Listening To The Grand Ole Opry

Last night Tim, George, Lisa and I took a step back in time.  I made dinner for all us and then we all sat in the living room and listened to the Grand Ole Opry on the radio.  Okay we didn't use a radio instead I streamed it through my phone that was then connected by Bluetooth to our sound bar but we still sat and listened to the show.  When a performer started to sing or talk we all remembered what they looked like but then we would wonder what they looked like now or how old they were so Lisa, using her phone, and I, using my iPad, would Google the information then bring up the performers current picture and birthday.  We would then use iTunes, or the equivalent on an Android phone, to bring up some of their popular songs sometimes just to know who they were.
The Opry format was different from the one we attended and the main performers during their segments would bring other singers or groups in.  For instance, Ricky Scaggs, who is the reason I like country music, had The Whites perform.  John Conlee had Rodney Atkins and Ralph Stanley with him.  This is the way the show went the rest of the evening.  We listened to the whole show and we enjoyed it.  Bill Anderson sang and so did Roy Clark.  Vince Gill and the Oak Ridge Boys ended the show.  This was the show we almost went back to Nashville for but instead made an evening of it by stepping back in time and listening to it one the radio; sort of!

Spending Time In The Crafty Cottage

With all the winter weather we have been having  and, at times, being stuck on the farm the one good thing about it is that I have been able to spend a lot of time in the Crafty Cottage.  The heater I  have in the cottage works great and even on the really cold days I stay pretty warm.  My feet still get cold but not near as bad as they did at first.  With the time spent in the cottage I have been able to work on some door prizes for my sister Pam's SAS.  She will be giving away four different door prizes. Each door prize has four different cards and I make 10 door prizes each.   This adds up to making forty cards total for each door prize.  In the past couple of weeks I have made 120 cards for the door prizes and a bunch of trial cards to see if I liked them.  So, even though  we have been stuck at the farm from time to time at least I was able to stay busy and not get cabin fever.  I have one more door prize to go! As far as the weather goes we are suppose to be cold until Sunday the it is suppose to start getting warm and rainy. With the road being snow covered and frozen the rain will surely turn the road into a muddy mess which may also keep us here at the farm.  I guess we will just have to wait and see!

We Got Snow!

This time the weather forecasters got the forecast correct and we did get 4 inches of snow overnight.  The forecast was even correct with when the snow would begin.  At 8:00 pm last night the snow started to fall and it has basically stopped now; just as they predicted.  It is still a little dark for pictures but I will post some a little later.  We have a very handy snow measuring gage, out outdoor table.  It was clear of snow yesterday so I will measure it when I go outside a little later but to my eye I would say 4 inches is correct.  We do not have anyplace to go today so I am good with the snow especially since I have items to work on for my sister.  Pam is hosting her Birthday SAS in a couple of weeks so, due to the weather, I have been able to complete two out of the three Doorprizes I offered to do. I am actually on my fourth card of the third Doorprize which will be finished today.  For Pam it was a win-win situation for me being snowed or I should say "iced" in.   I will post pictures of the Doorprizes tomorrow and later today some pictures of our new snow fall! Happy Thursdsy!

