Visitors At The Farm

Larry and Linda Vanderwilt came to visit yesterday at the farm.  The Vanderwilts are friends of ours that have visited before.  We have known eachother for years and when we get together we always have a good time.  Yesterday was another fun day.  After touring everything new at the farm (they were here in Sept. and saw what we had done so far) and they did see some changes.  The Crafty Cottage is done, our shed is done and George and Lisa's house is done enough to live in.  Linda and I went and "played" in the Crafty Cottage.  Linda had a couple of rubber stamps that she had received and wanted to make some cards with them so we worked on a card, which turned out really well for her first one, and then we gathered some supplies so she could create some more at home.  After making cards we headed up to the RV where we were joined by Tim and Larry and later George and Lisa.  I had fixed some snacks and after enjoying them Linda spent the next hour trying to help me crochet.  If you followed my Travels With Ruth blog you know it was not the first time I tried to crochet.  Well, as good as Linda was learning how to make cards I was the opposite in crocheting. I get the concept I just cannot get the technique down but Linda left me with yarn and a booklet and some more understanding that I am going to try it again.  I am hoping when the Vanderwilts return at the end of January I will have at least mastered the first and second row.  Thanks Linda for your patience with me while crocheting.  I can do it!  I have another snack recipe to share but that will be in another post. Thank you Larry and Linda for coming for a visit.  We all enjoyed spending time with you.  Come back any time!

Christmas Shopping - Round Two, The Marathon!

Lisa and I decided to do some serious shopping and headed west to Knoxville!  Why Knoxville?  It has all the stores and one special one in particular; Publix.  Publix is a grocery store in Florida and there is now one in Knoxville.  What I like best about Publix is their Deli Sub Sandwiches and their Sweet Tea.  So after our first couple of stops we headed to the University of Tennessee campus where the Publix was located.  The sub tasted great and we also picked up a couple of items from the store too.  We then began our marathon session of Christmas shopping hitting several stores and successfully getting presents along the way.  We shopped all day and well into the night.  It was a 12 hour session and I know I did manage to  check some gifts of my list and I think Lisa did too!  It was a good day, spending it with a good friend and getting some shopping done; thanks Lisa!  On our drive home last night we stopped to get a fast food dinner and came upon an incredible Christmas light show but we were tired from shopping and we still had an hour's drive to go so we looked at the lights from the road.  On our drive home we both were surprised how easy it was to shop.  All the stores that we visited were not very busy, a plus for us, and when I was chatting with some of the cashiers they all did agree that it had been a quiet day considering it is only two weeks until Christmas.  Maybe Gray Thursday (Thanksgiving) and Black Friday along with Cyber Monday did allow people to complete their shopping.  As for me, I still enjoy shopping like I did yesterday!

Cold Day Means Craft Day!

On a cold and rainy day where is the best way to spend it?  Either in the warm RV watching TV or in the warm and cozy Crafty Cottage working on Christmas presents; Tim and I did both.  It was such a lazy day and after working on various projects at the farm Tim took a day off and just stayed inside and relaxed.  Something he has not done for quite a while.  As for me, I was at the Crafty Cottage playing and creating.  I can't show you everything I did because some are gifts but I will post some of the things I did.  Lisa and I did run out to the post office and counrty store but most of the day we stayed at the farm and out of the weather.  It was a cold day and the temperature was just at the point where it was not cold enough to snow but not warm enough for rain.  What did we have? Sleet!  At times it came down pretty heavy too which made it the perfect day to stay inside.  Even Shadow had an inside day!  It's nice to be able to have days like these and I know there will be more of them to come; after all Winter hasn't even come yet!

A New Favorite!

