Monday Memories: Final Glimpse of Boone Hall Plantation And An Explanation

Do you remember The Wizard of Oz?  Do you remember that before Dorothy started following the Yellow Brick Road she was picked up by a tornado and went through that chaos?  I'm stating to think that all Yellow Brick Roads are preceded by the chaos of a whirlwind!  I'm getting ready to get on my own Yellow Brick Road later this week for a "Trip Of A Lifetime" with my Mom.  I'm very excited about this trip BUT I feel as though I were in the middle of a whirlwind right now.  I am in the middle of getting meals in the freezer for my men and catching up on housework.  I have to fix the pepper jelly I made last week that never set (sigh), and there is a big box full of apples that have to be turned into apple pie filling and canned before they rot.  A friend has invited me to share a booth with her at a craft show which just happens to be the day after I get back.  I'm very excited about that ~ it will be my first craft show! ~ but I have to get things ready or I will be sitting there with nothing to sell.  So this week is cooking, cleaning, canning, crafting, and packing, all to be finished by Thursday mid-morning.  All this explanation to say, "Please excuse me if the posts are more pictures and fewer words this week".

I will be going to Vermont by way of Amtrak.  I will be spending time with my Mother and my Aunt Roberta.  There will be maples in full color.  There will be LOTS of pictures.  I will post if I can while I am gone, but this will not be my highest priority. 


Here's a final glimpse of Boone Hall

 

 They even had Fairy Houses

I have no idea what this flower is.  If you know, please leave me a comment

 Here's a close-up

Life at the Citadel is not ALL hard work!  They had the most elaborate refreshment tent at the games.

There you go.  Have a good week!

Boone Hall Plantation Part II

You would like to know the results of the weekend competition?  Well since you ask....

Let's start with the band.  Palmetto Pipes and Drums placed first in their class.  Kudos, y'all!  Way to go!!

Notice all those gold and blue ribbons that different individuals are wearing?  Yeah, they did great as a band AND as individuals. 

Mr. Marvelous, Jr. distinguished himself quite well.

 

See that happy man standing there holding the medal out for the camera?   Nine years ago I found this man's name and phone number in Augusta, Georgia.  We had just moved there and Mr. Marvelous Junior was determined to find someone who could help him learn to play the bagpipes.  I called this man and he gave his time, his energy (and a bit of patience and grace!) to us and taught our son the rudiments of chanter playing, and later the pipes.  He introduced him to the local band and mentored Junior until we moved to Alabama.  Last spring they reconnected in Columbia, SC.  

Putting that smile on his face with a first place finish made this past weekend extra-special.  Thanks, Ron!  That medal belongs to you as much as to the Mr. Marvelous Jr!

Next week it is on to Laurinburg for the Scotland County Games. 

Coming up after that, Stone Mountain!

The View From My Kitchen Window: September 24, 2013

 

Monday Memories: A Weekend at Boone Hall Plantation Part I

Early September Morning in Coastal South Carolina

The Clans begin to gather

The pipers begin tuning

And wait their turn to play

The afternoon brings a turn for the bands to gather

The Pipers

The Drummers

                                           The band marching to the line for competition

Up next: Results!

The featured band is Palmetto Pipes and Drums located in Columbia, South Carolina; a very accomplished and a very gracious group.

A Few Random Pictures

I'm on my way to Charleston today for the 42nd Annual Highland Games at Boone Hall Plantation.  If you ever have the opportunity to visit, especially early on a September morning, take it. 

I will have just a few (!) photos next week of the event, but in the meantime I will leave you with a few of my favorites for the weekend.

Mr. Marvelous' Gracie likes her sunbeams!

Happy Weekend!

Garden Update: Front Garden in Mid-September

I have to confess that the front got a little away from us this year.  With the rain and the cooler temps, plant life did not struggle to survive as much as it usually does.  This was great for the vegetables (I picked more beans today), but not so great for the weeds.  It felt like a jungle out there.  Waist high weeds in the pea-patch (some would refer to it as our front yard but since we don't mean to grow grass out there I would take issue with that).

We probably could have harvested another bucket or so of peas, but to be perfectly honest and transparent, I am DONE with peas for the year! 

I've done this many about twenty-'leven times so far.  Or at least that's what it feels like.

But I do hate to let anything go to waste if I can help it.

Meantime, back at the ranch, you may have heard that we have had a population explosion in our chickens this summer.

Suddenly we had a brilliant idea: we would let the chickens take care of the rest of the pea-patch and the weeds.  Put the traveling hutch (aka, the Chicken Tractor) in the front yard and let the girls manage it for us. 

Convert the peas into eggs and voila, no waste!

Unfortunately, we discovered that the area was so large and so high that it was more than the girls could handle in a reasonable time.  And our neighbors across the street had their house on the market.  We really don't want people driving up and being scared off by a waist-high-weedy-pea-patch.  Really. Well, depending on who is looking....

This past weekend, Mr. Marvelous went ahead and took care of things.

That's the second mowing.

We'll still move the tractors out there (there's one in front already), and we'll let the girls take care of the raking for us. 

In the meantime things look a little better, don't you think?

  

And the neighbors got a contract.  Here's hoping they don't mind living across from The Chicken Lady and her motley crew!

The View From My Kitchen Window: September 17, 2013

Fall is progressing!

Homestead TV: A New Guest!

We had company last week. 

We met as I was going back to the house from tending chickens (of course).  I asked if he wouldn't mind waiting for me to go get my camera so that I could take a picture.  He graciously agreed.

And was good enough to pose for me.

We had a nice chat.  He thanked me for the abundance of bugs available in the garden.

 

He pointed out a couple fire ant beds that I had missed.

He declined my request for an autograph; he had left his pen in his other suit.

We parted on amicable terms and he promised to consider another interview in the future.

The View From My Kitchen Window: September 10, 2013

 

It won't be long before the bright red berries appear here.

"I am the vine and you are the branches.  He who abides in me and  I in him, he will bear much fruit; for apart from Me, you can do nothing"
John 15:5

This is the tree that makes me just a little bit nervous in bad storms.

More color each week