DECADE PICS FOR 2010

With so much going on this last day of October there will be 2 post tonight. One of the regular activities and one for the 2010 decade pictures.
This October has been a wonderfully, unseasonably warm and sunny month.The weather allowed much outside play and work time and the low moisture delayed the leaf color for almost 2 weeks and we still haven't had what I call a killing frost yet.We made our yearly trip to the pumpkin patch to pick out jack-o-lantern pumpkins,#1 son got to go along this year as he is still on crutches and carrying a wound vac.
October 11 brought the birth of my first great nephew M .













In farm news this month brought the addition of 15 Silkie hens,roosters and chicks which g-son is happy with.Found time to this month to attend some local festivals. This one at the old train depot in town.Hubbie looks over some antiques at Fall Harvest Days at the WNC Ag Center in Fletcher.G-son turned 4 years old on the 16th.#1 son turned 29 on the 16th.Curb Market has been good for me this month.A perfect ending was our church's first trunk or treat event to go along with our usual All Saints Carnival.
This has been a busy but fun month for our family. Hubbie was elected Deacon and we have became more involved with church activities.
I had my knees examined by an orthopedic specialist and received good news of no visible damage from an injury 2 years ago. I replaced my old double oven with a new one that should cut down on the time I stand in the kitchen baking cakes.
#1 son finally got the wound vac off his leg and the wounds are healing but he received the bad news of his leg bone is put back twisted and will have to be re-broke and re-set.
#2 son is still working steadily at the Post Office still awaiting cut back decisions.
Daughter is busy with 4 jobs as usual and has spent most of this month pet sitting while baking,working weekends at Fatz Cafe and working at school in her regular job. Her Volleyball team lost in the second round of state play-offs so she is getting a break from coaching.
October marks the end of the gardening season along with a restful feeling that comes with the cooling temperatures .
Praying that the Lord might grant me many more of these busy October months in years to come.
Good Night and God Bless.

HALLOWEEN TRUNK OR TREAT AND 2 nd VERSION OF BROWN MTN. LIGHTS

Halloween day 2010 started out with church. We have one more Sunday in Romans and we will have covered the entire book. I like these sermons,it is a way of learning about each book of the Bible.
After church one of the gentlemen followed us home to pick up his coconut cake.
We had a small lunch bunch today,only #2 son ,hubbie and I.
After lunch I decorated the back of my van for the trunk or treat at church.We put the finishing touches on our costumes and them hubbie had to go early to a Deacon's meeting.
I got there and sat up before he came down to get his costume on but we had plenty of time before the kids got there.Abraham and Sarah at your service !! Although a lot of guesses were Mary and Joseph.Everyone was surprised at how many costumed kids came through tonight. It was a continuous line from start to finish, actually almost 30 minutes longer then planned. We gave out every piece of candy we had, thankfully there is no candy in the house tonight!!
One of the most original costumes I saw was this Oscar the Grouch costume.There were many parents and grandparents that got into costume for the occasion.This jailbird is a fellow grandparent, he had 2 daughters the same ages as my 2 sons in high school so now we are starting on round 2 !!But you know my favorite of all was this little Ironman.G-son was sure enjoying his unsick Halloween for a change.
Some estimates of trunk or treaters tonight were around 400,wow that's a lot of kids and for a first time trunk or treat at our church that was an amazing number.
Everyone had a wonderful time of fellowship and fun.

Not expecting to be home so late I did my chores by flashlight tonight.
We ate a late supper and then I wrote up Avon orders.
If you read yesterday's post you saw one explanation of the Brown Mountain Lights with a promise of the other version tonight with a special surprise.
Below is a rendition of the legend I was told by my dad while I grew up. I guess no one really knows or will ever know the true story behind the mysterious lights.
Enjoy this version as this Halloween eve comes to an end,I hope yours was a safe and fun one.

BROWN MOUNTAIN LIGHTS? ANSWER # 1

BRRRRR!!!!!! Well it had to happen sooner or later, a visit from Jack Frost for us was long over due. Here's some mint leaves this morning as they shiver in the freshly dropped frost.
It also made it hard to get out from under those warm covers!
Market day is fun on Halloween, I dust off the old witch hat for this day.Daughter went with me to help this morning as Sears is delivering my new oven today between 10 am and noon. Hubbie stayed behind to help them get it into the kitchen.
We had a busy day both of us worked pretty regular all morning.
At home the stove was here about 10:30 and #2 son who is off for his once a month long weekend came up and he and Hubbie got it installed and ready to go. It took them a couple hours to get everything done.Love it,love it, love it !!! Can't wait to try it out !!!
Daughter and I walked up to a re-sale shop when we left market. I found a shirt I don't need and she found a scarf that I bought for her to give her at Christmas.
I always do this every year when we go shopping and she sees something that is to expensive for her budget right then ,I'll get it for her and put it away and she is still always surprised at Christmas because she always forgets about it. That's one way of getting her something I know she likes.
I went to pick up next weeks supplies and some candy for trunk or treat at church tomorrow night and she went to get some cabbage for lunch tomorrow and then to carve pumpkins with her b/f .
I lit up my pumpkins tonight in case some trick or treaters come out tonight.No one showed up tonight.We live pretty far off the road so unless it's people we know we usually don't have many kids come by our house.
Mmmmmm!!!! we had more of our fresh broccoli tonight with some fresh green beans I bought at market.Love this photo, I set my camera on night portrait to capture the fiber optics on this witch who watches for trick or treaters.
Here is the witch at the same time on auto setting.The fiber optics didn't show up.
There is another legend in these parts that I have heard about since I was a child. The Brown Mountain lights have been a mystery for years and years. There are 2 different ideas about what causes these mysterious lights.
Here is one with some pretty impressive reasoning behind it.

