AUGUST DOESN'T LEAVE QUIETLY !!!

Okay my most disliked market day of the year has arrived !!  Up an hour earlier than usual and out to do chores. The animals sleepily looked at me as if to say " leave us alone and let us sleep" !!
Hubbie and I arrived at market at 8am instead of the usual 9:30. The parking lot was already filling up. Daughter had gone to the black berry patch at 7am to pick before she gets here. I sold briskly as most regular customers were here early to beat the crowds. Daughter got to market with her berries and baked goods at 10am.  She had a line form as soon as she walked through the doors with those huge berries.
She was sold out of the 7 gallons she picked in less than 2 hours.
Hubbie left to come home and mow the lawn before the predicted higher chances of rain for the next couple days. Today is beautiful but hot with high's reaching 90+ here on the streets of downtown.
I saw many really exhausted,sweating folks come back from the main street festival.
This is the 67th year of this festival.

There is plenty of the main item for sale at the booths up town along with about anything you can think of that can be made from apples.

After hearing all the complaints from folks coming back from the street about hour hot and crowded it was it made me even more sure that I wasn't going to go up to the street today.
Kaitlyn,my adopted daughter from when she was daughter's little sister came by and brought daughter and me some french fried apples back from her trip down the street. She is back to UNC @ Greensboro on Monday.
This is a pic from the newspaper site of the street earlier today, I can only imagine it later in the day.

I sold completely out of all my baked goods. Daughter only had just a few of her breads left so we loaded and made our way out of town.
As I left market I noticed some really scary looking clouds looking like they were headed for town.
As I made my way toward home stopping at Aldi to pick up a few baking supplies for next week the clouds had almost caught up with me and the lightening strikes were ominous looking as they flashed to the ground. I was going to stop at Ingles for some things for our Sunday lunch tomorrow, but changed my mind as the wind and rain began to pelt large drops sideways as I drove.
When I got home the rain was catching up to me quickly as hubbie and I hurriedly unloaded the van and got inside.
We had a snack and watched the rain for awhile. As we watched the radar on TV the worst of the storm passed to the west and south of our area. Which meant it went right through the middle of downtown and the festival. I only hope that the vendors had their tents tied down good !!
The storm passed through and the sun came back out making it feel like a sauna outside. I went back to Ingles for my groceries and then relaxed for the evening.
Hubbie grilled us a couple steaks tonight to have with some fresh green beans I bought from a neighbor today.
A good way to end a very busy month.
As August comes to an end I look back over the month and think how different this year's August has been. The month of August is usually my biggest food preserving month but this year with all the rain practically washing out our garden I have only a few frozen blackberries to show in the food storage category.
Curb Market business has been very good this month even with the rain falling almost everyday at some time. 
I got visits from newly found cousins and blog followers from out of state on two different occasions.
#1 son bought #2 son's house this month and he plans on moving his family in in the coming weeks.This is good for hubbie and I so at least one of the three kids will still be close.
We spent some time this month helping daughter prepare her classroom for her high school teaching debut.
#2 son has decided to buy a house instead of building on the lot he bought after a couple builders gave him estimates of what the house he wants would cost to build.
G-son began his first grade year of school with teacher, Mrs. Dalton. He isn't as eager to get to school this year as he was last year but it has gotten better with each day so far.
Hatching chicks, Dolly the poodle with a bad reaction to flea meds,dog attacks on cattle, extra kids to watch, birthday party for a great nephew, nursery duty and other extra church services, stormy days and nights with lots of mud plus getting into a new schedule for the upcoming school year mixed in with all the other things that happened in August 2013 have made for a very busy, no time to slow down month.  My life is full right now and I love it as time ticks on down with each second,minute,hour,day, week and month of this year. I notice each day grows a bit shorter than the day before as I shut up my chickens each evening after they go to roost in their houses. Only 4 more months in this year. Where does time go ???? 
I will end this month with this thought .......

Good Night and God Bless.