The Grand Ole Opry

We had such a great day yesterday.  After waking up to about 5 inches of unpredicted snow we were a little concerned whether we would be able to get down our hill to get to the main road. Our Jeep, which has four wheel drive, did an excellent job and not only got us off the farm but through the unplowed highway that we take to get to town.  Tim, Lisa, George and I were headed to the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville.  Once we got to Newport we stopped at Cracker Barrel for breakfast.  We then hit the interstate and headed west!  The interstate was in pretty good condition and we did not hit any slippery roads until we got to Knoxville. We made a short stop at Costco to get our core charges back on the batteries we purchased a couple of weeks ago. We then got back on the highway and continued our trip to Nashville.  Last week Nashville had a terrible ice storm and the trees along the interstate showed it.  There were hundreds of trees that snapped in half due to the weight of the ice.  It was an amazing sight but not in a good way.
We got to Nashville a little after 1:00 central time and since we had eaten such a big breakfast we decided to check out the stores at the Opry Mall.  The Opry Mall is located just across the street from the Grand Ole Opry and so we got there in time to get a good parking spot for the Opry.  After walking the Mall and buying a gift for Rory we headed over to the Opry to pick up our tickets and take some pictures.  Then we headed over the the Gaylord Opryland Hotel.  I had been there before but Tim, Lisa and George had not.  We spent some time just leisurely walking around in the huge Atrium at the Gaylord.  We then walked back to the Mall for dinner at Claim Jumpers before the show.  The food was really good and filling!
When we finished dinner it was time to go to the Grand Ole Opry!  We had great seats in the second mezzanine dead center of the stage.  The line up for the show was great starting with Whispering Bill Anderson then the Willis Clan.  Connie Smith was next followed by Josh Turner.  Then there was intermission.  The first half of the show was really good and it was great to see and hear some classic Country artists like Bill Anderson and Connie Smith mixed with the new sounds of the Willis Clan and Josh Turner.  After intermission Henry Cho, the Comedian, open the second half and he was so funny and we laughed so hard our cheeks and tummies ached.  Mel Tillis was suppose to perform next but his bus broke down and he did not make it to the Opry so Darius Rucker was next.  He put on a great show. He is the reason Tim wanted to see this Opry show.  After Darius Rucker Charlie Daniels came on stage.  Charlie Daniels is the reason I wanted to see this Opry.  Charlie Daniels was great and he ended the show playing "The Devil Went DownTo Georgia".  Wow!  We were sorry that we did not get to see Mel Tillis but because he was not there both Darius Rucker and Charlie Daniels got to perform  longer; a win win situation for us!  It really was a great show and we enjoyed every minute of it.  We liked it so much we were toying with the idea of going back on Friday night because of the line up.  We then decided to listen to it on the radio.  If you are ever in the Nashville area make sure you take the time to see the Grand Ole Opry; you will not be disappointed!
Since we all have pets we had to get back to them so we headed east to Parrottsville.  It was an easy drive with out any issues.  Thanks Tim for doing all the driving.  When we got to Newport and eventually Parrottsville we were really surprised how much snow was still on the ground.  Nothing melted and it was still a powdery snow.  The streets were better than when we left in the morning until we got to the side road that leads to the farm.  It was a snow and ice mix but the Jeep handled it well. When we got to our road it was still covered with snow and the Jeep handle the snow and the hill like it was nothing.  We got back home around 2:45 AM but we did not care because we just had one fantastic day.  Thanks George and Lisa for coming along with us and I have one question for you both;  when do we see our next Opry?

Heading To Nashville???

We have tickets for the Grand Ole Opry tonight in Nashville and we were planning on driving to Nashville today around 10:00 but Mother Nature has a different plan...Snow!  It is early right now and we are hoping that the road out of the farm will not be frozen so we can get out and we are also hoping the roads will be cleared by the time we are ready to leave.  The good thing is we do have time built into our plans so if we have to leave later we can. Appearing at the Opry tonight is Bill Anderson, The Willis Clan, Connie Smith, Josh Turner, Mel Tillis, Henry Cho, Darius Rucker and Charlie Daniels.  With a line up like this we do not want to miss it.  Check back tomorrow and find out what happened!  Fingers crossed for Nashville!

We Left The Farm!

After seven days of not being able to go anywhere Tim and I finally got to leave the farm.  Our big trip was to Parrottsville to get a few groceries.  We were actually in really good shape food wise but one thing we forgot to check was Shadow's dog food.  Luckily we had enough to get through breakfast yesterday so last night, before dinner, the road down from the farm had finally melted enough to get down the hill.  It was slushy and still had some ice patches on it but we managed to get down the hill and went to Dollar General.  I spent most of yesterday in the Crafty Cottage working on some items for my sister and then last night watched The Academy Awards.  It was good but long and once again I had not seen most of the movies nominated.  Neil Patrick Harris did a good job as MC and Lady Gaga was fantastic singing the songs from The Sound Of Music.  As always, after watching the Oscars, I now have a big list of movies I want to see; Redbox...here I Come!
This week we have something really special to go to on Tuesday.  Tim, George, Lisa and I will be traveling to Nashville to go to the Grand Ole Opry.  Tim and I went last April and I got an email in January offering discount tickets so we bought some for Tuesday.  Let's hope the weather cooperates!