I had said I was going to be trying some new recipes and I think I have found the one that I will be using for special occasions and gift giving.  For years I use to make homemade Chex Mix and over the years I have given out quite a bit as presents but not this year.  I have a new "treat" that I will be using as gifts.  What is it?  Homemade Peanut Clusters!  I found a recipe on Pinterest using the slow cooker to make peanut clusters.  I am usually the one that does not venture out and do anything that contains melting chocolate only because I have had too many experiences where I have burned the chocolate.  Well since I have found this recipe I am all about melting chocolate!  Using the slow cooker, three ingredients and about two hours from start to finish I have now made the best peanut clusters I have ever had! I will be giving these as gifts this year but as a gift to you I will also share the recipe.  So here it is:

Slow Cooker Peanut Clusters

Ingredients:

1 (20oz) package of vanilla almond bark

1 (12oz) package of semi sweet chocolate chips

1 (16oz) jar of dry roasted peanuts

Directions:

1. Place the almond bark and chocolate chips in the slow cooker

2. Cover and cook on high for 1 hour

3. Stir until blended ( it will look like nothing has melted until you start stirring)

4. Add peanuts and stir

5. Drop tablespoonfuls onto wax paper

6. Let is stand until set

7. Once set store in an air tight container or zip lock bag.

So easy and sooooooo good,enjoy!

Another Day To Celebrate

Tim took me out yesterday and bought me some new hiking boots.  Around here I will be needing them to walk through the snow or keep my footing on the hills when climbing up or down when it is slick out.  I have only slipped once and that was in the snow.  After shopping for the boots he took me to lunch at Ruby Tuesday where I was able to use my coupon for a free Birthday burger.  The burger was good and cooked just the way I like it.  We spent most of the afternoon setting up my TV and DVD player in the Crafty Cottage.  We were also going to move my CD player down but it needs an amplifier to power it up so that will go back into the RV.  All we need now is a good antenna (one is ordered) and I will be all set in the Crafty Cottage.  We ended our evening at George and Lisa's house for dessert.  Thanks Tim for a nice day!

Christmas Shopping - Round One!

It was a cold and rainy day yesterday so what better thing to do but to make chili and go Christmas shopping. There was a Christmas Village Craft show going on in Morristown so Lisa and I drove up to Morristown, visited the Home Depot to return some items (it is the only Home Depot in the area) and then headed over to the Christmas Village. This was a smaller craft show than most of the Fall Festivals that we attended this Fall but we still managed to find a few things for some peole on our Christmas lists. One of the reasons I like going to Morristown is that there is a Hobby Lobby there. So, after we left Christmas Village we went to the Mall and had lunch at El Toro, which was very good, and then headed to Hobby Lobby. I had forgotten that this is the first week end after the Thanksgiving holiday so everyone was out Christmas shopping. The Mall was crowded but Hobby Lobby was packed. We got one of the last shopping carts then we almost had to fight to get through every aisle. Lisa has this beautiful box that she purchased at the Fall Festival in Cosby and it has fall decorations in it. So now it was time to change the decorations to Christmas. We looked through all of the greenery and Christmas picks, pointsettas, garland, etc and Lisa picked out some pretty colorful items that is going to really make a very nice display. I will take pictures when it is completed. We also bought some supplies needed to make several Christmas presents and decorations. After we left Hobby Lobby we headed over to the Dollar Tree for some stocking stuffers. We wanted to get back to Parrottsville by 3:00 to watch the Parrottsville Christmas Parade but with the rain we decided not to attend. Instead, we watched the SEC Championship game: Alabama vs Missouri; Missouri lost. The chili tasted good but I think that the weather outside, still cold and rainy, and watching football made it taste even better. So Round One of Christmas shopping is complete with Round Two beginning it a couple of days. 'Tis the Season!

Thanks!

Thank you for all the Birthday wishes, calls, cards and presents!  I appreciated them all so much and it made my day.  I am truly blessed with the family and friends that I have.  Lisa and I started the day with a stop at the local doughnut shop in Newport then ran some errands after that.  We stopped by a Redbox where I got a free Birthday movie and then headed back to the farm for a quiet afternoon.  George and Tim were busy running more lines for the electricity so that hopefully by Monday the main line will be activated to the farm.  My present from Tim was a TV for the Crafty Cottage and yesterday he also put up an antenna to get the local channels.  Thank you Tim.  We went to dinner in Greeneville last night and tried a new restaurant for us.  It was called FATZ and is similar to a Texas Roadhouse or a Logan's Steakhouse.  They are known for their World Famous Calabash Chicken so I had to give it a try.  It was good!  Everyone enjoyed their meals so we now have another place to go for lunch or dinner.  After dinner Lisa had made a Birthday cake for me so we ended the night with a delicious piece of cake, thanks Lisa!  So it was a wonderful Birthday and once again thank you for making it so special!