BUSY "BEFORE APPLE FESTIVAL" FRIDAY

Storms during the night kept me up for almost two hours before the noise quietened down enough for me to sleep. There was only an inch in the rain gauge this morning but it sounded like a whole lot more rain, guess it was all the wind with the rain.
The clouds hung dark and low until lunchtime then the sun made a few peeks out this afternoon to warm the temperature into the mid 80's.
It didn't much matter to me what was going on outside with all I had to do today.
I spent the morning baking cakes, 34 layers and 4 pound cakes. I was out of town last year on Apple Festival Saturday so I'm not sure what to expect tomorrow.
After lunch I caught up my house cleaning for the week and did a load of month ending laundry.
While all this was going on I finally successfully got my next blog book downloaded on Booksmart. I had to do it under the Internet Explorer operating system instead of the Firefox system I usually use.
#1 son was off today so he picked up g-son from school and gave me the evening off. I would hardly call it "an evening off" as I had 12 caramel cakes and  5 chocolate cakes to ice and then get everything labeled and ready to load.
Hubbie and I went ahead and loaded everything in the van tonight so we can get an extra early start in the morning. If you don't get there early the parking lot fills with festival goers and there is no where to unload.
Off to bed tonight to hopefully make up for the lost sleep of last night.
Thankful to the Lord for my health and strength He gives me each day.
Good Night and God Bless.

HEAT OF SUMMER MAKES A RETURN

After getting g-son to school I hurried through chores and made it to market a few minutes early. There was no crowd of customers there even though this is the Thursday before Apple Festival weekend.
I had a pretty good day but I am wondering what Saturday will be like with the slow sales of today and the comments from many folks who say they wouldn't dare come into town on Saturday.
I worked on making towel angels today, getting 14 angels finished and ready for sale.

I had these apple towels that really made pretty angels.

Seems everything was turning up apples today, even me with my apple vest for the occasion.

It was very warm in the un- air conditioned market today and when I looked at the thermometer in the van afterward I knew why.

So much for complaining about not having any summer this year !!!!
I ran errands, picked up baking supplies and hurried home in the heat. I unloaded the van and was putting the last of the groceries away when hubbie got home at 5:00.
We both took a break in the cool house to watch the news on TV before chore time.
Daughter's volleyball team is playing a cross county rival tonight at home but I am so wilted I won't make it to the game.
I was glad I didn't go later when she called and said it was really hot in the gym. Her JV team won but the varsity lost.
She didn't leave the gym until 9:00 tonight to make for a really long day.
I have spent the evening relaxing. Earlier I took Bernie and Dolly to sit outside but the mosquitoes quickly zeroed in on us and we came into the sunroom,turned the fan on and watched darkness fall in there.
Grateful for a loving Lord tonight.
Good Night and God Bless.

WONDERFUL UNPLUGGED CHURCH SERVICE TONIGHT

The trip to school early each morning is getting closer to sunrise with each day. It is fun to watch how much lower the sun is in the sky each day as the days get shorter and shorter. With fog every morning I hope the old wives tale about fog in August means snow in winter doesn't pan out this year.
After chores ,breakfast and devotions I took a short walk to help give me some extra energy for this busy day.
My Sedum is starting to get it's lovely fall red coloring.

We used to have a row of Lumbardi (not sure of spelling) Poplar trees along side the drive up to the barn. They all died except two and these guys are always the first trees around to drop their leaves. Actually they look for excuses to drop their leaves. Last year it was the drought and this year I can't tell if they are dropping them for an early fall season or if they are dropping because of all the rain. Who knows but it is making it look like fall is on its way around here !!