Waynesville, NC

A week ago we took a trip to North Carolina and one of the places we visited was Waynesville, NC.  Waynesville is the county seat in Haywood County and it is about 30 miles southwest of Asheville between the Great Smokey and Blue Ridge mountains.  Waynesville was founded in 1810 by Colonel Robert Love, an American Revolutionary War soldier.  He donated land for the courthouse, jail and public square and named it after his former commander from the Revolutionary War, General "Mad" Anthony Wayne.   Waynesville was incorporated in 1871 and it really grew when the railroad arrived in 1884.
During the American Civil War a battle did take place in Waynesville.  The Battle of Waynesville took place on May 6, 1865 when the Union Colonel William C Bartlett's 2nd North Carolina Mounted Infanty were raiding, pillaging, burning homes and engaging in other activities to undermine the economic base of the area.  The Union Infantry were attacked just east of Waynesville in Sulphur Springs by an attachment of Rebels from the Thomas Legion of Highlanders.  The Thomas Legion consisted of soldiers who served under Jubal A Early during the Shenandoah Valley Campaigns in 1864.  The Legion had been sent back to NC mountains to engage in guerrilla warfare. The Legion forced the Union army to retreat back to Waynesville where the Legion, on the evening of May 6th, surrounded the town and the soldiers lit numerous bonfires on the ridge above the town then engaged in war chants to intimidate the Union army.  The Thomas Legion fired the "last shot of the Civil War" because the next day General James Green Martin and Colonel William Holland Thomas (leader of the Legion) negotiated a surrender after finding out that the Civil War was over. The Battle of Waynesville is part of the Civil War Discovery Trail Sites.  My interest in the Civil War has grown and we are in an area where several battles took place which will give us even more to do around this area.
While we were in Waynesville we had lunch at Bogarts.  Bogarts opened in 1976 and has been a favorite to the locals ever since.  It is a casual family restaurant that has a family atmosphere in a  rustic local history accented setting. The menu is noted for its practical value.  In other words, they serve really good food and a lot of it for a very reasonable price.  We enjoyed our time in Waynesville and our lunch at Bogarts and we will be returning to Waynesville soon!

We May Thaw Out?

We have broken the record again for being the coldest it has been and yesterday was no exception.  Starting the day in the negative numbers and then getting to a high of 19 during the day.  Friday night at 10:00 pm the temperature rose to 23 degrees.  Amazingly it made it seem warm after the last couple days with the low temperatures.  The sun was out all day which helped melt some snow but it also exposed the ice under the snow.  Tim and George were out talking when I came out of the RV and head down to the Crafty Cottage.  Now I know I have mentioned the number of times I have slipped and fell while coming and going to the crafty cottage. Well yesterday I had a record breaking day of falling 4 times just trying to walk down to the Crafty Cottage.  The worst thing about falling is after the first fall Tim and George helped me down the rest of the way and I still managed to fall. After the fourth fall I slid the rest of the way down on my butt.  We figured out why I was falling and Tim and George did not fall; it was the tred on our boots.  Tim and George both had a deeper tred than I did.  I will have to get through the rest of this year with my boots but next year I am buying boots with better tred.  Today it is suppose to snow then turn to an icy mix and end up with rain tonight.  We are hoping to go to town today but the road may not let us but I hope it does!  We do have something to celebrate today and he will probably kill me for this but I am going to say it anyway; Happy Birthday George!

Trapped At The Farm

It is hard to believe that a week ago we were up by 5:00 am to leave for Waynesville, NC at 6:00 am. This week has flown by and yet we have been trapped here at the farm since Monday.  I know I have told you about the road to the farm but I will mention again that we have a very steep hill to climb just before we reach the farm.  With the severe cold and icing we have been having we cannot get out to go anywhere.  Our neighbors, Reg and Cheryl have lived here for 17 years and also have to climb that hill to get to their farm.  They told us yesterday that in those 17 years this is only the 3rd time they have been trapped at home.  Yesterday I believe the temperature made it to 9 degrees for the high.  The sun came out for a while but then it started to snow again.  Today it is supposed to get up to 32 degrees but as I am writing this right now the temperature outside is 1 degree.  The good thing is the RV is staying warm.  On Saturday is is suppose to reach 46 degrees and rain.  That will definitely melt the snow and ice but also make the road sloppy but even if the road is sloppy I believe that we will get out and go to town even if we don't need anything.  Hmmm, maybe we will go see a movie.  So, what did I do yesterday?  I stayed indoors, did some prep work for a door prize I am making, I brought the materials up on Wednesday from the Crafty Cottage, and caught up on all the shows I had DVRed.  One of the reasons I did not go out was I had fallen again, twice, on Wednesday.  Falling 6 times in 2 days does hurt the body and I have aches and pain all over especially my left side of my ribs where I pulled some ligaments.  Today I am posting some pictures that Tim took when he and George walked around the property a day ago.  This has been the coldest that Eastern Tennessee has seen since 1985 and we are now breaking those record temperatures.  I guess the weather wanted to make sure that our inaugural year here at the farm will be a true test to us and our RV.  Thanks again Mother Nature!

