Farm Trip #2

We went to the Farm again this weekend. This time Joey got to come. We left Friday at 11:30, stopped for lunch at McDonald's in Sylva, stopped in Asheville at Dick's Sporting Goods so Joey could buy shoes and Target so I could return Lydia's croc-like shoes that were too big and buy sippy cups that we forgot and socks for Joey to go with his new shoes, took the wrong ramp getting back on I-240, turned around, stopped for gas in Marion (twice since the first one didn't take cards outside and who has time to go in these days), and finally arrrived around 4:20. Lydia fell asleep between Sylva and Asheville, but woke up when I was in Target.

Not a great nap and she wanted O-U-T so we put in a movie in the portable DVD player we borrowed from Luke. Thank you Toy Story 3 for entertaining my child for the remainder of the trip.

We had a wonderful dinner of lasagna, salad, and bread. Gramma made a prune cake without prunes and add cherries - a cherry cake with nuts. It was super good! I started Big Girl by Danielle Steele that Gramma suggested I read. I finished it the next evening. This was not a good book, I just kept hoping that there would be some twist and it would get better. Do not read this book.

Saturday morning my grandad fixed sausage and gravy, Gramma made biscuits, and my mom fried some bacon. I ate 3 (yes, I know, no judgements please) jelly biscuits. My gramma's sister, Bettie, came to visit with her two grandkids, Tate, 10, and Brooke, 2.5. They ate breakfast then we went berry hunting. Lydia went through a stage where she would eat any berry of any kind, but lately she won't touch them. She says "Don't wike it." We ate all the ripe berries close to the branch then ventured to behind the barn where there were HUGE rasberries; red and yellow. Since Brook and Tate were eating these so well, Lydia thought she'd try them and rediscovered her love. They would put them on their fingers and then eat them. It was so cute and I don't have a single picture. UGH.

Gramma likes when we people do her hair.

Joey mowed the entire yard for my grandad. He's such a good man. After he finished mowing the small flat part where the blow-up pool sits, my grandad (another great man) blew it up and we filled it with extremely cold water from the hose adding some extremely hot water from the sink. That way the kiddos wouldn't freeze their booties off. We lathered the girls with sunscreen and let them loose. Lydia loves the water, but Brooke had to make sure her grandma was close by. Brooke had some very cute flip flops that Lydia adored. However, Brooke did not enjoy Lydia wearing them. Overall, the girls had fun and I hope will be closer friends as time goes on. Mom put Lydia to sleep for a nap. Dinner consisted of chicken casserole, fresh grean beans, cole slaw, and cucumbers. YUMMY! We walked to the cemetary and ended the night with a bowl of ice cream before bed.

Lydia enjoyed falling out of the pool.

"Here, Brooke, you need some more sunscreen."

Can you say 'jealous'?

Sunday was a very relaxing day. Joey and I stayed home from church with Lydia while Mom, Gramma, and Grandad walked the 50 yards to church. Lydia swam in the pool some more and I laid in the sun for a very short time. Lunch was lowkey: leftovers and sandwiches. But dinner was another amazing feat: london broil marinated in italian dressing grilled with baked potatoes and fried yellow and green squash form the garden. It started raining after dinner and Lydia and her daddy enjoyed playing in the rain.

Trying on Grandad's pants.

Watching a movie.

Racing to the clothesline and back with Grammy.

Catching rain drops in her mouth.

Lydia gets big candy for pooping in the potty...and makes a mess.

A hornet's nest so large that it tipped over a mailbox.

We enjoyed a bowl of ice cream with warm brownie for dessert. The next morning my mom cooked pancakes. We left after lunch. I needed to stop at a teacher store, so we went through Johnson City on the way home.

Pre-Dating

I have discovered that I can pre-date posts. Since I want to print these some day, I want to record everything chronologically. If you are interested in reading some of the older stuff, check out the archive frequently. :)

The Farm

Every chance we get we go to "The Farm." No, it isn't actually a farm, but it used to be and the barn is still standing. My grandparents live in my great-grandparents old homestead for over half the year. They raise a garden and do all other 'old' things there, like sit in a porch swing and drink coffee at all times of the day. I have been going to this very special place my entire life. My grandad, the great man that he is, has remodeled it over the years and added some modern conveniences, like a shower (it used to just have a bath tub) and a washer and dryer and finished the upstairs. My gramma has made it a home with all of her womanly touches. It is now a great 4 bedroom house with lots of love and lots space for their family.

We haven't gotten to go since mid-April, and we were way past due. Lydia and I rode up with my parents and their dog, Murphy, on Wednesday.

Taking a nap is better at the farm.

Playing in the pool is super fun.

Sitting in the window... 

Reading stories

Grandad hugs are the best.

Learning to shell peas and doing a good job.

Playing in the flower garden.

Everything is better with ladybug boots.

There's always a puzzle on the table at the farm.

Lydia now really likes crullers, but who doesn't?

 "Hi Gramma. Whatcha donin'?"

Friday was very rainy so we played on the Nook a lot,

dressed up in Gramma's shoes,

 

 checked on Murphy,

and watched movies.

We're getting really close to being potty trained!

Packing to leave.... :( 

No good trip would be complete without a nap on the ride home. 

Play Time

Lydia's making supper!

Family Date Night

My husband, Joey, recently rebuilt a deck for our friends, Holly and David. During this endeavor, Lydia and I would inevitably end up at their house and Holly would graciously feed all of us. Since the completion, we have kept up the tradition by meeting once a week for dinner, dessert, and a whole lot of fun, alternating the location. Tonight was our night to host. (This happens once every two weeks, so it's great motivation for me to clean, since I have little motivation in that department. (Today I also mowed most of the yard since it needed doing.)) We had a fabulous meal of lasagna, salad, bread, and sweet tea. Topped off with cookies and cream pie. The kids get along remarkably well; Wyatt, age 3.5, Lydia, age 2, and Jack, age 1.5. Here are some of tonight's pics:

She really enjoys fitting into tight spaces.

Wyatt was building a pile of sand that Lydia ended up sitting on. Poor Wyatt...

Pepper wasn't allowed to play. :(

2 year olds get time outs for hitting their friends.

Jack loves his mommy

Our ghetto slide that there are no steps to and taking turns is hard when you have to wait for the person in front of you to go up AND down.

4 wheelers are pretty great, too.

Pretty good group if I do say so myself. If you don't have a family to date, I have 2 other nights a week open. :) Or find someone else you enjoy eating and being completely silly with. It's really a great stress relief. (And you get out of cooking once in a while!)