I baked 34 cake layers, 3 pound and 2 wine cakes before lunch.
I changed out my furniture covers in the living room and washed and hung the old ones out on the line to dry in the nice sunshine.  A few passing clouds made me a little nervous about leaving them out while I went to pick up g-son but we got no rain today. That makes the 6th day in a row this summer we have not had any rain for the longest span for the season.
The car rider line was extra long again today for some reason and when I talked to g-son he said he wanted to be picked up earlier, so next week I'll have to come up with a better time. #1 son is working the night shift tonight to get some work done on the interstate so he is off the next two days and will pick him up.
While he had his after school mac and cheese and Texas toast with bacon on the side with cookies for dessert I did weekly paperwork and paid bills.
#1 son is taking a nap between when he got off work for the day and when he has to go back for the night shift and d-in-love is going to church early to practice music so g-son will go with us to the "Unplugged" service tonight.
I don't usually get to these because Wednesdays are so busy but Rebecca is singing tonight and I want to be there to hear her.
I will surely say the rushed afternoon and evening before church were well worth it as I got chill bumps when she  and another young woman sang the songs they sang. They were so beautiful and touching. I'm sure that won't be the last time she will be asked to sing !!!
G-son came back home with hubbie and me to get his bath while d-in-love did some church directory work.
He got in the tub while I got out all my icing stuff and got started icing 12 caramel and 5 chocolate cakes for tomorrow at market.
With the Apple Festival in town tomorrow will probably be busy with folks getting the things they need for the weekend so they don't have to fight the crowds and parking problems of the festival.
I wish there was another location for the festival because the crowd on the narrow street is so thick it is hard to see the items the vendor's have offered for sale in most of the booths.
It is almost midnight and I am finally ready to get a relaxing bath and go to bed. I'm kind of looking forward to the slow-down in my business that always comes after Labor Day. I can pat myself on the back and congratulate myself on making it through another busy season. There will be busy spurts in October with the leaf color and before the holidays but not the extended business of the last couple months.
Thanking God for a wonderful day and the blessings of such talented young women who sang tonight in church to honor His name.
Good Night and God Bless.

APPLE TIME

After getting g-son to school I did chores and had an early breakfast so I would be ready when the couple from Asheville came after the 7 roosters I have.
They have a large field and a chicken tractor so they are going to let the roosters clean the weeds and grass from the field this fall and then have them for part of their winter meat supply.
I changed the rooster that I had chosen from this year's hatch to be the new head man around here from the silkie lot to the big hen lot. Of course the older hens were quick to put him in his place.
But with his size it won't take him long to take charge.

I wanted to get the job I started yesterday outside finished this morning before I started inside housework. This is the well house and my rose bed beside it in a before pic.

And this is the after I was finished carting off all the vines and over hanging butterfly bush limbs.

My morning consisted of 3 loads of laundry, housecleaning and some decor changes. September begins with Labor Day which around here means the annual Apple Festival. So my September decor of course would consist of apples.

And more apples .........

I only got the sunroom done and one shelf started in the living room before the bright warm sunshine called my name so loudly I had to spend 30 minutes soaking some of it up before it was time to pick up g-son.
He was in a better mood today but said he still didn't like school this year. It had something to do with not getting to have recess I'm sure !!!
We went to Grand-dads apple house for apple do-nuts on the way home. He was ravenously hungry again and ate pizza plus 2 do-nuts.
His dad went to check his deer hunting spot and his mom went shopping after work so he stayed here until almost 8:00 tonight. He played with his legos and ate more.
#2 son came by to look at houses for sale on the internet. He found one he liked and hubbie road up the road with him to check it out.  He didn't like it at all when he got to it. He found a couple more to look at tomorrow after work.
Daughter called and they won both the JV and varsity volleyball games today so she was happy. Her second day teaching went well also.
I did some sewing this evening ,finishing nine jean aprons. Six women's sized aprons.

And three smaller ones for younger girls.

I already had these cut out so I'm glad to have them all made up and ready for sale. I have been out of this type apron for several weeks.
I was planning to do some of my baking tonight but that didn't happen. It's funny how when you get in a routine it is hard to break out of it. And that's what happened tonight to me, I had plenty of time to bake some after everyone left but just couldn't get in the mood to do it.
I'll be sorry tomorrow that I didn't get that done tonight but I'll only have myself to fuss at !!!!
It's hard to believe August is almost over and with it summer is fading away or , wait,  did we actually ever have summer ????   Around here that is debatable with all the rain and cooler weather it surely hasn't been a regular summertime.
The clouds rolled in again this afternoon and it looked like it would rain any minute but it didn't and we had another dry day. The temperature at 86 degrees made it feel more summery as well so maybe we are going to get a few days of summer before it actually exits for the year.
Grateful to God tonight for the blessings of this day and for the wonderful knowledge that He is king over all !!!
Good Night and God Bless

FIRST DAY OF FIRST GRADE FOR G-SON

First day of school for g-son. D-in-love is going in late to work so she can take him to school on his first day. Hubbie and I get to sleep in a little later thanks to her today. Here he is in the same spot as last year on the way to get into the car and showing off his new bookbag.