It's A Bit Cold Out!

It IS a bit cold out.  When I checked The Weather Channel app this morning it said it was 3 degrees outside.  Then I got a text from Lisa giving me "good" news with the actual temperature here at the farm which is -4 degrees with a windchill of -17 degrees!  What a way to start the day!  The good news is the sun is out and when I opened our blinds the windows were frosted over.  Solar power is working and the windows are defrosting.  The high today is going to be 10 degrees so it will be a stay indoors day.  We have movies to watch so it will be a marathon movie day with popcorn and hot chocolate!   Check back tomorrow and see how we survived!

Winter Is Still Here

Everytime it has snowed this winter it also melted within six hours.  Well that is not the case this time.  It actually continued to snow flurry all day.  We have just over an inch of snow but under the snow is ice and I found that out twice yesterday.  The first time I ventured out I carefully walked around outside and was okay.  Even when I ventured to clear off both Dishes so we would have TV and Internet.  I later made it down to the Crafty Cottage and back up with no problems.  That was it for safety; on my way back down to the Crafty Cottage, after lunch, I slipped just as I was beginning my walk down.  My first step on the grass just kept going.  Luckily no one saw me fall so I got up and continued down the hill to the cottage.  As the day went on it continued to drop in temperature and I could tell as the cottage was getting colder.  On my trip up the hill to the RV I was almost to the top of the hill and at the steepest part of the climb I once again lost my footing and fell again this time on the icy snow covered gravel.  Ouch! I am fine but a little stiff now.  We are expecting a couple of inches of snow today so we will have to wait and see.  It sure is good that we don't need to be anywhere because the car is completely iced over and so is the hill.  George used the Gator to go down to the mailbox but on his way up  the Gator could not make it back up that hill yesterday and spent the night at a friends barn.  So we are staying at the farm and will journey out once we thaw which may not happen until the week end.  Tonight we are looking at negative temperatures which will be the coldest weather we have been in with the RV.  I have more pictures of the farm and snow that I will be posting a little later on so check back to see them.  The snow and ice are beautiful!

Winter Has Come

Winter has come to Eastern Tennessee and it will be here for a few days.  Parrottsville did not get as much snow as the rest of the area but we do have the ice. Just walking down our RV steps is an adventure.  We started out with snow then it turned to an icy mix followed by rain then the icy mix returned and finished with snow on top of the ice.  The icy mix put an icy glaze over everything; the car, RV, gravel walkways and grass. There is literally not a safe place to step; especially  when you live on a hill.  Walking Shadow will be an experience!  For the next few days winter will be staying as temperatures are going to get lower as each day passes at least through Friday.  I know to a lot of people this is no big deal but this is our first winter in over 20+ years.  More snow is expected Wednesday followed by negative temperatures.  This is a real test for our artic package on the RV.  Hmm, maybe we got a little spoiled living in Florida all these years?  Nah!!!

A Winter Storm Warning

We are under a winter storm warning and are expected to get 1 to 7 inches of snow today.  Because we are in a valley there is a slight chance that we will get more ice than snow.  We just have to wait and see.  Along with the snow we are in a cold snap that is going to get worse before it gets better.  So we are ready for the winter storm; we just hope we don't lose power.
I spent most of Sunday finishing up the first sets of door prizes for my sister, Pam's, SAS in March.  This easy Doorprize I just finished had a lot of pieces to each card.  It took a while but the first 10 sets are done.  Now on to the second door prize.  Did you watch the 40th Anniversary of Saturday Night Live?  It was good and it was good to see most of the original cast. Check back tomorrow and see the amount of snow fall, if any, we get!