Tomorrow I'll publish the other one with a special treat. I wish all my friends a safe and fun Halloween.

BOY MEETS CHICK ???????

Cool morning but still no frost up here on our hill. The temp only got down to about 37.
Took care of all my chickens ,I'll sure be glad when I can get another lot made so I won't have them separated into so many different pens.
I started baking as soon as I got back inside,as the last cakes cooked I iced 6 caramel cakes.
#1 son and g-son came in at lunch to meet his wound care nurse. Yea, the wound vac can stay off and she is just going to watch this cut. It appears to be healing properly now.Thank you Lord for small victories for son.

Boy meets chick ( the feathered kind) !!!!


I think they will be fine friends !!
Uh Oh, there's a new rooster in the hen house !!!


This is a rare photo of all 6 of my layer breed hens and roosters.
See those bushes in the background of this picture, well they are all gone tonight.
After son and g-son left I went to work at church for a while then came home and went to work clearing a place for my new chicken lot. Hubbie came home from work and got the chainsaw after some larger bushes that needed to be cut. We got the area cleaned up and layed out where we want the fences to go.
Hubbie has to build a new hen house before we build the lot.
With all the bushes gone I can see the chickens from the sunroom windows.
After a hotdog supper hubbie and I headed back to church to finish work.
My back is letting me know just how much work I've done today but, you know what, someone has to do it !!!My favorite Halloween decoration !!!!

If you happen to be driving on I-26 in Henderson County and pass these flowers on the side of the interstate please take a moment to say a prayer for the families of the 5 people that lost their lives here last Sunday night in a massive pile up.

It is midnight and I've got my heating pad warming up for my back .
Thanking God for my health and blessings of today.
Good Night and God Bless.

HELEN'S BRIDGE

It's a very foggy morning this morning ,the rain stopped about midnight last night.
Market started off slowly but I wound up with a pretty decent day by the end.
After running regular errands I made a couple Avon deliveries before getting home around 5. Hubbie was already here and after we unloaded the van we had a soup and sandwich supper.
There is definitely a nip in the air this evening after a 70 degree afternoon.
During chores I herded all the little new silkie chicks into the enclosed portion of their new home and closed the door,they should be warm in there with the 2 big hens. It is suppose to be in the mid 30's and very windy tonight,brrrr.

While living my entire life in these mountains I've heard many tales,stories and legends of goings on in these parts.
With Halloween only days away it's time for a good ole fashion ghost story don't ya think??
If you are from anywhere around here you have heard the story of Helen's bridge.
The huge mansion at the top of Beaucatcher Mountain known as the Zealander Castle is home to this story. Some say Helen was the housekeeper,some say she was the owners mistress but all agree she had only one worldly possession and that was her beloved daughter who burned to death in the only wooden room in the castle when she was about 4 years old.
Those who have visited the bridge have varying stories to tell of slaps , hot air and mostly broken down automobiles. Seems Helen likes to tamper with the batteries of automobiles.This is one ghost seekers picture of a stump on the rocks under the bridge,you be the judge?????
Enjoy the ghostly tale of Helen's Bridge......