After chores hubbie worked in the yard weedeating and planting some Kale and Collards in our fall garden. I took that long walk I have been missing with all the rainy mornings this summer. This large Blue Heron appeared to be sleeping on his perch.

Iron weed blooms in the lower pasture.

Along with these Jewel Weed with the morning dew still clinging to its dainty orange and yellow slipper blossoms along the creek bank.

The cattle and horses are searching for shade already before 10am.

Unlike the majority of the time this summer the creek is flowing along leisurely with these two ducks riding in and out of the shadows as they drift along in the morning coolness.

I came back to the house and rested with a cup of hot green tea.
Talked to d-in-love and she said g-son got off to a good start this morning. This is also daughter's first day of her teaching career. Hopefully she is off to a good start also !!
After lunch I cleaned out chicken houses. My girls have clean laying and roosting quarters tonight.

Each summer when vacation time is over I usually have some baby chicks hatched from eggs that get hidden away by some of my Silkie hens while I am gone and this year was no exception. I cleaned a bigger box today for these little guys plus another trio with another lady hen when they get a little bigger.

After the chicken box cleanings I tackled some of the over grown bushes around the yard. This Forsythia is almost blocking the entrance to this storage building.

It got a nice haircut before I headed to school to pick up g-son.

I started on another rose bed and around my well house area but will finish that area tomorrow.
Off to school to pick up g-son. The first day car rider line is always extra long but today the wait was a bit ridiculous. With a new principle evidently the routine changed and took three times as long. I arrived to get in line about 3:10 and finally made it to the pick-up area at 3:35. Last year it never took longer than 3:15 to get all the kids in  their cars.

G-son was in a subdued mood on this first after school afternoon but after some mac and cheese and bacon he was okay and said he had a good day.
His dad picked him up and hubbie and I went back to our outside cleaning.
After chores tonight daughter came by to tell us how her first day went. She seemed to have had a good day and seems to really like teaching.
#1 son brought some more things to store in the basement tonight.
I am very tired tonight from all the work today. It is going to be hard to catch up with an entire summer's work before fall starts.
The temperature of 80 degrees today makes it feel more like it should for this time of year. Seems parts of the south and north have switched weather patterns this year. Some places up north are experiencing record high temps,even triple digits were the schools don't even have air conditioning because the temps are never this high up there. While here in our area we are dropping to the cool 50's during the night and only pushing 80 degrees during the day. And we are opening windows and turning our air conditioners off !!

God is good all the time, all the time God is good !!
Good Night and God Bless.

NURSERY DUTY SUNDAY

A very nice Sunday morning but rather cool for August at 58 degrees !  Hubbie and I took our once a quarter turn taking care of the nursery this morning during church. We had 7 toddlers and 2 babies. Another couple helped us, it was their first nursery duty.
Little Evy was one of the babies as her mom had to work last night and is working again tonight. Her dad brought her to church so mom could get some sleep.
She was entertained by the toddlers until they all gathered around her and I think she got overwhelmed.
She loved to look out the window and watch the cars pass.
After church we all came here for lunch. Evy stopped by and let mom feed her and then came here for a nice nap while her dad and the rest of us ate lunch.
The old crib I brought up from the basement this last week came in very handy for her nap.

I hope she likes the color of blue because most of my baby things are blue !! She didn't mind as she snuggled up with a stuffed hippo from g-son's collection and slept for a 1 1/2 hour nap.
We had a lunch of smoked pork chops, corn on the cob, fresh green beans,slaw and baked potatoes,yummmy. Everyone made it except #2 son who was playing golf and of course Rebecca as she was sleeping. Both got left over plates for their suppers.
When little Evy woke up she and g-son discussed the activities for the rest of their day !!!

Love her hand on g-son's arm as if to say "listen to me"  !!!
These are two really cute kids !!!  After I took these pictures she actually crawled over into his lap,it was the cutest thing ever !!!

D-in-love, daughter and I went over to my favorite apple house to get some of my favorite apples, Honeycrisp. These are the juiciest of all the apples and usually are gone shortly after the Labor Day Apple Festival.