Murphy, North Carolina

On Friday we took a little road trip for the day to North Carolina.  We drove three hours to the southwest corner of NC to the town of Murphy.  Murphy is the county seat of Cherokee County and sits along the Hiwassee and Valley rivers.  It was known to the Cherokee as Tiarusi ( the Leech Place) due to a legend about a giant leech named Tiarusi that lived in the river.  The Trading Path, later called the Unicoi Turnpike, passed by what is Murphy today.  It connected the Cherokee lands east of the mountains with Overhill towns of Tennessee.  At that time, Murphy was called Huntington after the first Post Master, Col. H.R.S. Hunter when the town was established in 1835.  It was later changed to Murphy named after Archibald Murphy, a NC politician.  In 1836 Fort Butler was built to aid in the removal of the Cherokee known as the Trail Of Tears.  In the 1880's Murphy was home to the Murphy Branch Raliroad.  Murphy was also the home of the once well known crafts manufacturer Margaret Studios which operated a nationwide chain of gift shops that sold its woodcraf products and housewares.  John Jacob Niles based his Christmas song, "I Wonder As I Wander", on a phrase he heard while in downtownMurphy on July 16, 1933.  Murphy is also the town where Eric Rudolph, the 1996 Atlanta Olympics bomber, was arrested in 2003.  It is a small town with a population of a little over 1800 but to us it will be the town where we visited the showroom of Real Cheap Floors.com and George and Lisa found their wood flooring for their home.

Happy Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day!  I hope you have a wonderful day and get lots of Valetine wishes.  We celebrated Valentine's day early.  We were up and out the door yesterday morning by 6:00 AM and headed to Murphy, NC.  There was a disount floor store that was running a special for Presidents' Day.  Murphy is about 3 hours  away and sits near the borders of Tennessee, North Carolina and Georgia.  We left so early because George wanted to get there as soon as it opened.  After several trips trying to find the right floor for the Francisco's  cabin they have finally found one.  They purchased a cabin grade of white hickory.  They had enough to cover the house with wood floors and once it gets delivered we will all begin to layout the floor.  We had lunch at the Bogarts located in downtown Waynesville and it was a great place to eat. Check back tomorrow for more about the places we saw on Friday; Happy Valentine's Day!

The Crafty Cottage Has Music

The Crafty Cottage has music.  I have finally have an entertainment system in the Crafty Cottage.  I went from a battery operated radio to my iPhone playing Pandora to a TV, then a DVD player and now I have my CD player all hooked up.  Tim has worked very hard getting me all hooked up.  The TV and DVD player were a no brainier.  He even figured out how to get the most TV channels with the antenna he installed.  The one thing he couldn't figure out was how to set up was the CD player. I have a Pioneer 6 CD changer system that I have had for over 20 years and it is a seperate componenet that needs an amplifier and speakers to work. Well the TV cannot do that but a portable speaker that Jenny and Nate got me for Christmas a couple of years ago worked.  Tim had to do some rewiring  but due to Tim not giving up I now can listen to my CDs.  Thanks Tim, it is a great improvement to the Crafty Cottage!

A Top And Lunch Too!

Larry and Linda Vanderwilt came for a visit and brought us a golf cart top.  We had a nice afternoon talking and I made my homemade Vegetable Beef soup for lunch with a lemon cake for dessert.  It was a beautiful day which will be our last for a while due to the weather we are suppose to get tomorrow.  It is suppose to be a very cold week-end.  While I was finishing up a few things this morning while we were waiting for our friends to arrive  Tim painted the rest of the golf cart and it is looking really.  He put the parts back on the golf cart and and worked on some of the wiring.  It looks like the goal of getting the golf cart completed by the end of February is right on schedule.  Thanks Larry and Linda and George and Lisa for joining Tim and I for lunch.  Once again, good food, good friends, good times!

Creating Hearts

After spending the morning cleaning up around the RV I spent all afternoon getting creative with hearts.  I only had one Valentine's decoration up in the RV, except for the flowers Carrie sent me, so I decided to create a heart banner.  I dug through my old retired Stampin Up paper supply and chose some old DSP and card stock and spent the rest of the afternoon creating the vision I had in my head. I used all the heart thinlits that came in their set and pulled out some sizzix letters I have had for a long time.   I uesd my Sizzix Big Shot and just starting cutting hearts and letters.  Three hours later I created two heart banners,  I gave one to Lisa and kept one for me.  Now the RV is a little more festive for Valentine's Day.  It was a good day to work on it too. It started snowing around 9:00am but we just got some heavy flurries.  When the snow stopped it just stayed gloomy and cold outside.
Today Larry and Linda are bringing the golf cart top they gave us.  Since they offered to bring it over I invited them for lunch; I am making Vegetable beef soup.  It is suppose to be warmer today and hopefully the sun will come out. Tim is ready to paint the body of the golf cart and when it dries he will put it on the golf cart.  By the end of the month we should be driving the cart all around the farm!