ADOPTING MORE SILKIES

Whew!! what a night of weather.Trees down.....Water,water everywhere....
But here we were very lucky with all the damage this storm caused in other places as it crossed the country.
A little driveway scraping and ditch cleaning and we'll be back to normal around our place. That'll have to wait until Friday because it rained off and on all day today. Our creek didn't flood at least not yet !!! We have 4" in our rain gauge this evening.
Did the morning chores in the rain for the 2nd day in a row. The hens didn't even want to come out of their nice dry house when I opened the door they usually come flying out but this morning they timidly stuck their heads out.I had to laugh at them.
I worked in the kitchen all morning baking pound cakes and icing caramel cakes.
The friend called that has the Silkie chickens and ask me to come and get the rest of them today because he ran out of feed and the other man who said he wanted them never got back with him.
#1 son came and met with his nurse and she took the wound vac off to see waht happens between now and Friday. Then she'll decide whether to put it back on or if he gets rid of it permanently,that will be a huge step back to normalcy. He was happy with just a few days without lugging it around.
After lunch I discovered I needed Chocolate chips for my icing and also their is some small chicks in the bunch of silkies so I headed to Tractor Supply for some starter grower for the young chicks and some scratch feed for the older hens. Aldi is next door so I picked up the chocolate chips so I could get the chocolate cakes iced.
As the sun finally broke through the clouds for a while I hurried outside to set up an old rabbit cage with some renovations to make it chick friendly. I put it inside the big lot where all the other chickens are so it would be safe.
I think it will work great for the babies and mamas.
I waited for daughter to get home from work so I would have a chicken catching partner. Her volleyball team lost last night so their season is over. She hasn't been able to come straight home from work since school started.
My friend told me this morning he wouldn't be home but to get all the chickens.We found 2 teenage white ones which he said escaped the lady who came to get the rest of the white ones after I got mine a couple weeks ago.There were 2 of these red roosters who did not want to be caught at all!!We finally rounded up all 7 of the babies who thankfully have most of their feathers as it is supposed to start getting pretty cool and I really don't want to have to rig up a warming light.2 of these pretty red mamas and they were showing their wonderful mothering traits tonight as I went to check on them thinking I would have to put them in the enclosed part of the cage only to find 1 of the mamas already inside with all the small chicks. The 2 teenage chicks were being typical teenagers so I think the other mama settled them down outside in the wire part but tonight the temperature is almost 60 degrees so they'll be fine.
Friday is the day for building another chicken lot and maybe converting a large wooden dog house into a silkie house ? Hubbie just shakes his head when I plan all this but I know he likes animals as much as I do.
As if right on cue tonight as soon as chores were finished the rain started again. Thankfully not as hard as last night's and the wind isn't blowing.
Daughter was already hard at work doing her baking. We had some fresh greens for supper and then I did paperwork until Survivor came on TV.
We loaded the van tonight with all the baked goods just in case it is raining again in the morning.
Thanking God for the blessings of today and asking for comfort for the accident victims families.
Good Night and God Bless.

2000 DECADE PICS AND MORE SAD NEWS

Another welcome cloudy,rainy day greeted me this morning as I hurried between showers to do the morning chores.
Back inside I started laundry then fired up the ovens to finish baking my layers for caramel,chocolate and coconut cakes.
Hopefully next week my baking time will be significantly less with my new ovens.
The last cakes came out of the ovens about 1:00 and then housework had to be done.
When hubbie got home from work we did chores early because it looks like the storms are definitely coming and we are under a tornado watch.This is the ominous looking clouds that were really boiling while we were outside.
Almost as soon as we got inside the hard rains came. Rain,wind,lightening and thunder like a mid-summer storm.Although the hard rain has stopped we are expecting more storms and this is how our area looks on the maps until 3 am we are still under the tornado watch and sever storms are expected even into tomorrow.
Hubbie drove down to get the mail during a break in the rain and he said our driveway is washing as the ditches are all full of leaves. This happens almost every year,wish we had money to pave the long drive.
As the weather is really the only news for today its a good day to continue the decade pics for October.
Here is what we were doing in 2000 in this month.
Here is hubbie and I, Wow what a difference 10 years makes !!Hubbie doing his yearly October chore of splitting firewood for winter. He gets encouragement from old Willie who just passed away this past summer.
#2 son on the homecoming court with his girlfriend at the time Jessica.The Key Club at the highschool worked a kids carnival for a local business and here #2 son helps a lost child.#1 son with his at the time girlfriend Dottie and little cousin Leah on his 19th birthday.Daughter on Halloween with friend Jessica ( #2 son's girlfriend).We had quite a few goats at that time and here is daughter with a French Alpine,they all had names but I can't recall them right now.As daughter hits the ball here,Volleyball season winds down and basketball season starts.
With #1 son out of highschool and working for a local construction company we missed our first football season in many years . I can't remember going to any games except the homecoming game when #2 son was on the court.Volleyball was our only fall sport but now we were headed into winter with both the highschoolers left playing basketball we'll make up for our lack of bleacher but for sure! Good memories for sure !!!!

As I type this tonight I can hear the rains pouring down again and the wind is starting to pick up .
We did need the rain to wet down all these dry leaves that are falling.

In closing I have some sad news tonight, the young lady that played basketball with my daughter that was involved in the deadly wreck Sunday night passed away early this morning as her parents and husband made the decision to take her off life support.
Another young life wasted,this couple had only been married 2 years and both had recently gotten their dream jobs , I can only imagine what this young man who is still in the hospital with injuries of his own sustained in the accident,is going through right now.This is Amber who her husband calls his soul mate.
I'm asking all my blog friends to send prayers his way. His name is Chris,he is a widower at the young age of 26. God bless him and all the family as well as the families of the other victims.
The truck driver who failed to stop is still being held in jail. He made his first court appearance this morning, he is from Bulgaria and can't speak English so they are having to call in interpretors to communicate with him.
I think now each time I meet one of these huge trucks on the road I will surely wonder if the driver can even understand the writing on the road signs????????

Praying with a heavy heart tonight that God gather these grieving families in His loving arms and give them the comfort they so desperately desire.
Good Night and God Bless.