We also picked up some of their apple do-nuts and I had an apple cider slushie.
Everyone went their own ways this afternoon.
#2 son came by to look at houses for sale on the internet. I think he has decided to buy a house instead of build on the lot he owns. He found a couple he went to drive by on his way back to his condo.
#1 son and d-in-love went to my niece's house to pick up moving boxes then home to start packing some of their things. Two more weeks and they and Aaron and Rebecca will switch houses.
Hubbie and I relaxed on this beautiful evening. The temperature stayed in the mid 70's for a more fall feeling day than summer.
And the sight  of shadows  on a late afternoon have been a rare thing to see this summer.

Four-legged kids Bernie and Dolly enjoyed the warm sunshine of the evening.

#1 son brought their dining room set and put it in the basement tonight as they begin the big move.
He cleaned out their storage shed yesterday, moving most of it to a storage shed up near the barn.
This has been a really wonderful relaxing Sunday and I praise God tonight for all the love and happiness He has put in my life.
Good Night and God Bless.

BEAUTIFUL SUNNY MARKET DAY

Made it to market on time this morning. Customers were waiting but they were kind enough to let me get things inside before making their purchases.
I had a decent day of sales.  Several folks came looking for daughter and her blackberries but she is at Davidson College with the volleyball team for a tournament today. They left school yesterday about noon and will be back tonight sometime depending on how far they go in the tournament. Tipper her dog is our house guest while she is gone.
Hubbie left after we got set up to go find some corn for tomorrow's lunch and then home to mow the lawn.
I changed my table cloth to a more fall look but I'm not sure I like this better than the light green or white I did have on here. I think my baked goods show up better on a light colored solid cloth. What do you think?

It is a really beautiful sunny day today with temperatures in the mid 80's.
After market I picked up baking supplies and headed home. Hubbie helped me unload and then I had to put my feet up for  awhile.
I don't know why I am so pooped out this evening.
After we did chores hubbie and I made a trip to Sam's Club for some groceries and to look over the new TV's . We are considering a new bigger flat screened TV. Ours is very old and the picture isn't sharp at all.  After looking over the ones they have all we have is questions for the kids on which one we should get.
We bought a rotisserie chicken home for supper to go with a salad of fresh vegetables.
Daughter came in from the tournament and said they made it to the semi finals and had the talent to have won the whole thing but the girls choked in the finals. Oh well the year is just starting !!
She took some time to work on my computer trying to figure out why I am having so much trouble with the booksmart book making site. After several trys yesterday to download some of my blog for my next book and the site crashing each time she ran some tools on it to try to straighten out the trouble. I don't have the time or energy to try again tonight, maybe tomorrow.
Grateful to God tonight for the blessings of the day and for safe travel for daughter and d-in-love who took g-son with a friend of his and his mom to Carowinds today.
Good Night and God Bless.

R. I. P. REVEREND HAROLD

G-son was ready to go to school this morning,asking when his dad would be by to take him to meet his teacher today.
After chores and breakfast I left him inside working on his new lego projects while I took a walk in the nice weather today.
This Rose of Sharon that is showing off its pretty blooms was a bright spot in the yard today.

I noticed alot of pears on the ground under my best eating pear tree and when I looked closer I could see why as the leaves are covered with black spots and the fruit is rotting on the tree.A result of too much rain I'm sure.

Above our house is a row of huge Oak trees and the leaves on them are also covered with brown spots and are curling and dying .

We are watching these trees closely as they will have to come down if they start to die. Hopefully this is just a disease of the leaves from all the rain and little sunshine we have had this summer.
The sun felt so good on my shoulders as I walked. I spotted this little guy taking a sunbath also. He was enjoying the warmth so much I got really close to him before he even knew I was there.

I finished my walk and when I got back inside there was a surprise waiting for me.

A finished pirate ship driven by the Flying Dutchman and Spongebob and Patrick having to walk the plank !!!

He was proud of himself and told me it was easy to do after he started following the directions !!
I laughed at that comment since yesterday that was not an option !!! Amazing what a good nights sleep will do for an attitude !!
It is beginning to look a little more like a normal August around my kitchen with our first basket full of tomatoes from the garden.

And a partial bowl of ripening grapes to snack on.