Knoxville Again?

Yes, we traveled to Knoxville again.  Knoxville is the third largest city in Tennessee so it pretty much has almost every store needed.  So Knoxville is our go to place when the stores we need are not in Newport or Greeneville.  This trip Tim, Lisa and I went; George stayed at the farm..  Our agenda for this trip was to go to Costco.  Tim is at the stage on the golf cart that he is ready for the batteries  to get it all powered up.  My sister gave me a membership to Costco last year and so we finally got to use it and saved us in doing so.  Tim wanted Interstate batteries for the cart and since we needed to purchase three he was also looking for a good price.  Costco was the place to go.  We got the batteries and a few more things.  Costco's meats are really good and well priced.  So Lisa and I took advamtage of it and picked up a few things.  I was very impressed with Costco's customer service. From the greeter to the exit person everyone was so nice and friendly.  In the Tire Center the associate was very helpful and even went to the car to pick up the old battery we brought.  It was a great experience and we WILL be returning to shop some more in the future. After Costco we went to Petco so Lisa could get a new water dish for her cat Angel.  Last time Lisa and I were in a Knoxville we pasted a Fazolis.  Fazolis is an Italian  "fast food" restaurant.  There use to be one in Orange Park,FL that  we use to eat at all the time.  The food is good, fast and very reasonable.  So when we saw one in Knoxville we knew that the next time we came to a Knoxville we would eat their.  It was so good and the three of us at for $20.  Now that was a deal and we walked out full!  We then headed back to Parrottsville and after the grocery shopping I did last week and what I purchased at Costco my freezer is now full.  The golf cart is coming along and Tim is almost ready to paint the body of the cart.  We are getting very close to having our golf cart running!

Making A Driveway

It was another beautiful day out; sunny and warm with a high of 65 degrees. After a day like that it is hard to believe it could snow today but I really don't think it will snow. While I was busy cleaning and working in the Crafty Cottage Tim and George were busy making driveways. George was working on making a bigger driveway to the upper level garage. It is a level higher that George and Lisa's house but lower than our place. There was talk of putting a pool there but none us wanted to deal with the upkeep of a pool. So instead it will become extra parking when friends and family are over. With the dirt they were digging up Tim brought the dirt up to our driveway to expand our entrance that was a little tight to get into and out of. Now we have a big area so it is now easier to pull into and out of our driveway. Tim and George worked all day from around 10:00 until almost 7:00. They got a lot done and probably would of gotten a lot more but both pieces of equipment just happen to blow a hydraulics part and so they will have to be repaired before they can complete the driveway to the upper level. Great job George and Tim! Today we are making another trip into Knoxville this time we are headed to Costco to buy the batteries for the Golf Cart. Check back tomorrow and see what else we did while in Knoxville!

A Nice Day With Friends

Larry and Linda Vanderwilt are "back home" in Tennessee.  I have talked about Larry and Linda a few times in the blog.  We are friends from Florida.  Larry and Linda have two homes that they share time in, their home in Florida and their home here in Eastern Tennessee.  They invited Tim and I and George and Lisa over yesterday.  They live on the other side of the mountain and also have beautiful views of the mountains. I have posted pictures of their views.  It was a beautiful day, about 61 degrees, and felt like it was time for spring.  Linda made homemade venison chili and cornbread.  Both were so deliousious that I had to have seconds.  We had a great time getting caught up and Linda and I, sorry Lisa, had a great time talking about Sweet Adelines.  Linda has been and is currently a Sweet Adeline and I was a Sweet Adeline in the late 1990s.  Singing Barbershop is a lot of fun and I enjoyed talking about it with Linda. Tim and Larry, George couldn't come because he had work to do on the farm, spent time outside enjoying the view and chatting away the afternoon.  Larry and a Linda had an old top from their golf cart and offered it to us so now we have a top for our golf cart.  The best part, they are going to deliver it to us on  Wednesday where we get to spend even more time together.  Thank you Larry and Linda for a wonderful day together.  Good friends, good food, good talk makes for a nice day!

