past it on the way to the orchard, yesterday. So, on the way back, we stopped. It sure was an entertaining place to visit. They had everything you would ever want for your yard....including $600-$800 a piece... coy for your fish pond. You can even eat lunch there in a cute little cafe. ( we didn't eat there) Now, when we see it on TV, we will know what the place looks like in person.

Apples, Apples, Peaches....

2011-08-31T09:37:00.000-04:00

Scott's Orchard is on the Alabama/Tennessee border. In fact, part of their orchard is in Tn. and the other half in Ala. Chuck had looked on line to see if they had an early crop of apples and it had said they did. Wellllllll, when we got there, they only had a few and they were the tail end of the early crop. We missed it by one day. They were going to go out to pick the next crop and make their wonderful apple cider, today.....I KNOW! We will just have to go back in the beginning of October. It's really not that far to go and we can look for our special Halloween pumpkin on that trip. They also had some pretty peaches, but we had just bought some at the Farmer's Market in Decatur. I think I will make an apple cake, some apple sauce and maybe a tart with the basket that we bought.

Farmer's Market

2011-08-31T08:57:00.000-04:00

We started our day with stopping at Decatur's Farmer's Market. It's open every morning during the summer. Everything there, is grown local. So many pretty veggies, it's hard to choose from. We ended up getting some peaches, beautiful tomatoes, shelled zipper peas and a cantaloupe. We stuck them all in the cooler in the explorer and took off for the TN. border.

Not Just Company

2011-08-30T21:08:00.000-04:00

sewing Debbie!

I hate ladders!

Chuck's tie pillow

sewing chair

Sun room love seat.

sun room chase

I can't believe that Debbie finally came to Brambly Pines! We've been talking on the phone for almost two years, planning on her coming up. She drove up from Florida, last Wednesday and got here around dinner time. There was time for the " tour" of the house, the garden, the girls house and the barn, before dark. Thursday, I showed her around Moulton and we did a little shopping. Thursday night, she went to Book Club with me and it happened to be out at Betty's house ( who is in Quilt Guild with me) because the book we read this month was called " The Good Bye Quilt". Betty offered to have the meeting at her house and have a " bed turning".....which is layering all the quilts she had made and pulled them off one at a time to show each one. I knew Debbie would enjoy going with me, since she also quilts. It was fun having everyone meet Deb and her everyone. We had plans on spending the next day, going to the orchard on the TN border, showing Debbie Huntsville and then going to check out Mooresville. ( some place Chuck and I have never been) The plans got changed because Debbie didn't feel well, riding in the car along with the heat, so we came back home and as she felt better, she offered to do some projects. First we stenciled the saying that I had in the TV room in the Florida house, over the kitchen windows and Debbie had promised me that when we moved into the new house, she would come up and help me with the saying. It turned out to be easy because we only used the words to the stencil and not the scroll to it. Next, project was covering the computer chair that I had Chuck bring up from the barn, to use at my sewing machines. I knew Deb could do a much better job of it then me and it turned out sooooo cute! Then, I had a " tie pillow" all cut out and ready to sew since about a year before we even moved. I dug that out and we finished that. It's so pretty, in the black/white chair in Chuck's room. Next!!!!!! Debbie recovered the cushion to the chase in the sun room and when she got that finished, she did the cushion to the love seat and made the two pillows for it also. You don't know how happy I was to have those cushions done!!!!! I had done the two chair cushions when we first moved in and I couldn't make myself tackle the others. Thank you!! thank you!! thank you!! Debbie!!!! The " over 100 year old wicker" that's in the sun room, actually came from Debbie. She didn't have a use for it any more when she moved and I traded her a HUGE! Stag horn fern for it. I think it was a perfect trade for both of us. Debbie is the kind of company everyone should have. In fact, she is off to visit a friend in Kansas City to help with her son's wedding. In a week, she is heading back this way and stopping in St. Louis to visit friends and maybe some in TN. Then, she will come back here to spend one or two nights before heading for home. I told her I wasn't sad when she left the other day like I am when all my other company leaves, because I knew she would be back in just a week. When she leaves again....then I will be sad. She promises to come back though and I'm going to hold her to it. We have always been " project friends" if it wasn't at her house, it was at mine. We haven't lost that, even though we are now 12 hours apart.

The Most Fun Thing!

2011-08-23T08:00:00.000-04:00

I had the most fun of all summer, a couple evenings ago....digging my sweet potatoes! On the way to the " Watermelon Festival", we saw a man sitting on the back of his truck which was FULL of sweet potatoes...for sale. That is why I knew it was time to dig mine. Just from planting six plants in the Spring, I got a whole BIG bucket full. The vines took over half of the garden all summer but it was worth it. It's a little weird not washing the dirt off of them but that is what I was told to do. I'm sure I will be tired of eating sweet potatoes before they are all gone, because Chuck doesn't like them, but I will share with Shell when she comes up. Since I didn't wash them, they are suppose to last for months in a cool place. Of course I had to taste one already. I made roasted veggies for dinner the next night and cut one up to go with regular ( for Chuck) potatoes, yellow squash, asparagus and some carrots ( from the garden) . It was the sweetest sweet potato that I have ever had. ...no kidding. Next summer I will have sweet potatoes taking over the garden again. They are the most fun thing that I have grown......so far.