I don't think there will be enough of anything to can or freeze this year but it is nice to have plenty to eat and share with the kids.
After #1 son who took half day off to go with g-son to school came and got him I baked 12 layers, 2 pound and 1 wine cake. This is the least I have baked in quite a while but as the end of August nears business slows.
I cleaned my sunroom and kitchen good today for the first time in a couple weeks with the extra time I had from less baking.
I also was grateful to get outside in the sunshine for a dose of vitamin D this afternoon.  As I refilled all the bird feeders I heard thunder in the distance and saw dark clouds starting to form on the southern horizon.
That storm stayed south of our area and did a lot of damage in Polk county, blowing down trees onto houses and barns around Columbus and Tryon.
There was also storms  and flooding rains in S.C. but thankfully our area stayed dry for the second day in a row !!!
Hubbie was hoping that would be the case because as soon as he got home from work he spayed weed killer on the ditch banks along the road.
This week has been a sad week for a dear family that has always been close to my heart. The Reverend Harold Mckinnish passed away Wednesday after an extended illness, he was 80 years old.

This is the minister that Baptized me and both my boys. He served as interim pastor at our church for several years and during that time I was baptized in front of my children and then later the boys were baptized after a Bible school session.
He was blessed with musical talent as he played many stringed instruments and sang. Here he is with his wife Lois and a friend doing what he loved. Singing for Jesus.

When I think of Harold I remember a story he told to make a point in one of his sermons. He said he was clearing some brush off  a piece of property one day and when he picked up a long branch and tried to toss it on the pile to be burned it wouldn't go. The branch kept springing back toward him each time he tried to throw it and the harder he threw, the harder it sprang back. Finally after much fussing he realized he was standing on part of the branch !!  The moral being sometimes we are our own hindrances.
R. I. P.  reverend Harold you made Jesus proud during your time here on earth.  My prayers go out the family.
Good Night and God Bless.

MEETING NEW BLOG FRIENDS

Had a helper this morning to get ready for market as g-son is here today. His other g-pa is dealing with a kidney stone and other g-ma has her hands full today with business at their restaurant.
Daughter brought her things by on her way to school. Her new job out at the high school will make it handy for her to run by here before and after school is she needs to drop off or pick up things.
I even had time to cut fresh herbs this morning with the dew still on them to take to sell. I cut some peppermint, spearmint and dill to go along with a huge bunch of basil. The van smelled so good on the drive to market !!!
G-son was a great help getting things into market and behaved so well all day. He met a new friend named Tanner who also brought his laptop to play games on while his grandmother sold vegetables at market. They both are serious gamers !!!

I laughed when I noticed that "Spiderman" was guarding g-son !!!

I had a pretty good day and also had a very nice surprise. Some of my blog readers came through and introduced themselves to me. Two sisters and one of their husbands who live in the panhandle area of Florida said they have been reading my blog for several years now. What an honor !!
This is one of the sisters with me. Wish I had gotten a pic of all three of them !

Thanks to these really nice folks for their interest in my blog post.  I love that this blog has allowed me to meet some folks that I would never have known without it.
One of the neighbor vendors had a basket of acorn squash and she gave me a great deal them if I bought all of them. I will love these cut in half baked with butter and brown sugar with a sprinkle of cinnamon in them this winter, yum yum.

After market g-son and I ran errands, picked up baking supplies,delivered an Avon order and went to his favorite place Walmart for a nice back to school surprise. Of course he chose another box of legos, this time a Spongebob set. It was almost 5:00 so he got a happy meal in the Mcdonalds there for supper.
Hubbie helped us unload and then hubbie and I had our supper while we watched the news and g-son played with the new legos.
He didn't want to go home when his dad came because he wasn't finished building the pirate ship !
Tomorrow is always another day, but to a six year old tomorrow must be light years away !!!
After evening chores I caught up my blog and talked to #2 son and daughter.
#2 son got the estimate on his house construction and it is way higher than we thought, at $319,000 it is not an option so he is back to the drawing board on what to do.
Daughter called on her way back from her teams first volleyball game at Reynolds high school in Buncombe county. Both her teams won tonight against a much larger high school so they are off to a good start.
A nice day with clouds and rain threatening several times but not a drop where I was. It is feeling more like summer with an 85 degree temperature today.
Thanking God for the blessings of this day.
Good Night and God Bless.