Photos Everywhere

I have been working on organizing all of our pictures.  Moving from a three bedroom   2500 square ft house into a 400 square ft RV has taken some adjustments and after adjusting to it we are adjusting one more time.  When we cleared out our storage unit we had 5 large boxes of pictures in frames.  I spent most of the day going through the boxes, removing pictures from frames and deciding which framed pictures we wanted and which ones were going into a photo album.  I did have to make room for more photo albums and now we will be adding more.  Like I said, we are dealing with adjustments.  So now I have the pictures out of the frames and will begin to put them into the albums.  I know many people may suggest to scan the pictures and put them on a flash drive or cd. That is a terrific idea but I enjoy looking at the pictures in a book and since we have the room for the albums I will continue to keep my pictures in an album.  So now a new task begins, photo albums! Keep checking back and see how I do.

Another Day In Knoxville

Lisa and I drove into Knoxville for an afternoon of shopping.  We had an agenda; we went for cat food.  Lisa's cat Angel has to be on a special diet and needs a prescription for her food.  So we had the choice to drive to Knoxville or Johnson City or Waynesville, NC.  The NC location was actually the closet but to get there you have to drive through the mountains of Tennessee and North Carolina which in the winter can be a little difficult.  So we opted for Knoxville, it has a bigger selection of stores.  Well, to our surprise, it had some stores we had not been in since living in Florida.  We started our shopping spree at Mcallister's Deli for lunch, Yum!  Then we went to Pet Smart; the reason for going to Knoxville. The rest of the afternoon we shopped at various stores hitting most of the craft stores.  Lisa needed to buy some greenery to decorate  and I needed to purchase some photo albums and scrap books.  You will learn why I needed the books in tomorrow's blog.  It was fun to visit some of my favorite stores again and Lisa and I even managed to get what we needed.  It was a fun afternoon; thanks Lisa!

A Golf Cart Update!

Tim has been working hard on the golf cart and it is really shaping up to being one of the best golf carts around.  He started to put the seats and the body back on the golf cart,  he was able to save the seats so we won't have to have them recovered. Tim cleaned them up, filled a couple of holes and they were ready to go back on the cart.  We decided to change the color of the body of the cart because Tim has to do some work on a few spots of the body so  we are going with a forest green.  I think it is going to look great.  He painted the body part where the seat is installed and I love the color!  Tim has been working hard on the golf cart and it shows!  Thanks Tim, it is looking good!

Comparison Shopping

Lisa and I went and did our monthly grocery shopping but this time we decided to do a comparison shop.  We usually do our monthly grocery shopping at Walmart but yesterday we did it at Walmart but then went to Food City, the local grocery store compared to a Publix, Winn Dixie, Jewel, Ralph's, Von's, Safeway or Kroeger, just to see how the prices compared.  We have come to the conclusion that we can shop at Food City and spend about the same amount as Walmart.  Which is good news since Food City is closer and has a wider variety.  We did make the mistake of going to Walmart too early in the month.  I had already learned my lesson about going to Walmart on the first of the month due to that is when people who get their monthly Government checks usually shop.  Well, two days after the first is not a good time either.  Walmart was out of several regular items, especially the ones I wanted,  and it was still very busy.  I had to fight to shop every aisle.  Lisa compared it to being like it was Christmas time again.  When we went to Food City it was a lot quieter and it was well stocked.  So next month I am doing my monthly shopping at Food City just to see if my comparison shopping really did work.  Since Tim and I also live on a monthly Government check, his military pension, we do understand why people shop as soon as they get it.  I have decided to just wait a few days after we receive it especially if I end up back at Walmart.  Time and money will tell!

A Project Made With Foam Core

I love Pinterest!  It is a great site to get ideas, recipes, gifts, etc.  My sister Pam has given me an entire set of Stampin Up ink pads so I could have every color.  This was a great gift and one that would also help when she needed me to help with her SAS.  The inks come in four different boxes, which was great for traveling, but now that I have my own space I wanted a place to put the ink pads.  This is where Pinterest comes in.  I was searching the site for storage ideas for the ink pads and there were some great organizers but they were all too expensive.  I came across this one site that had an organizer for the ink pads but it was completely made out of foam core.  It had the complete instructions with measurements.  I decided to give it a try.  The site is revelinker.blogspot.com and she shares the instructions and tutorial for free as long as you don't mass produce them yourself to sell.  She does have a copywriter on the design.  Well, I have no interest to sell them and I appreciate Rebelinker for sharing.
I went and purchased two foam core boards for $1.00 a piece.  The only other things I needed was hot glue, an extacto knife and a ruler or yard stick which I already had.  I measured out all the pieces needed, double checked my measurements then cut the foam board.  After the pieces were cut I was ready to build the ink holder.  The directions were very good and easy to follow.  The ink holder turned out great and is surprisingly strong.  The whole process took me two hours and it turned out really well.  I put all my ink pads in the holder and I was done!
I showed George my creation, he was passing by the cottage, and he thought it was pretty cool.  He helped me figure how I could place it in a better place then having to leave it on the workbench.  His suggestion was to mount the holder to the wall but I knew the foam core would not be able to support the weight or hang well so together we came up with the idea of placing it on a small shelf on the wall.  Yesterday Tim and I went to Lowes, yes we still go to Lowes at least once a week, and purchased a shelf and brackets.  Tim cut down the shelf and hung it yesterday so now I have my ink holder organizer hung directly under my ribbon and punch organizer.  The ink organizer only cost me $2.00 to make and with the cost of the shelf and brackets the whole thing cost $17.00.  Had I purchased an ink organizer on line or in the store it would of run me anywhere from $60 to $150.  I am hsppy with my ink holder and I saved a lot of money by doing it myself.

The Super Bowl

Okay, I said in yesterday's blog I didn't care about the game but I started to as I watched it.  The first quarter was pretty quick and unmemorable.  The second quarter was good.  Then the second half came and late in the fourth quarter when the Seahawks got that catch I thought for sure they would win the game until Wilson threw the ball instead of running the ball.  We were all sitting there yelling "What"? Congratulations to the Patriots, you played a good game.
So the commercials were okay.  I wish they were funnier but that is just me.  I did discover that not all the same commercials are run during the game.  For instance, we got a subway commercial that the Jacksonville area did not get.  Instead, they got a Jimmie Johns commercial that we did not get but I watched it on Youtube; both were good.  My favorite commercial?  Hmm, I don't have one.  The half time show was good.  I sure am glad Katy Perry isn't afraid of heights.  Our a Taco Bar was delicious but we over did it with food so we will be enjoying the taco bar again sometime this week.  Thanks George and Lisa for hosting and letting us enjoy the Super Bowl on your large 65" screen.  Super Bowl 49 is over now on  to baseball; Go Cubbies!

The Golf Cart Gets Some Bling!

Tim will probably not like the title of this blog but with the diamond plate he put on the golf cart yesterday I really don't know how I couldn't title it anything else. The new tires are on the cart, the frame has been welded and yestrday Tim transformed the rear storage bed into a dump bed. This will serve two purposes; number one - if he has a load of dirt, gravel, leaves, etc. he can easy dump it now. Number two it can serve as more seating so if there was a need to carry more than two people on the cart now we can do it. Tim is going to design a pad to use for extra seating. He installed the new battery boxes and just received the battery charger so now the next major expense for the golf cart will be the purchasing of the batteries, yes batteries. Tim is converting 6 6 volt batteries needed to run the golf cart to using 3 12 volt batteries instead. The 12 volt batteries are easier to come by and they are a little less expensive even with having to buy three of them. The diamond plate work that Tim has been working on really does make the golf cart look great. There is still more to do to the golf cart but hopefully by the end of Feburary we will be riding around the farm on the golf cart. So, it is Super Bowl Sunday, what are your plans? We are going to be watching the Super Bowl on a 65 inch TV down at George and Lisa's house. This year's Super Bowl I have no real interest in which team wins I am just hoping it will be a good game. I am really watching for the commercials and Half Time this year. I think Katy Perry will put on a great show. For the Super Bowl Lisa and I are going all out with a Taco and Burrito bar for dinner. This way we can lay out the food before the game starts and every one will be able to help themselves whenever they want. Enjoy the game, commercials and Half Time! Go whoever!